Day 137: Active Monitoring

State Testing: Day 2 of 14

There are few things that teachers find more tedious than "Active Monitoring" during a standardized test.

Active Monitoring means that test administrators are actively engaged while students are working on the test, moving about the room so they can be aware of student's actions!

Active Monitoring IS NOT: 

Catching up on e-mail

Grading papers

Surfing the net

Taking a nap 

                                                                -STAAR Test Training

So no grading, no reading, no spacing out for the duration of test administration, which can be 3-4 hours at a time.

Teachers who manage to avoid this duty often feel as though they've won the lottery.

This is such an issue that multiple lists have been written that detail the things you can do while actively monitoring test administration.  These lists often include things such as: memorize the first, middle and last names of all student in the room, find items around the room that rhyme, practice reciting the alphabet backwards and time yourself.

Yesterday, I counted the ceiling tiles and arranged different ways of counting them, including chunking them into Tetris pieces and Dr. Mario pills.  I color coded them in my mind.

Today, I decided to take a more health-conscious approach.

I have been attempting to eat healthier and be more active.  I have fallen off of my running routine lately and with my schedule, having to pick my daughter up from school and my wife going to roller derby, going to the gym has not been as regular as I would like.

My phone logs my steps for me, so I marked down how many were recorded before testing started.  I also didn't want to wander aimlessly, so I selected a path that, while simple, didn't allow my mind to fall into autopilot.

After several circuits through the room, I decided that I wanted to find more statistics than just my steps/distance.  I timed how long it took for me to make 4 circuits, all of which fell within .5 seconds of each other.  I counted the number of steps that it took to get to the end of a column and how many to cross over to the next column.

I also decided that, in addition to keep the information, I should also mark down the path that I was taking, both as a list and as an annotated map of the room.

At the conclusion of today's testing, I had a nice amount of data, a scanned copy of which can be found below.

Here are the highlights:

Steps Taken: 8721
Steps per Circuit: 96
Time per Circuit: 50 seconds
Approx Distance: 4.3 miles
Approx # of Circuits: 90
Approx Time: 75 minutes

I actively monitored for 4.3 miles today!

Day 136: Course Selection

State Testing: Day 1 of 14

I spent the morning actively monitoring the state mandated tests for 8th graders.  I managed to get 4000 steps in a room that is approximately 600 square feet.  I made 9 Thumbs Up Circuits to make encourage students to do their best without violating the rules about test security.

As usual, I read the directions as though I were auditioning for MovieFone.

Our class schedule is strange for all of these testing days.  Students who aren't testing (mostly juniors and seniors, whom I teach) have a 3-hour delay.  They show up at the beginning of lunch.  In order to make sure that the morning classes don't get skipped, we have a rotating afternoon schedule.  Today, I saw the Physics kids, but I won't see them again until Thursday.  I won't see my 3rd and 4th periods until Wednesday.

Many students are opting to take these days off.  Those who DO show are having difficulty concentrating on anything.  I don't blame them at all.

I added a few columns to my grade book which let students see what percentage they need to earn for the 4th marking period in order to get a C, a B, or an A.

The juniors have received their course-selection sheets for next year as well.  I've been fielding lots of "Mr. Aion, will you sign my sheet so I can take AP Chemistry?"

I've had to have many hard talk with students that boil down to "You are capable of doing the work for that class, but as of now, you've yet to show me that you're willing to."

A large portion of my students, especially those who are brighter, seem to have the mentality of "I'll work in a harder class."

Hard work is a habit.  If you've spent the last 10 months building a habit of NOT working hard, it's going to be tough to switch back.

With that said, I recognize that I work my butt off for things that matter to me and often neglect those that bore me.

Day 135: The Tortoise and The Hare

Yesterday was the first student day since August of 2013 that I did not write a post here.  I just couldn't.  We had an early dismissal so that the district could attend the funeral.  I saw 4 of my classes and those were sparsely populated.  I sat and put in grades.

Yesterday was also the last day of the 3rd marking period.  This is the first year where I have seniors on my roster.  This means that students who fail my class are putting their graduation in jeopardy.

To this effect, I made a spread sheet.

There are fewer things that I find more satisfying that programming excel sheets.  I love being able to fill in a single block and have others auto-populate!  I am a nerd.


One of the science teachers sent me the excel sheet that he uses to calculate final grades.  On his, he plugs in the grades for the first 3 marking periods, scores on midterms and then fiddles with the numbers to find out what kids need to pass.

I started with his sheet and added a few columns.  When I input the grades already earned, my sheet calculated what the student needs to earn in the 4th marking period in order to earn a 60% for the year.  I also added a column that tells me if the student is in danger of not earning that score based on their past performance.

Then I color coded it!  If a student is guaranteed to pass the year, their score is coded blue.  Those who need at least a B have theirs coded as yellow with red being used for students who cannot mathematically pass.

