Guerilla Educators

Sustainability at American University

Friend and colleague, Emily Curley, is the Sustainability Coordinator at American University.  American U has made an upfront commitment to significantly lessen their carbon footprint on campus and to be a positive example for the neighboring DC community and beyond.  Ms Curley has been tasked with "green up" 25 existing campus buildings so they may achieve a LEED designation.  The hope here at Guerilla Educators is that neighborhood youth can participate in that process.  Some of the ways that can be accomplished, according to Emily, are:

Here are some ideas:

We did a big delamping project in the library this semester and I suspect our electrician might be game to remove more lamps from overlit areas. We already had a student do a light-level study in the res halls, but Tech Prep kids could potentially...

take light level readings in classroom buildings (hands on!) and then suggest how many lamps to remove (critical thinking!), and...

calculate savings for us (math!). The data gathering might only take a day and they could...

make a PowerPoint (technology!) or something and present (language arts!) to our Facilities staff.

A sustainability tour of campus to see our green roofs, solar panels (probably can't take kids to the actual roof but there are some viewing areas), community garden, etc. They spend the next few lessons...

researching and proposing technologies that would be good for the Tech Prep building and why. 

One LEED credit is measuring the area of native/adaptive species. If we could pre-identify some areas with those plantings, students could help measure and record the areas using either just tape measure or fancy surveying wheel and research why native species are important. 

Work a day in the community garden here on campus then...

send students to Tech Prep to help build a small garden there (as I remember they have a good amount of space).

Learn about local, organic food and gardening. 

Help us do a waste audit. This is where you literally sort through the trash to understand the make up of the waste stream thrown away over the course of 24 hours in one building. Our students tend to like this and it's eye opening to see what could have been recycled or composted but instead ends up in the trash. Based on the data...

students could make charts and graphs about the % recycled vs. landfilled and the % that could have been recycled or composted. Easy to set up and would take a day to do.

Last summer, a group of high school students shot a video of the sustainability efforts at American U.  Take a look...

 

PROFICIENT AND I KNOW IT!

From my good friends and colleagues at Tech Prep in DC.  Proficient and I Know It! >

Little Cayman Movie; 1970

I was alerted to this video by a gentleman who did a documentary about Little Cayman for a college course in 1970.  He spent 3 weeks on the North Coast at Burgess Meredith's cottage up there.  At that time, there were 17 permanent residents at what he called "South Hole".  Since there were no roads from the North Coast at that time, it was easier to get to Cayman Brac than to get over to South Hole. Take a look...

Rafael Cordero Elementary School; Catano, Puerto Rico

In this video, Educational Facilities Planner Prakash Nair, President and Co-Founder of Fielding Nair International gives a walking tour of the teahing and learning spaces at Rafael Cordero Elementary school, located in Catano, just outside of San Juan, Puerto Rico. Cordero Elemental is the first re-designed school completed as part of the island-wide Schools for the 21st Century initiative, spearheaded by FNI.Cordero Elemental is the first re-designed school completed as part of the island-wide Schools for the 21st Century initiative, spearheaded by FNI. Take a look...

Click on the link to see a video at Isidro Sanchez High School, another FNI designed 21st century school, located in beautiful Luquillo.

Isidro Sanchez High School; Luquillo, Puerto Rico

As part of Fielding Nair International's 21st Century Schools initiative in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, FNI educators Chris Hazleton and John Sole were privileged to visit the Isidro Sanchez High School in the beautiful city of Luquillo.  The high school has undergone major renovations designed to enhance teaching and learning.  With Mr. Angel Gonzalez, Deputy Director of the Public Private Partnership Bank, we were hosted by Sanchez Principal, Ms MaryAnne Maldonado.  At the time of this post, the school is about 2 weeks from completed construction of all re-design work.  Take a look...

Click on the link to see a video of Rafael Cordero Elemental, another FNI designed 21st century school, in Catano, just outside of San Juan.

George Clinton at the Barack Obama Green Charter High School

On Tuesday, February 20, 2012, Mr. George Clinton was the guest of honor at the Barack Obama Green Charter High School, located in Plainfield, New Jersey.  Mr. Clinton was being recognized for his contributions to the school and to being, ahem, instrumental in the establishment of a world class music program there.  The evening also celebrated the release of the single, "RU Free?", an original song featuring Mr. Clinton, Dr. Cornel West, Mayor Corey Booker, and students from Obama Green.  "RU Free?" is available on iTunes. Proceeds go to the school.

See the wide version of the video on YouTube

SchraderGroup Architecture Project

SCHRADERGROUP Completes Project

for York Suburban School District

 

As part of a strategic plan to realign the grade structure within the District, Schradergroup worked with York Suburban School District to complete renovations and additions totaling 61,327 SF for Valley View Elementary School and to convert the facility from a K-1 to a K-2 school.   The project serves as an important lesson in the role of design as a valuable tool for successful strategic planning and adaptive re-use that maximizes educational resources. 

 

At Valley View, the design of the addition maintains the character of the existing building and features the reuse of the original cupola for the school, removed years ago.  The addition and renovations focus on creating parity in both the quantity and types of rooms in relation to Valley View's sister school, Yorkshire Elementary, which services the same population capacity. 

 

What had once been a series of disjointed additions beginning in the 1940s is replaced with a design seeking coherence in the sum of its parts.  The new entry hall provides a new physical and psychological 'center' for the building, marrying the old and new portions of the facility and their functions.  The entry hall was also conceived as a gallery space providing articulated and well-lit surfaces for showcasing student activities.

