segue

September 1st, 2017

I love my job, my career. Who would have guessed in 1993 starting out as a young teacher that I’d be working today to ensure the path of Fine Arts in a district like GISD? True, I’m here for the students, but I am also and in a more significant way here for the teachers. The experts in the field. The ones who make the magic happen.

Five years ago if you’d asked me if I would be in administration I would have tilted my head and asked you what was wrong with you. But here I am. I love supporting teachers and directors in the arts. It is a passion of mine. It isn’t easy. Much harder than I thought it would be. But I love it.

I feel so fortunate that I am in a position to do such good. I hope that our Fine Arts faculty feels my love and support. My standards represent the values and beliefs of our district and I am confirmed in the fact that our teachers and students deserve the very best. That means so much is expected of us.

What a mission. I simply hope that I do a better job tomorrow than I did yesterday.

copyright ©2008‑2019 carol j watson

everyday hero

June 2008

As proud members of the teaching profession in an age when media prefers stories of failed teachers and scandalized schools, let us endeavor to remember our role as everyday hero. For every “newsworthy” story of a teacher or school that casts shame or doubt on our profession let us endeavor still to remember that there are hundreds of tales of everyday heroism, professionalism, and courage that exist at our individual schools alone. Ultimately, it up to us as advocates of public education to stand firm and strong in our beliefs, to elevate our profession every single day, and to both honor and serve the children we are called to educate.

Consider the following:

Love what you do. If you don’t love teaching, please leave teaching. If you don’t love your current situation, please do everything in your power to improve it. A former superintendent shared this with our district faculty one year, and I was shocked at the purity and simplicity of the message. I reflect upon it often, as I believe it to be the gold standard in teacher education, leadership, and mentoring.

Hold empathy and compassion close to your heart. Raising children, teaching children, and being a child — all these things can be difficult at times. Keep these qualities at the forefront of your thoughts, words, and actions when interacting with children, parents, and coworkers.

Remember to set personal goals as well as professional ones. Take the time to nurture a passion outside of school, if even only in a small way. Share your passion, and encourage your students and coworkers to do the same. Remember one of the most important components of being a teacher is never forgetting what it is like to be a learner.

Embrace professionalism, responsibility, and accountability and expect it to be the standard in your classroom, campus, and community.

View setbacks, mistakes, and failure differently. Failure, while unfortunate, frustrating, and usually avoidable, can be used to facilitate future growth and learning. Don’t be afraid of mistakes, but don’t excuse them away, either. Face them, help your students learn to face them, then find the path to success from failure. All students, regardless of their demographic group, need to be taught how to pick themselves up from failure and missteps; this requires positive role models and opportunities designed to turn the tide on failure.

Finally, congratulate yourself and those around you. You’ve taken up an important mantle, and no one understands the importance of what teachers do like teachers themselves. Remain an active and integral part of your campus and community, and continue to lift up the lives of the children you teach. And remember, you are an everyday hero.

copyright ©2008‑2019 carol j watson

education issues and trends

June 2008

The major issues facing public education today cover a myriad of challenges reflected in our complex and diverse society. Some high-profile issues that must be faced by national, regional, and state legislators and educational entities include, but are not limited to, the following: Student and teacher accountability, violence, drugs and crime in public schools, the impact of poverty on children and their education, immigration, globalization of the marketplace, and the appropriate use of the internet, electronic media, and other high-tech trends. I would like to address the issue of immigration and its impact on the democratic nature of public education.

Living in Texas, one cannot escape the effects of immigration on public education. Immigration, particularly that of illegal immigrants from Mexico, permeates every social service organization, every health providing establishment, every school district, and every serious conversation about educating all of the children within our borders and district boundaries. However, I fervently believe that as an educator I have a very different approach to dealing with this issue than would a business owner or legislator. This is a complex issue, not to be solved in this humble essay. Nevertheless, I think I have some important ideas to share and will attempt to do so now.

The cause of immigration to the United States is primarily an economic one. Men and women in Mexico are no different that men and women in the United States of America. They seek to provide for their families, often deciding to risk their very lives in order to enter our country illegally to look for work. Given the dominance of the American Farming Industry, the often overlooked effects of legislation and subsidies, the abysmally slow process for Mexican workers entering the U.S. legally, and the dismal economic outlook in the country of Mexico, opportunities in the U.S. for Mexicans and their families often outweigh the risks associated with crossing the border illegally. So they come. They come knowing that they will live a life in limbo, in frequent danger of deportation or crimes of predation. They know that they will be vulnerable, but they also know that in spite of that there are benefits for their children such as improved health care and social services, and that their children will have access to public education.

