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Articles for Teachers
and Educators
Prof. Joe has written more than 150 articles for more than a
dozen print and on-line publications, including Teachers.net,
Empower Magazine, IMDiversity.com, and Student
Leader
Magazine. Here are some of his most requested
articles for new teachers, including some from a few of his
friends. Enjoy!
by Professor Joe Martin
A student once asked me, “Mr. Martin, why do you care so much about us?”
I guess I need to put this question into context. My class (as a whole) had just done horribly on one of my tests. After apologizing for letting them down as their teacher and for obviously not preparing them properly, I used the entire class period to solicit suggestions on improving my teaching methods.
It was obvious to my students that I was really disappointed in myself as a result of their performance. In other words, they could see I was taking it personally.
After vowing to do better and to dedicate myself even more to helping them improve their efforts, one of my students asked the question, “Why do you care so much about us?”
The question was implying that I was taking their failure too personal. But I couldn’t see how I could take it any other way; I consider their success my success, and I consider their failure, well…you know.
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by Professor Joe Martin
They say that imitation is the greatest form of flattery. Well if that’s true, this month I want you to NOT be yourself; I want you to pretend to be someone else. I know this is totally opposite of what you’ve been taught. “Don’t imitate anyone, just be yourself.” Well, that’s good advice, but it’s not totally accurate advice.
I once read a sign that said, “Be yourself, but only better!” I love that quote, and that’s exactly what I want you to be this month…better. But I want you to imitate and model someone who’s “better” than you (in the classroom).
As much success as you’ve already achieved (and I congratulate you), I want you to think back and remember your favorite teacher (i.e., the one who inspired you to teach and set the bar for what you considered a “good teacher” to be).
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by Professor Joe Martin
One of best lessons I ever learned in my early years of teaching was to “focus on WHO we teach, not just WHAT we teach.”
To some I know this concept sounds somewhat foreign, because ever since we were in college (preparing to be a teacher), subject mastery has always been the primary focus.
Very few classes prepared us for unruly children, immature middle schoolers, or disrespectful teenagers. Yes, I admit, as a former professor, the higher education system needs to be revamped. We’ve failed to adequately prepare our teachers for our wonderful profession.
However, in spite of the inadequacies in the system, I try to teach incoming teachers (including seasoned ones) the aforementioned philosophy – “It’s not just about WHAT we teach, but rather WHO we teach.” Now don’t get me wrong, WHAT we teach is vitally important to our students’ success, as well as our school’s success. But sacrificing the WHO for the WHAT is just plain criminal. I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “No one cares how much you know until they know how much you care.” Well, I would go even a step farther by saying, students also need to know WHY you care.
With the increased emphasis on standardized test scores, students are starting to be treated more like “things” rather than human beings. And this has to stop. I believe one of the many reasons teachers struggle to stay motivated in the classroom is because the system seems to reward and acknowledge “test performance” more so than “true passion.”
I truly believe the success I’ve been able to enjoy with my students (from the gifted to the incarcerated – I’ve worked with them all) is largely due to the fact that I teach the student, not the subject. Yes, I want my students to learn the material, but more importantly, I want them to know they’re loved, even if they don’t learn the material or pass “a test.” I know that may be hard for some educators to swallow, but I know 15 years from now, nobody will remember my students’ test scores, but my students WILL remember me.
So start asking yourself, “Do you care more about your students succeeding in school or in life?” I’ll let you decide what you think the right answer SHOULD be. But remember, nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care.” So teach with passion, and remember to practice what you teach!
by Professor Joe Martin
When it comes to teaching, I’m often criticized for my unbridled enthusiasm. I’ve been accused of being “child-like” and somewhat “giddy” at the start of every new school year.
While most teachers moan and groan about how short their summer was and how long the school year will be, I’m called the “weird one” because I think the summer is too long and the school year is too short.
After I prove to my colleagues I’m not on drugs, I explain to them the reason for my unbelievable joy.
First of all, I explain to them (other educators) that we’re not just teachers. I tell them, “We get paid to unwrap OTHER people’s gifts.” Allow me to explain.
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by Professor Joe Martin
As an educator, speaker, and author, who also happens to be a born-again Christian, I’m constantly asked by fellow Christian educators (especially new teachers), “How do you share your faith at school without violating the law of Separation of Church and State and offending others?”