 

The renovations maintain and expand an educational campus firmly rooted in a thriving residential neighborhood context.  As part of the comprehensive campus approach to site design, a new bus loop design separates school bus, automobile, and pedestrian traffic, as well as removing bus idling from the busy township roads surrounding the facility.   Other practical achievements include eliminating barriers to accessibility throughout the building and the campus. New and renovated existing HVAC systems augment the efficiency of a campus-wide central energy plant strategy for both heating and cooling.

For more information about Valley View Elementary School and other similar projects, please visit www.sgarc.com.

 

These videos detail the SchraderGroup charrette process for the York Suburban School District:

 

Guerilla Educators was privileged to have played a role in this remarkable project.

The Red Tails

The Red Tails.
This recollection is inspired by a former student of mine at Cook-Wissahickon Elementary School who recently saw the movie, "Red Tails".  In 1996, my 4th grade students conducted a year long intergenerational Project with participants from the Interac Senior Center located in Roxborough/Manayunk in Philadelphia.  Among other historic gems we discovered with the participants, we learned that lifelong Manayunk resident, Mr. Nathaniel Stewart, was an original Tuskeegee Airman.  Mr. Stewart was 73 years old at the time and described himself as "a 95 pound weakling" when he was in high school who just so happened to have earned his pilot's wings from the US Air Force at Tuskeegee, Alabama and flew missions against the Germans during World War II. Inspired by my former student's enthusiasm for the movie, I looked through my archives and found a couple of the Oral History books we put together from that time. The illustration is the front cover of one of those precious books written by my former students and depicts Mr. Stewart as a VERY LARGE presence among my students. Thanks, Erica, for reminding me how privileged I was and how much I learned from my students.

Hamilton in 5D

This "quick and dirty" video captures in microcosm how a unifying theme for Project Based Learning can be effected systemically.  In this case, we captured a small slice of a post-industrial small midwest city.  Using the river that runs through it and where much of the history of the place has played out, the video underscores how the city can be used in 5 dimensions (including realtime and cyberspace) as a unifying theme to achieve proficiencies across a variety of curricular and civic objectives.  Take a look...

Little Cayman Land

In 1998, Donna and I went looking for some land on our dream island of Little Cayman.  After reviewing virtually every piece of real estate available on the Little Island we settled on a lovely beachfront property on the remote, pristine North Coast between, Mr. Keith's Cay Michigan and the late Burgess Meredith's (yes, THAT Burgess Meredith) getaway cottage.  Property 89a 77 spans about 108 feet along the coast and goes back a few hundred yards up on the bluff.  From the beach one can walk out to Bloody Bay Wall, one of the world's top 5 dive sites.  The views of the Caribbean are remarkable and there is always a nice breeze from the Tradewinds on that 15 foot rise.  Our idea was that we would build our dream house up on that bluff and live happily ever after.  In the intervening years since our taking possession of the property, we have also bought Condo del Sole a beautiful 2 br 2 1/2 bath oceanfront accommodation on the western tip of Little Cayman.  Now, reality has reared its head and we are reluctantly putting our beautiful land up for sale.  After all, how many pieces of real estate can a kid from South Philly own on a remote tropical island as lovely as Little Cayman?  Is it your turn to own property on Little Cayman, the Gem of the Caribbean?  If interested, contact us here at Guerilla Educators or Betty Bua at Tranquil Realty on Little Cayman for more details.  

LBJ NetZero Middle School

On November, 11-12, a select group of educational facilities planners from CEFPI had the opportunity to visit and participate in a NetZero Symposium at the Lady Bird Johnson Middle School, located in Irving, Texas.  In this video, tech expert Glenn Meeks and I were given a tour of the school by Alejandro, a student there.  The school is virtually paperless and produces more energy than it uses which is then sold back to the local utility company.  Under the awesome direction of Principal Angie Gaylord, every aspect of the facility is used as a Project Based teaching and learning tool.  Take a look... Special thanks for Scott Layne, Assitant Superintendent for the Irving School District and all of the wonderful students and staff who made this a very special event.

To view the video in full screen visit our YouTube page.

 

Seeds to Trees, 2nd grade Best Practices; Science

Students in 2nd grade from an inner city school in South Philadelphia planted acorns  from native oak trees at the Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education. They were part of an initiative to reestablish native deciduous hardwoods in the Schuylkill River Valley.  When the acorns germinated, half of those oak saplings went back to their public school in South Philly.  Seeds to Trees was a powerful catalyst to help these students achieve curricular proficiencies across a variety of disciplines, demonstrated the 12 Hallmarks of Effective Teaching and Learning, and modeled the best citizenship and leadership skills.  Take a look...

Inquiry Based Teaching and Learning in High School; The Built Environment

In this video, students from the Education Research Center at the Rose Tree Media School District have been tasked with the real-world project of designing their art space.  The school is located in a mall and the ownership there has given the empty space adjacent to the school to be converted to the school's Art Center.  The Project will continue through the Spring of 2012 and all design activities will be connected across a variety of curricular objectives.  This is Inquiry Based Teaching and Learning at its finest.  Take a look,...

Best Practices in Kindergarten; Service Learning

This from the Guerilla Educator archives...

