Strange Days Indeed

As a kid I hated to mow the yard.  It was hot, sweaty and something I would avoid any way that I could.  (I never could.)  As an adult, I came to find mowing to be therapeutic.   See in my previous profession, you very seldom had things that had clear beginnings and ends in any sort of short time frame.  Projects might take five to seven years from initial conception to completion.  The drafting of plans was usually dealing with concepts and may or may not come to fruition, and if so, would probably be modified numerous times.   

So, for years, the only thing that gave me the satisfaction of seeing something that was started and finished with a clear result was cutting the grass.  It was that hour to hour and a half every week where I had a clear objective and no distractions.

One of the things that I truly revel in as a teacher is that whole cycle that is the school year.  It has a clear starting point, ending point and clear mileposts along the way.  You start out working to build new relationships.  You work to make sure that you can meet every child where they are and get them to where they need to be.  You get to watch them as they become comfortable in their new surroundings and look to test their limits.  You work with them in the classroom, and you help them in countless ways.

For me the Spring is the manic culmination of the cycle.  You are ramping up for local assessments, reading and math assessment, benchmarks and SOLs.  You’re getting ready for field trips, academic competition, Spring dances and those exhausting last days of school.

2020 is different.  Because of COVID-19, our last day of school was March 13.  I found out at 2:55 and the official announcement was made at 3:10. Kids rushed out the door only knowing we were out for two weeks.  Little did any of us expect that it was our last day together.

So here we sit, kids trying to learn from packets prepared by their teachers.  Some are doing virtual learning; others are working with paper packets prepared by their teachers.  In no way are we able to do our normal things.  For me, much of what I do is centered on classroom discussion.  Putting things into context that a 13-year-old can understand.  I use PowerPoints, videos, music, images and in some cases artifacts that put a personal spin on the past.  I know that everyone is getting short changed.

So, what do we do?  In my case, I made the packets as directed knowing the limitations everyone was facing.  I keep in touch with my students via social media and the Remind app.  I do have the advantage of having all my teaching materials available to my kids online.  But that is not enough.  I am retooling my teaching materials to include audio to the Power Points so that they hear my comments.  Written versions were annotated so they could read my comments.  I am exploring new tools to use to make me better able to use what I have electronically in the future.

Many of my colleagues are using tools like Zoom to connect with their students.  I am considering that, but I have reservations about the platform, and how many students would be able to connect.

For me, this will always be the year that could have been.  We’ll never know what would have happened in those last 50+ days.  I also worry. 

• I worry about the kids with all this time on their hands, I worry about the impact of the “Stay at Home” order is having on our mental health.  We are social creatures and need contact with our group.  
• I worry that my kids are getting fed.  I know that our student body is close to 50% free and reduced lunch and hope they are getting their physical needs met.  
• I worry about those whose home lives are not stable and who depend on school be that one safe structured thing in their world.  All of these are more important that the education part of this.

In years to come, we will know many the answers to the impact all of this on our kids and our society.  For now, all I can do is what I can via social distancing, worry and pray.  In the words of John Lennon, “Nobody told me there'd be days like these.  Strange days indeed., most peculiar Mama”

Waking Up From History - Part 4

Monotony is getting the better of me today.  I need to do a bit better about being occupied with my time.  A routine is important to everyone, and I got nowhere near that.  I fight a battle with sleep at times and last night was one of those times.  That just laid the foundation for things to not be 'normal.'  Normal here is for my 'Alarm Cat' to go off between 4 and 5 a.m.  So most days start around 5 with the cat being fed at 6.  This morning, I did not get to sleep until after 2, which threw everything off.  I'll do better tomorrow.

Of course, the weather probably didn't help. It has been cold and dreary the last two days.  A counter balance to the abnormal that we had last week with weather in the 70s.  Not sure what the balance of the week will hold with the weather.  I know I need to get outside and spend some time in the fresh air.

