Dear LM_NET members,
Sorry for the mistake! I started composing this letter regarding the topic
earlier but didn't have time to finish it. Then, I guess I sent it
accidentally before finishing the letter, so I will conclude the story now.....
The earlier letter detailed a summer institute for teachers that was
conducted a few years ago. The institute's purpose involved helping inner city
educators utilize "hands on" lessons to improve scores in the areas of
mathematics and science.
My husband was a master teacher for the institute. At the conclusion of
the institute, a recognition ceremony/ banquet was held to honor the
participants.
After the meal, a Power Point presentation via Smart Board was conducted by
one of the district administrators regarding test scores of different ethnic
groups within the district. (This was a few years after the start of the "No
Child Left Behind" era).
The presentation contained a variety of different graphs, charts, and
statistics utilizing wonderful graphics and colors. ( I suspect that the
presentation might have even been outsourced to be developed by a professional
design
company with plans of showing it to everyone in the district and community
to enlighten them regarding the district's testing results based on
ethnicity.)
The constant theme running throughout the presentation involved two (2)
specific minority groups that seemed to score lower in almost every subject and
grade level area of the federal and state testing since the implementation of
NCLB.
The administrator seemed to be bursting with pride regarding this
presentation which had taken a great deal of work to compile regarding the
statistics
from the test scores.
After the conclusion of that presentation, the next speaker was a retired
educator who had been a leading civil rights figure from the same community.
This person had been instrumental in helping to integrate businesses and
schools back in the 1950's and 1960's during the forefront of the civil rights
movement via sit-ins, demonstrations, etc.
The retired educator rose from her chair and began to speak with power and
purpose. Immediately, she began to address the audience regarding the Power
Point presentation we'd just seen on one of the district's Smart Boards.
During the course of her speech, my husband leaned over to me and whispe
red, "Great speakers don't need an elaborate multi-media presentation to get
their point across. In fact, it would have 'slowed down' the pacing and tempo
of her speech to stop and utilize one."
After reminding the audience of how far the school district had come since
the early days of integration, she stated, "Don't show the children and
community this presentation! It holds no purpose other than to make the children
feel defeated. This presentation is impressive, but it does not inspire
children and teachers in this city. That was the purpose of this institute.
Show them who they CAN be, not how they have failed in the past." Her passion
and commitment to education was electrifying.
At the conclusion of her speech, the crowd rose and gave the retired
educator a ten minute standing ovation. It was one of those evenings that you
never
forget, especially when looking back on all of your years as an educator.
Point: The message is the main thing. The communication medium is
secondary. As educators, we should engage our students while educating them with
whatever method works best. Sometimes, the Power Point presentations make
mediocre speakers appear better than they really are. Don't just educate -
INSPIRE!
Deborah Maehs (retired SLMS)
P.O. Box 341
Kingfisher, OK 73750
_maehsville@aol.com_ (mailto:maehsville@aol.com)
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