In 2002, Education Ministers from the countries of Serbia, Russia, Kosovo, and Ukraine came to Philadelphia to learn about effective Project Based Service Learning.  They were here specifically to see the Alliance to Save Energy's, Green Schools program in action.  Green Schools is an international, student centered program where students devise and implement energy conservation strategies in their school.  As the Co-Director of the Green Schools, Philly programs, we had a kindergarten project in a Philadelphia public school.  Among other aspects of the project, the students were part of the "Energy Patrol".  These European educators saw hands on teaching and learning at its finest and went back to their respective countries with a deep understanding of Best Practices in action. Take a look...

Chris Lehmann at CEFPI Philly

Just found this video in the Guerilla Educators archives.   Chris Lehman was the keynote speaker at the CEFPI Northeast Region Conference in the Spring of 2010.  I shot Chris' talk in its entirety with an iPod about the size of a stick of gum, hence the narrow format.  Amazing!  As usual, Chris hit it out of the park like a Ryan Howard home run.  Take a look...

Cape May Dolphins

We observed Atlantic Bottle Nose Dolphins off the coast of Cape May, New Jersey.

Take a look...

Project Based Learning; Best Practices; Building a Bridge in 4th Grade

This video captures an activity conducted with my students as part of a bridge building project conducted in cooperation with the American Institute of Architecture's, Architecture in Education program.   It was also my first video.  My students were to measure the height of the Henry Avenue Bridge using a plumb bob.  Take a look...

This is a very powerful project that incorporates historical aspects of the American Revolution, geometry, public speaking, working cooperatively, ratio and proportion and a whole menu of grade appropriate curricular objectives and state mandated standards.  It also demonstrates many of the 12 Hallmarks of Effective Teachng and Learning.

Future Home of the Elementary School for Sustainable Design

This video documents the initial stages of the educational planning process to re-design physical spaces that were built for purposes other than teaching and learning.  Realtor Brian Wilson, took school architect, David Schrader, Donna Sole, and me to inspect just such a structure that has not been used for its intended purpose in over 10 years. Both the physical facility and the location make the site a very good fit with the Elementary School for Sustainable Design.  Take a look at the "before" phase of the design process. 

Professional Developments for Educators at Rose Tree Media School District

Guerilla Educators has added a new client.  We recently completed  2 day Professional Development for the hard working educators at the Rose Tree Media School District that focused on how to successfully implement and complete curriculum and real-world based Projects with students.  The workshop was given through the prism of our 12 Hallmarks of Effective Teaching and Learning.  We'll return to ongoing work with the teachers throughout the 2011-2012 school year to assist with implementation and successful completion of the proposed Projects developed in the planning phase of the training.  Welcome to our family of clients, Rose Tree Media, that includes:

• American Institute of Architects
• The School District of Philadelphia
• Council of Educational Facilities Planners International
• Delaware Valley Green Building Council
• SchraderGroup Architects
• Fielding Nair International
• Philadelphia University
• District of Columbia Public School System
• Milwaukee School District
• Alliance to Save Energy
• York Suburban School District
• University of Wisconsin
• Environmental Protection Agency
• Education Environment Planning Consultants
• Regina Board of Education
• Philadelphia Zoo
• Re:Vision Architecture
• Wallace Roberts & Todd Design
• LOTI (Levels of Technology Integration)
• IQity
• Journal of Teacher Education
• Edutopia
• Barack Obama Green Charter High School
• MaST Community (Math, Science, and Technology) Charter School
• Friendship Public Charter Schools
• Rose Tree Media School District

 

End of School Year Appreciation

This is a very sweet end of year appreciation for staff and students at a community charter school in Phiadelphia...

Search PlanIt Lesson Plan Site

Just sent a heads up about a new site created by Curtis Cook that assists educators with their lesson plans called Search PlanIt.  Could be a great resource for teachers.  It will be interesting to see how the site fares and how it will be used.

Project Based Service Learning; The Children's Water Monitoring Network

This video demonstrates a wide range of positive academic and civic benefits for students who participate in water monitoring Service Learning projects.   The video is a compilation of Service Learning projects in 3rd and 4th grades at Harrity Elementary an inner city school in Philadelphia and at GreenWoods a Philly public charter school.  Take a look...

The charter school students conducted macrobiotic studies on a nearby stream and the inner city school students did chemical testing. In both cases, test results were sent electronically to the Philadelphia Water Department as part of their ongoing efforts to maintain water quality. It is clear that these students are engaged, doing important work as citizens, and are achieving mastery of curricular requirements in a very powerful, effective way.

Professional Developments for Educators

The Guerilla Educators Best Practices Professional Development for Educators and Educational Facilities Planners

Pedagogy  Practice  Planning Projects

Through the prism of our 12 Hallmarks of Effective Teaching and Learning, our presenters focus on giving participants the tools to create a Best Practices environment with their students and to implement Project Based methodologies to help improve educational and civic student outcomes. Our 1.5 Day training is hands-on, interactive, and customized to effectively address your specific educational needs.

The Hallmarks: 

• Fun 

• Project Based Learning

• Ownership

• Engagement

• Cooperative Teaching and Learning

• Citizenship

• Mastery of Curriculum

• Higher Order Thinking Skills

• Technology

• Leadership

• Personal Responsibility

• The Teachable Moment

    

 Call us at 215-510-2059 or email John Sole at tcherjohn@aol.com for more information.  We will customize a training to suit your specific needs.  Our workshops can also be tailored to your time constraints, from ½ Day to the full 2 Day experience.