The effects of this kind of immigration are far reaching and divisive. At one end of the spectrum, immigrants (specifically illegal ones) are seen by immigration advocates as pawns of a destructive game of global chess, where the major players are corporate America and its government. At the other end of the spectrum, these same immigrants are held in highest contempt and fear, debased because of their very presence in our society and the strain their presence places on American citizens and establishments. Negative economic effects in the United States are seen where illegal immigrants live in greatest number: Border states and regions with an agricultural and industrial stronghold. These areas of the United States suffer from health care collapse, strain on social services, and overwhelmed school districts seeking to meet the educational needs of the children within their boundaries. Illegal immigrants also affect the labor force where they live in both positive and negative ways, as they are an essential component of most industries dependent upon a work force skilled in and willing to do hard or menial labor. Many in the U.S. claim that these workers take jobs from Americans, although that is constantly a matter of dispute.

In order to resolve this matter, Americans need to address the motivation behind the problem. American industry must think differently about the role immigrants play, and be a part of the solution. Currently, some American companies are establishing themselves as intermediaries between potentially illegal immigrants and the companies who might hire them. By encouraging Mexican workers (typically farm workers) to enter the country legally with work visas, these companies are acting as advocating agencies that will unite the workers with employers, secure stable wages and living conditions, and in general reduce the risks associated with entering the U.S. illegally by eliminating the illegality itself. In addition to conventional (albeit controversial and expensive) means of policing the borders, law enforcement must endeavor to reach out to immigrant communities in their area. Positive social pressure must be applied to encourage citizenship, and the national government must make citizenship, or at least legal work status, easy to achieve. Immigrants, illegal or legal, play an important part in the building of this country.

Any discussion of immigration covers the huge expanse of economics, sociology, psychology, social anthropology, and national identity. However, the most often overlooked and least powerful players on this dramatic national stage are the children of these immigrants. As an educator who believes vehemently in the intrinsically democratic nature of public education, what happens to these children is of paramount importance to me. Many of these children are American citizens born to illegal immigrant parents, but with the birthright of an American nonetheless. Some are not. Some are as illegal as their parents, and had little, if any, say in coming to America. Language and cultural barriers truly make the children of immigrants the quintessential second class citizen.

Therefore, all educators must embrace the opportunity to teach and serve these children within our borders. It is in our best national interests to do so. If we deliver an education to these children with the same passion we hold for American children, we create an educated population with goals, aspirations, and dreams — if not citizenship status. Such generosity, dedication, and democratic principles will not be lost on these children. Citizenship, if not already a birthright, will be a goal. Productive leadership, diverse cultural understanding, and support for the entity of public education will be fruits borne from this labor. As teachers, we must strive to teach all children; to give them a new lease on life regardless of the limitations of their parents and communities. Committed school districts, administrators, and teachers understand that children on the receiving end of compassionate education stay out of gangs, away from crime, aspire to higher education and are productive citizenry. It is only through public education that a real answer exists.

copyright ©2008‑2019 carol j watson

philosophy of teaching

June 2008

In the marketplace of public education, a trade exists between teacher and student. There is supply in the form of information, pedagogy, and philosophy, and demand that manifests in grades, test scores, diplomas, self-image, learner competency, and effective citizenship. The single most important element in this marketplace is the currency utilized by an effective teacher.

While I fall short of excelling in economics, I believe I have a firm grasp on this concept of currency held by effective teachers. This currency, in fact, is the essence of what makes a teacher successful: The willingness and capacity of a teacher to have a meaningful relationship with each and every child he or she teaches. The currency we teachers trade in is our connection to a student’s psyche, a child’s soul. The more willing we are to personalize and signify interaction with each student, the greater the impact we ultimately have. It is not so much what we do for a child that matters. It is the way we do it that defines our ability to reach and teach the students entrusted to our care.

A deep passion for teaching, adherence to both academic excellence and personal integrity, humor and natural camaraderie balanced with the willingness to allow children to experience the natural consequences of mistakes — these concepts are embedded in my personal belief system, and cannot be separated from who I am or how I teach. I also bring realism and honesty to the classroom, and encourage every child to learn objective self-evaluation. In a world of ubiquitous electronic media messages, the ability to see oneself objectively and realistically is an essential personal tool. These ideals, combined with my belief in the student-teacher relationship, help me succeed in the profession I love.

