Emerging from Hibernation: Welcome back to another year with the Jayhawk

It is with the deepest of pleasure that I say welcome back to all of the Percy Julian Middle School students. We are on the precipice of commencing another year replete with intense scholarship and intellectual growth. It is good to be back home.

I just returned back from India earlier this week. It was a pilgrimage that afforded me many moments of understanding and clarity. It also allowed me to perceive both past and future experiences in a new light. I will target this opening blog entry of 2008- 2009 to two sets of people that have served to create meaning during my time at Percy Julian Middle School: Former Students and Prospective Students.

To my former students, I want to take this opportunity to wish you best of luck for the upcoming year, your last as a Percy Julian Student. I hope you enjoyed your summer. I am certain that you spent time escaping from the demons of the Final Assessment, Outcome Sentences, Daily Planners, Teaching Assignments, as well as paying attention to the LCD Projector. Yet, like all of those who seek refuge from that which stalks them, I believe that “you can run, but you cannot hide.” It is close to the time where you will assume the leadership of the student body, and be expected to embody “those things that are best” as you prepare for your departure and your entrance into the new domain of high school. I will be mailing out letters to all of you by early next week. Each letter begins with the same opening paragraph, but is personalized to each of you. The purpose of this letter is to wish you best of luck for this upcoming year and explicate the meaningful nature of my time teaching you. I hope you enjoy your letters and I look forward to you gracing my doorway in the upcoming year.

To my prospective students, I want to take this opportunity to wish you all the best in enjoying the remaining time you have in summer. I hope you were able to do all of the things you told yourself that you were going to do at the start of it. I am confident that you told yourself that you would visit the Art Institute, spend a day touring the Friendly Confines of Wrigley Field, study the great architecture of downtown Chicago, and read the great works of Western Philosophy to discover meaning in existence.

… Or maybe you stayed at home, hung out, and simply vegged.

Whatever it is you did, I hope you enjoyed it. I also hope you are preparing yourself for the start of school, and in particular, your time as a 7-1 Student. Allow me to welcome you to such an experience. You will be a part of something special, unique, powerfully difficult, and intense. It is my belief that your time as my student will represent some of the most difficult time you will spend in a classroom. It will be “the toughest job you will ever love.” I believe that it might be the first time where you will be introduced to the pantheon of scholarship. I will assure you that I will do my best to move as many of you as possible into the domain of intellectual analysis.

If you have me for advisory, you will have received your advisory letter. (See you on Tuesday, as I don my Edmonds jersey.) For all of this year’s 7.1 students, if you are wondering what is awaiting you in Social Studies, feel free to examine this blog. You can see the first two syllabi of the class, and also see the handouts and distributed items for the first three weeks of the course. Please be mindful that the syllabi featured are a guideline as to what will be covered. As with all first weeks, there will be time commitments outside the realm of academics that might compel us to alter when we reach certain topics. You can also see what this blog features, and read over some of the topics covered from last year. I hope you ruminate and contemplate what this class will be like for you. I promise that you will work… oh, you will work, my emerging scholars.


Expect another entry as the start of school creeps closer and closer. The Jayhawk has a hold over us all, indeed.

All best and happy hunting to both former and prospective students.

Mr. Kannan

Beyond the Blue Horizon Waits a Beautiful Day: The Last Lecture, The Final Assessment

We engage in our last lecture this week on the causes of the Civil War. After this, students will embark on their last assessment, the Final Assessment. This is a task that will seek to bring together all that we have done this year. I thought I would offer a glimpse of this by reprinting a copy of the letter, the last letter, that I will be sending out to all stakeholders (Can one sense a recurring theme, here?)


Dear Parents/ Guardians of __________________:

The purpose of this letter is to detail the ingredients of this year’s Social Studies Final Assessment. This year’s collection of tasks that represent this last foray into the domain of scholarship are as eclectic as our students and will prove to test our students one more time, as we approach the end of our journey of 7-1 Social Studies.

There are four tasks and students will have to choose one of the four. All work will be done in class and at home. Student work will be due at the end of class on May 30. Students will be graded on a 4-3-2-1 standards rubric in the areas of quality of ideas, organization/ coherence, support, and style. This task will not be graded on the basis of points. My explicit hope for all students is that they average a 4, 3, or 2. There will be no change in students’ overall grades unless they average a 1 for this task. At this stage of the year, students should be striving to demonstrate their best quality of work, on this their last work sample for the year in this class.

All four tasks have been distributed to students. The following is a brief synopsis of each task. Once again, students will choose one of the following:
* Textbook Based Analysis of Chapter 15- This option is a direct analysis of the Civil War. Students will engage in study of specific battles, figures, Lincoln’s role in the conflict, and result of the conflict. This task will conclude with reflective questions about students’ work in 7-1 Social Studies.
* Task Rotation Assessment of chapter 15- This option is an interpretive analysis of Chapter 15. The options presented to students highlight the four dominant learning styles, of which students are expected to complete a minimum of two. This option is designed for students who feel comfortable with the textbook, yet feel the need to express their ideas and take risks with such a knowledge base.
* Modern Injustice Task- This option is geared for students to engage in an analysis of American History and the current landscape of America. Students are being asked to identify one example of a “modern injustice,” something that denies the principles and ideas outlined in Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence, The Preamble to the Constitution, and/ or Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address.” Students will then have to link this current example of modern injustice with a past example from American History that parallels the modern example of injustice. Finally, students will compose a collage or manifesto that demands attention to the current injustice as well as a call for change. Students who enjoy applying history to a modern context will find this task to be enlightening.
* Academic Obituary- A reflective piece for students who wish to merge personal experience with American History, this task is to serve as an intellectual memoir or academic legacy of time spent as a member of the 7-1 Social Studies classroom community. This is a task that merges creative thought with analytic precision.

It is my hope that students can harness their energies to display their best work on this, their last assessment in my class. Should you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me at school or at my home (___________________). You can also reach me via email at akannan@op97.org . It has been an honor to be your child’s teacher and my privilege to have served as their guide through American History.

Thanking you in advance for all of your support.
Mr. Kannan

It is the last line that causes the most amount of emotion. I will probably post one more blog entry, but I wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of you for all of your support.

Many thanks and happy sojourning into a new horizon.

Mr. Kannan

P.S. Monday's quiz has been posted underneath the link for "handouts". You will also find lecture notes for this week's lecture, as well as the Final Assessment tasks/ descriptions/ information. Small group breakout was fun, but nothing can surpass working as a collective unit. One last point: With grades in my class concluding Friday, the notations listed in mygradebook.com are accurate indications as to how students will fare for the trimester. The only change would be a deduction should a student average a "1" for the final assessment.

The Growing Renegade of Change Army

For this week’s blog, I thought I would reprint an open letter that students will be hearing this week. I feel that it covers much of what we are doing both as emerging scholars in American History as well as stakeholders at Percy Julian Middle School. It is in response to a situation or two that has proven to be a situation or two too many. I place it in this context, but its application lies beyond American History, beyond C105, beyond Team 7-1 and to the future of all of our students and Percy Julian Middle School:

I wanted to take this opportunity to discuss the context that envelops it. I think it is a sad affair whenever such situations must be addressed, but I believe this is where we are. To neglect it as both a teacher and a student of history would be tantamount to a sin of omission that would give strength to the forces of oppressive silence and emasculate the power of hopeful change that must embrace our school, our community, and our nation.

As your history teacher this year, I felt that I have gone to great ends in assisting your maturation as thinkers, as bourgeoning scholars. I told you at the start of the year that “each of you will be a scholar or farther along the path by the end of the year.” I have held true to this each and every day this year. Whether it is posting the schedules with quotes from Rodin or President Kennedy, or utilizing the LCD projector with a PowerPoint Slide explaining what our daily goals are to be, or individually speaking with students about where we need to be and how we are going to get there, the critical ingredient that has underscored our work, yours and mine, this year has been this notion of growth, emerging scholarship, and making progress. While this has all been true, I am committed to the idea that the journey of scholarship is not an isolated and atomized process. Rather, it is a vision that embraces all members of the community. We are not alone. We are inextricably linked to a social setting where all stakeholders have to share our vision. There is a distinct line- a frontier or border- drawn between those who share our vision and those who do not.

