Thanks to everyone who came in this Back to School Night. I felt really good about the turnout; it feels great to have such support from the parents at SAMOHI.
As promised, here are the links to the presentations I delivered. I have saved them as Adobe PDF files. They were originally created on Keynote (Mac), which, when converted to Powerpoint (Windows), tends to produce formatting errors.
Bear in mind that the presentations can be viewed through the Scribd viewer, as well as downloaded.
English 9p
English 10hp
Shakespeare Lit
I also feel it's important to recap certain ideas that we discussed tonight. Feel free to post a response to this blog if any of this reaches you.
Leadership / Teamwork
My work in leadership and teamwork is based on one concept:
Do What's Needed for the Whole
The "Whole" what? That question has a lot of answers. If I gave this question on a multiple choice test, one could imagine these answer choices:
A) The Whole Class
B) The Whole Brain or MindC) The Whole Community
D) The Whole Human Race
E) All living things on this earth
Student Teaching
If I'm doing my job correctly, my students will learn everything that I know. It is my goal that by the end of the year, my students should be able to replace me as teacher. I will no longer be needed, and can step aside, proud that my work has taught the next generation to carry the torch.
Whether or not we reach my goal remains to be seen. But you can bet I'll be working hard towards this goal, and in the process giving students more and more of the reins as they prove themselves ready to lead. However, I cannot hand over the reins until I see that my students--all of my students--are ready to do what is needed to make our classroom work.
Feedback - From Parents and Students
I'm open to your feedback, good and bad. I want feedback because it helps me know what is connecting and what is not. In addition, feedback helps me know what's out there. You may know of a great movie that links up with our learning in class. Or, you may know that tickets are on sale for a certain Shakespeare play. There are lots of exciting things worth exposing students to that I am not aware of. So hit me up. I'm very flexible in the way that I teach, and tailor my approach based on the feedback I receive.
So thanks again, and please be in touch.
Best,
Mr. Surrago
While we can debate the merits of all of these answer choices--A and C are pragmatic, D and E lofty, and B intriguing--in my classes, the correct answer is not listed: all of the above.
It's sometimes difficult to distinguish "what's needed" from "what I want". Without experience and guidance, it is very difficult for students to learn this skill. For this reason, I will be giving my students continual practice with this piece.
As a teacher, I remind my students that I teach based on whatever is needed in class at that moment--it's not a matter of my or someone else's personal preference. I often don't get what I want in class; I wish we had more time for debates, more time for reading, more time for timed writing. However, my job as a leader is to do whatever is needed for the whole at any given moment.
As a leader in class, I'm not better or worse than anyone: I simply have the skill to see what's needed. The same is true of all leaders: if they do their jobs correctly, there is no ego involved. It's simply a role. People tend to lead in their areas of strength, and follow in their areas of weakness.
I know from experience that these skills are necessary for us to participate successfully in a global community--a reality we rapidly advance towards with each passing day.
Student Teaching
If I'm doing my job correctly, my students will learn everything that I know. It is my goal that by the end of the year, my students should be able to replace me as teacher. I will no longer be needed, and can step aside, proud that my work has taught the next generation to carry the torch.
Whether or not we reach my goal remains to be seen. But you can bet I'll be working hard towards this goal, and in the process giving students more and more of the reins as they prove themselves ready to lead. However, I cannot hand over the reins until I see that my students--all of my students--are ready to do what is needed to make our classroom work.
Feedback - From Parents and Students
I'm open to your feedback, good and bad. I want feedback because it helps me know what is connecting and what is not. In addition, feedback helps me know what's out there. You may know of a great movie that links up with our learning in class. Or, you may know that tickets are on sale for a certain Shakespeare play. There are lots of exciting things worth exposing students to that I am not aware of. So hit me up. I'm very flexible in the way that I teach, and tailor my approach based on the feedback I receive.
So thanks again, and please be in touch.
Best,
Mr. Surrago