On Monday, I plan to hand out form letters that say "You have X grade for the year.  In order to pass, you need Y in the 4th marking period.  I will help you achieve this, but ultimately, you need to be the one to earn it."


On top of all of this, I received an email yesterday that I suspect will be the first of many.  The substance essentially boiled down to "My child's college acceptance/scholarship requires him/her to have a certain GPA.  Right now, her/his grade in your class is putting that in jeopardy."


I am deeply torn by these types of emails.  I don't want to bump up the grade of a student who hasn't earned it, who hasn't demonstrated mastery of the concepts.  If a student is not successful in my class, especially though their inability or unwillingness to complete my assignments, I'm not sure how that will change in college.


The tortoise and the hare used to be a story that we used to tell kids that it's more important to be consistent.

Sometimes, that final sprint is enough to get you to the finish line.  Sometimes it isn't.


I know that they are the ones who choose to take a nap at the beginning of the race.  I know it's not my responsibility to carry them across the finish line.  I do what I can to shake them awake at the start of the race, but eventually, it's simply too late.

Day 133: Race and Safety

There is a blanket over the school.  Tomorrow is the funeral and the district is closing early so that students and staff can attend.

The district has already started receiving messages about the closing is inconsiderate to working parents.  Many of those letters have undertones (or overtones) of racism.  Since the student who passed away was white, several community members are claiming that the steps that are being taken would not have been had she been a minority.

I don't think this is true, but I don't think it's something that can be dismissed out of hand.  Regardless of the race, I think the district made the right decision to close.  The young woman has been a member of this district for her whole life.  Her mother is a teacher here and her grandmother was.  The number of teachers and students who had a connection to her can't be counted.

I believe that the same reaction would happen should a student of color also pass.

I hope that we never have to test my belief.


After school, I went to the funeral home for the viewing.  To say it was packed would be a massive understatement.  I arrived around 2:15 and didn't get into the parlour until almost 4.  The line of mourners wishing to pay their respects wound through the funeral home, out the door and around the building.  The parking lot was bursting, cars were parked on the road and busses from the school were dropping of students by the score.

I waited in line with a small group of students and we enjoyed each others company while we stood.

When we eventually made it into the funeral home, I found myself in the room with almost a hundred other people.  One of the students who spent much of the day with me yesterday, a close friend of the deceased, came out of the parlour.  Tears were streaming down her face and she was sobbing openly.

In an entire room of students, faculty, family, administrators and friends, she made a beeline for me, threw her arms around me and sobbed into my shoulder.

I stood there in the funeral home, amidst the crowd, holding my student while she wept.  I was at a loss for words, so I said nothing and just held her.

I am deeply honored and humbled that she was able to find safety with me, that I was able to provide her with that space, even in a crowded room.

Day 132: The Aftermath

Yesterday, one of the students in the high school put up a tweet that could be considered thoughtless and foolish at best, and malicious and evil at worst.

The student in question is a professed Satanist and has since stated that he meant no offense by his comment, that it was a poor choice of tone.  True or not, I do believe him.

The school went into revolt.  This student was threatened repeatedly and was confronted numerous times online yesterday and in person today.  Swift intervention of faculty, staff and administration kept it from escalating.

These incidents however, allowed me to have a conversation with one of my classes about perspective and actions.  Going off of the assumption the student in question was genuine about his beliefs, his comment could be seen as a poorly worded version of the Christian statement "he's with Jesus now."  This statement is not well-received by non-Christians because that's not their belief system.

I am in no way justifying the actions of this student.  I believe his comment was thoughtless, callous and attention seeking.

Regardless of my thoughts on this, it happened and now we are dealing with the aftermath.  I spoke to my students about the need to understand where others base themselves.

"You come around a corner and see your friend fighting someone you don't know.  You're going to join in and help your friend, right?"
"Well yeah!"
"What if your friend was the aggressor?  What if your friend started the fight and did so in a way that you can't justify?"
"...I would still help him because he's my boy."
"And if he punch the other kids little brother and stole his shoes?"
"Nah, he's on his own."
"You've already made the judgement to jump in without the knowing the story."

This was a much more involved conversation, but it seemed to me that many of the students were beginning to see that things were much more complicated than they had thought.

If a guy drives up onto the sidewalk and hits a child, he's to blame.  If the child runs out between cars and the man runs him over, the man may not be to blame.  The intent was different, but the result is the same.


After the student put up his tweet, other students immediately began calling him on it.  I asked my students what would happen if they bumped someone in the hall and that person starting screaming at them.  Almost every person in my class said they would flip out.  We talked about how, like most wild animals, teenagers get their backs up when confronted.  Even if they KNOW that they are in the wrong, it's difficult for them to back down.

Most adults can't do this either.

The fact that the tweeting student didn't offer and apology that they found acceptable was another version of this.  Even if he realized that he was in the wrong, which he did, it was very difficult to apologize with everyone attacking him.  In addition, if he felt those attacks were genuine attacks on his professed religion, it would make it even more difficult.


