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Scripted teaching
To the editors:
I’m writing as schools open for another year. It was great to be back because the staff was really working hard to push the envelope about the way they work together, with kids and with families. It was difficult because we had to spend a huge chunk of time wrestling with the District’s “Scope and Sequence.”
The Scope and Sequence mandates the curriculum on a monthly basis for each grade. There are directives for reading/language arts, math, and science.
It was exciting to sit with teams who were actually planning together. It was outrageous to see the amount of material they were expected to “cover” in September alone. Both administration and union representatives warned teachers about lesson plans that are in sync with the Scope and Sequence. We were told to expect random visits by Mr. Vallas and his team.
I found myself wondering about a student question that wasn’t in sync, or a kid that needed more. Do we tell them to hold it until next month, next year? These new “guides” are really a mandate, a scripted outline of what teachers are required to teach.
Classroom scripts disturb me. Personalization is the key to real teaching and learning. Suggestions are helpful, but there’s no substitute for the “teachable moment,” when kids and teachers connect and make the learning their own. Good teaching means developing relationships and offering diverse experiences so that all the “different” learners can make their way toward real understanding. “One size fits all” rarely works.
Many of my best teaching experiences took place as part of the special projects my classes and I designed. We learned science while we developed a mosaic mural of sea life. We learned technology, science, and language skills while we electronically joined an international team of “Argonauts” on an expedition to the rain forest. There won’t be time for these “frills” this year. There are too many tests and not enough time to “cover” all the material.
Deborah Bambino
Coach, Mid-Atlantic Coalition
of Essential Schools
Philadelphia