Peabloggy

On December 4, Dr. Dale Ballou spoke to our Hierarchical Linear Modeling class about value-added models, which are statistical methods for quantifying teacher effectiveness. There has been a long-standing debate in education about pay-for-performance for teachers: proponents argue that we need a quantitative, data-based strategy for evaluating teachers, while opponents believe there are so many factors that go into good teaching that it would be futile to try to quantify it.

I was impressed by Dr. Ballou’s candor in discussing the issue. He described a 3-year, $9 million experimental study on pay for performance that’s currently in the works. In the study, Nashville mathematics teachers will vie for bonuses of up to $15,000 per year. Their performance will be compared to a control group of teachers who are not competing for bonuses.

One of my classmates, Chuck Munser from LPO, asked about whether there would be direct observations of teachers during the experiment so that changes in teachers’ instructional practices during treatment could be analyzed and reported. Dr. Ballou’s response was interesting. In essence, he explained that for the purposes of this experiment, it didn’t much matter how teachers’ practices changed as a function of the incentive - only that they did. In other words, the rationale for providing financial incentives to teachers based on their performance is for teachers to improve their effectiveness, and the question of the study is whether the incentives actually help them do it. Dr. Ballou didn’t rule out the possibility that future research may investigate the hows and whys, but at this time, the primary concern appears to be if -

At any rate, my interest is piqued. I’m sure I’m not alone in my curiosity to read the publications that come out of this study. With the current focus on improving the methods by which we assess student achievement to meet the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act, it makes sense that we would want to figure out how to assess our teachers as well.

-posted by Peter Beddow

Quite fitting that as I write my first blog entry – ever – I am returning from a blogging conference in Washington, DC.

No, not for this project, though I am sure it will help! It was actually for work – one of the perks of working for a public affairs firm charged with understanding this new “social media”.

After I emailed my last semester paper Sunday afternoon, I wandered to the National Christmas Tree along with thousands of kids, parents and their cutely-sweatered canines, and then woke up to a full day of learning how wikis work, what technorati.com is, how to use a widget (I still don’t quite get it—advice?) and, above all, not to fear a blogger.

With that said, here’s a more complete introduction of myself, though you will get to know me better soon.

Unlike most of my colleagues on this blog, I am taking the road to a master’s degree at a Sunday drive’s pace so that I can continue working during the day. I’ve been in Nashville for three years, am pretty involved in various things around town (more on that in future posts) and think everyone should visit Las Paletas on 12^th Avenue South for a cold, tasty treat while this unseasonably warm weather lasts.

So, here’s to Peabloggy, and to the many musings to come.

~Kristen Hayner

I was recently talking with Gina Frieden- my supervisor and core faculty of the Human Development Counseling master program that I am a part of- We were going over one of my counseling audio tapes, and she was critiquing my counseling skills…you know, the usual stuff! Well… after our supervision session, she was asking me how my life was going- She wanted to know about wedding plans, etc.

I began to tell her that this week I have really been learning that in order to make it in this program and this profession, I NEED a good support system- because not only do I have the stress of this semester ending-with papers I have to write, but I also have the wedding in 11 days! and more planning to do, packing to do, individual clients to meet with, Vanderbilt undergrad HOD exams to grade, and really the hardest on me right now- is my 2 month old nephew, Jack, just had brain surgery!!!!!!!!!! This is a lot on my plate- I was telling Gina that especially with this profession, I need a good support group. My clients should never be able to tell that stuff is going on in my life- when I meet with them, it is THEIR time- not mine. So…I need people to be able to really talk to on a deep level. I have a lot of close friends in OHIO- and finally, here in TN I’m doing OK!

Gina asked how I’m handling it all- I said I was doing OK considering all the crazy that is happening- my fiance has been great through all of this stress I am under- then she said- So… WHAT’S YOUR COMFORT FOOD? I laughed. 1.) because I think that is a funny question 2.) because the night before I ate steamed broccoli while crying- I was upset and feeling all of the stress- I can’t even tell you specifically what I was crying about- but I just had to cry… then I got hungry, but it was late- so I wanted to eat something light… does this mean that BROCCOLI IS MY COMFORT FOOD? How weird is that? Isn’t it supposed to be something like chocolate, or fried stuff? I mean really…broccoli!?

Soooo….what is your comfort food? You know you have one…

-posted by Anna Mathias (soon to be Anna Oparah)

The end of the semester brings a whirlwind of projects, papers, tests and late nights at coffee shops. After a five-year hiatus from higher education, I’ve found myself working hard to keep my head above water in the last week and a half. I had forgotten much of what it takes to produce a major research paper. This week, I remembered.

I have another week ahead full of more of the same: a major paper, a major project and a major test. But today, this Saturday morning, I sit with my cup of coffee in the eye of the storm, reflecting on the experience of this whirlwind…and why, after my undergraduate education at Pepperdine in southern California and then over three years living as an expat in sunny, coastal Portugal, I loved school enough to come back for more.

At 2.30 a.m., when you’re struggling to piece together sentences from all the ideas swirling in your head about bilingual education, why it’s so important, and how to do it well, life doesn’t look too pretty. Neither do you. But after a few hours of sleep, a shower, and some fresh clothes, there is nothing like the rush of having your ideas come together and seeing your 15+ pages come off the printer.

It’s like that feeling you have after a good, long swim in the ocean. Exhausted, deeply hungry, but stoked on life. Energized, primed, toned. You’ve been fighting the current, stretching your arms, using every muscle. The water has kept you awake; and anyway, if you stopped swimming past the breakers, you would drown because your feet no longer touch the bottom.

Even in mid-swim exhaustion, you take a moment to notice the sea, the big sky, the birds flying overhead. There is water as far as you can see, and YOU are in the middle of it. You have shown up for life, and you are swimming in its midst. Wearing yourself out, yes, but smiling because who would want to MISS this?

You know how they say that even good change brings just as much stress as bad change? Well…whoever “they” are- I think they are right!

I’m Anna Mathias- I’m in my 2nd year of grad school for counseling- in 23 days…I’ll be Anna Oparah. This may seem insignificant, but let me tell you- changing my name is a big deal. It’s not just changing my name- it’s changing my life. I live alone right now. Soon I’ll live with my husband. I will be married! I will need to change my insurance, my liscense, my bank, the arrangement of my apartment, my closet space… get it?

I am getting married during my Christmas break- I will have one day to unpack from the honeymoon and settle into married life before I start my workload again and my last semester at Vanderbilt.

There is a lot of change coming my way- some good, some bad- but I can tell you the truth- I know that I am doing exactly what I should be doing, even when it seems hard.

Anyone have suggstions of ways they handle stress? Because I have plenty to handle!