America has been a nation of these borders or frontiers, lines that demarcate where we are and where we hope to be. Our history is one of pursuit of horizons. Whether it was the sun drenched terrain that allowed us to envision a world where freedom was a reality, or the wilderness that met our eyes as expansion became a reality, our history has been one where we seek to appropriate our dreams, our visions. A theme in our nation has not to be content with what we possess, but rather actively seek to change our world by focusing on new borders, or frontiers as attempting to configure ways in which these arenas can move from what would be into what is. Sometimes, we have succeeded and other times, we have failed. When we have succeeded, our history has told us that we regale in what had worked, and when we have failed, there has been a process in which reflection has allowed us to see the error of our ways. In both situations, we, as a nation, have understood the importance of lines, and drawing them. We have sought to gain greater appreciation for being on the right side of these lines. This is an ongoing process that a young nation like ours has learned to appreciate.

I believe that our school, our academic community known as Percy Julian Middle School, is much the same way. We seek to expand our territories guided by new horizons and the desire to appropriate these vistas into our understanding of who we are and who we hope to be. As long as I have been working at this school, and as an employee of District 97, I have been guided by this particular understanding. I believe in the ideas of evolving, continually seeking new horizons, and reflection so that something better can be achieved and grasped. These ideas have worked their way into my teaching, and as my students, I am sure you can see where they are at work in every day that I have joyfully served in the capacity of your guide through the harrowing terrain of American History. As you approach the end of your journey, it would be a good opportunity for you to engage in this reflection in seeing how far you have come and how far you need to go in order to achieve your particular horizon, your specific border, and where you will need to be in terms of where you are.

I also believe that we, as an academic community, must focus our energies on forces that seek to take away from this growth, this maturation, this dialectic. In order to do this, we have to take dialogues that exist in the private and confront them in the public. Recently, some members of our community have spoken and articulated ideas that attempt to take away from our good work. They have spoken words that do not seek to enhance community, but rather divide us. They have attempted to present a vision that detracts from what it is we do at this school. While it has not been many who have engaged in such reprehensible and repugnant behavior, it is one too many. One of the most beautiful aspects of our history as a nation has been the self corrective measures that we, as America, have embraced at many points in our history. When wrongs have been committed, we have confronted these realities. It might not have been a perfect process, but we prove to be one of the few nations who can prove to be strong enough to engage in a reflection of what we have done wrong. Sometimes, this process is as important as any notion of product. I believe that we, as members of Percy Julian Middle School, must emulate this right now, at this time, at this moment.

In the last week, there have been statements, jokes, and words whose expressed purpose is to divide us, attempting to separate us from achieving our greatest of horizons and vistas. I would like to take this opportunity to denounce and reject such statements. These words and sentiments do little to build bonds between one another, and do even less to contribute to the academic community to which all of us have to be committed. I cannot surmise as to why these jokes or ideas were articulated. I can only presume that they were said to demonstrate popularity, or to falsely believe that in speaking them, one would enhance their own reputation. Regardless, I would like to condemn these statements in the strongest manner possible. As a teacher, I find them repulsive and disgusting. As a learner of American History, I have to find them as representing the antithesis of democracy, goals to which the Founding Fathers would have suggested tear us away from achieving our vision of the world’s oldest and most enduring democratic government. Under most circumstances, when students do wrong, I believe that the disciplinary channels best do their part and I neednt comment. Yet, with this particular transgression, to remain silent would be sinful and, in a bizarre manner, would actually embolden those who speak such horrific words and those who stand idly by allowing such terror to happen.

I believe that all of us, adults and students, alike must draw a line. We must create a border, or world, where such sentiments cannot be felt or articulated in this, a house of learning, a community of scholarship. I feel quite strongly in this, as evidenced by your learning experience on 7-1 this year. I believe that your teachers have done a very stellar job in articulating how elitism and division cannot exist in the “more perfect union” we call America and Percy Julian Middle School. When we speak of the Colonists and the American Revolution, we recalled this struggle for identity as applying to all inhabitants of the new nation. When we spoke of Don Quixote, we spoke of a world where justice and dreams could be realized, where the monsters and windmills had to be slain at every turn. When we articulated the conception of the Constitution, we spoke of “The Dream” for all citizens and how the most powerful document in American Society was compelled to speak for all of its citizens, and to this day, such a standard is still applied. When we examined the growth of economic America, we noted that there was a countervailing force that sought change at all costs. Finally, the emergence of what Senator Obama calls, “the original sin” of slavery, is something that was worth fighting for and even dying for in the minds of Americans. At many points, your teachers have instructed you on how the concept and applications of stratified structures that reaffirm segmentation in a democratic society are opposite of its professed values and cannot be tolerated.
This same line must be drawn at this moment in the life of Percy Julian Middle School. As adults and children, we must all decide on which side of the line we will stand. On one side would be the forces of divisiveness and the corresponding reality of disgust. On this side would be those who seek to separate students from one another. These forces seek to separate on the basis of race, gender, choices in friends, fashion, popularity, or any other factor that would prevent all of Julian students and staff from realizing the goals that we, as a building, are driven to achieve. This side of the line is met with its other side. On this side are individuals who are committed to building community, and respecting individuals’ rights to be free and to even be left alone. This side of the line is filled with people, students and adults, that understand how all of us are invested in recognizing our goals, as a school, as a community, as a people. We must pull as many people as possible to this side of the debate. We must seek to enlist as many individuals as possible for we on this side face an uphill battle. This is nothing new to us because being on the side of reform has always been a challenging battle. Yet, we smile at this challenge for we are “Renegades of Change” and we will not be deterred from recognizing our goal. We will stand tall with our label of “Renegade of Change.” As renegades, we recognize on what side of the line we stand. We also understand who we are and we understand the most important fact: We are the majority. We are the ones in control. There are more of us than there are more of them. As renegades of change, we understand who we are, in what we believe, and we must embrace the fact that there are more of us. Take a look around and see how many of us stand on this line and will be willing to stand up for it by taking a step across it.

This is where we are right now. All of us, students and adults alike, must choose on which side of the line we are. There is no middle ground. Either we as individuals will speak out and/ or act by separating ourselves from the forces of division and disgust. There can be no such thing as trying to straddle both worlds. All of us have to choose. I think that since you have one more year left in this building, all of you will have to engage in some serious reflection. All of you will have to decide where you are. If someone around you speaks words or sentiments that are meant to achieve cheap laughs at the cost of someone else, then you must decide what you will do. If you stand by and allow it to happen, you are as guilty as those who utter it for you are not a renegade of change, one who will not be able to act upon the promise of such a great nation as America. If you allow it to happen to one person today, it will invariably come to you tomorrow. We have always argued that America is a collection of people “who sat at the loser lunch table.” This is who we are, and it is our La Mancha, or stain. There is no way to avoid it. The only thing we can do is declare our allegiances. It is something that is in our DNA as Americans. For us to divide amongst one another, whether it is through elitism, through the forces of self belief in superiority, or through the idea that certain people can be demonized and targeted is a betrayal of who we are as a people and a nation.

This will be the hardest thing for all of you. Some of you are afraid to speak out and actively take a stand against these forces. You rationalize these forces of intolerance by believing in ideas such as “I cannot change them” or “It’s not me” or “They didn’t mean it.” Allow me to suggest that these are paths of “false consciousness” or simple lies. These are ways for you to avoid doing what you know is right, what you know has to be done. Simply put, if you believe these untruths, you “haven’t done the right thing.”

Now is the time for you to stand up and do the right thing. I cling to the fact that there are more of us renegades of change. As I strongly denounce and reject the recent statements that make light of terrible events in our history as a nation, statements that seek to make humor at terrible moments of our scars or our stains, I ask for all of your support. I ask for all of you to take a stand and actively distance yourself from such actions that bring a bad name to all of us. I ask for all of you to recognize that which I have strove to impart in you. This is everyone’s problem for it goes at the heart of to who we are. I ask all of you to embrace your natural tendency, that of being a renegade of change. I ask all of you to denounce and speak out in the strongest terms possible statements and people that seek to reduce all of us to the lowest common denominator.

I ask all of you to embrace those things that are best as we seek to establish a new horizon in our community, a new border that recognizes who we are and what our dreams seek to be.

From gardens and nightingales to renegades and embracers of change, I wish you happy hunting in the time we have left.

All best.