Download the Guerilla Educatiors PD PDF, here Download GE BP PD

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Barack Obama Green Charter High School

This video gives a sweet overview of The Barack Obama Green Charter High School, located in Plainfield, New Jersey.  ObamaGreen opened their doors in September, '10.  Guerilla Educators is honored to have played a part in ObamaGreen receiving their charter and now delivering world-class education in a safe, nurturing environment.  Take a look...

Yorkshire Elementary School Citation of Excellence Award

Congratulations to David Schrader and his team at SchraderGroup Architecture.  SchraderGroup's new design of the Yorkshire Elementary School, located in York, PA, earned a 2011 Citation of Excellnce from Learning By Design.  Guerilla Educators is proud to have had a small part of this very successful design outcome particularly at the beginning of the process when Davis Schrader led a 2 day design charrette that included representatives from the York Suburban School District Administrators, Yorkshire Elementary School Teachers, and, of course, students.  The videos, below, authentically capture the charrette in realtime.   The program begins with Presenters setting the framework and establishing touchstones to help keep the actual design process on track and focused on a successful outcome.  Take a look...

The next video begins with a view of the Yorkshire Elementary School site as it was prior to SchraderGroup Architecture's award winning re-design of the physical facility. It continues with the actual design ideas being developed by the charrette participants including critical input by students. This is how effective teaching and learning spaces are developed.

The final video of this series documenting how award winning teaching and learning spaces are designed shows Day 2 of the Yorkshire Elementary School Design Charrette and includes presentations of the participants design ideas. It is clear throughout the process that student input was both valued and incorporated into the final plan. Again, congratulation, David, on a job very well done!

This from the Learning By Design Magazine's Spring 2011 Edition ...

Yorkshire Elementary School of York, PA, impressed the judges on many levels. “It’s just extremely well-rounded. The exterior design is good architecture, and a lot of good thought has gone into the interior,” said the judges. “Everywhere you look, there’s a lot of good detail.”

The 60,835-square-foot building designed by SCHRADERGROUP Architecture LLC of Philadelphia, PA, serves up to 375 students in kindergarten through second grade. Two major goals included supporting the school’s cross-grade instruction format through spaces designed to allow for interaction, and using the building as a teaching tool. The project also is pursuing LEED Gold certification.

The judges particularly commended the site plan for this project, including the way it breaks down the massing and strives to make every classroom a “corner classroom” with two exposures. “That’s not easy,” they said. The building features a “main street” that runs between shared spaces on one side and academic spaces on the other. The media center functions as the core of the school.

The judges commented on the extensive use of transparency and of graphics throughout the interior, including large, colorful letters. They commented, too, on the careful selection of colors and finishes. Among the instructive building elements are exposed mechanical systems, a detention pond with wetland plantings, and the use of materials salvaged from the school that was replaced. Overall, they said, this is a “very thoroughly thought-through project.”

CEFPI Southeast Region 2011 Conference

Arrived in beautiful downtown Savannah for the 2011 CEFPI Southeast Region Conference.  Presenting Monday morning on the topic, "Connecting Students, Teachers, and Curriculum Via Project Based Learning". This year 5 themes will guide the event:

Collaborate

Educate

Facilitate

Participate

Invigorate

Here is how the themes will be related to my topic:

*Collaborate - Educational Facilities Planners/Designers/Architects can demonstrate that their design processes, when used in collaboration with educators and students will have powerful circular ramifications on more effective school design and more effective teaching and learning.

*Educate - The session will educate the participants about what we believe to be a vastly under-utilized asset, i.e. how physical teaching and learning spaces are powerful resources for effective teaching and learning.

*Facilitate - Understanding the participatory and Community Based power of Project Based Learning will facilitate more effective design.

*Participate - There is a tremendous feeling of satisfaction for Educational Facilities Planners that comes with knowing that they are participating in the whole education of the students who are their end clients. This process encourages school architects to establish real-world, in-class Community Partnerships with their clients and see the positive effects their participation engenders.

*Invigorate - Imagine students coming into teaching and learning spaces excited about being there because of active hands-on Projects in which they are about to participate. Imagine educators and educational facilities planners being active participants in those Projects. Imagine more effective educational facilities design as a result of the school architect as teacher/learner. This is what the session will address.

See you in Savannah!

Guerilla Educators at the CEFPI Southeast Region Conference

On Monday, March 28, Guerilla Educators has the privilege to be a Featured Presenter at the 2011 CEFPI SouthEast Region Conference. in Savannah, Ga.Our topic will be:

Connecting School Design to Students, Teachers and Curriculum Via Project Based Learning

Our Course Description is as follows:

Just as Project Based Learning is the gold standard of effective teaching and learning, school design is one of the gold standards of PBL. This session will explore how Educational Facilities Design processes can be used as a powerful resource in the educator's pedagogical toolkit. Through the prism of our Hallmarks of Effective Teaching and Learning, we will learn how Educational Facilities Planners can become real world Community Partners for curriculum-based Projects that use the physical facility as a 5 dimensional (including Real-Time and Cyber-Space) teaching and learning tool.  Once we understand the premise that the educational facility can be a catalyst for the development of academic and social proficiencies, regardless of demographics and  even independent of whether the spaces have been designed effectively, then Educational Facilities Planners can begin to see the positive effects of these “inside out” understandings on the bottom line. In the session, we will use authentic short videos of real students conducting real projects in and out of real classrooms with real school architects, to demonstrate these processes and to show how they may be incorporated into your Planning.  Plenty of time will be built in for discussion so Planners, Designers, and Architects can walk away with a deeper understanding of what takes place inside the physical teaching and learning spaces they create.

