Day 27
HELLO, WEEKEND. Friday, I attended a job fair at the Curry School. I saw my principal and received good vibes from her if I want to continue the job I have next year. I also had two successful interviews. After the long day, we celebrated Liz’s birthday, and it was a blast! Happy birthday, Little!
Today, Tyler and I have been relaxing and watching Stranger Things. We finished the first season and it was so good! I know that a lot of people are caught up in Netlix, Hulu and other streaming, but it’s so great. Binge watching a show is 100% an addiction. I love it because it’s just like watching a good, long movie and it never ends. Just like anything, in moderation, binge-watching tv isn’t too bad. Just like I tell my students, as long as you get your work done and ask for help when you have a problem. That motto is very relatable to real life.
Keep on trucking. XOXO
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Day 27
Yesterday I had to finish an assignment summarizing current education policy in the United States. Here was my final summary and analysis that I’d like to share… Summary & Assessment: 1) synthesize and analyze –how would you characterize the trends in education policy from 2001 (passage of NCLB) to today (incoming Trump Administration)? a. The NCLB gave the federal government more control through funding by requiring schools to be accountable through standards, testing, accommodations, as measured by their AYP. If schools didn’t meet AYP or the standards written through their flexibility, then the government would provide interventions, requiring the schools to offer tutoring and supplemental services. b. Obama brought the Race to the Top, which gave schools points based on turnaround, reform and innovation. Schools with the most points would earn additional federal grant money. c. Race to the Top brought on standards, leading to the controversial Common Core Standards Initiative. The standards led to more high-stakes testing than already existed. States were encouraged to adopt the standards to “raise the bar” for the students in their state. Standards of any kind are always controversial due to being too regulatory or not including enough. d. In the last moment, Obama signed in ESSA, to be enacted into play in schools in the 2017-2018 school year. The plan mostly aligns with the Trump administration’s proposals, however, the law could be adjusted or modified before coming to a school near you. e. Currently, Trump and recently confirmed DeVos’s plans are to reduce federal regulation by doing funding through a block grant on a “supplement-not-supplant” system. Additional funding would come from a $20 billion voucher program, in which parents would have choice for their students to attend a school that they feel is more appropriate to meet their child’s needs. 2) respond and react –what is your opinion of current education policy? a. The current education policy under NCLB gives the federal government so much control that students are failing, laws are not being enforced, and our schools are falling behind other countries (http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/21/opinions/america-invest- again-in- education- levy/index.html). The amount of money currently allotted to public schools is not enough to educate students properly, especially not to the level that is required by law. Failing schools are not receiving as much help as is necessary to fully reform. Many schools, according to the third PBS Story of American Education, are overcrowded and underfunded, lacking the proper resources to provide highly-qualified teachers and adequate supplies for teaching. The upcoming ESSA and Trump administration policy, as others previously referenced said, has potential. 3) predict and prognosticate: What recommendations do you have for the new president in terms of education policy? a. The upcoming policies proposed have potential in that we are trying something different than what we are doing now. Obviously proven through much research, what we are currently doing is not working to the capacity we had hoped, so change alone is better than nothing. Providing states and local governments with more control may provide us with a long-term solution that all states could adopt at a later date, although it is just as probable that states may be better off locally regulated, using the money in a way that best meets the needs of the citizens of that state. Vouchers and privatizing schools is very controversial. I like the idea of providing students with options to go to the schools that may best serve them, however, the issue arises when we have to decide what happens to funding for public schools for the “average” child. Trump and DeVos speak highly of parents pushing students to schools of their choice, but many parents are not present, do not have time, or do not have the money to send their child to an alternative school, even with funding. A better solution in the long term would be to provide various types of schools across the state, so that an actually equitable school could be available to all children, including resources, teachers, and specialized programs. This solution may not be plausible, but I would hope that vouchers could be an option AND that public schools could receive proportionate funding to reach a certain standard of professional development, resources, and evidence-based curriculum that could bring a quality education to every student, no matter where they live across the nation. Realistically, schools that were insufficient would be closed and private schools would be opened for all so that schools could be proportionately crowded and funded for basic needs and highly-qualified teachers and administrators. Thanks for reading the blog today! :) Day 26
Yesterday, Tyler and I stopped by the apartment at Lakeside….and we were approved! The final step is to sign our lease and pay the remainder of our deposit. Although I find it lucky that we don't have to pay that deposit until we move in. No more figuring out the lease for next year in October 😑. Check out our future apartment! http://www.liveatlakeside.com/ Keeping updated on my morning routine, I've been sleeping more, which we all knew would happen. But I still check the weather, calendar, to do list, and curiosity. Then I write my journal as a mental wake up. If I have time after getting ready, I'll do my exercises. Or if I feel like it, I'll do them before. Call me lazy. It's not the exercise that's hard, it's the exhaustion in the afternoon and I just need that few minutes of extra sleep. In other news, I'm getting caught up on homework, little by little. Betsy DeVos was confirmed. So here we are, unsure of what the future may hold, just like any other day. All we can do is be active in our schools, communities and with our representatives to get our state and local authorities to guide our educational future in the direction we want. It may not be a bad thing just yet. Time will tell. Jeremiah 29:11 is my favorite bible verse because it reminds me that God has a plan and a future for each of us. Our future is not to harm us but to guide us. I trust that everyday. The future is always coming, and we are equipped to handle it. Have a great day out there! Happy hump day!