Mr. Kannan

Grazing upon intellectual fields and Reliving College Times: Embarking on the journey of student choice

The 7-1 student- led teaching experiences were extremely successful. If one wanted to use statistics (knowing very well that liars can figure and figures can lie), about 95% of the students on Team 7-1 will see A’s or B’s in Social Studies for third trimester progress reports. Given the time of year we find ourselves, this is an astonishing number. All teaching groups met their 70% class average benchmark. Finally, all students who taught saw their overall grade on the teaching assignment at either an “A,” “B,” or “C” level with the lowest grade turning out to be a “C+.” These are very impressive indeed, given the scope, required planning, and sheer anxiety ridden nature of students teaching their colleagues. From an anecdotal plane, success was also evident. Many students developed a newly discovered notion of metacognition, in terms of being able to clearly define which environments best support their learning styles and adaptations. Students began to understand the difficulty of reaching all students within instruction of concepts. However, the most revealing aspect of this experience was how students understood the notion of teaching being synonymous with community. The most successful examples of student teaching were ones where all students were included into the learning process. Never have I been more forcefully confronted with the reality of how teaching is an inclusive process than when I bore witness to these successful forays into the realm of teaching and learning.

With the successful completion of such an experience, I offered a day after where students were asked to “intellectually graze.” I considered it a generous gift of “down time,” something which is rare in my class. As I walked around the room, I found it so interesting to simply observe how some of our students conducted themselves. Perusing through different parts of the textbook, engrossed in a silent reading work, or simply constructing different aspects of their reality, it was insightful and instructive to not directly instruct. There was something powerful, almost entrancing, about it. It served as the confirmation of how we, as educators, need to provide an intellectual kingdom of ideas constructed upon the firmament of student choice. This field of academic freedom is where all of our students will find meaning and direct construction of knowledge and understanding.

This brings us to where we are now. This past week has brought a great many moments of “smile” to my teaching and learning. To hear students break down which choice best fits them has proved that many of our students have evolved in their thought. It was a true moment to hear students indicate that “this is the best for me,” or “I know it’s going to be tough, but I want to take the challenge.” As we have concluded the first day of in class work, I have been able to experience the very best of our students who are immersed in primary sources, analyzing modes of economic growth, or tackling the works of Locke and Mill. There is a genuine sense of maturation, excitement, and evolution that has taken hold of many emerging scholars on 7-1. My only hope is that this continues throughout the tenure of the unit.

As many of you know, I didn’t have many positive memories of my undergraduate experience. I spent much of it roaming through three different colleges/ universities, in search of elusive ideals. (That search still continues today.) However, one of the most special memories had to be my Western Civilization class as a first year student at Kenyon College. The course was entitled “Integrated Program in Humane Studies,” and it covered the standard “Plato to Nato” curriculum. The course met three times a week in a lecture hall that was a throwback to Oxford. Yet, the most distinctive aspect of the course was the three hour seminar each Wednesday night. This consisted of fifteen students sitting around Professor Brint’s office while he led us through the text and ideas of the week. Some of my most poignant memories in a year replete with challenges were in those seminars discussing economics, freedom, the limits of choice, and the pain that seems to exist at the heart of consciousness. Good times, indeed. In attempting to replicate some of those seminar moments, next week will mark the start of the mini teaching seminars. I will be meeting with different groups on different days, and our conversation topics will range from Industrialization, freedom, primary source based history, Document Based Questions, as well as the theories of Locke and Mill. This will be exciting and worthy of our students’ energies.

Some red tape items. The homework pane on the left hand of the screen and on the calendar will be deliberately vague, as there are different assignments for each group of students. In order to gauge what student assignments are, I encourage all students to download this week’s and next week’s syllabus. I have given students a sequence for the next two weeks. This scope will allow students to plan their time accordingly in order to meet all deadlines and expectations. I will also be emailing out students’ Social Studies grades this weekend and will be delivering a hard copy of student trimester grades on Friday. The last extra credit assignment will be due on Monday, 4/21. Finally, please allow me a shameless self promotional plug. I will be amongst the featured teachers speaking about the Middle School concept in front of community stakeholders, in a forum sponsored by the Julian PTO. I invite all interested members to attend. (Yes, there will be a powerpoint show.)

As we engage within a quest filled with student choice, seminar breakouts, and challenging content, our nightingales sing once again.

Happy hunting!
Mr. Kannan

“Are you nervous, kid? Well, you should be!”- The Threshold of Realization as students become teachers.

The week that welcomes back from a hopeful and restful Spring Recess finds students making last minute preparations as they foray into the realm of teaching. As they commence into teaching, I would like to offer some last moments of counsel for as they become teachers, I become a student (Is this fun or what?).

I think one of the most critical elements that teachers should keep in mind is how they envision their classroom. What does it look like? How does the first five minutes run? What are the students doing? I am hoping that teachers can envision the start of class and try their best to anticipate how to set the climate of learning and understanding. I sense that there would be a level of nervousness present in our teachers, and there can be some level of neutralization of this threat if there is a plan, a vision or model of how their teaching should function. The second point I would stress to teachers would be to know their story. What are the important points that they are going to “punch through” to students? It is my hope that teachers have discovered the most compelling concepts to relay to students. I think that instruction would be more meaningful if they can frame the discourse in one of meaning and relevancy of content and this would be accomplished in a clearer manner if there was a strong “story to be told.” Finally, I think that all of our teachers should ensure that there is a level of organization and clarity apparent in their instruction. Even the worst of teachers (and this I know very well being one myself) earn a level of respect for their students if organization and clarity are apparent. I think that this could be a valuable lesson as both practitioner and learner. Teachers who approach the threshold of revelation in an organized and clear manner stand a better chance success. This could be a life lesson, as well.

Once our teaching is concluded, teachers will assess student work and their performance in class. Then, teachers will help prepare their students for the exam, which is scheduled for Friday, April 11. After that, teachers will grade and record the exams. Our next phase commences on Wednesday the 16th, when students will have to make some critical choices about the shape of their learning. These choices will be critical and shall be detailed to students over the course of the next three weeks.

The threshold of revelation allows new insights to be gained, new understanding to be unveiled, and new songs to be sung. Our garden grows richer and more vibrant as all 7-1 students approach the threshold of revelation.

Best wishes.
Mr. Kannan

The dialogue of empowerment: Students as teachers

Over the last week, I have been hearing a great deal of discussion from students about teaching. At first glance, such a statement seems odd. Yet, it has been enlightening hearing students talk about teaching. They believe that they are “teachers.” This is something that is revolutionary for a student. Yet, the reality is that they are “learners.” They are demonstrating that being a teacher is being the lifelong learner. It is interesting to examine the dialogues about “traditional” vs. “non traditional” methods of instruction. It is fascinating to hear groups debate the merits of multiple choice or short answer exams. It is powerful to witness students asking one another what they think the critical components of content are. It is meaningful to see students carrying three different textbooks, trying to obtain as much research and information as possible about Thomas Jefferson, Lewis and Clark, or the War of 1812 and what precipitated it. I have enjoyed this assignment for it marks a benchmark in the time of learning in C105. It is the moment where students truly wonder about what it means to be a teacher, what it means to be a learner, and what it means to be a scholar.

The definition of a middle school has come under great debate over the last year. I think we can appropriate it to mean “The climate of a developmentally responsive middle level school is safe, inviting, and caring; it promotes a sense of community and encourages learning.” (NMSA, This We Believe, 1995). Another component of it can include a type of education structure that “centers on the intellectual, social, emotional, moral, and physical developmental needs of young adolescents.... Exemplary middle level programs foster appropriate programs, policies, and practices that foster the development of these tasks in positive ways… through varied instructional methods” (http://www.designshare.com/Awards/2000/10031/10031_POE_4a.htm). When examining how students are working in their student led teaching assignment heterogeneous groups, one sees how the promises of a middle school education are being fulfilled. When students are asking if they can teach “in extended periods,” or if they are allowed “to take the class outside”, students approach their teaching and learning in different ways. This helps account for the differences in learning that are evident at this age. When we, as teachers, engage in tasks where each students’ learning can be accounted for in different and varied ways, I believe that the possibilities for education can be exceeded. All students are actively engaged in their learning because they are teaching, and responsible for how their students learn. The empowerment is evident, and in striving for this end, we highlight the best aspects of a middle school education.

The deadlines for this week are impressive. Handouts and all photocopying are due on Tuesday. Test questions are due on Thursday. All teaching assignments have to be ready to go on Thursday. This week will be an impressive one. Report card envelopes go home on Thursday, with the signed envelope due on April 3, 2008. Students will be ready to teach on the day of fools, April 1st.