See you in Savannah!

I recently had the privilege of participating in a webinar conducted by Mark Sidding, RIBA, an architect from Watson Batty Architects in Leeds, UK.  Mark shares an innovative school project, the Dearne Advanced Learning Centre, below.  He covers three key principles: the impact of physical space on learning, changing the way that learning is delivered, and infusing technology into flexible environments for multiple learning modalities. The project is now complete and is undergoing a rigorous assessment to determine its success. Mark shares lessons learned from this project. The presentation was hosted by Cefpi Michigan Chapter and 21st Century School Design.

Find more videos like this on Relearning Learning

DC Teacher of the Year, Jon Rolle

Jon Rolle, 3rd grade Teacher at Friendship Southeast Elementary Academy Charter School, has been named the Washington DC Teacher of the Year by the DC State Board of Education.  Mr. Rolle teaches an all boys class. This is the 2nd consecutive year that a Friendship Charter School Teacher has earned this pretigious award.  Guerilla Educators is privileged to assist Friendship Charter Schools with Professional Developments for teachers and implementation of Project Based Learning in, and out of, classrooms.  Congratulations, Jon!  

The Collective Bargaining Crisis

Being of a certain age, I remember the when unions were proud, necessary organizations that really had the workers' best interests at heart.  I believe that unions are as much responsible for the creation and rise of the American middle class, of which I am a part, as any entity in American history.  As an educator, I've seen how collective bargaining improved working conditions for teachers and helped protect them from innocent mistakes or the whims of arbitrary administrators.  Therefore, I take no joy in stating that the current state of the collective bargaining process from the union side, particularly in the public sector has become bloated, corrupt, top heavy and not in the overall best interests of the country, the membership, and certainly not the student. Not when the Governor of New York, who must lay off 1,500 educators can't trim from the rolls the hundreds of incompetent (or worse) teachers sitting in "rubber rooms" sometimes for years because of "Last In, First Out" rules.  Not when public sector unions in major cities donate hundreds of millions to get lawmakers elected and then sit down with those same politicians when it's time to "negotiate".  Not when Detroit is closing half its schools and increasing class size to pay for benefits and the teachers union there is intransigent.  Not when school districts write glowing recommendations for bad teachers so they can pawn them off on other unsuspecting school districts because, by union rules, it is virtually impossible to remove them from the classroom. Not when the new PA Convention Center additions have just opened in Downtown Philadelphia to accommodate larger groups but prospective clients are reluctant to reserve there because they have to negotiate with 6 different unions to do things like clients using their own laptop if it is used to register participants.  I take no joy in saying that collective bargaining has become the problem, not the solution in flashpoint states like Wisconsin, Ohio, and Indiana where the citizens have pushed back.  Two good articles ilustrate my point.  This, from the Wall Street Journal and here from Journalist Kyle Olson about Teacher Tenure.  I still think that unions are a necessary counterbalance to look out for the interests of their membership, however the frameworks of the negotiating process will need to be altered in order for unions to survive.

Vacations for Veterans

Guerilla Educators is proud to support Vacations for Veterans, a group that seeks to provide Purple Heart recipients from the Iraq and Afghanistan with a week of free vacation lodging.  Our Little Cayman Oceanfront Property, Condo del Sole, is now available to our nation's heroes through this worthy organization.  Sincere thanks for giving us the opportunity to serve you, Veterans, our Nation's true heroes. 

The State of Our National Debate

Earlier this week, I joined a discussion on Facebook about the protests in Wisconsin.  The thread was started by an educator whom I both like and respect.  We also have strikingly different opinions about the events taking place in Madison and the role of unions in the teaching profession.  The educator and most of the comments bemoaned the fact that collective bargaining was being eroded in the country and that the nature of teacher unions were being negatively affected.  I took an opposite position, here:

Ah, life in the Progressive bubble, where visions of "the struggle" are set in the glorious past, like insects in amber. There was a time when unions were critical to making education a profession, with decent wages and protections for teachers. Now? Not so much. Now, outfits like SEIU and the NEA literally spend hundreds of millions of $'s to help elect the very people on the local, state, and national levels with whom they'll then "negotiate" contracts. And what has this incestuous relationship produced? New York. A broke state that spends about $17,500/student of taxpayers hard earned dollars and graduates 23% of their students. Where 100's of incompetent (or worse) teachers sit in "rubber rooms" at full pay, sometimes for years doing nothing because they can't be fired. Once upon a time, being a union lawyer to protect teacher's hard earned rights was a noble calling. Now, it's more about protecting a rich, bloated bureaucracy that, from my vantage point could not care less about partnering to help create vibrant teaching and learning environments for decent wages. Sorry, Madison, it ain't "all about the kids" any more.

I was told by this educator that his students looked at his page and that he did not want them to see such “hateful”, “demeaning”, and “degrading” comments posted.  He was particularly concerned lest his students see the first sentence of my comment.  WOW!

