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Friday, July 28, 2006
Teachers, How Much Do You Want To Know?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Last year I visited a south Fulton school that won acclaim from the state board for high test scores among poor, minority children. I learned a lot from the young, energetic principal. I was impressed that he encouraged his teachers to have gym memberships or some other type of exercise regime, and to have a full life outside of school. He didn’t want them to burn out.
But something else he said really struck me. We were talking about pre-planning, and I asked if teachers were already familiar with their students through their records by the time the first day of school came around.
“Oh, no,” he said.
Teachers should not review their students’ records, because the information might give them preconceived notions of how a child will behave or score on tests, he said. He wanted the child to have a clean slate. He wanted the teacher to approach each child with the expectation that the child was going to have a successful year.
Teachers, do you review your students’ files before you meet them? Or do you take the clean slate approach? Parents, would you want your child’s new teacher to review your child’s file before the first day of class?