It’s an exciting time indeed as new songs will be sung.
All best.

Mr. Kannan

P.S. The website featured above is an article which analyzes a successful Middle School in Massachusetts. It is interesting to note how many principles of the middle school philosophy, as outlined in the article, are in practice with our unit on student led teaching assignments. Of particular note is the concept that "the corridors are an extension of the classroom." Ask your emerging scholar where most of the lesson planning for their unit occurs. All groups meet and plan in the hallways, while one group has control of the entire classroom for their planning purposes.

Taking Ownership: Student Led Teaching Assignments and the Middle School Philosophy

We begin our foray into student led teaching assignments this week. I have always enjoyed this particular section of the curriculum. We take about three weeks examining different aspects of Thomas Jefferson’s Presidency. While the content is important, the format of having students lead the instruction is the portion that is the most satisfying. Students are charged with the responsibility of absorbing the material as a group, then developing a plan of instructing students. Then, they have to compose a lesson to instruct their colleagues, develop a visual aid to help students retain the information, create handouts that students can use while instruction is transpiring, develop an authentic homework task, collect and assess it, and then finally compose and grade a portion of the exam. Students have to teach their colleagues, develop a plan of instruction, and bear responsibility for others’ learning. One of the greatest components of this unit is when I become a student as well as an observer. As the students teach, I will be typing comments on my laptop regarding their instruction, and then students have to grade and assess my homework assignments. Former students come back and reflect on this particular task as one of their most fond.

Something formidable this way comes...
Over the last couple of weeks, I have been noticing that students are listening to the current discourse of the constitution of a middle school. As we concluded the examination of the political parties, the issue of a middle school under the philosophy of republican and federalist factions was scrutinized. Students voiced the divergent reactions of our stakeholders. While I held my opinions to myself, I found the discussion interesting. As we progress through this discourse and find a level of authentic resolution, I believe that as middle school teachers, our tasks and methods should reflect tenets of the middle school philosophy. One such idea is the notion of differentiated instruction. Stakeholders seem to be rightly concerned with the idea that their particular student is not challenged through content. Differentiated instruction meets this need for it matches instruction to the particular learner. I believe that the student led teaching tasks for chapter nine is an example of differentiated instruction on two levels. The first is that students, themselves, match up their understanding with the task’s aims of how to teach this content to others. The second example of differentiated instruction is the students must develop different means to communicate this content to themselves and their colleagues. One of the beautiful aims of this task is that if forces students to consider multiple paths to meaning and understanding. As middle school teachers, we account for this with almost every breath. When students are discharged with this responsibility, the promise of more relevant teaching and learning is exhibited.
Another particular aim of middle school philosophy is the notion of community. The middle school was conceived as a social experiment in developing community. Our institutional language fosters this. Wings, teams, core extension, flexed schedule, and advisory are a few of the terms which daily address the idea of community and learning as a social construct. I believe that this particular task meets this aim because it forces all students to consider the social dimensions to learning. Initially, when students collaborate with one another to divide up responsibilities, one sees the social construction of learning. The dialogues that build this discourse enhance this: “I can do this....” “Can you do this...?” “I can help you with this…” “I think this might work….” When students are determining how to teach their material to their colleagues, one sees the analysis of material in others’ eyes. When students hold study sessions and distribute back assignments to their peers, explaining what was done well and what required improvement, and when students have to maintain a 70% class average on their particular component of the exam, there is a social construction of learning and community is highly evident. One last point here to be made is the idea that communitarian notions of learning best happen when there is a heterogeneous and intellectually diverse presence. When students are engaging in the analysis of how others’ learn, it is important and almost essential to gather as many points of view as possible on the topic. This happens best when divergent and multiple voices are included in the discourse.
The last component of a middle school philosophy that I will offer in this missive is the role of teacher. As already extensively detailed, middle school is a time of change. It is accordingly fitting that the conception of the teacher be changed, as well. When students assume control of teaching content, the role of the teacher is one of advisor, practitioner, and collegial learner. When the teacher submits homework assignments that are to be graded, there is a change evident. Even the discussion between student and teacher changes; from one predicated on power to one where the discourse is more level and more productive towards a higher end.

We start this task on Monday night, when students receive the task description. I believe that our students, emerging scholars, and soon to be teachers will exceed standards and develop a new and unique stamp on the curriculum. As with all that we have done this year, a new and fascinating song in the garden is waiting to be sung.

All best, happy hunting and even happier teaching.
Mr. Kannan

The last act awaits: The Third Trimester

As we move into the last phase of our journey, 7-1 students should acclimate themselves to embracing a rousing finale to their journeys of scholarship. The final exam for second trimester is now of the past. Students can access their grades online through mygradebook.com and see how they fared. The extra credit tasks for the Constitution will be the last official grades of second trimester (due Thursday, 3/6). If students are content with their performance, then the grade listed in the summary is the grade that will stand. However, should students feel the need to improve their current standing, then completing the extra credit tasks this long weekend might prove beneficial.
In terms of next week, we begin our study of the presidencies of Washington and Adams. The discussion will also reveal the growth of political parties and the pros and cons of partisanship. We will close the week with a speak/ write lecture on the Alien and Sedition Acts, as well as a prologue into the presidency of Thomas Jefferson. The next major assessment for students will be a teaching assignment where they will have to assume the burden of designing a unit around a particular theme of the Jeffersonian presidency. This will lead us into Spring Break, with the actual teaching to take place upon our return. After this, we will be sprinting towards the end with a study of American modernism and the growth between North and South, culminating in our study of the Civil War.
The expectation is that this trimester will be the hardest students have endured. Social Studies extra credit opportunities will be phased out as the trimester progresses, as the work will increase in difficulty. After their teaching assignments, students will have to make some critical choices in terms of coverage of material. One of my hopes for this trimester is that students employ their sense of autonomy in making critical decisions about their academic states of being. I hope to be laying out options to students in methods of covering chapters 11- 14 in different and unique manners. We will be relying on the textbook, primary sources, literature, as well as other tools which will help illuminate the growth of America, and clearly highlight the themes and challenges of modern America.
In the final analysis, third trimester should offer diverse and multiple approaches to content. One of the themes of a middle school education is creating different paths that brighten a child’s way on the path of understanding and scholarship. In our current state of “reexamining” middle school philosophy, I can only hope that we do not “throw the baby out with the bathwater” and gear everything towards the needs of the few, while sacrificing the needs of the many. I hope that third trimester creates settings where all children are offered their own senses of individualized instruction and differentiated modalities that show the execution of the learning process. (It would be exciting if all students engaged in independent study projects. This would no longer be a terrain dominated by the few, but open to all and able to be embraced by all.) By making the connection between choice and learning, I believe that we fulfill a primary tenet of middle school education in creating the life long learner, whose constructivist base allows them a greater success in all realms of learning.
As students enter the third trimester, perhaps they can best understand the experience as beginning the process of departure, where a new door of perception will be opened as more songs in the garden await their arrival into the world. The songs of this trimester, the last one, await.

All best.
Mr. Kannan

“Here they come around the turn…” One week before the Final Exam

We are closing out strong. The Social Studies final exam starts on Monday, 2/25 and lasts until Friday, 2/29. For this week’s blog, I thought I would focus on 10 things that can be done this week for all students to enhance their chances of doing well on this important exam and help strengthen their status in the class for second trimester. All of these items should be integrated into student academic habits not merely this week, but throughout their remaining time in this class.


* Focus this week’s in class and on nightly assignments- With one week to go, students should pay attention to all the nightly tasks this week. Our discussion will address the Civil Rights amendments and final points that need to be made on the Constitution. I believe that while students are studying all that will be present on the Final Exam, there might be a tendency to forget the items discussed this week. This would be a mistake, so being mindful of this week’s content might prevent such a miscalculation from happening.

* Work on the study guide each night- Students were given a two page study guide which addressed all pertinent items on the final exam on Friday, 2/15 (Extra copies can be found on this blog under the hyperlink of “Handouts.”) It is strongly advised that students make nightly progress on this packet, one section at a time. Students should use their notes, any work they have created, as well as their textbook in addressing what each concept is and why it is important. Naturally, since the format of the test is multiple choice, students should be able to state specific facts relating to each concept as well as its overall general importance or significance. The study guide is comprehensive, so time should be devoted to it on a nightly and incremental basis.

