Goodbye Key Bridge

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/6x7t23zc5n6hv5y37pbuu/Key-Bridge.pdf?rlkey=0lc0u7ji3an326cdwszvn3wug&dl=0

Arizona Star, November 7, 2023

Hawaii

The 50th State

In August we usually escape the summer heat in Tucson. This year we spent two lovely weeks in Hawaii. What an amazing state. We were in Waikiki for five days on the island of Oahu and nine days on Hawaii, known as The Big Island. Hawaii felt international, as in if we were not only off the mainland but in another country as well. Part of this is due to the fact that about 42% of the population is of Asian descent, and part is the many tourists we saw from Australia, Japan and other parts of Asia. Then there is the Hawaiian language which on first glance looks overwhelming but once you know that every single letter is pronounced does not seem so strange. You easily learn the words you hear repeatedly: aloha (hello and goodbye), mahalo (thank you), and ohana (family). The first evening we had poké for dinner and I was hooked.  Always a lover of fish, I was in love at first bite.  So much fresh fish and so affordable (on an island where everything is expensive)!  I was in food heaven. We visited the state capital, the U.S. Arizona, took a Hop On Hop Off tour and explored the endless shopping opportunities. The Big Island in contrast to Oahu, is for the most part rural, less affluent and far less cosmopolitan with a natural beauty that is magical. Volcanoes National Park, Mauna Kea at 14,000 feet and an ebike tour of Fissure 8, complete with steam vents still sizzling four years later, were the highlights.  Lava was everywhere left from the 2018 eruption.  Chickens and roosters roam the island and can wake you from 4:00 A.M. on but our airbnb hostess on the eastern side of the island provided a sleep-sound machine which greatly alleviated the situation. Small world: our host and hostess on the western side were originally from Baltimore and attended county schools.  Their airbnb is on their coffee farm dense with coffee and fruit trees. We would gladly return to explore the other islands!

Letter to the Editor The Baltimore Sun

August 26, 2022

Letter to the editor – Baltimore Sun

Letter to the Editor — Baltimore Sun

Letter to the editor – The Baltimore Sun

June 23, 2022

My Blog

Below you will read some of my musings, as well as articles and letters others have written that I find interesting, Please click the link above to read my publications. Thank you for checking out Teaching after 60!

Super Bowl Half Time Show

No matter how you feel about the Shakira and Lopez performance at the Super Bowl last weekend, it is refreshing to hear the opinion of a father raising two girls.  Educator Adam Sutton articulates the fine line women walk better than anything I’ve seen to date.  What a master teacher Sutton is, and more than just in the schoolroom. Don’t miss his Op-Ed in The Sun today.

https://www.baltimoresun.com/opinion/op-ed/bs-ed-op-0206-jennifer-lopez-shakira-super-bowl-20200206-nqwlog6oxnelbn2vcmswgr27ky-story.html

Teachers’ Civil War

Note the latest article by Adam Sutton about a teachers’ “civil war.” He makes an excellent point.  In his lead, he tells of a teacher squabble over enforcing a rule about students wearing hoodies.  This took me back to the days when we (teachers) would argue about gum chewing.  Some saw it as a fruitless battle and allowed gum only in their classrooms.  At the end of class, a teacher would stand at the door with a trash can to require the gum to be tossed.  And of course, these teachers would often be chastised by their peers.  The defense?  Usually that there are precious minutes to be wasted in teaching, so if the gum chewing didn’t interfere, why fight it?  But the point?  It’s not about gum or hoodies.  Sutton argues that teachers’ discussions devolve into petty things and allow for no real professional conversation.  And later in his article, he makes the case that teachers have so many tasks and responsibilities that they can’t focus on the critical needs of the students.

Question is how do teachers take back their profession?  Suggestions and comments welcome.

Read the article at https://theeducatorsroom.com/opinion-the-war-on-teachers-is-a-civil-war/

You might also want to read the book: The Teacher Wars by Dana Goldstein.  Great historical perspective.