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By Lorraine Kasyan, July 28, 2009 11:36 am

BLC09 – I have arrived at the conference hotel and I am already soaking up the energy and enthusiasm surrounding me.  Last year’s conference made me hopeful and certain of my role in education and my place in the wider community of passionate educators who believe that we have the power to change the way students learn in today’s schools.  Pedro Noguera’s ending keynote offered us a challenge.

He said, among other things:

“Internal accountability is far more important than external accountability.”
“Schools don’t exist in a vacuum.”

“Academic excellence and equity are not conflicting goals, they are the same goals and worked on simultaneously.”

“We are stuck in practices that prevent us from truly educating kids at all levels.”
“Too many high school teachers confuse teaching with talking.”

“The best teachers teach the way kids learn.”

“Your background should not determine who should go to college.”

He asked:

“Who are the advocates in your school for the kids whose parents are too busy?”

“Who is in your basement?”

I asked his permission to share his keynote with you and he graciously responded – yes.  He wished me another great year.  I ask myself now, as I prepared to engage in this new, learning experience, have I met his challenge?  Am I reaching all learners, making learning equitable and accessible to all?  “Am I constantly modifying and changing?”

The link below will take you to a recording of the keynote.

Pedro Noguero Keynote 2008

I began last year with the fervent hope that I would use the abundance of ideas to propel learning in my classroom forward.  I made some strides and learned some big lessons.  Here at November Learning – teachers and stakeholders from all over the globe believe those strides can happen.  There should be no student left in the basement.

Thank you Alan for this opportunity for all of our students.

Let the learning begin.

Comments (10)

By Lorraine Kasyan, July 8, 2009 11:12 pm

While attending an organic, raised bed gardening workshop I was struck by the master gardener’s commentary on weeds. He was a proponent of heavy mulching, no worry about weeds emerging. “Have you ever wondered why you’d see old farmers tilling their fields in the moonlight? Why would they work so long into the night?” Well, the simple answer was weeds. They could go years without worrying about the pests as long as they didn’t turn the soil over in the sunlight. “Almost all the weed seeds need is a flash of sun to germinate.” He gave us this pearl of wisdom in support of his recommendation not to till our soil. I, however, had a huge ah hah moment. Weed seeds as students! Not because they are weeds, no let me say up front that I view them with reverence and appreciation. The analogy for me was speaking to our disenfranchised students, the ones who for whatever reason have not been ignited by learning. Maybe all they need is a bit of sun – a flash of light on their passions to inspire a fresh bloom of inquiry and engagement.

Wildflower

I look to technology for many of these sparks. Look what it has done for us as we network on Twitter and attend keynotes and workshops via chatrooms and video. My learning curve has soared; the Internet brings us ever closer to one another as co-creators of learning. With guidance and intent. I really do believe our students can inspire themselves and each other to discover uncharted waters of learning and discovery. But, the average school is filled with kids who have stories of ache, discomfort, abandonment, increasing financial worry, addictions, fear, and the list continues, to contend with. Yes, there are many students who come from loving homes and all of their needs both physical and emotional are met. They are all attempting to navigate a demanding social structure and ever changing societal landscape. Our kids have ‘stress.’ They move, change, respond and adapt faster than we can imagine. School is a hurdle they must jump and jump with skill if they have any chance of keeping up. Imagine how that must feel when you are starting out so far behind the others?

So, what if technology cannot break through? Maybe the flash that is needed will be a guest speaker, field trip, group project, or community service activity. Maybe it is a chance to share their views on a topic that doesn’t really fit into the curriculum seamlessly. Maybe if asked what they are interested in they would show us how to engage them. Maybe we have to start teaching them with the idea that we will till all the soil, in the blazing light of day, till one day they too find the topic or tool that germinates their learners’ heart.

I have always viewed teaching from my gardener’s eye – how original! I love to plant seeds and watch them grow. To dig deep into the rich earth, worms and all, and feel the aches of my labor sweetly as the day wanes. I viewed my students as flowers to tend with care; always looking for the right balance of tools, structure, understanding, surprise, vision, challenge, creativity, acceptance, and oh so many other things to stand for the sun, rich earth, water, and hard work in the school garden. Not all of my students can be categorized this way anymore. Their gardens are paved over, tattooed, spiked, and YouTubed. New forms of sunlight are going to be needed to germinate their learning seeds. This gardener is going to pay more attention to cultivating all growing things, plants, vegetables, and weeds alike.