As with most teachers who love what they do, my rewards are often anecdotal in nature, deeply personal, and usually stumbled upon when least expected. My reward, my profit in the marketplace of education if you will, is the look of pride in student’s eyes at the end of a hard-fought, well-done project. It is the sudden realization on a student’s face that he or she could accomplish a difficult or new task after all. My rewards are sometimes the result of my above-average hearing — overheard snippets of conversation between two students talking about how they love coming to my class or wishing they had my class every day. It is the parents who go out of their way to thank me for making a difference in the way their child sees himself, perhaps with a newfound understanding of his ability to persevere, to take a risk, or to succeed in school when it has always been so hard before. As an art teacher and an artist, my reward is also the tender beauty of my young students’ art. In my eyes their projects are priceless, irreplaceable, rivals to works of the masters held in museum inventories. My reward is knowing that in creating a work of art, a child has attached a part of his or her life to it, and as the child grows the art will stay fixed as a reminder of who they are and whence they came.

copyright ©2008‑2019 carol j watson

the teaching profession

June 2008

At its best, the teaching profession is a conglomerate of talented, dedicated, and intelligent citizenry called to act in the best interests of children and society. It inspires great thought and action, and is at the heart of every advance, success, and achievement. The teaching profession, and those who are its standard bearers, are respected, commended, and even loved. It is with great pride that I say I am a member of the teaching profession.

The teaching profession is organized in many ways, from the national level to local, and even campus, level. While I view membership in at least a state level organization to be an important part of teaching, it is what I contribute at the district and campus level that is most significant and meaningful to me. Examples of what I do to strengthen and improve the teaching profession at the campus level are varied and represent my belief system as citizen, teacher, co-worker, and friend. Leadership and mentoring are extremely important at the campus level. I gladly step up to leadership positions when needed, and offer guidance and support to new teachers, whether they are merely new to our campus or are beginning teachers. I enjoy listening more than talking, and I often find coworkers coming to me to bounce off new ideas, improve their lessons and units, blow off steam, cry on my shoulder, or seek advice. When I do talk, I strive to promote communication, encourage those who need it, de-escalate frustrations without judgment, and increase everyone’s daily dose of laughter. Teaching is one of the hardest jobs on Earth, and without teamwork, empathy, energy, and a really good sense of humor, it is very hard to do. I am extremely fortunate to be one small part of an incredible faculty, and we all contribute our strengths to the overall health and well-being of the teaching profession on our campus.

Few things stir controversy and debate more than accountability in the teaching profession. Test scores and other evaluative tools have their place in showing student intellectual growth, and therefore the success of the teacher as an academic facilitator. However, when those are used as the sole measure of a teacher’s worth, a truly myopic view of that teacher (and of the teaching profession) results. Accountability is a multifaceted concept, much as teachers are a diverse group of individuals with multiple and varied strengths and weaknesses. The teacher evaluation system used by administrators is also a valuable tool, but again should not be used as a monologue of teacher performance.

A more realistic method, albeit more difficult to print in a newspaper headline or summarize in a television news report, is a holistic, local level approach to accountability. When a balanced approach combining appli- cable test results, administrative evaluations and reviews, and other factors such as a teacher’s ability to work effectively and efficiently as a team member are considered, then a bigger picture of a teacher’s effectiveness comes into focus. Other factors to consider at a holistic level are a teacher’s curricular competency, classroom management proficiency, prior and ongoing education and training, professional development, leadership at campus and local levels, and even information that can be subjective in nature, such as student, parent, and co-worker feedback. Teachers should also be an integral element of their own accountability. Just as we encourage students to evaluate the quantity and quality of their own learning experiences, so should we encourage teachers to identify their areas of strength and weakness, and set goals for personal and professional growth. This feedback should also be used for end of the year evaluation and accountability.

Communities and school districts should resist the urge to quantify individual teachers, schools, and even districts based on test results alone. While this type of quick portrait yields some useful information, it ignores the fact that teaching children is a dynamic endeavor. Schools reflect the mores and priorities of a community, and while exemplary test scores are everyone’s goal, other indicators of success must not be ignored or left out of the evaluative equation. Other important indicators of district and school success include concepts such as student participation in community service, charitable work, and fine arts. As excitable as the news agencies and state legislators get about test scores, the general public expects schools and teachers to educate students and assist in creating a vigorous workforce and citizen pool. And as long as there are members of the teaching profession around, that is exactly what the general public will get, and then some.

copyright ©2008‑2019 carol j watson