Day 25
Yesterday should have been day 25…..sorry if you tuned in for the apartment reveal, but here it is…. We are doing it! The paperwork is coming together and we will be going in this afternoon to (hopefully) finalize it. Mom, am I a real adult yet? ? Soon will come my decision on whether to keep the job I have or apply for a different job....I don't have a clue what I want to do. There's never a dull day in teaching and the time just flies. It's hard to make time to reflect on myself and how I'm feeling, but I know from my costly education that reflective teaching can be essential to good teaching. At least today after school I'll finally have time to do some catch up. Maybe if I catch up today, I can make it to frisbee Thursday. Reflect, relax, slay.
Day 24
Morning Journal turned into a nightly journal today, as my morning was too productive. This morning I…
That SuperBowl, though. Wut. The rest of the day was relaxing but did not remain productive. Although...Tyler and I applied to Lakeside Apartments!!!!!! Prayers please. Night, y’all. Day 23
Hey, y’all! Hope everyone is well. Yesterday was so nice to sleep in a bit and skip my routine. I NEEDED it. After school was a rush, as Tyler and I were both hogging the sink and mirror to get ready. …. BECAUSE, Tyler got an interview, had the interview, and got the job!!! As long as the background check goes through, he will be employed at the new Dick’s/Field&Stream by the new Wegman’s. What a blessing. I met the Athletic Director at Albemarle High School with the girls at 5pm to prepare for their performance at the halftimes of the girls’ and boys’ basketball games. The girls have been nervously and patiently waiting for the night to come and it was finally here. They were as ready as they could be on just a few weeks of practice and only a couple of practices together. The AD was very kind to us and greeted the girls while they practiced in (a really nice) small gym down the hall from the main gymnasium where the game was taking place. Both performances went well, despite low volume music and the crowd preventing the girls from hearing me and the music. The girls were AWESOME. Of course, they had some drops, as we expected, but they never gave up and the crowd loved them. I know that they had a great time, and after my quick escape to the DoubleTree Hotel, I made it just in time for my jacket and speech from Mr. Pease at the band banquet. S/O to Madison for saving my seat! Plus, the jacket is SWAG and was totally worth running in my heels. Today, Tyler and I perused many apartments and made a decision...that we are sleeping on...tune in Monday to see what happens!
Day 22
Running a little late and I’ve got things to do, so this will be short. Today I want to talk about how all my “healthy” food is going bad! It’s so hard to buy healthy like yogurt, fruits, veggies, etc. and not let it go bad. I bought strawberries, blueberries, carrots, hummus and yogurt last week. Granted, I buy yogurt on clearance… but still! Even yogurt I buy at regular price will often go bad before I get to eat it. With the yogurt, okay, maybe I could just buy less. With the fruits, veggies, and hummus, you can’t always buy less. I guess I’d have to simply eat healthy more often, rather than my favorite snack of cereal… What do you do when your food is going bad? I’m trying to eat it before then, but it’s so much! Keep it real, y’all. Amy Day 21
Time flies, y’all. Tomorrow is FEBRUARY. Wut. Today I want to talk about how to balance life. Everyone has to find their own way of doing it, because the needs and schedule change from person to person and by what you do. But here’s a snapshot of my week…. Sunday
So life is a little crazy sometimes, but I get it done. That’s what I say. I just keep going until I say, I need a break and then I just do nothing for a period of time. So yea, that pushes some things to the last minute, but I have to have a break sometime. To get through, I call my mom, plan ahead when to try to get big assignments done, rant to Tyler, or do something I like instead of what I should do, like play frisbee, paint my nails, find things on my todo list, go shopping, organize…. The point here is, do what you love and do what’s important to you. What isn’t as important will fall through the cracks and you’ll either catch it or you won’t and remember for next time if those things should maybe be moved to the important list….AND RELAX. Taking time to do absolutely, positively nothing is completely essential to my life. Thanks for tuning in!
Day 20
So maybe I didn’t journal every morning, but hey, 20 days of journaling is good for someone who is so busy to start a new habit! What have you tried to start but never finished? Along with journaling, I’m always trying to stop picking/peeling my nails. It sounds awful but something about doing that habit is “satisfying.” People always ask, well WHY do you pick your nails? Just like everyone else, I do something completely random that doesn’t actually help to “calm my nerves.” I usually pick when I’m angry or stressed and feel stuck, as if there is nothing I can do about the situation. I have definitely gotten better. I used to pick all the time. Granted, twirling doesn’t allow me to have long nails, but I picked them past short. And yes, it hurt! So why???? This is the question I really can’t answer because I say “stress,” but picking my nails doesn’t make the stress go away. Doing your habit doesn’t make life go away. I think it’s important to point that out, y’all. One of my mottos is “It’s already happened.” Usually, by the time we realize something is wrong or that we’ve made a poor decision, we’ve already made it and the consequences are there or coming soon. So really, there’s usually almost nothing that can change what’s already happened or is happening. It’s just a matter of why did this happen and what would I do if it happened again. Well my time’s up, folks. Good luck with your habits! P.S. I’m feeling better this morning, as I do every morning, so hopefully today will be the day that I continue to feel better in the afternoon and the evening.
Day 19
Y’all. TYLER’S HERE! Despite copious amounts of traffic yesterday, Tyler finally made it to Charlottesville with all of his things. I built a shelf for his stuff earlier this week…
And it fit a lot of his stuff nicely, at least for the time being. It will be nice in a bigger apartment where dressers with real drawers and real organization are a thing. For now, a 9-cube organizer will have to do.
We are still in the job search, so if you’re in Cville and know of anybody hiring that may tickle Tyler’s fancy, PLEASE comment or text or message me (or him!). Happy weekend to everyone, I’m off to make some breakfast sandwiches. |
Facts:I'm a teacher, I have a baton twirling team, and I'm chasing the good life. Like and Follow
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