* Generate questions about study guide and compose them on a separate list, segmented out by chapter/ concept- As students work on their study guides, any areas of question or wonderment should be noted in a separate list. My hope is that they understand much of the study guide, as it is review of material that we have discussed throughout the trimester. Yet, areas that require further analysis should be noted on a separate list, and as these areas are addressed, there should be a stronger sense of confidence developed about these topics.

* Attend study sessions with questions that need to be answered- There will be lunchtime study sessions held this week, as well as a Friday morning study session. This puts the number of study sessions at 5. Students can attend any and all of these, as all study sessions will be generated by student questions which make them all uniquely distinctive and different. The study sessions could be excellent opportunities where student questions can be answered. While these are informal question and answer sessions, where there will be no formalized reteaching of concepts, attendance will be taken. Students who are having challenges with the format of the exam, or the concepts presented should use these sessions as opportunities to open the dialogue and minimize confusion about what is being presented. Passes will be made available on the table outside of my room. It will require a sacrifice from students, as they will have to make a choice between the opportunity to socialize with colleagues and gain further understanding about the exam and what is expected form students on it. This is a choice they will have to make. The opportunities to maximize student success are there, and the hope is that students will seize it.

* Examine the blog- Complete some of the extra credit offered this week. As we are taking stock of where students are and what is laid in front of them, the reality is that at the time of composing this blog, there are over 1300 points for this trimester. In addition to this, there have been over 100 points of extra credit offered. Perhaps, this week would be one week where students might seek to bolster their standing in the class before the final exam by completing some of the extra credit offered on this blog. The “Wacky Metaphoric Analysis” could yield up to nine points of extra credit for well composed written answers, and identifying the speaker of the quotations has proven to be quite lucrative for a handful of 7-1 students. Finally, if we generate 100 votes on this week’s poll question, every student on the team will receive 10 points for exercising their democratic sensibilities. All of these could be dismissed as “easy points,” but the looming storm of a 500 point exam might require students to secure their grade before it hits. I see little wrong with building up some “rainy day” points, in the event it pours next week. (There's one more piece of advice similar to this one soon enough.)

* Extra credit- As long as there have been teachers and students, there has been the question of extra credit. I think there is little doubt as to where I stand. Extra credit is an opportunity for all students, made available to all students, and designed in order to assist all students. At this point in their academic careers, I believe students must understand that academic success can take different forms. Students can be proficient at taking tests, demonstrate strength in their writing, and excel at assembling projects. I also believe that students should strive to go beyond the content in acquiring as many points as possible. Perhaps this means dong more work, or opening a dialogue with parents/ guardians about what is transpiring in the classroom via obtaining signatures. Last week, students were given a series of extra credit tasks offered on the Constitution and the current political climate. Exploring one or more of these options could prove to be both academically lucrative and intellectually enlightening for all students. The due date for completed tasks to be submitted is Thursday, March 6, 2008. While these reside in the long term, students can get this week’s syllabus and progress report signed for extra credit. Again, this opportunity is made available to all students in the hope of helping all students.

* Completing the daily points questions- Another opportunity open to all has come in the form of daily points. Over the last two weeks, students have been greeted with their entrance into class with “Daily Points.” These are random questions on the Constitution and serve as an excellent source of test question material on the Constitution. Each student receives one random question and a successful answer yields fifteen points. If a student wanted to test their knowledge base on the Constitution, these questions are posted on the blog (under the handouts link) and can be printed out, completed, and submitted for extra credit points. In a larger sense, completing these questions helps to gauge student understanding on a concept that will be prevalent on the Final Exam.

* Examine the blog, part 2- As long as I have taught, I have always featured a “Final Exam.” I think there is something quite powerful about demonstrating what is known in one setting, displaying focused energy throughout. This week, I will be posting previous Final Exam questions from the last couple of years on the blog (under the handouts link.) Former final exam questions will be on the exam. These questions will be posted on Tuesday night, Wednesday night, Thursday night. I will have the answer keys posted in the Team 7-1 Team area, so students can check how they fared with these and any questions can start a discussion. While the questions will be different on this year’s final exam, I think it might help to serve as a good guide to familiarize students with topics covered. Exam questions will be posted on Tuesday night, Wednesday night, Thursday night.

* Pay attention to the guide on how to study- Students were given a handout on Friday, 2/15, which outlines a method on “how to study” for this Final Exam. I realize that all of our students have their own methodology for exam studying. Yet, in giving students some of my personal advice on how to prepare for this comprehensive assessment, I believe that it might help students engage in a worthy internal discussion of metacognition; How do I know what I know? I believe that some professionals simply “assume” students “know” how to study, and while this might be true for some, I believe that other students simply have been told to “study.” This document might offer some strategies on how to proceed with this element of being told to “study.”

* Make the commitment and keep the commitment to doing well- As students focus on wanting to do well on the final exam, the reality is that students will have to work as hard as they can to do so. I have told students to assume or take as a fact that this exam will be the hardest exam they have ever taken. I sense that a tendency of 7th grade students is to demonstrate a sense of pride, sometimes hubris, that indicates that little can surprise them. My hope is that we can seek to minimize this. Students who anticipate challenge and embrace its reality are lifelong learners and true scholars. 7th grade students who choose not to study because they believe that they “know it all” demonstrate arrogance. One need only examine literature such as Sophocles or Shakespeare or examine the narratives of American History to see what happens when one demonstrates hubris when modesty should be displayed. I sense that if students want to do well, they must make a commitment to doing their best in preparing and ensuring comprehension of the components on the final exam. If they do and are willing to uphold their commitments in the face of those who might not possess the same sense of zeal, they will find success.

When I envisioned all the goals for this year’s Social Studies classes, taking this final exam was one of the benchmarks that would serve to measure our journey. We continue our voyage this week with final preparations and execution next week.

The nightingales are waiting to sing their songs. In the silence of preparation, one can hear emerging notes whose harmonies remind us of the promises and possibilities of what we do and to what idylls we commit ourselves.

Happy hunting.
Mr. Kannan

CNN is now ready to project that T.S. Eliot was wrong and February, that’s right, February, will win as “the cruelest month.”

As political candidates rage against the darkness intrinsic to the political nomination process, 7-1 students themselves are "fighting against the dying of the light." February greets these tired warriors with their most formidable of foes. As we continue our study of the Constitution, we will engage into the battlefield of personal freedom, judicial activism and restraint, the many rulings that have formed the backbone of the Constitution, as well as the memorization of the many concepts that must accompany the unit of such a magnitude. It has always been challenging to be in 7-1 Social Studies, yet right now, it is downright tough.
Perhaps, a more educational friendly opening would have been more appropriate. In our study of the Constitution, we have outlined the principles and goals of great importance to the framers. We will now move into the study of Supreme Court Rulings, as well as issues that seem to be inherent in the Constitution. The objective here will be to move students from a fact based interpretation of the Constitution to a level of greater synthesis, where higher ordered thinking skills will be required to problem solve targeted areas in Constitutional Theory. The methods of assessing student understanding will be through traditional quizzes, memorization tasks, as well as writing prompts and outcome sentences. Students will be encouraged to match independent work with successful valences of in class and out of class peer collaboration.
Finally, I use the words of a current 7-1 student: “Dang, this stuff is tough!”