In the midst of grief, mourning and sadness, I'm glad that I was able to have a rational conversation with students about perspective and putting yourself in the shoes of someone else.

We teach more than content.  Sometimes, just sometimes, we get to teach empathy.

I only wish that it didn't take a tragedy for my students to be willing to listen.

Day 131: Death of a Student

About 6 weeks into the school year, a colleague approached me to talk about one of my students.  He told me that she enjoyed my class, but that it was a major source of anxiety for her.  She was afraid of me and, even though she was falling behind, she didn't want to ask for help.

At that point, I had spoken with her a few times.  I knew that she had some thing going on, including several medical issues, but I didn't know the extent or the severity.  She was in a particular complicated and difficult class and, being one of the more quiet students, didn't always receive the attention that she wanted or needed.

After my colleague spoke with me, I pulled her aside and told her that I wanted to help her however I could.  Her medical issues sometimes caused her to fall behind in class, but she started coming to me to keep me up to date with her situation.

We started developing a better relationship and she began to confide in me about some of the things that were going on in her life.

About 5 months ago, her attendance became sporadic and eventually dropped off completely.  She began spending more time in the hospital for her condition.

Yesterday morning, I received a message letting me know that she had passed away.

I have no idea how to process my feelings.

I am devastated for her friends and family.  I hugged my children tighter yesterday and can't even imagine what it would be to lose one of them.  Several of my students broke down in tears today and I did what I could to comfort them.  I gave out hugs and comforting arm squeezes, but it's never enough.  Nothing that I, or anyone, can do to make this alright because it's not.

I am deeply honored to have known her and I'm grateful that I was able to make a connection with her before she left school.  I looked forward to her smile and her "Hi, Mr. Aion" each morning.

I checked in with her regularly to see how she was feeling.

I feel deep regret that I didn't check in with her once she left the school.  I thought about her almost every day, but never reached out.

Above all of this, I feel selfish for even trying to analyze my own feelings.  This tragedy isn't about me at all.

I'm doing what I can to be available to the students who need it.  My district is providing counseling for those who seek it, but I personally reached out to her friends.  I let them know how sorry I was for their loss and told them that if they wanted to talk, or just wanted a place to come and be quiet, my room was available.  Several of them took me up on the offer and spent a period telling me stories about her life.

We do what we can to protect our students, but there are some things that are out of our hands.
She was a remarkable, courageous, clever and kind young woman.  There are countless people who are grieving today, both and out of school.  I did not know her as well as would have liked, but I know I will miss her as well. 

**Edit**

The funeral for this young woman is on Thursday.  Our school will be having an early dismissal and providing busses to faculty, staff and students who wish to attend.

Day 130: Misogyny

Warning: The following post contains language not appropriate for school, or polite society.  I write the words in here as direct quotes from students.


I frequently find myself appalled and disgusted by the way some of my student talk about women, trans people and homosexuals.

A few examples that stick in my mind from the last week:


Two girls and a guy is super cool, but two guys and a girl is gay as hell.

I would never disrespect a female, but bro, this b*tch had the nastiest p***y.

I wouldn't ever be with a b*tch with small tits, I don't care how good she sucks it.


In addition to this, the boys have no problem talking about their numerous sexual escapades, real or imagined, but as soon as a female student mentions sexuality, she's immediately labeled a slut, a smut, or a thot.

I try to address comments when they crop up, but it's exhausting and unending.  If I try to engage them in a serious conversation about this topic, I am often told "it's not that serious" and it doesn't matter since they are talking to their friends.

In many cases, addressing the issue at all earns me the response of "Man, we're not talking to you, stay over there" or "This is Astronomy. Why don't you just teach us about space and leave us alone."

Recently, I've been cutting the conversation short and telling them to not have those discussions in my classroom.  This makes me feel like a coward because instead of confronting the ignorance and bigotry, I'm pushing it off onto someone else

I feel incredibly protective of my students, especially my female students.  I want my room to be a safe space.  The few students that I've asked about this tell me that they are used to it.

This response makes me incredibly sad.  They shouldn't HAVE to be used to it.  They shouldn't feel as though it is the norm, that it's something to be born.

This is not acceptable.



Interestingly, I noticed that very rarely do the students actually harass students who are openly gay.  They use "gay" as a derogatory term for each other, but it doesn't seem to matter to them when two boys in a relationship walk down the hall holding hands.

I've been told that the cultural reason for this is that it has nothing to do with sexuality, but rather about pretending to be someone else.  Closested students are made fun of, but openly gay students are left alone.

I'm not sure how true this is, but it does make a kind of sense and is consistent with what I know of my students.


I need to do a better job nipping this behavior in the bud right from the start of the year.  I cannot allow my students to think that such talk is acceptable.