Wry and acerbic?  Sure.  Politically incorrect?  Guilty as charged.  "Insensitive"?  Oh, alright. Hateful, demeaning and degrading?  Not even close.  Two things are striking about the response to my comment.  First, if we have become so hyper-sensitive in our national discourse about important issues that if the use of a metaphor, even one laden with sardonic, amber-filled, irony, rises to the level of “hateful” and “demeaning”, then we have lost something crucial in our free ability to debate an issue.  Secondly, looking over the 30 odd comments some rose, by the implied definition, to “hateful”, etc etc, and there were no admonishments for those.  Of course, those strong opinions agreed with the premise of the prevailing POV, so I suppose that those comments were acceptable for the students to see without a filter.  I respect this educator’s desire to protect his students and, as such, apologized in the comments, but feel that a response is called for, nonetheless.  To that end, I am not responding in the comment string.  In this age of hyper-sensitivity when someone is accused of one or another “-ism”, discussion is automatically shut off, and that’s a shame.     

 

Chinese New Year Show by MaST Charter Kindergarten Students!

Kindergarten students immersed in Chinese culture at MaST Community Charter School in Philadelphia.  Mandarin teacher at MaST Amanda Yan Hou, is a resident of Beijing and does a remarkable job with her young charges.  Someone once told me that working with kindergartners is like trying to herd cats and here Amanda is teaching these energetic young American students Chinese culture and language.  Impressive!

Best Practices in Elementary School Across the Grades

Teaching for Understanding Coordinator at MaST Community Charter School, Donna Sole, has created best practices "snapshots" throughout the elementary grades across a variety of disciplines and subject/content areas.  This is powerful affirmation that the MaST teachers whose students are in this presentation are innovative, energetic, and professionally care deeply about their young charges.  It's also a collegial celebration of successes and pulling together as a team to positively affect the lives of their students.  Good work, MaST!  Take a look...

Service Learning Workshop at the Barack Obama Green Charter High School

In August, 2010, just prior to the opening of the new BarackObama Green Charter High School in Plainfield, New Jersey, Guerilla Educators conducted a Project Based Service Learning Professional Development for Obama Green teachers.  As part of the training, Projects Coordinator, Mr. Steven King, led the teachers in cooperative Project brainstorming to identify specific Project areas and activities that could be launched with the students in the 2010-2011 school year.  This video documents that powerful session where Obama Green educators began to plan for the implementation of Projects with their students.  Take a look... 

Guerilla Educators has provided all phases of Charter School start-up assistance for Obama Green and continues with mentoring services for the school's admin team.

Little Cayman Christmas Carols

Silent Night finale at the Little Cayman Christmas Carol Festival on Christmas Eve.

Winter Solstice Lunar Eclipse on Little Cayman

Shot from Condo del Sole on Little Cayman...

Books; Evidence-Based Design of Elementary and Secondary Schools: A Responsive Approach to Creating Learning Environments by Peter Lippman

We are pleased to announce that the publication of good friend and colleague, Peter Lippman's first book, Evidence-Based Design of Elementary and Secondary Schools: A Responsive Approach to Creating Learning Environments, is now in print by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.  This from a review over at Barnes and Noble:

An in-depth, evidence-based design approach to the design of elementary and secondary schools

The contemporary school must be a vibrant, living extension of its community. Evidence-Based Design of Elementary and Secondary Schools instructs design professionals on how to successfully achieve this goal. With assistance from research-intensive principles grounded in theories, concepts, and research methodologies—and with roots in the behavioral sciences—this book examines and provides strategies for pooling streams of information to establish a holistic design approach that is responsive to the changing needs of educators and their students.

From the Sony ebookstore:

Evidence-Based Design of Elementary and Secondary Schools analyzes the current shift toward a modern architectural paradigm that balances physical beauty, and social awareness, and building technologies with functionality to create buildings that optimize the educational experience for all learners. Enlightening as well as informative, this forward-thinking guide provides educational facility planners, designers, and architects with the tools they need to confidently approach their next school building project. In addition, this guide provides administrators, educators, and researchers with design options for rethinking and creating innovative learning environments.

PETER C. LIPPMAN is a senior architectural staff member of the Educational Practice Group at JCJ Architecture in New York City. He has worked on a range of educational projects, including elementary and secondary schools, as well as higher education facilities. From 2001 to 2004, Lippman served as chair for the AIANY Chapter Committee on Architecture for Education, where he developed and presented programs that examined and extended ideas about the design of school environments.

 

12 Questions for School Architects and Planners; Connecting School Design to Educators, Students, and Curriculum via Project Based Service Learning

In honor of the 4th anniversary of my Guerilla Educators blog, our first entry, posted below, was an interview conducted by   Christian Long who, at that time was the online editor of DesignShare.  His first question was,    

If you had to pick a single educational technique, learning style, or pedagogy to drive the future of school design, what would it be?

My response centered immediately on Project Based Service Learning and prompted me to ask a series of 12 rhetorical essential questions in return.  The questions also became the genesis of the Guerilla Educators blog and ultimately became an article on DesignShare, a premier educational facilities website.  The questions also formed the basis of a long term, in-depth video based study centered on the merits of Project Based Service Learning as one of the most powerful and effective teaching and learning methodologies for ALL students and why school architects should design educational spaces to accommodate this type of pedagogical focus.

These 12 rhetorical questions for Educational Facilities Planners is now also a foundation for a forthcoming book based on my 12 Hallmarks of Effective Teaching and Learning.  Nice symmetry, eh?

Here are the questions:

Question 1: Why is Service Learning the most effective way for students to achieve mastery of curriculum and state mandated standards?