I think all three approaches would describe where we are. We are just past the half way point of our study of the Constitution. Notice the progression: From goals and ideas, we have progressed to principles, execution, as well as specific hermeneutics of the institutions developed as part of the Constitution. We now place focus on individual amendments, the role the Supreme Court has played within the enhancement of Constitutional Theory, as well as the dilemmas that are inherent within such notions. It is taxing and difficult. Students will have composed over 100 outcome sentences on the topics presented in the Constitution, submitted multiple writings on the nature of the Constitution, and collected a vast number of handouts and items pertaining to increasing their understanding of the Constitution. Yet, this builds up to the unit assessment. The first will be a second trimester final exam, starting from the Path to Revolution to the Constitution. This standardized exam will take four to five days to complete, as it should amount to about 120- 150 questions. It is going to be intense. There will be study sessions held, study guides distributed, as well as high expectations placed on students in order to demonstrate their best. Such an assessment will be an excellent precursor into our domain of school wide standardized testing. The second assessment will be more interpretive, and will allow students to access multiple learning styles. This will take about two weeks to complete. Upon the conclusion of both assessments, students will have engaged in a rather intense course of study on the Constitution of the United States.
At this point, students must reaffirm to their commitment to doing well in Social Studies. I suppose that since we are at a point where we are closer to the end than we were to the beginning, it would be imperative for students to find ways to strengthen their standing in the class. It is understood that both assessments will be challenging. This would mean that in order for success to be present, students will have to face these assessments without worry and excessive fear. I have always believed that students fare better on assessments knowing that they have taken all needed steps through their successful preparation, and have secured every possible point prior to them, so in the event that something should “go wrong,” there is support and backup to ensure that the results are not of too disastrous a nature. For example, if a student knows that an upcoming exam is a challenge, I believe that it would be wise for them to keep up with nightly assignments, take advantage of any and all extra credit opportunities, and ensure that their focus is present in classroom instruction. When students learn how to embrace the Sun Tzu idea that “every battle is won before it is ever fought,” I believe that they not only have a greater chance of finding success, but they adopt a mentality that allows them to not acquiesce to defeat. True scholarship is when success is an embedded part of one’s state of mind. It happens at the moment where a student is able to say that they have prepared in a strong manner, done everything within their power, and are focused on the outcome, as opposed to the result. At this point, one can sense the empowerment that happens within the psyche of a student and this transformation happens on both academic and emotional levels.
At this point, students can take an active role to allow them to reach this plateau of transformation. This role can take on so many forms, that when students determine that their state of being reflects this habit of success, they will find what it is they sorely desire. It can be evident when students are proactive on assignment completion, attentiveness in class, and organization with the many handouts and items having been distributed. It can be evident when students focus on getting parent signatures on syllabi and extra credit progress reports. It can be evident when students seek to revise work that could be better. It can be evident when a student makes a commitment to arrive into class, follow instructions, and pay attention with silent focus, and steadfast determination, showing the signs of focus and readiness. It can be evident when students show this model amongst a setting of others who cannot, and receive extra credit on a syllabus that can be redeemed at the end of the week for points (Ask the student who organized her desk/ work area and showed focus while her colleagues were entering class conversing about non- Social Studies items. She obtained 15 points on a syllabus to counter the envious eyes of others.) It can be evident when students examine this blog for extra credit opportunities, as well as downloading advance copies of syllabi, in class handouts, as well as lecture notes posted. It can be evident when students read their daily schedules posted in the hallway and copy down the quotation framing the order of classes and find out who was the speaker for extra credit. It can be evident when students attend “Meet Social Studies” sessions and ask questions about the content and applications of it. It can be evident when students do what is needed to understand the material and ask questions when they open a new neurological pathway in their brains. It can be evident when a student sees me in the hallway in the morning or if by happenstance during an off team moment and issues a challenge: “If you have a minute, could you ask me a question about the Constitution?” Successful answering could allow them to receive a coupon for extra credit points. The ideas presented help to prove that when students assume the persona of an active agent of change in their academic worlds, success is a given. When students become the independent arbiters of their intellectual journey, instruction has reached its zenith. When students embody what it means to pursue “the good, the true, and the beautiful,” the songs of the garden enter their full cadence of sonorous melody.

February might be the cruelest month, but like the ending to Eliot’s work might be an opportunity to find some level of “shanti” in their learning experiences of not only the Constitution, but within this class, in general.

Happy Hunting.
Mr. Kannan

The Teacher- Encouraged Peril Within Challenge

The Constitutional journey continues this week. Thus far, we have explored the Preamble, the goals of the Constitution and the principles to accompany it. The reality is that we have much more to go in this voyage. Our focus this coming week will focus on attaining concepts regarding the different branches of government. The very nature of this inquiry is differentiated so that students of all levels can probe deeply into the nature of United States government as well as the structure of political institutions. Evidence of this would be how students sought to forge connections between goals and principles, as well as methods how students seek to understand modern applications of the topic of the Executive Branch. The use of Outcome Sentences also differentiates as students are the active agents of understanding in the concept of creating a one sentenced result of their learning. Students are being asked (and, in some cases, forced) to raise the level of commitment, focus, and heart in emerging into the domain of scholarship.

In a larger sense, the middle school ideals can be seen in this idea of student responsibility and accountability. The idea of differentiated instruction works best when the student conducts the differentiation. When students can be trusted to be the arbiters of academic conceptions of the good, we place a level of advocacy and autonomy on students that allow them to be stronger scholars. This aspect of freedom is integral to the middle school concept. When students are encouraged to take chances and engage in intellectual risk in the protected domains of a middle school, the results yield a critically discerning author of their own intellectual journey. Our unit on the Constitution is one of those instances where students can take risks in their thought and their production. Yet, these risks can only be taken if students are willing to put their imprint on their time in this classroom. One of the questions that I have started to pose to students is how are they going to leave their mark in their time in 7-1 Social Studies? What will they do with their time that shows meaning and purpose? The study of the Constitution has been peppered with statements such as, “You will be coming back here next year and telling the student sitting in this seat to listen to these notes on the Preamble” or “You will be appreciative of how you memorized the Preamble next year.” These ideas force our current students to start playing with the image of time in so far as seeing themselves as future students for a moment in the present coming back to speak to the future beings who will inhabit their present space. For a moment, I can catch some of our students creating a mental projection into this time/ space continuum and at that moment, I can see the precursors to understanding develop. I believe that the current stress on differentiated instruction can be understood in a more coherent and, perhaps, healthy context if we empower students to be authors of an emotional and intellectual journey. If they are willing to undergo it and endure the trials and terrors that seem intrinsic to it, they will find triumph in the final analysis. This dynamic of endurance and triumph is not only a Faulknerian theme, but one that injects purpose and relevancy into instruction. Once this dynamic has been accomplished, students have become scholars, instruction has been met to students’ needs, and all have raised their capacity for greatness. It is not only a goal of a middle school, such as Percy Julian, but embodied in the principles of 7-1’s Unit on the Constitution.

As always, the middle of the year seems to embody more red tape items than originally thought. Conference sign up sheets have been sent home and confirmations will be or already have been sent home. (At this time, my conference schedule is posted under the link of “Handouts” on the pdf pane to the left hand side of the blog.) Additionally, we will be going “live” with online grades very soon. Our tentative plans are to be ready by the 29th of January. In addition to this, students will receive weekly progress reports in Social Studies that can be signed by parent/ guardian and submitted by Thursday of each week for five points of extra credit. In class news, the “Meet Social Studies” study session will start on Monday, 2/11, during 5th period lunch. Simply put, it’s a Tim Russert- like “Meet the Press” setting where students have the chance to ask questions and seek clarification about the curriculum or specific content. It’s not a moment to complete homework (students can make individual AM or Lunchtime appointments to do this). Instead, this “Meet Social Studies” study session is intended to enhance dialogue about the curriculum and offer clarity where confusion might be present. To paraphrase the words of the great Buffalo Bills fan, “If it’s Monday, It’s meet Social Studies!” Finally, students should be on the lookout for Election ’08 Extra Credit opportunities in the next week or ten days.

As the songs in our garden strove to be heard, their notes are struck through the emergence of scholarship through challenge and academic austerity. The only piece of advice I can offer is for students to keep singing their songs.

All best and happy hunting.
Mr. Kannan

The Dawn of Understanding: Constitutionality in 7-1 Social Studies Students

Progress Reports went out Thursday. I witnessed a variety of expressions at the receipt of progress reports. I believe that there was a contingent of students who awoke to the fact that first trimester is in fact over. This would mean that whatever success experienced before remains in that portal of the past and is not entirely reflective of future success. These students faced the dawn of a new mode of reality: Second trimester is here and is a force who is demanding the reality of reckoning. Another group of students saw their progress reports took a deep breath upon looking at their progress report. They smiled and marveled at how well they did. Yet, there was something in their sensibilities that indicated to them that there was much more to come. This progress report being held in their grasp was only a snapshot at a particular moment in time. They looked around the room, my room, and collected that what lie in store will be far more arduous than what was expected. Another group looked at their progress report and seemed to hope beyond a calculation that things “will get better.” Their hope resided in the ever present that there will be some awakening, some angel that will rescue them. It seemed that the students I witnessed on progress report day would fall into one or a hybrid of the above classifications.