These are actually two separate questions that demand two separate answers. To the first part of the question, I usually respond, “I’ll take God out of the classroom when they promise to take the devil out first.” To the second part of the question, I usually quote Bill Cosby, who said, “I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is to try to please everybody.”
It’s quite obvious this is a very sensitive topic – so much so, that those who may be reading this article may stop reading after the preceding paragraph. And that’s okay, I understand.
But for the rest of you who are reading this, you know how serious this topic really is. Over the past 15 years I’ve been an educator, I’ve been questioned, confronted, and challenged (by administrators, colleagues, parents, and students) for expressing my faith more times than I care to remember. However, when I explain to them that I’m not “evangelizing,” they soon realize that I’m only “expressing” what “I” believe, not what “they” should or choose to believe; that’s their choice.
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by Professor Joe Martin
I’ve come to realize that everyone in education is a teacher; many just weren’t assigned a classroom. I came across a funny (but true) story that illustrates the power of creative teaching. Allow me to share it with you to help you relieve a little teacher stress today.
A certain private school in Washington, D.C. recently was faced with a unique problem. A number of 12-year-old girls were beginning to use lipstick and would put it on in the bathroom. That was fine, but after they put on their lipstick they would press their lips to the mirror leaving dozens of little lip prints.
Every night, the maintenance man would to remove lip prints, and the next day, the girls would put them back on the mirror. Finally, the custodian decided that something had to be done, so he reported the situation to the principal.
The principal agreed, and she called all the girls to the bathroom and met them there with the maintenance man. She explained that all these lip prints were causing a major problem for the custodian who had to clean the mirrors every night.
To demonstrate how difficult it had been to clean the mirrors, she asked the maintenance man to show the girls how much effort was required to clean the mirror. So he took out a long-handled squeegee, dipped it in the toilet several times, and cleaned the mirror with it. Since then, were no more lip prints on the mirror. The moral of the story is: there are teachers, and then there are Educators. And know that our actions can “teach” much louder than words. As always, teach with passion!
by Professor Joe Martin
It’s been said that an “idle mind” is the devil’s playground. Well, if that’s true, and you’re a teacher, then that means most of us have “Devil Disney Land” in our classrooms.
All jokes aside, if you’re a new teacher (even a veteran) there’s nothing funny about students who finish their work early, having too much free time on their hands while you’re still trying to teach a lesson. This “idle time” can lead to excessive talking, disruptive behavior, as well as disruption of learning (for other students) if not planned for and addressed adequately.
So allow me to offer you some teaching suggestions to help you reduce some of the stress in your life. These are six activities you can use to keep your students busy without just assigning busy work:
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by Professor Joe Martin
The worst advice I’ve ever received when it comes to dealing with people was, “Joe, always expect the worst from people, so you’ll never be disappointed.” The sad thing about that advice was that it came from another teacher (who was older and more experienced).
One of my many teaching philosophies is that “I can’t raise YOUR standards by lowering MY expectations.” I believe that most teachers buy into this philosophy when it comes to our students. We can’t expect our students to perform well by expecting less of them. However, many teachers don’t believe this philosophy when it comes to the teachers they work with and spend time with at school. And this has to change.
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by Professor Joe Martin
Believe it or not, there are dead teachers living among us. They look “normal” and they may even lead somewhat “normal” lives. But in actuality, they’re really dead; they just haven’t been buried yet.
Well, as a person who’s often called in to “raise the dead” when it comes to motivating educators, staff, and students, I know firsthand that these people do exist. I want you to take a minute to observe the following statements, to see if any of them describe someone at your school, or God forbid, even yourself. If this is true in either case, make this a WAKE UP for you, and share it with others so they can join the living. As always, live purposefully!
You might be a dead teacher if…
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by Joe A. Martin, Jr., Ed.D.
A teacher writes:
What do you do when stress is winning?
Prof. Joe says:
First of all, I'm sure many teachers can relate to your issue with stress. And like many teachers, most have a losing record when it comes to fighting stress. Even from personal experience, I wish I could say I'm undefeated. But not only have I lost a few rounds, I've been knocked down by "Stress" more times than I care to remember.
But it's like that old saying in boxing goes, "In order to win, you don't have to avoid being knocked down; you just have to get up one more time than you've been knocked down." So to answer your question - what do you do when stress is winning? Just don't surrender. Don't quit; don't give up - get up (just one more time).
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