Get Real
Wright'sRoom
by shelleywright
1y ago
I have a confession. I LOVE NFL football. That’s somewhat strange because I’m a Canadian female. We have our own professional league. I’m not sure if you knew that. Basically, it’s a lot of players who can’t play in the NFL. There is the occasional quarterback that has played 5 or so years in the CFL, and during that time completely dominates our league winning our “Super Bowl”, the Grey Cup, and then makes the jump to the NFL — Warren Moon, Joe Theisman, and Doug Flutie are some of the more notable ones. But there are also Canadian players too, of course, or it wouldn’t be the CFL. . But I lo ..read more
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The Process of Project-Based Learning
Wright'sRoom
by shelleywright
3y ago
People have asked me when I teach project-based learning or inquiry, do I teach my students about the process. Yes. The process is really important to what students are learning: So at the beginning, student are introduced to the stages of the process and are eventually given more and more responsibility and freedom over the process as they acquire the skills needed. At the same time, I don’t belabour the process, because, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to them without action behind it. One of the things many teachers have also mentioned to me is “there is content to teach”. We all have c ..read more
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The Difference
Wright'sRoom
by shelleywright
3y ago
I think for as long as teaching has existed, there’s likely always been “that” teacher. You know the one. The one riding out the last couple of years until retirement arrives.  None of his students are really receiving the education they deserve, but nobody says much. Except, this year, my 12 year daughter has “that” teacher. The teacher who yells. And intimidates. And does little.  Then throw in all of the middle school drama, and you get a horrible first 4 months of school. The difference now, however, is that riding out ones’ time can be veiled with the guise of “collaborative, st ..read more
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The Jagged Edge
Wright'sRoom
by shelleywright
3y ago
When you  lead change, when you engage in innovation, when you go against what is safe or the status quo practice, you live on the jagged edge. And when you live on the jagged edge, you’re going to bleed. When I first began this journey five years ago, it came as a shock when I ruffled feathers. When people didn’t like what I was doing.  Or when they didn’t understand it. Or, at times, when they even tried to oppose what I was doing. There are people who jumped to conclusions without even asking me, or talked behind my back. Some people were bolder and emailed or said it to my face ..read more
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When Life Happens.
Wright'sRoom
by shelleywright
3y ago
I haven’t blogged in a long time. I used to blog a fair amount, and in truth, it’s often the way I process  what is going on in my teaching and thinking. At times, it has been a place where I’ve shared what is going on in my life. Not often. But sometimes. To be honest, I struggle using it this way. Friends like George Couros and Dean Shareski often talk about their lives on their blog. But for me, I’ve seen this as a professional place. And yet, so often the two things collide or intermingle. What I’ve learned in the past couple months is life can change in a second. It’s the phone call ..read more
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How to create a student-centred classroom? One small step at a time.
Wright'sRoom
by shelleywright
3y ago
Teachers who are interested in shifting their classrooms often don’t know where to start. It can be overwhelming, frightening, and even discouraging, especially when no one else around you seems to think the system is broken. A question I’m asked often is “Where should a teacher begin?”  Should teachers just let students go or is there a process to good student-centred inquiry?  I’ve reflected on  this a fair amount, and I think small strategic steps are the key.  I think letting students “go” without any structure will likely create failure, especially if students haven’t ..read more
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Your Turn.
Wright'sRoom
by shelleywright
3y ago
I love social justice.  I love empowering people to make a difference in their own lives. It’s what I do with my students. It’s what I try to do globally, as well.  One of my favourites? Kiva. And this month, in honour of International Women’s Day, you have the opportunity to help a woman change her life, and the life of her family — at no cost to you. Seriously. On March 8, millions of people worldwide will celebrate the 104th International Women’s Day. While many gains have been made, the dream of women’s equality is still far from reality. The truth. In the year 2015 inequality is ..read more
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Pardon, me?
Wright'sRoom
by shelleywright
3y ago
I learned early in my teaching career that the simplest things are sometimes the most powerful. Like the power of communication. During my internship, I had one student who I didn’t get along with. At all. Day after day we seemed to be at odds with each other. I had no idea why. And being new at this teaching thing, it didn’t occur to me to ask. But that all changed with one phone call. You may be thinking I called his parents to discuss his disruptive, antagonistic behaviour. I didn’t. It was actually the exact opposite. I called to tell his parents how well he was doing in my class. It was t ..read more
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Please, Stop Calling Students Lazy.
Wright'sRoom
by shelleywright
3y ago
I hate it when teachers call their students lazy. Or when they refer to having the class from “Hell”. When teachers say that do they really know what they’re saying? I’m offended when I hear that. I think a student’s parents would be offended to hear it. What about the students themselves?  If a teacher thinks that poorly of their student or class, do we think that can be easily hidden? I’ve actually never met a lazy student. Bored? Yep. Disengaged? Yep. Unmotivated by irrelevant academic hoops? Yep. But lazy? No. The truth is I was one of those kids. Most of my marks throughout elementar ..read more
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The McDonaldization of Education: the rise of slow
Wright'sRoom
by shelleywright
3y ago
Slow.  I love this word, and yet it tends to have many negative connotations  in education. Which is too bad because it’s the very philosophy we need to save our education system, and give kids the time and space necessary to grow into the thoughtful, articulate citizens we desperately need them t0 become. The 20th Century is known for many things. It’s mass destruction. Statistics show we managed to destroy each other and plunder the planet at a rate unequal to any other time in history. At the same time, it was also a time of great exploration, innovation and te ..read more
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