The Unexpected Advocate: Tackling Inequity One Equation at a Time!

  1. Teacher Burnout in the First Five Years General Burnout and Attrition Rates High early-career attrition: A frequently cited statistic (often attributed to Ingersoll, the National Center for Education Statistics [NCES], and other studies) suggests that anywhere from 30% to 50% of new teachers leave the profession within their first five years. Context matters: Attrition rates can be higher in underserved schools, in subject areas with teacher shortages (like math and science), and in high-poverty areas. Burnout Rates Among Math Teachers Math (and STEM) teacher turnover is often higher: Research by Ingersoll and May (2012) indicates that math and science teachers leave at higher rates than some other subject areas, partly due to increased demand for their content-area expertise in non-teaching professions. Estimates for math teachers: Although exact percentages can vary by district and region, some studies place math/science teacher turnover around 40%–45% in the first fiv...

  1. Teachers are Called to Teach As teachers, we pour our hearts and minds into creating engaging lessons, building relationships with our students, and ensuring that every learner has the support they need . However, with growing responsibilities such as meeting individualized education plans (IEPs), providing language support, managing classroom behaviors, and juggling an increasing workload of documentation, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. This blog post explores the importance of systematic support in schools so that teachers can focus on the core reason they became educators in the first place: teaching students. 2. Maslow’s Before Bloom’s One crucial reminder in education is that students’ basic needs must be met before they can truly engage in higher-level thinking or learning . This is especially true in a majority-minority school setting where many students face real fears, trauma, and instability—whether they are refugees fearing possible deportation or young people dea...

 Teachers   Fostering Authentic Connections Beyond the Classroom 1. The Value of Authentic Connections The foundation of any successful classroom begins with authentic connections between teachers and students . While many discussions focus on new teaching strategies, cutting-edge technology, or policy changes, none of these can rival the power of a genuine relationship. Students thrive when they believe their teacher cares about them as individuals—not just as names on a roster. When I interviewed one of my favorite teachers—an accomplished, Hall of Fame basketball coach—on my podcast, he emphasized how life-changing these connections can be when teachers engage students outside of the confines of content areas. Whether it’s coaching a sport, leading a club, or mentoring a student-led project, stepping beyond the classroom can create bonds that bolster trust, motivation, and a sense of belonging. 2. The “Clock-In, Clock-Out” Mentality In recent years, the narrative of over...

How Growth-Based Grading Transformed My Classroom My Journey to Growth-Based Grading Over more than two decades of teaching, I’ve come to understand that true education is about fostering each student’s growth—not by focusing on where they start, but on how far they progress relative to their starting point. As society evolves, so too must our instructional methods to meet the changing needs of students. My most profound professional transformation began when I transitioned from teaching at an affluent, majority-Anglo high school in western Washington to a high-poverty, majority-minority school in eastern Washington. This experience fundamentally reshaped my perspective on equitable teaching and grading, especially in addressing growth and achievement gaps. When I arrived at my current school, the student learning challenges I observed were immense. Many students, predominantly heritage Spanish speakers, faced multiple barriers both within and beyond the school system. Are Spanish-spea...

  Professional Unprofessionality: Transforming Classrooms Through Authentic Connection The Unexpected Journey of Educational Engagement As I reflect on my two decades of teaching, I've come to realize that the most powerful moments in education happen far beyond traditional textbooks and rigid methodologies. My journey has been a testament to the transformative power of what some might call "unprofessional" teaching - a approach that prioritizes human connection over sterile instruction. The Potato Incident: A Lesson in Cultural Bridging Let me paint a vivid picture of one of my most memorable classroom moments. In a classroom where language barriers often feel insurmountable, I encountered a frustrated monolingual student struggling to express her mathematical confusion. Her exasperated cry of "no entiendo papas!" (I don't understand potatoes) became an unexpected teaching moment. Most educators would have reached for a translator or moved on. Instead, I s...

Navigating the Promise and Challenges of Project-Based Learning in STEM Project-Based Learning (PBL) has become a buzzword in education, often hailed as a transformative approach that ties classroom learning to real-world applications. As a STEM educator, I have seen firsthand the potential of PBL to engage students by incorporating their lives, interests, and future aspirations. When done effectively, PBL allows students to solve problems as they might in a professional setting, bridging the gap between abstract concepts and tangible applications. Research supports this notion, showing that meaningful, rich learning experiences promote long-term retention of concepts. However, while I’m a staunch advocate for the principles of PBL, implementing it in a high school STEM classroom, especially with traditionally underserved student populations, is not without its challenges. Here, I’ll explore the promise of PBL, the obstacles I’ve encountered, and the lessons I’ve learned along the way....

  Unpacking the Debate: Heterogeneous vs. Homogeneous Math Classrooms at My High School Education is a deeply personal profession, and for those of us at Warden High School, it’s more than just teaching equations—it’s about reshaping futures. Over the years, I've had many conversations with colleagues and experts who challenge our approach to ability-tracking students into specific math classes. Some advocate for the progressive move toward heterogeneous grouping , where students of all skill levels learn together in the same classroom. While this idea is rooted in equity and inclusivity, I remain a staunch defender of our current system of targeted placement. Here's why—and why I welcome the ongoing debate. The Core Argument for Ability Tracking In our district, 74% of incoming 9th graders score at the lowest level on their 8th-grade Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA), indicating they lack foundational pre-algebra skills. These students come from a middle school that employs a...