Month: May 2019

Education, TeachingLeave a comment

Be Observed at Your Worst

Jason Simon

First, some caveats. If being observed is tied to a performance review or your continued employment as a teacher, disregard this. Prepare and perform your very best teaching. Implicitly threaten your students or bribe them with free time to be on their best behavior. Do whatever you have to do to survive. If that’s not the case, though, and if you’re being observed as a teacher informally or as part of an ongoing low-stakes growth and development plan, consider this: observing a teacher delivering a lesson scripted, rehearsed and designed specifically for the purpose of being observed is a pointless … Continue reading Be Observed at Your Worst

DP Lang & Lit, Education, MYP Lang & LitLeave a comment

Day 9 Activity: Brain Massage

Jason Simon

This year at my school, we started a new initiative called Day 9. It’s an off-timetable day at the end of each of our regular 8-day rotations where students are able to sign up for extra tutorials or workshops on academics, athletics, creativity or wellness. Like many schools these days, we’re exploring opportunities for self-direction, co-construction, student agency, etc. It’s also a day where we can schedule assessments that would normally require multiple blocks of class time. I ran the Individual Oral Commentary (IOC) internal assessments in DP Language & Literature this year over two Day 9s, and our Grade … Continue reading Day 9 Activity: Brain Massage