technology

Getting computers into students’ hands

Posted on by Mark Isero

 We can’t expect students to graduate from a college-prep high school without a computer and Internet at home. It’s just not fair. One student goes home and hops on her laptop with wireless connection, and the other has to hop on two buses to compete for a workstation at the public library.

That’s why I’m giving out computers this year that students can keep.

They’re donations from friends or from strangers on Craigslist. I usually ask around every month or so. There are so many perfectly good, five-year-old computers out there that my students can use. (Note: The donor chooses whether the computer stays in the classroom or goes home with a student.)

The only trick is determining which student should get the computer. Right now, the criteria are (1) you don’t have a computer, (2) you do have Internet.

My colleagues may criticize me for not making this a larger, all-school program. Others argue that all donated computers should remain at the school (even though classroom space is tight). Indeed, perhaps the way I’m doing this is inequitable or wrongheaded. But at least I’m getting computers into students’ hands.

Besides, it’s not like this is a big part of my job. It’s just clear that some students are struggling in school because of the digital divide. Therefore, if I can find an easy way to erase that obstacle, I should go ahead and do it.

If you know someone who would like to donate a desktop or laptop computer to my students, please let me know! 

reading/teaching

Kindle library lending is great for teachers

Posted on by Mark Isero

 I just checked out my first Kindle book from the San Francisco Public Library.

This makes me very happy.

This combines two of my favorite things to do: reading on my Kindle and getting good stuff for free.

It gets even better: At the end of my 21-day loan period, the book gets automatically returned to the library. No chance for pesky overdue fees!

And here’s the best thing: I can share that book over WiFi with all six Kindles in my classroom. (Thanks, Wil, for the recent donation!)

It’s all pretty neat. The only question is what to do once I get more than six Kindles. (My goal is 24.) Does that mean that I have to check out multiple copies (ostensibly from different libraries)? Or does the six-Kindle-limit rule not apply to library copies? 

teaching

How I’m making grammar more personal

Posted on by Mark Isero

 It’s becoming clear that if my students are to pass the AP test in May, they’ll need to improve a lot on their grammar.

After all, on the exam, students must write three essays in two hours. And the essays can’t have errors. Right now, my students’ essays average 10-20 errors after a week of revision.

It’s becoming clear that grammar is their nemesis.

For my students, they’ve dealt with grammar all their lives. It’s like a parasite they’d like to forget about. One student says that grammar problems “pop up” in her writing, maybe like measles. My students can find mistakes in others’ essays but have trouble finding them in their own. Grammar mistakes are invisible until someone else spots them.

It’s time for my students to feel urgency about grammar. Grammar can’t be something out there that is plaguing them. My students must be in control.

That’s why I’m making grammar more personal this year. Here are some ways I’m doing that:

1. Online writing mentors are vigorously identifying grammar patterns. I’ve told the mentors to push, to be ruthless, to identify grammar problems and not to let them go until students demonstrate improvement.

2. Students are logging their growth in grammar and their next steps. Instead of just fixing their mistakes, students reflect on which grammar issues they’re improving and which ones still remain.

3. Grammar Camp begins this week! Groups of four students will participate in a month-long intensive camp with me that focuses on grammar discipline. The outcomes are to eradicate students’ most pressing grammar problems but also to heighten students’ urgency and precision toward grammar.

4. Grammar coaches begin their work this week! Students who need additional help will be teamed up with grammar coaches for one-on-one help, once a week, until May. This is a huge commitment, and it’s telling the student, “You’d better improve quickly. Your grammar coach demands it.”

This is a lot. I’d like to thank my friends — Tony, Michele, Jonathan, Elisa — for their help on this effort. It’s great to see so much interest in this project. 

teaching

Am I doing enough to prepare kids for AP?

Posted on by Mark Isero

 I’m doing a lot so far this year to give my students a shot to pass the AP English Literature exam in May.

Office hours twice a week. Reading and reviewing weekly essays. Getting each student an online writing mentor. Starting up Grammar Camp. Asking for computer donations.

I’m easily working 15 hours a week on this class alone. If I had a full schedule, I’m not sure I could keep this up.

But when I read an article like “Incentives for Advanced Work Let Pupils and Teachers Cash In,” recently in The New York Times, I question whether my effort will be enough.

Writer Sam Dillon focuses his piece on the National Math and Science Initiative, a program that gives money and resources to schools that increase the pass rates of students of color on AP exams. But for me, the heart of the article is teacher Joe Nystrom, whose skill and energy seem unparalleled.

We all know, after all, that while money and resources make a difference, the most important factor to student success is the quality of the teacher.

And so far this year, I’m finding out that I can be effective. But a lingering question remains: Is what I’m doing enough?

My quick answer is no. For example, Mr. Nystrom’s students attend Saturday classes. Mine don’t. He does lessons on YouTube. I don’t. His students get one-on-one tutoring. Mine don’t.

Although I understand that this is my first year teaching AP, and that I don’t have a partnership with a national nonprofit organization, and that it’s not sustainable to spend 20 hours a week on one class, I also realize that my students won’t pass unless I do more.

A good example is grammar. In my last post, I wrote that my students need individual help on their grammar if they’re going to improve. If I provided that help, it would increase my workload by at least seven hours a week. So my idea was to recruit people to come to the school one day a week to work with students.

So far, that project is very slow going. It’s hard to get strangers to devote two hours a week (1 hour with students, 1 hour traveling back and forth), particularly for no pay. Local writing centers and universities have also said no. It looks like this is going to be a one-by-one, word-of-mouth project that might take months to get off the ground.

Problem is, we don’t have months to spare. I believe strongly that my students have the work ethic to bridge the AP gap. They don’t need a financial reward to entice them. They need instruction and time with skilled coaches. I am hopeful that I’ll have the energy to pull this off. 

teaching

Gearing up for Grammar Camp!

Posted on by Mark Isero

 I’m reading AP essays tonight, and I’m impressed by my students’ thinking and their growth as writers.

At the same time, I’m becoming alarmed by their grammar and how it’s not improving quickly enough.

The majority of my students learned English as their second language. This means their essays contain many grammar errors. This also means there’s a huge gap between their level of analysis, which is getting better, and their ability to convey their thinking without distraction.

If we don’t figure out grammar, there’s no way my students will pass the AP exam in May.

Unfortunately, grammar errors are stickier than bad organization, general thesis statements, and unclear topic sentences. Grammar errors are very difficult to eradicate.

What to do?

Already, my students — along with their online writing mentors — are identifying patterns in their grammar mistakes. And there is good news: Some students have progressed. Still, the errors are so many, and so egregious, that I’m concerned.

I know it’ll take time, but we don’t have that much time.

Therefore, I’m launching Grammar Camp next week, where small groups of four students will meet with me after school to work intensively on their individual grammar concerns. My hope is that with some targeted practice, my students will move through some of their grammar stumbling blocks.

This effort, however, will not be enough. After all, there are 23 students, each with unique and significant grammar challenges. Sure, I could send my students to the Purdue Online Writing Lab or to Grammar Girl, both excellent resources. But to deal substantively with grammar, my students need in-person, one-on-one support — likely for 20-30 minutes a week.

In short, I need to find grammar coaches for each of my students.

This is a big project. But I think it’s crucial. There’s no way that I can devote 30 minutes a week per student, but perhaps I can find people who are willing to make that commitment.

Unlike the writing mentors, whom I found all in one week, securing grammar coaches will take time. I’m hoping City College or SF State might send over some volunteers. However I figure it out, it has to happen. Let me know if you have ideas!