Question 2: Why is the Service Learning process the most effective way to engender good citizenship skills in all students?

Question 3: Why should school architects design educational facilities that facilitate the Project Based Learning methodology?

Question 4: Why should the school design process be used as a real-world, project-based teaching and learning strategy?

Question 5: Why is student involvement in the design process a desirable strategy for educational facilities designers?

Question 6: How can the school itself be used as a 3 dimensional textbook?

Question 7: Why should school architects see the physical facility and the teaching and learning that take place inside as a seamless continuum?

Question 8: Why should High Performance, Sustainable school design be used as a teaching and learning tool?

Question 9: Why should school architects “give back” by coming into classrooms as Community Partners to use the design process to create hands-on projects?

Question 10: What is the role of teachers in the connection of design to curriculum and students via PBL/SL?

Question 11: Why should school architects design buildings that are fun places to attend?                     

Question 12: Why does school design that will accommodate Service Learning have a positive impact on the architect's bottom line?

Click on the Questions to see the responses.

 

4th Grade Best Practices, Science; The Flashlight Movie

A culminating electrical unit activity for 4th grade students at MaST Community Charter School in Philadelphia was that they were to design and build a working flashlight.  The unit was part of their science curriculum.  A group of students thought so much of the Project they asked if they could make a video of the finished products and conduct interviews.  This film was shot entirely by students and they directed the editing of the raw footage, as well.  It demonstrates how educators can use available technology to make the most of student interests.  It also shows the use of technology applications as a tool to support effective best practices.  Take a look...

Here is another compelling video from MaST Charter School about their newly created Peace Garden.

Peace Garden at MaST Community Charter School

On Tuesday, November 9, 2010, MaST Community Charter School in NorthEast Philadelphia had a memorable day in their school's history and culture.  On that day, the Peace Garden officially opened.  Set in a compact urban area, this amazing outdoor teaching/learning space comprises a rustic amphitheater, a bird blind, and a series of different garden environments that includes a native species area, as well as wetland, kitchen, herb, and texture gardens.  This video depicts elementary students from kindergarten through 6th grade who, under the guidance of teacher, Mr. Richard Trichon, are in the process of planting thousands of bulbs that will bloom in the Spring.  Mr.Trichon led the student design team that, over the last 18 months, planned and then brought the Garden into physical reality.  As the years progress, these young MaST students will watch the Peace Garden grow and develop and will understand that they were an integral part of this legacy that has already become a part of the culture of the school.  What a powerful school-wide project!  Much of this video was taken by MaST students.  Take a look...

Here is another great MaST project video about 6th grade archaeology.

Silver Update

Good Lord!  Silver is trading over $25.60/oz on this day, November 4, 2010.  Five years ago, silver sold for just over $7.00/oz.  My firm belief still stands that young adults and educators should diversify some of their assets into metals.  Even at $25, silver is still relatively affordable and over the last 5,000 years precious metals have always had worth.  The volatility of global markets, the tenuous condition of the American economy, and uncertainty about the viability of public pensions all make metals a play worth thinking about.     

Elders Meeting in Regina, Saskatchewan

I came across this video, shot by Guerilla Educators in October, 2008, as part of the design process for a new faciity to replace Scott Collegiate High School in the North Central neighbourhood of Regina, Saskatchewan.  This meeting was held by Fielding Nair International to gather input from 1st Nations and Meti groups to incorporate into the design.  Isidore, the presiding Chief, gave me permission to film the meeting but not the opening and closing prayers, which is why those parts of the meeting were over dubbed with audio from a Round Dance at Scott Collegiate, shot earlier.  This was one of the most poignant videos I've ever shot both for the importance these participants attached to their input and for their discussions about how they can be more enfranchised into the decision making processes that directly affect their lives and especially the lives of 1st Nations and Meti sudents.  Take a look...

Grade 6 Archaeology at MaST Community Charter School

Differentiated Instruction stems from beliefs about differences among learners, how they learn, learning preferences, and individual interests.  For this process to authentically take place, it is important for educators to get to know the learners in front of them before they can best match their practices to meet the needs of the students. In this video you will see how Tarra Gordon, a sixth grade teacher at MaST Community Charter school used an archaeology project to teach content as well as to learn about her students’ likes, interests, and families.  This will give Tarra insights about her students so she can use the differentiation process to help her students achieve.

Click to view another video from MaST Community Charter School about best practices in 5th grade math.

Pets in the Classroom; Tamara

At a Public Charter School in Philadelphia over the weekend, it was necessary to unplug the filter of a 75 gallon fish tank.  Due to the inevitable and most unfortunate human error, the filter was not re-started as it should have been so this morning, when the teacher arrived, the big beautiful fish that have been a part of the culture of the school for years, except for the algae eater, were gone.  

Tamara is now a smart, happy 3rd grader at this school.  She has been a student there since kindergarten.  When she arrived at the school, Tamara was disruptive, violent, and uncommunicative.  By a series of good fortune, astute observation, and a caring educator, Tamara was given charge of making sure that the fish were well cared for, starting with feeding the first thing every morning.  That simple act of responsibility given to her in kindergarten and continuing to this day, helped transform this young lady from an asocial, belligerent child to, by dint of her consistent responsibilities with the school pets, a position of leadership.  Right about now, Tamara will be at the classroom door where the teacher will let her in and walk with her to the fish tank where there will be no fish to feed.  There will most likely be heartache and tears both on the part of both Tamara and the teacher as they commiserate over their mutual loss.  They will share this bond of sadness and then, if she is true to form, the educator will use this as a powerful "Teachable Moment" for Tamara.  There will be so many opportunities to explore and practically demonstrate how leaders act in situations like this.  There will be opportunities to use Higher Order Thinking Skills, and of course, there will be the necessity of determining next steps to lessen the impact of this tragedy on the student body, the faculty, and the admin team.  