I think a common thread in all of these test cases of student response to student achievement is the notion of an awakening. There seemed to be a maturation element which was present, one that might not have reared its head earlier on in the year. I believe this idea of awakening and dawning is critical in understanding where our unit in the Constitution has progressed. In the last week, I believe that there has been a level of dawning that has emerged in many of our students. Lining up outside of class to give an amendment, memorizing the Preamble, learning about sections of the Constitution, and wrestling with the demons that seem to be present in both the Citizenship Handbook as well as outcome sentences have all seemed to be create a new morn in the minds of our emerging students; “morning, excellent and fair.”

This metaphor of the dawn or awakening seems to not only be reflected in our students, but is a critical component within the Constitution. The framers conceived of a document that was living and breathing, a set of ordinances on first glance, but revealing so much more. Their creation can only function if there is a new horizon within which freedom can be exercised, a road that will continue, and an eternal sense of dawn and morning. This dynamic of allowing for opportunities to display the sense of excellence and glory intrinsic to the Constitutional employment of freedom seemed to be of critical importance to the Founders. This might explain why the notion of liberty seems to play such a vital role in the interpretation of the document. At the same time, I can sense that this idea seems to be present in our students. For some, freedom is becoming more definable, as their choices are beginning to form the initial foundations or vestiges of who they will become. Middle school is an excellent domain to experience this aspect of freedom for it makes universal a subjective experience. The notion of individual identity is something that is emotionally and physiologically differentiated for all of our students. To experience the Constitutional dependence on freedom in a pure middle school setting enhances the meaning of the content. Like the framers, our students are beginning to scratch the surface of how immense the natures of freedom and choice are. Within this schema, students are beginning to see how their road, like that of the infant America, stretches for miles. Progress Report day seemed to illuminate to me the many level of dawn that lie inherent in our student.

The framers were wise enough to understand the complex nature of choice. They saw that choices could go in either direction, but there are more gains that result from positive choices, decisions and actions that seek to build a foundation, despite its difficulty, as opposed to seeking sanctuary in a negative one, or what Mill would label as the “lower” pleasure. I believe that our immersion into the Constitution is illuminating more about it. At an awkwardly simultaneously moment, I can sense more coming out about our students, as well. Choices begin to emerge out of cloistered halls of individual fear and into the wide open they present themselves and more about our students become evident. The framers saw this emergence of a nation that I see in 7-1 students.

As morning breaks, excellent and fair, we can hear that song of the nightingale that cannot be recounted or replicated, but only experienced.

The Red Tape Issues also seem to be guiding us at this time. Conference sign up sheets went out with Progress Reports. Please return them as soon as possible. Confirmations will be sent home with students. My conference schedule will be posted under the pdf link “Upcoming Tasks/ Assessments/ Handouts” on the top left hand pane of this blog. At the same time, grades are going to be going online on January 28. Expect to be able to experience both the joy of online grade acquisition combined with progress reports to be sent home with the same regularity that has defined 7-1 Social Studies thus far in the year.

As always, if I can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me at school or at home.

Mr. Kannan

The Constitution, February, Philosophy, and Tony Kushner: Where 7-1 Social Studies Might Finally Meet

***PLEASE NOTE: Based on the extensive class discussion on Monday, 1/14, I have decided to spend an extra day on the Speak/ Write Lecture on 7-3. This means, that Tuesday night's assignment will be about The Bill of Rights and assigned in class. Students will be asked to note all changes in their daily planners and their syllabi for the week. We will commence the inductive learning task on the Constitution on Wednesday. All assignments will be moved down a day, and Thursday's work will commence on Tuesday, 1/22. I thank you in advance for your understanding, but the discussion necessitates another day. And now, this week's blog...


After some time having passed after our philosophy seminars, I have come to the conclusion that our progression into Constitutionality will yield some fascinating results. It was worthwhile to witness our students debate and discuss the intellectual points surrounding topics such as freedom, selfishness, violence, friendship, the existence of God, identity, ethical relativism, and happiness. The discourse allowed for different thoughts and ideas to emerge. Moreover, I believe that all of our students, our emerging scholars, understood the inherent intricacy of philosophic discourse. Our philosophy seminar embodied so many middle school principles. Heterogeneous composition of groups allowed students from different valences of experience voice their opinion on topics of meaning. The format of open forum where all strove to find common ground and understanding was also a concept unique to the middle school experience. Even the mere physical configuration reminded me of what the middle school mission was designed to be: Students leading and participating in discussions throughout a Wing, sitting on the floor, taking notes, and listening to the thoughts of others. There was noise, the type that indicates learning and discussion is present. When I stood in front of stakeholders at Curriculum Night and talked about how my goal was to create a “Construction Zone” of learning, the philosophy seminar was an operational definition of this principle.

As we move from Philosophy to the realm of Constitutionality, the same principles will be evident. We conclude our discussion of the Constitutional Convention this week and begin our descent (or ascent, if you are not a student) into the ideas within the Constitution. We will be identifying goals and principles, facts and applications, theories and practices. We will start our voyage with what is present in our textbook, in the section entitled “Citizenship Handbook” and then move into the relevancy of the Constitutional based issues. Finally, we will use the elements of political philosophy in examining the role of government in the lives of individuals and society. This would mean that students will experience both aspects of history in telling the narrative of the Constitution- primary and secondary sources. This will culminate in our second trimester final exam which will cover The American Revolution, post Revolutionary America, and the Constitution. I would anticipate this taking place towards the end of February.

A source of debate within our discipline of History is why students would require multiple exposure to concepts. Perhaps, this is a topic of discussion in any course of study. I have always maintained that the Constitution is a vibrant part of my curriculum and it is developmentally appropriate to illuminate this topic as often as possible into the world of Middle School Students. I began my discussion of the Constitution this past week by suggesting that the Constitution is “one of but a handful of documents that every adult in America wrestles or interacts with on a daily basis.” An implied foundation to Law and Order (including the long running television show) is a heightened awareness of the Constitution. The fact that our nation is currently in the process of selecting a president only brings further light to the relevancy of the Constitution. I have believed that the more exposure students have to the Constitution, the greater the chance they will understand its implications, which have managed to perplex, amaze, challenge, and comfort Americans since its inception. We can even see how our middle school relies on the principles and ideas of the Constitution. When we speak of student autonomy, the power of independent thought, as well as promoting a climate which enhances the general welfare, we speak in terms first coined in America by the Constitution. As a side note, it is worthy to note that the previous version of our Social Studies textbook included a discussion of the First Amendment which dovetailed into Justice Holmes’ idea of how the First Amendment does have limits and does not allow “one to scream ‘Fire’ in a crowded theatre.” In expressing my closing thoughts to students on the importance of the Constitution, I have used this idea to demonstrate why the practice of bullying and intimidation is not only antithetical to our ideas of a Middle School, but also lies in direct opposition to the aims of the Constitution. In expressing how the founding fathers conceived of freedom to be exercised in reasonable manner and not without regard for others, I feel that our curriculum empowers our institution, our community, and our hopes for a middle school. To stand at the starting stages of this journey for another year is a moment of excitement, indeed.
Students will have nightly work on the Constitution. I mean, if I could demand a 500 point writing task on the Revolution, one can only surmise what I have lying in wait for this particular lesson. Students will be working out of the textbook, and will be engaged in a variety of learning tasks with different learning styles evoked. Expect assignments to display this differentiated style of instruction for all learners. I would also posit at this point that the employment of Outcome Sentences is critical in order for this experiment of learning about the Constitution to yield fruitful results. A good conversation starter can be to ask your student to display some of their outcome sentence starters. One of my hopes in utilizing the Outcome Sentence forum is for students to develop many ways to redescribe the act of learning. (I would suggest that if you need further clarification, access the PowerPoint Slide Show on Outcome Sentences, which can be found under the link of “Recent PowerPoint Lessons” on the top left hand pane of this blog.) Students will be composing outcome sentences on a nightly basis. Students will be asked to reflect on readings that are out of their textbook and in packets that I will be supplying. It is my hope that they are able to gain much out of this lesson as it will be instrumental in both their learning as student and prospective participant in this experiment called American Democracy.
…. And now for something completely different. Progress Reports in all classes will be sent home with your student this Thursday. The signed cover sheet that has student grades in all classes is due back to me by Thursday, 1/24. Conference Sign Up Sheets will be sent home soon, as well. Please make sure you sign up for time slots and have your students return the sheets as soon as possible to ensure that your primary choices can be honored. In other news, please be aware that your students’ academic performance will be able to be accessed online in the near future. Details about this process will be sent home with information from Team 7-1 as well as administration. Finally, all stakeholders should be reminded of how important this particular stretch of time is in all classes. I have always believed that some of our best teaching and learning takes place in late January and February. Be vigilant and ready.
In Tony Kushner’s work Angels in America, one of the characters speaks a powerful truth about both the Constitution and our pledge as students and learners when he says, “Forgiveness might be where love and justice finally meet.” The challenges in both understanding the possibilities of and living within the promises made in the Constitution might require a level of compassion, understanding, and eventual forgiveness and wisdom that can help to bridge the chasm within love and justice. When the Greeks conceived of the term “Philosophy” to mean “love of wisdom,” this has to be what was intended.

