Richardson Chaps. 1 & 2

Being a social studies teacher for the past 16 years I have developed an acute sense of history and turning points. As I read through the first two chapters of Richardson I could not help but feel as though mankind is in a period of time similar to that of the Renaissance when the invention of the printing press fundamentally changed everything. Religion was shaken as now the Bible was accesible to all and not simply the purview of the few educated clergy. Society and culture became much more democratic as well as ideas and commentary now spread much more freely and rapidly. The rise of the internet and technology and their consequent effects on learning and the dissemination of information will result in metmorphoses we can yet imagine.

Nothing but NETS

At first, reading through the NETS standards for both students and teachers dredges up the requisite cynicism I have in spades for what I sarcastically refer to as "EduBureaucracy". Characterisitics of EduBureaucracy (EB for short) include the use of hackneyed buzzwords, vague and unmeasurable goals, and action words/verbs used, in my opinion, out of context. For example, when reading over the standards for teachers the boring phrases "facilitate and inspire", "design and develop", and "promote and model" serve as headers for the main standards. The substandards then go on to list nebulous tasks such as "exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion (new buzzer)......" Being a rather concrete person I need tangible examples of the criteria in action rather than a utopian and, in my view, unattainable plan for "infusing" (action word out of context) technology. I though that food was infused but technology?!?!

Immediately after reading through the NETS I instructed my Civics class. The goal of the class was to teach students about the idea of a social contract. Each year, many have some difficulty grasping this rather esoteric philosophical abstraction and I struggle with how to effectively teach this. It was then that the thought struck me to use technology in this endeavor. As my tenth graders are more comfortable with technology that I am, and all have access to it, I endeavored to find a resource which might facilitate the learning of abstract concepts prevalent in the class such as checks and balances, separation of powers, and federalism. After a search on the web I located such a site. ICivics Site  The site has games which students can play online at their own pace and leisure to enhance their understanding of such concepts. I plan on assigning this link to my students in an upcoming class.

The moral of this story seems to be that no abstract set of standards will provide me with lesson plans or usable ideas. For that I must enagage in that most obscene of four letter words: WORK

I am in my sixteenth year as a social studies teacher at Northwest Catholic High School in West Hartford, CT and have served as department chair for the past 5 years. The courses I teach include AP United States Government, Civics, Honors American Mind, and United States History. I have also worked as a reader for the College Board's AP United States Government and Politics exam for the last five years and have recently been invited to read this June. I am also the moderator of our school's Model United Nations club.

Outside of the classroom I am proud to serve as the President of the Greater Hartford Catholic Education Association, the professional organization representing the interests of Catholic school secondary teachers in the Archdiocese of Hartford. I was also recently elected to the Executive Board of the National Association of Catholic School Teachers for a three year term.

I enjoy travel, reading, and exercise when I am not doing the teacher thing. I truly love my job and feel blessed to be able to do it each and every day.