Colleagues and friends have asked me about Chat GPT and its implications for the teaching of writing. I predict it and other artificial intelligence platforms will have a revolutionary legacy, though whether that legacy will lead us in a more positive direction is hard to say. Many districts have either no coordinated strategies for the [...]
On this, the final day of the March 2024 Slice of Life Challenge, I wish all who celebrate a Blessed Easter. Moreover, I extend my congratulations to all who participated in this month's challenge. Circumstances this year have made my own participation a challenge; however, I made a determined exercise of posting each day--no matter [...]
Every year during my youth, just before Easter, my paternal grandmother made what we called pizzagain, or what is more properly called pizza gaina, pizza alla rustica, or simply pizza di pasqua (Easter pie). It is a southern-Italian tradition with versions having emerged from various regions. With myriad particular configurations, it is a dense pie [...]
A God many believe inSacrificed his only son this day.His son, Almighty made flesh--Nailed to the very symbolOf the intersecting planesOf humanity and divinity--Burst the bonds of bodily sufferingAnd loved those who meant him harm.He lives at the timeless coreOf a faith borne by billions,The worldly flourishes of whichWhirl in a flashing glareOf flesh and [...]
I suppose it makes sense to want to see justice in the world. Those who do wrong ought to be punished. But something happened to me early in life to add other considerations. My mother, who was raised Catholic and sent to Catholic schools, had no inclination to see me follow ther path. She merely [...]
I listen to National Public Radio each morning, and today, Maanvi Singh's story caught my attention. From it, I will predict a new psychological buzzword that could come to the field of education if some consultant or other picks up on it: flow. While I have profound concerns about the NPR segment's framing of flow [...]
I understand well the lament of teachers that this entity or that does not support classroom learning. Parents range from indifferent to supportive to hostile to meddling; administrators can lead, but they can also find themselves overworked or torn between competing priorities. Then, we have society, whose emphasis on diversion, consumption, and intensity hardly foster [...]
My father passed away nearly five years ago, and I am truly grateful for the memories I have of him. As I walked to school this morning, I noticed some forsythia and recalled early spring occasions over several years during my youth. My father would be driving me and my brother somewhere on a Saturday [...]
A little over fifteen years ago, an older incarnation of my school district's education foundation recruited me to become a member of its board. I felt I had few of the connections to bring in donations, so I thought quickly and put together a rock band composed of teachers, and administrator, and parents. Because our [...]
Being on the road this weekend, I am unable to cook and post a recipe. Still, I have a brief statement of philosophy related to cooking and eating. As much as I enjoy cooking, talking about cooking, reading about cooking, learning about cooking, going shopping before cooking, acting as sous-chef while my partner is cooking, [...]
Real Teaching 