Jeffery E. Frieden Pedagogy

Overcoming Pedagogical Repetition Compulsion

Why do we so often repeat the past? For me, it comes down to comfort. The times I challenge myself to look into a new approach is usually when I hit crisis, meaning “the way I currently behave is no longer working.”

In a previous post, I chronicled the biggest crisis of my career:  I almost left the classroom. Essentially, leading up to this crisis, the way I was conducting myself appeared to be “working.” Then, seemingly instantaneously, what I thought was working didn’t work any more.

In that situation, I was confronted with reality, and I either had to change or quit. There was no going back. But there have been other moments in my career where I have stepped back and taken a closer look at what I was doing and asked myself, “Is there a better way to do this?” Continue reading “Overcoming Pedagogical Repetition Compulsion” →

Jeffery E. Frieden Grades, Instruction, Make Them, Make Them Score It, Pedagogy, Summative Assessment

3 Ways to Wrangle the PIG!

“I have to plan the next unit.”

“What am I going to teach tomorrow? And how am I going to teach it?”

“But I have to grade these papers!”

Planning, instruction, and grading–if you’re like me, these three elements of teaching huddle up and, like specters, follow you around all year long. Each takes its turn whispering in your ear, especially grading.

It seems that right when you get one settled, one of the others crops up, jolting you with guilt, anxiety, or both. It seems never-ending.

Continue reading “3 Ways to Wrangle the PIG!” →

Jeffery E. Frieden Assessment

What Letter Would You Give This Number?

First semester in my district came to a close yesterday. All my students’ grades have been shipped to the front office. Though there is a sense of satisfaction in closing the book on first semester, for me that feeling is mingled with malaise.

Everything I planned, taught, assessed and scored, all those hours communicating with students and parents has been distilled down into one letter. Think about that. A, B, C, D, or F. It all comes down to one of these options.

And this is a powerful letter! One will open doors for students. Another will close them. Continue reading “What Letter Would You Give This Number?” →

Jeffery E. Frieden Assessment, Writing

The 6 Reasons You Should Grade Student Work Electronically

I’m a big believer in pen and paper. Students should write on paper as often as possible. I resist the prediction that one day screens will replace paper. There are so many cognitive benefits to putting pen to paper for writing that the keyboard will never be able to compete with. But when it comes to assessing student work, especially essays, I am starting to see things differently.

One of the main reasons I am transitioning to grading student work on the computer is because I teach on a campus where no teacher has his or her own classroom. We all rotate. Some of us multiple times because our campus has more students than rooms. There are some arguments that can be made for this way of operating a school, but after teaching there for four years, I can attest that the biggest argument against this operation is losing papers.

When a teacher is misplacing and searching for papers regularly, that person is going to look for any way to reduce the stacks. So I transitioned to grading student essays through certain Google apps, and I really like the results.

Here are the 6 reasons you should grade student work electronically.  Continue reading “The 6 Reasons You Should Grade Student Work Electronically” →

Jeffery E. Frieden The Learner's Burden

Grading – Whatever It Takes

If you’re joining us for the first time this week, on Monday and Tuesday we were exploring the statement “Whatever it takes–that’s the job of the teacher.”

Let’s turn to the topic every English teacher loves to hate: grading. Years ago a friend of mine said, “I teach for free; grading is what I get paid for.” That’s how I try to see it. Now doing “whatever it takes” when it comes to grading is really a matter of deadlines. That’s the only time I am ever going to say that I need to do “whatever it takes.”  Continue reading “Grading – Whatever It Takes” →