Weekly Update 3.21.09
March 21st, 2009Anyone with eyes to see has noticed the signs in Monadnock’s hallways for peer mediation. It’s a wonderful idea, and it’s been used successfully in hundreds of other schools. MC2 does something similar (we call them either “Students in Action” or teachers will help set up and facilitate a “win-win¹“, though the latter often doesn’t involve another student.) and they’re one of the best ways I’ve seen to prevent small disagreements from becoming something that leads to some kid getting his head shoved through a glass door.
Andy Harrisson and Jocie Mueller helped put that one together, and they both deserve a great deal of credit for it. Now what they need is for other teachers to put the system they’re building into work. The system doesn’t work unless it gets used, and it doesn’t become institutionalized without frequent repetition. The kids need to all see it happen, more than once, for them to take advantage of it.
It takes a lot of soft lobbing over the plate in order to get a kid ready to bat. Now it’s time for everyone to start coaching.
If you had any luck at all this month, then one evening was spent at MRHS’s musical, Les Miserables.
The dramatic productions at MRHS have been, uniformally, solid for as long as I can remember. In many ways, they’re a chance for students who otherwise would have nothing to draw them to the school to excel. My best friend in high school didn’t walk at graduation, but he surely thrilled people on stage.
Part of this is excellent teaching: Paul Teitelman, Mark Polifrone, Phil Croteau and Roni Hoffman have been there for as long as I can remember. Each of them, in addition to being tremendously talented in their own right, is also gifted at bringing talent out in their students.
Which is well worth applauding, and acknowledging.
Speaking of good things…
MRHS hosted the regional Destination Imagination competition on the 7th, which was, as usual, terribly fun. DI is one of those things that consistently brings out the best in everyone involved—several hundred excited, laughing, and sleep-deprived young people is enough to make a good day for anyone.
MRHS, as usual, fielded a solid effort. I will never be able to think about Romeo and Juliet the same way again² and certainly it’s a reminder of how talented our kids are.
[update 3.23.09] I forgot to mention the donuts dropped off for all involved by Jane Forsten and Eric Stanley, both part of the MRSD school board. In addition to being a kind gesture, it was great to see them present. I firmly believe the more people who see what goes on inside the school, the more people will support it.
It’s never about “us” and “them” in education. We’re all “us.”
There’s a time or two in education for standing fast. If I can find the time, the chance, the justification, I’m teaching A Man for All Seasons. There’s more of us that could use the example.
1 We also set up “win-wins” between teachers and students, at times. One of the problems with any classroom is what to do if there’s something of a disagreement between teacher and student—usually the student just sits and spends the year sulking, and doesn’t learn as much as they could. Often it’s over something silly—or, if not silly, just a misunderstanding. Last year, I sat down with a kid who wanted to clear the air because they felt that we’d gotten off on the wrong foot. We ended up having a solid class together and the kid got the credit they needed. More communication is usually the right way to go. ↺
2Thanks LB. As usual, your gift for humor and sarcasm—not to mention writing—came through loud and clear. ↺
