The following is in response to a questionnaire that I recently completed. Hope it is helpful-
Patrick Fariss
Coppell, TX
Questions:
* What and where do you teach?
Pre-AP Algebra I and Pre-AP Geometry
Coppell, TX
* How long have you been teaching?
6 Years
* What inspired you to teach?
As a college student-athlete my lifelong goal had been to be a teacher and a coach. After spending time teaching and coaching, I realized my true passion was in the classroom. Interacting with students and making a difference in the lives of my students has been a motivating factor in career choice. Also, having had a number of differnence-making teachers in my education past helped me to understand the impact a teacher can have.
* What classroom methods are most helpful in pushing students towards
their goals?
Engaging students and developing relationships have been most important in helping students reach their goals. When students know that you care about them and have their best interest at heart, they strive to do their best. By engaging students with creative lessons and technology, our classroom is an exciting place where learning occurs and students excel.
* What is the one thing you wish you'd known when you started in the
classroom? (i.e. advice for new teachers).
The advice that I wish I had received is to work to build relationships with students and parents from day 1. When parents and students know that you have their sons and daughters best interest in mind, they may not always agree, but they will support you and appreciate your efforts.
* If you have a masters in education:
o What did your training teach you that was most helpful in
preparing you to enjoy and thrive in a classroom today?
I was fortunate during my graduate classes to learn how to design engaging lessons and to talk with other teachers as to best practices in education. My graduate classes were starting to incorporate technolgy, but as technology evolves, it is vital that we embrace the technology that our digitally-native students see on a daily basis.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Dallas White Rock Marathon 2009
This past Sunday, I just completed my 4th straight Dallas White Rock Marathon and 9th overall. WhiteRock2009 The question that I am most often asked is "Why do you do it?" I am yet to have an answer despite much thought and consideration. Is it an addiction? A sickness? The best I can come up with is that involves a pursuing a goal. While my time is not impressive, I did finish. In the same way, it may take us longer than we expect to reach our goals, but as long as we keep the end in sight and persevere, success is possible. I walked more than would like the last few miles, but I kept moving. I think that is applicable in much of what we do. There are hills and valleys, pain and setbacks, but the key is to keep moving! And that is what I did for 4 hours and 35 minutes on a beautiful Sunday morning-
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
10,000 Hours
Malcolm Gladwell's book Outliers discusses the 10,000 hour rule. In a nutshell, those individuals that succeed (Bill Gates, The Beatles, et. al) do so because they have invested the magic number of 10,000 hours to hone their abilities. As we look at this hypothesis, the question is, "does this apply to teachers and educators?" I believe the answer is YES!
By my calculations, on a 187-day contract, working from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., the minimum that a teacher would work during the year would be about 1500 hours. If we divide 10,000 by 1500, it works out to somewhere around 6 years, give or take a year depending on weekends and summers. In a profession where close to 50% of teachers are no longer teaching after 5 years, we are losing highly trained and skilled workers right about the time they become 'professionals'.
It takes at least a year to understand the in's and out's of teaching, and learn the ropes. Knowing that it takes 10,000 hours to stand out in one's profession will give us staying power and the determination needed to persevere.
By my calculations, on a 187-day contract, working from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., the minimum that a teacher would work during the year would be about 1500 hours. If we divide 10,000 by 1500, it works out to somewhere around 6 years, give or take a year depending on weekends and summers. In a profession where close to 50% of teachers are no longer teaching after 5 years, we are losing highly trained and skilled workers right about the time they become 'professionals'.
It takes at least a year to understand the in's and out's of teaching, and learn the ropes. Knowing that it takes 10,000 hours to stand out in one's profession will give us staying power and the determination needed to persevere.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
The Parent is Always Right?
The following came from Seth Godin's blog...
Win the fight, lose the customer
Does it really matter if you're right?
Given the choice between acknowledging that your customer is upset or proving to her that she is wrong, which will you choose?
