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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
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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by Joe A. Martin Jr., Ed.D.
The very phrase “Parent Conferences” conjures up fear and angst in almost all teachers. But why? Are we afraid of being in a position of authority? Do we question are role as the experts in this situation? Do we immediately assume that parents will question our analyses and opinions of their children?
The best advice I can give for parent conferences is preparation. It is necessary to prepare in all the following areas:
• Know each of your students (their personalities, learning styles, friends, mannerisms, study habits, etc.)
• Know the order of parents coming in to see you (don’t be caught off-guard in an “I wasn’t expecting you right now” kind of way)
• Have examples of student work to show each parent (samples can help prove your point about lack of effort and not following directions, but can also help you praise and applaud effort and presentation)
• Plan out ways of talking to parents of difficult or struggling students (use appropriate lingo: if you want to say the student isn’t trying, perhaps it’s better to say that you are convinced the child is not working to his or her highest potential)
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by Jennifer Cheifetz
There is competition in every job. There is pride in every teacher. However, it is so important for new teachers to recognize the need for, and subsequently ask for, HELP. Even if you feel like you need to know everything and can’t let your guard down, remember that you are in this job for the students, so don’t cheat them just to spare yourself some dignity.
Signs you need help:
• If you feel like you are putting in so many hours that it would just be easier to bring a change of clothes and a toothbrush to school…
• If you feel like the un-graded papers on your desk are stacking up and accumulating more cobwebs than your attic…
• If you feel like the students, parents, and administrators are out to get you...
• If you feel like you have completely prepared your lessons, but now even you are getting confused by long division...
• If you feel like it would have been easier to go to medical school…then YOU NEED SERIOUS HELP!
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by Jennifer Cheifetz
Nobody likes conflict in the workplace, especially when it impacts the way you do your job. But that’s exactly when you know you have to do something about it. A teacher gets evaluated by administrators, colleagues, parents, and oftentimes students. Occasionally when those evaluations are uncomplimentary, they can lead to conflicts. The teacher becomes defensive and perhaps avoids those people, and maybe even becomes negative about the job. So what is a teacher to do?
It’s always good to be open and willing to hear the other side. If you approach the person with whom you disagree with respect and openmindedness, you can turn the conflict into more of a misunderstanding, and a misunderstanding can be cleared up with a mere conversation.
Teaching is a service profession (perhaps the term “public servant” goes a little too far?), therefore you need to exercise a little customer service. If you called the phone company to discuss an error on a bill and were only met with negativity and insensitivity, you’d be horrified and dismayed. So when someone comes to you to express disappointment, be willing to work with them to improve. Provide them with the good service they expect (and dare I say deserve).
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by Joe A. Martin, Jr. Ed.D.
A fellow teacher recently wrote me concerning her negative work environment. At her wits end, she asked for any suggestions on how she could keep herself motivated in spite of the “toxic environment” in which she found herself surrounded. Below is my response to her dilemma:
As for your concern about the work environment you're in, I can definitely relate. I too was in a similar environment. Unfortunately, you only have a few options -- either you can choose to leave the work environment for greener pastures; you can look to change the work environment from within; or you can sit back and wait for the work environment to change on its own.
Personally, if I can't physically leave (i.e., change environments), I concentrate on what I CAN control, which is my own attitude within the environment. Although it's easier said than done, you have to generate your own joy and inspire your own change. That task alone is a difficult one, but one you have to come to grips with. Waiting on others to change is futile and a waste of valuable energy on your part.
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