Happy hunting to the students of Team 7-1, you kings and queens of intellectual inquiry, sojourners of truth and understanding.

Mr. Kannan

What Lies Ahead: Returning from a state of Winter Hibernation into the 7-1 Social Studies Wilderness

After a hiatus from posting on the blog for about two weeks, I hold a great deal of excitement about what we will be addressing in C105 for Social Studies. There is much to behold as we will be adding more to our garden of scholarship.
The Writing Tasks on Chapter 6 have been graded and will be returned on Monday. It was another moment where our emerging scholars, your children, progressed on the path of academic scholarship. This can be viewed on both narrative and empirical levels. Of the 109 papers assessed, 95 possessed a score that would be at the “A” or “B” level, which translates to 87% of the team. No paper scored lower than a “C”, which means that with revisions due Friday, 1/11, all 7-1 students have the capacity to earn an “A” or “B” on the hardest writing task thus far in the year. In going beyond the numbers, I noticed a great deal of austerity demonstrated on this work. By far the most selected writing task was the “Identifications and Pictures” followed by the “A-B-C Summaries.” Regardless of their choices, students will be seeing each of these particular writing types of writing tasks again in the future in different forms. As a collective unit, our writing in history is developing more breadth and greater precision.
The first week back will be an intense one. As mentioned, Revisions of the Chapter 6 Writing Tasks will be due on Friday. In order for students to revise their writing tasks, they need to rewrite what needs to be revised with the areas of improvement added. I went to great lengths to make comments on each and every writing sample and outline on the attached rubric where improvement was needed. Revisions should be completed outside of class and be ready for submission at the start of Friday’s class. If students require further guidance, they should speak with me before school, during lunch, or contact me outside of class via phone or email. Examining the week, Monday will also be the introduction into the concept of Outcome Sentences, another method of gauging student comprehension. This tool rests on the idea that a student creates their own sense of understanding within a particular concept. They are asked to compose one sentence on a specific idea that must begin with “I” and some type of verb associated with learning. For students to derive different means of explaining how one learns is a challenge in its own merits. We will be using this activity often, so a benchmark is reached on Monday. On Tuesday, we will begin our Philosophy Seminars with students from the high school. Students will be broken into different groups that deal with topics such as selfishness, the presence of God, freedom, and the notion of happiness. Groups will consist of 2-4 students and a high school facilitator who will drive the discussion based off of a thinker’s ideas on the topic. Students will be taking notes on the thinker’s view on the topic and the nature of the discussion. There will be a reporting out session on Wednesday. The purpose of this experience is to familiarize our students with the elements of a philosophical discussion, the importance of active listening, and to gain a better understanding of the discourse technique. These benefits will be felt when we engage in a discussion of government and its purpose. Finally, we will conclude the week with a series of Speak/ Write Lectures, a method of direct instruction that compresses topics from the text into three minute “chunks.” The steps taken this week will lead us into the foray of the United States Constitution. Progress Reports in all classes will go home on Thursday, 1/17 with Winter Conferences to soon follow. Students should be aware of assignments this week. Student work during the philosophy seminar, the composition of outcome sentences, and the signed cover letter from all Language Arts Progress Reports all will be reflected in student grades. As we hit the ground running, work awaits our students with intense process leading to powerful product. All stakeholders are reminded that this blog contains pdf copies of class handouts, lecture notes, as well as syllabi for this week and the next week (See pane on left hand side of screen). Also present on this blog are extra credit opportunities. As we begin another phase of our journey, all stakeholders are reminded to use this blog as a resource to help advance expectations and achievement, promises and possibilities.

We are approaching a point of the year where it is becoming evident that we are closer to the end than we are the beginning. I hope that our emerging scholars have rested well over the Winter Recess as they will need a great deal of internal strength and academic and intestinal fortitude to withstand this particular leg of the journey from now until Spring Break. It is a great time, indeed! It is in this particular leg of our voyage where the emergence into scholarship will be most evident. That which appears to be a wilderness will serve to allow our garden to grow with more songs of the nightingales sung.

Happy Hunting!

Mr. Kannan

“So, now what do we do?” The second half of a journey designed to tax the mind and elevate the heart and soul

It has been said that the 1970s represented the “Golden Age” of American Cinema. It was a time period where a representative sample of “the great ones” emerged. If one was to look at the American Film Institute’s compilation of the 100 greatest films, there would be a stellar sampling of American films in the 1970s. A small budget film that was groundbreaking (or what our writers of the traditional essay set of prompts would deem, “radical”) was The Candidate. Starring Robert Redford as a California gubernatorial candidate and Peter Boyle as the chief campaign advisory, the film foreshadowed what the modern realm of American politics had become: realpolitik, spin control, and the dreaded exit poll. In the film’s pivotal last scene, when it had become evident that Redford’s character had won the office of California governor, he looks back at his advisor and asks a haunting question amidst the celebratory sounds of a political victory:

“So, now what do we do?”

Not to categorize our students as a collection of Redfords, I believe that some are uttering the same question. We have completed our study of the American Revolution. This examination encompassed text- based reading and analysis, preparation on an exam, and intense writing tasks on aspects of the time period. Students will have the chance to use the break to regroup and reload for what lies ahead.

When we return from break on January 7, 2008 (please accept my apologies for the mistake on the syllabus), we will begin our study of the formation of the United States Constitution. I have always believed that three documents guide the seventh grade Social Studies curriculum: Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence, The Constitution of the United States, and Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. When we return from the break we engage upon the analysis of the second leg of this triad. We open our study of the post- Revolution America in a vein of philosophy. We will be receiving visitors in the form of Philosophy students from Mr. Goldberg’s class at Oak Park and River Forest High School. They will be facilitating philosophical discussions about a variety of topics ranging from ethics, social obligation of the individual, and justice. Our emerging scholars will learn how to “argue philosophy” utilizing active learning and listening techniques. Students will engage in a variety of discussions and then report out their findings to the larger group. This entry into the domain of philosophical discussion and inquiry is an excellent stepping stone to our discussion of the Constitution. As we assemble our understanding about how the Constitution was formed, we will engage in a serious study of its varied and multiple components. Capping this intense analysis will be an introduction to thinkers of political philosophy and Constitutional philosophy in action. This will allow students to read primary and secondary sources in the domain of ideology and intellectual history. This will be a zealous and arduous undertaking, as I have never attempted any study in this amount of depth and breadth. One of the hopes of having the high school students visit our students is to allow them to envision where they can be on their journeys. The idea of engaging within an intellectual discussion where ideas and concepts matter is a worthy vision, a Parthenon of academia where few even dare to tread. In stressing philosophy in American historical development, I believe we will allow all of our students to make another bold step into the arena of scholarship. By now, students have learned to take this arena extremely seriously, as all are invited, but few have the courage to “walk the line” into it.
More pedagogical tools will be divulged to students in the next couple of weeks. The employment of speak/ write lectures, outcome sentences, as well as other tools to help increase student understanding shall find greater presence into the classroom setting. Our assessments will range from the standard multiple choice exam, as well writing tasks which compel students to access all four primary learning styles in order to find greater success. Students should be vigilant about their second trimester final exam, which is to take place in February. The best advice I could give all of our students is to invest in a good, durable two pocketed folder, as well as a series of good pens and paper. These will be needed as they face what lies ahead.

I guess Redford's question of “What do we do now” is a rather loaded one. The songs in our garden may take a small respite, but their sonorous notes will resonate quite clearly and distinctly in the months of January and February. Students will have a clear idea of “what to do now” and what shall be done.

Best wishes to you this holiday season.
Mr. Kannan