WHY TOUGH TEACHERS GET GOOD RESULTS

By: Joanne Lipman

Published: The Wall Street journal; The Saturday Essay; September 27, 2013; www.wsj.com Alternatively, just google the article and writer’s name.

Level of Difficulty:***

BEFORE YOU READ

·     What Makes a Good Teacher? - Student Q&A https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHapv0Tv7vM

QUESTIONS

1.       Read the example of Mr. K. It is implied that there is a connection between authoritarian teachers and ………………………………………………..(Use your own words)

2.       The writer feels she has the answer to the problem discussed in paragraph four. It is trying to ascertain…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

3.       What does “It” refer to in the sentence “It works”?

4.       What does “All of which” in the phrase “All of which flies in the face of the gentler kinder philosophy” refer to?

5.       Why did the most successful people Dr. Ericson studied choose the kind of coaches they did? There are two answers; find them both.

6.       The US Department of Education advocated “the dreaded drill and practice” because ……………….has been proved to be a success in all subjects from spelling to maths.

7.       The study involving 111 French sixth graders proved that contrary to widely held belief………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

8.       What popular belief concerning the qualities of a successful teacher was discreditted as a result of the study conducted by Mary Poplin and her colleagues?

9.       What conclusion can we draw from Prof. Weisberg’s analysis of the creation of Guernica? What is the implication of this conclusion?

10.   The incoming West Point cadets survived the boot camp and stuck with their training because they had …………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

11.   How does Carol Dweck justify her conclusion concerning positive feedback?

12.   Read the University of Buffolo study carefully. Why exactly did the students who had suffered some stress feel less pain?

13.   Mr. K’s former students stated that he taught them “discipline, self motivation and resilience” because he had …………………………………………………………………………………………………

WRITING TASK: THE FIRST ALTERNATIVE

Write an essay in which you discuss the qualities of a successful teacher. In order to do so, access the essay task with the same title under “Definition Essays” on this blog and add the qualities gleaned from this text. You will then need to rethink the plan. Remember to support your statements.

WRITING TASK: THE SECOND ALTERNATIVE

Write a reaction or response essay based on the text you have just read. Follow the plan below:

In your introduction, discuss the importance of a good and successful education for future success. Mention the factors that contribute to this success and state that teachers are one factor.

In your first developmental paragraph, summarize the qualities linked to success in teaching according to the text.

In your second developmental paragraph, express your own views and provide support for the points you make.

In your conclusion, write a restatement.
ADDITIONAL VIEWING
* TV Series: Tough Young Teachers https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xq_mveIM8BM

WHY TOUGH TEACHERS GET GOOD RESULTS KEY AND TEACHERS NOTES

This interesting text seems to go against everything traditionally associated with good teachers but that is only at the beginning; once you have started reading, you know the text is right and your mind takes you back to those tough teachers who you have never forgotten and owe such a lot to. The text lends it self to two excellent writing activities too.

1.       Future success

2.       What Mr. K did right;what we can learn from a teacher whose methods fly in the face of everything we think we know about education today

3.       Old fashioned education

4.       The benefits of moderate childhood stress; how praise kills kids self esteem and why grit is a better predictor of success than SAT scores

5.       Because they would challenge them and drive them to higher levels of performance; because true expertise requires teachers who give constructive even painful feedback.

6.       Rote learning / memorization

7.       Kids who understand that failure is a necessary aspect of learning actually perform better.

8.       Most effective teachers lead students to knowledge through collaborative learning and discussion.

9.       Most creative giants work ferociously hard, and through a series of incremental steps, achieve things that appear to the outside world like epiphanies and breakthroughs; traditional education doesn’t kill children’s creativity.

10.   Grit ; OR passion and perseverance for long term goals

11.   If success meant that they were smart, then struggling meant they were not.

12.   Having the history of dealing with these negative things leads people to be more likely to have the propensity for resilience.

13.   Faith in students’ ability to do better;  OR confidence in the students

Note to the student: what would you have answered if I had left the question at “because” and not added  “he had”? The answer is that you could have added a third alternative: Mr. K was absolutely certain they would learn. However, because of the structure of the question, this answer is unacceptable