Deciding What to Teach

Since Lake Stevens High School has more than ten English teachers, it is important that each class finishes the semester on about the same level. Mrs. Tilley and other English department faculty gathered together several years ago to create a general unit plan for all teachers to use as a reference for English 10. Since nearly every English teacher has an English 10 class, LSHS wants to make sure that every student , regardless of the class he or she was in, ends the semester on somewhat of the same page so that each student feels the same confidence when entering the 11th grade. Every teacher uses his or her own personal teaching style, but reaching the same goals is most important.

The English 10 unit plan explains how each activity or unit follows the state's Essential Academic Learning Requirements, or EALRs, as well as the grade-specific GLEs, also known as Grade Level Expectations. Teachers have a pool of texts that cover certain material, thus given the opportunity to use what fits their teaching techniques best. For example, Lake Stevens High School's English 10 teachers may teach either The Old Man and the Sea or The Pearl when discussing the topics of "heroism" and "man and nature."

Mr. Alderson created Classroom Based Assessments in which each classroom's competence is tested and pooled to see how, as a school, each subject is understood. For example, LSHS teachers, according to the chart, would push harder on practicing summarization strategies, the lowest scoring concept of the four.

Ms. Fry's teaching style is probably the one that I see myself establishing as my own when I become an educator. Today her class started reading The Great Gatsby by listening to Ms. Fry read the first five or so pages aloud. After reading about a page's worth, she would stop and allow her students to ask questions and make sure that everyone was on the same page. She explained that Fitzgerald's form of writing is complex and has to be dissected; she demonstrated how paying close attention reveals an exciting, scandalous story. Students were able to visually understand the setting of the novel through images Ms. Fry drew on the board. These pictures simplified some of the initial confusion that students had.

I love that Ms. Fry can be personable yet respected, and keeps a mature class setting. Each of Lake Stevens HS's teachers have created teaching strategies that leave students feeling academically successful. Thank you all for sharing with me!!