You can be right or you can have empathy
If someone thinks they're unhappy, then you know what? They are.
While Seth's blog mainly deals with business, he makes some great points that deal with human nature, and teacher's can gain much insight and wisdom from. I have worked with some difficult parents, and to this day there are some that despise me. I realize we cannot choose the parents or our students as businesses can sometimes decide upon their customers, but if we want to make a difference and build relationships with parents, then at least at the very beginning, the parents have to always be right.
Not an easy pill to swallow-
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/teaching/7412162
Win the fight, lose the customer
Does it really matter if you're right?
Given the choice between acknowledging that your customer is upset or proving to her that she is wrong, which will you choose?
You can be right or you can have empathy
If someone thinks they're unhappy, then you know what? They are.
While Seth's blog mainly deals with business, he makes some great points that deal with human nature, and teacher's can gain much insight and wisdom from. I have worked with some difficult parents, and to this day there are some that despise me. I realize we cannot choose the parents or our students as businesses can sometimes decide upon their customers, but if we want to make a difference and build relationships with parents, then at least at the very beginning, the parents have to always be right.
Not an easy pill to swallow-
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/teaching/7412162
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Priorities
The following is a quote from Seth Godin's recent blog entry,
Without a list, you can see how making intelligent decisions is impossible, so we resort to confusing activity with productivity.
I realized how true this is for teachers (and for that, every other profession). If we as teachers want to get more done, accomplish our goals, and figure out what is important, we must start writing things down and then prioritizing them.
One of my priorities is to reply to emails within 24 hours. To the very best of my ability, I try not to email parents/students from home--I try to take care of this at school. Grading papers is up near the top also. It is important to find out what is important to administrators also. Helping them reach their goals and objectives can benefit you in the long run.
I also think this involves NOT doing some things. Not staying at school every night until 7 or8. Not trying to re-invent the wheel by designing every lesson to include all seven learning styles. Not ____.
As the end of the year approaches, one of my goals is to find 15% of my activities that are not productive, and shift my energy and efforts elsewhere. It's time to re-evaluate and do what needs doing right now!
Without a list, you can see how making intelligent decisions is impossible, so we resort to confusing activity with productivity.
I realized how true this is for teachers (and for that, every other profession). If we as teachers want to get more done, accomplish our goals, and figure out what is important, we must start writing things down and then prioritizing them.
One of my priorities is to reply to emails within 24 hours. To the very best of my ability, I try not to email parents/students from home--I try to take care of this at school. Grading papers is up near the top also. It is important to find out what is important to administrators also. Helping them reach their goals and objectives can benefit you in the long run.
I also think this involves NOT doing some things. Not staying at school every night until 7 or8. Not trying to re-invent the wheel by designing every lesson to include all seven learning styles. Not ____.
As the end of the year approaches, one of my goals is to find 15% of my activities that are not productive, and shift my energy and efforts elsewhere. It's time to re-evaluate and do what needs doing right now!
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
New Project
I have a new project-
In addition to teaching, tutoring, and training, I am looking forward to chronicling my runs and sharing some of my observations as I run. My sights are once again on the White Rock Marathon, as I have learned that it is impossible to stay motivated and train without a concrete goal. Running to "stay in shape" can get you 1-3 miles, but unless you have a goal, it is near impossible to be up at 4 a.m. while the rest of the world is asleep in order to do what it takes to run, and improve my times.
"You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great!" This is my start--it's a marathon, not a sprint!
In addition to teaching, tutoring, and training, I am looking forward to chronicling my runs and sharing some of my observations as I run. My sights are once again on the White Rock Marathon, as I have learned that it is impossible to stay motivated and train without a concrete goal. Running to "stay in shape" can get you 1-3 miles, but unless you have a goal, it is near impossible to be up at 4 a.m. while the rest of the world is asleep in order to do what it takes to run, and improve my times.
"You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great!" This is my start--it's a marathon, not a sprint!
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