Teacher Voices Through the Years: Kaleidoscope’s Top Reads (Part 3)
Over the past month, we’ve been sharing the top 10 most read stories from our teacher-run and teacher-written journal, Kaleidoscope: Educator Voices and Perspectives. If you missed the earlier posts, you can catch up on articles #10 through #4 here and here.
Now, it’s time to reveal the top three most-read stories from our teacher-run and teacher-written journal. Despite being written years ago, these stories remain as impactful today as when they were first published. Let’s dive in!
#3: Teachers’ Lounge: To 403(b) or Not to 403(b) by Anne Watson
Originally published: Fall 2016/Winter 2017
Summary by Bev Stuckwisch
Anne Watson was a physics teacher in 2016, when she published with Kaleidoscope. Since then, she has served as mayor of Montpilier, Vermont and is now a Vermont State Senator—all while still teaching physics! Her article was a Teachers’ Lounge piece titled To 403(b) or Not to 403(b). I know when I was first looking into retirement information at the beginning of my career, I was overwhelmed by the amount of options and information that was out there. Anne’s article was particularly useful to me because it talks specifically about teachers. She describes retirement income as a 3-legged stool: Social Security, pension, and any retirement account you set up. That 3rd piece is where a 403(b) could come in! She even includes a handy flowchart to help you decide if a 403(b) is the right option for you. Ultimately, Anne decided not to open a 403(b) since she had a different type of account set up already, but this article is what helped me decide that I did want to open a 403(b) and it’s still going strong for me today!
#2: Connection Circles: How to Establish a Restorative Circle Practice by Eric Rasmussen
Originally published in Spring 2016
Summary by Rebecca Van Tassell
Eric Rasmussen wrote this piece in his second year of teaching, after applying a new approach in his classroom to address a very common challenge for new teachers. As a first year teacher, Eric described a negative feedback loop of disrespect from students, followed by dismissal of students from his classroom which contributed to a problematic classroom environment. Eric attended a professional development course entitled “Restorative Practices in the Classroom” provided by his school, which shed light on the issue he was having. One tool he learned about was the social discipline window, which identifies different approaches to discipline along the axes of support and control. In reflecting on his classroom, and the classrooms of teachers he admired, he realized where his own practice fit, where he aspired to be, and identified the changes he needed to make. In the article, Eric describes how he implemented the practice of connection circles, a tool from restorative justice practices, to build positive relationships and community in his classroom, and how this practice drastically changed the learning environment in his classroom, and his relationship with his students.
I love the way this piece seamlessly weaves together the story of his learning, the vulnerability he shows in describing his classroom, and the practical descriptions of how he implemented a new practice in his classroom. He reads the readers’ mind and addresses two serious concerns that teachers might have about implementing connection circles—whether high schoolers will buy into a seemingly childish practice and the sacrifice of instructional time. He shares responses from his students about the impact of the practice. I started using connection circles in my classroom, I have sent this article to colleagues, and used this article in workshops with other teachers to support them in implementing this practice. If you are looking for a high leverage practice, Eric’s article will give you a window into what this practice looks like in action.
#1: What Makes “Good” Teaching? by Heidi Park
Originally published in Fall 2016/Winter 2017
Summary by: Bev Stuckwisch
In 2016, as she embarked on her 4th year of teaching Chemistry in Chicago, Heidi Park wrote an article that continues to be one of our most highly read articles 8 years later. I’m sure many of you can relate to what Heidi was feeling when she started this inquiry—burnt out and questioning the oft held belief that to be a “good teacher” you have to do it all. She surveyed nearly a hundred people, both teachers and non-teachers, about what they thought was “good teaching.” She sorted the results into 3 categories: knowledge of content, pedagogy, and disposition toward teaching. The results painted a complex and nuanced picture of what it means to be a good teacher. As Heidi states in her conclusion,
In the long run, the features of good teaching that came from my simple survey seem unsustainable by a single teacher working in isolation but require the support of colleagues, administrators, parents, and policy makers. And good teaching is something that can be developed in a teacher, rather than something that a teacher either has or doesn’t.
I highly recommend that anyone in education read this piece, but it is a particularly great read for pre-service and early career educators, and in fact has already been shared widely in multiple teacher preparation programs.
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The four of us have been reflecting on this experience of rereading these articles and what it’s meant to us. We had a few reflections that we wanted to share. First, none of these folks set out to write a top ten article—instead they took their local story, the thing they cared about, a thing they hoped they had learned—and it turns out lots of other teachers have benefited from that work. Teachers can see themselves in other teacher stories. Second, one of things we loved—and that surprised us—was the wide range of stories that people want to read. They are uplifting, and they are vulnerable and troubling. They are intensely practical—the advice you needed to hear from the mentor you wish you had—and they live in the world of big ideas and theory. There isn’t a kind of story that teachers want to read; teachers want to hear, need to hear, and often don’t hear from other teachers. Finally, these aren’t stories of having it all figured out written when these teachers had wrapped things up. New teachers, mid-career teachers, veteran teachers—all are still learning and growing and expanding their practice. All have stories that are ready for prime time even if they may not feel like it yet.
Are you a teacher with a story to share? We encourage you to find a way to tell it: present at a teacher conference or work on a piece of writing for a journal. Other teachers will benefit from the stories you tell. Part of Kaleidoscope’s mission (and Knowles’) is to help teachers find their voice and provide a venue for teacher work. If you’ve got an idea for something you’d like to write, please reach out to us at kaleidoscope@knowlesteachers.org or you can ask for storytelling support at this link.