My guess is that, before long the fish tank will be up and running with new fish in the tank and Tamara will get back into her routine of care and feeding, a little older, a good deal wiser, and farther along in her accidental development as a citizen/leader.

George Clinton Donates to Barack Obama Green Charter High School

This from co-founder of the Barack Obama Green Charter High School, Mr. Steven King:

George Clinton is generously donating $10,000 and 25% of the Funkadelic Music Catalog to the Barack Obama Green Charter High School through his foundation, Mother’s Hip Connection Education Foundation. These funds will help to educate the students on artists’ rights in his hometown of Plainfield, New Jersey.

“Giving on behalf of the different members that have outstanding amounts of money (owed to them) that came from New Jersey is important because every member has unpaid royalties from writing, production, and publishing,” says Clinton.    

Earlier this year, Clinton partnered with the Barack Obama Green Charter High School for a fundraiser to raise awareness and money for the first green charter high school in New Jersey. The organization’s focus is “to create independent critical thinkers capable of applying the principles of sustainability for the development of themselves, the community and environment” says Steven King, Founder and Director of Sustainability and Programs for the Barack Obama Green Charter High School. Graciously, Clinton houses several of his original master recordings at the school as a learning tool for students to understand the business and artistry of music.

“His willingness and desire to share his experiences and knowledge of the business of music creates an environment that deepens our students understanding”, says King.

Even with a frenzied tour schedule of over 200 dates a year, Clinton has committed to speak comprehensively to the students this school year:

•     Students will learn how to protect their intellectual property rights of creative works
•     Students will learn what legal steps to take if someone steals their creative works
•     Students will learn how to conduct proper music research

Guerilla Educators is honored to be Service Learning Advisor, Curriculum Support Resource, and Sustainability Consultant for Obama Green.

Michelle Rhee Leaving DC Public Schools

Sorry to see Chancellor Michelle Rhee leave DC Public Schools.  For those students who went to DC public schools whose Principals did not have the luxury of selectively choosing their students or, for that matter, their teachers, Ms Rhee was a ray of hope in a District known for dismally failing the majority of its students.  Many educators have argued that Ms Rhee was not progressive enough in her views and did not operate from a position of democracy, equity, and fairness, especially in her relations with DC teachers.  The reality on the ground in much of the DCPS has been a culture of violence, high absenteeism, low graduation rates, dismal academic performance across the disciplines, and some grossly incompetent teachers who could not be removed for virtually any reason.  Ms Rhee understood that to break the calcified cycle of failure more was needed than holding hands and singing Kumbaya.  Her style was sometimes abrasive and she made mistakes and I shudder to think what the DCPS will become without her.       

Funding Needed for Anacostia High School Project

It has come to my attention that the project, attached, in which students from Anacostia High School in Washington, DC, as part of a year long water monitoring student initiative of the Anacostia River does not now have funding.  Ms Brenda Gadd, Director of the Little Cayman Research Centre (LCRC), Ms Carrie Manfrino, President of the Central Caribbean Marine Institute (CCMI), and Guerilla Educators have developed the project as a template that can be used for students from Oakland to Detroit to DC.  The Anacostia students are scheduled to travel to LCRC on Little Cayman Island for a week in February to study reef systems and island habitats as part of a year long "we all live downstream" water monitoring study of the Anacostia River System.  Their work will be academically, scientifically, and socially rigorous, technology driven, and FUN.  The Friendship Charter Schools CAO thought he had secured the $25,000 to send 20 students to CCMI, but this is apparently not the case at this time.  Funding for such a transformative project to involve historically under-represented DC students in NOAA type work is, to be colloquial, a "no brainer".  All of which to say that if there is an angel who would support this project, the money would be put to very good use on behalf of a hard working group of inner city DC teens.  I know this is a real long shot with such a short turn-around time but the return in terms of civic/academic/scientific leadership development of these students is enormous so it is worth that shot.

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Thank you for your time.

Losing Our Landline

This week, the Sole Household will make a quantum leap into the Brave New World of wireless technology.  We have decided to put on our aluminum foil helmets and -gulp!- drop our landline.  From now on for voice communications, family, friends, colleagues, and others may reach Donna and I exclusively on our cell phones or Skype.  Hopefully, this will be addition by subtraction.  It seems like a land-based phone is a bit redundant when most of our voice communication is now and has been done on our cells for the last decade.  Wish us luck as we get untethered from terra firma.    

Thomas Friedman at CEFPI 2010 World Conference

Thomas Friedman was the Keynote Speaker at the 88th annual CEFPI World Conference which was held in San Jose on September 24-27,2010. Mr. Friedman's presentation was based on his best selling book, "The World Is Flat" and was, by turns, poignant, controversial, funny, thought provoking, and always entertaining. His main premise is that technology has changed the world and offers keen insights into how we can live optimally in a wired world.  Here is Tom Friedman's talk presented in its entirety:
Watch Tom Friedman at CEFPI World Conference in Educational & How-To  |  View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com