Last night, I used Facebook to check in with some of my students past and present.  I enjoyed interacting with them.  It started out being just my current students, but former students also chimed in.  That just made it so much more fun.  I just feel that it is important in this time of forced isolation that we reach out and make sure we do what we can to let folks know we are still interested in how they are doing.

I have been impressed at how quickly the advertising agencies have adjusted to our new reality.  The ability to turn from just hawking product to always trying to to put a positive spin on these "uncertain times."  They just need to come up with another term for that.

Waking Up From History - Part 3

Another week of safe distancing done, and still some folks are too self absorbed to do what is in the best interest of us all.  People still seem to think their having fun is more important than keeping us all safe.  They want to go to the beach, have a party or hang out with their buddies.  Maybe it is just a generational thing, but I was brought up to look at the greater good ahead of my own pleasure.  So I do not get this.

Because of the selfishness, Governor Northam has issued an order to stay in place.  This will mean that those who can't play by the rules could be subject to removal and possible legal action.  The whole success of safe distancing depends on everyone being willing to sacrifice a bit of freedom in an effort to insure COVID-19 is limited.

At the end of last week we finally were authorized to provide new material to our students.  I'm still unsure of how much material we will be allowed to give the kids to work on.  I am finding all of this a real challenge since many of my students are not able to access materials electronically.  This means that I am preparing materials two ways.  A paper one that goes home with the students and an electronic on that can be viewed online. 

In listening to my students, before we knew schools would shut down, it became clear to me that my comments on the Power Points were very important to their understanding.  To deal with this, I added notes to the Power Points so that the kids will still have my words.  For the online version, I added audio to the Power Points.  I hope that this helps them.

Still I know that those who go online and take advantage of the electronic materials that are available for them will have a far better understanding of the material than those who just get the paper packet.

If nothing else comes out of this pandemic, I do hope that those who have the power to make decisions will find a way to bridge this gap.  If not we will continue to widen the differences between those who have means and those that do not.

On a more personal level, I seem to be coping with this new reality.  One thing that I do is completely avoid as much news coverage as possible.  I find the daily Presidential briefings to be frustrating.  Long on bluster and short on useful information.  In a situation like this, I am not looking for confrontation, or misleading information.  What I want is to know what is going on and and that everyone is working together to solve the problem.

Waking Up From History (Part 2)

Sometimes it is important to read other materials for perspective on what is going on with COVID-19.  Yesterday in my rambling around the the social medias, I came across some interesting stuff.  This article from The National Review gives a timeline on the Chinese handling of the outbreak.

 https://www.nationalreview.com/the-morning-jolt/chinas-devastating-lies/amp/?__twitter_impression=true

I found it very enlightening, especially when I compare it to coverage by China Daily.  (BTW, I follow them on Twitter for two reasons.  1. My niece lived in Shanghai for a year and a half,  2. It pays to know what other countries think of the US.)

As I take in information, there are two places that concern me.  No, neither of them is going to impact my life directly, but the humanitarian impact will be huge.  The first is all the refugee camps in Africa and the Middle East.  Those folks have been forced to flee from famine and war and are living in conditions that most of us would not want our pets to experience.  If COVID-19 hits these camps, where there is no such thing as 'Social Distancing' and where people are living with compromised immune systems, the infection rate and death rates could be staggering.  The other is the densely populated cities in less developed countries where over crowding and poor living conditions could lead to the same results as the refugee camps.

On a personal note, the sun is shining for the first time in nearly two weeks, and my wife and I are planning on taking a brief walk to just get out of the house for a bit.  Since March 13, I have only been to work the three required days, and two other times.  While being an introvert makes this something not difficult for me, I do know that a bit of fresh air and sunshine is needed right now.

Waking Up From History

The title comes from a song by the German band The Scorpions, "Right Here, Right Now."  The song gives their impressions about the fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of Communism in Eastern Europe.  It is a reminder that big history just blows up and big things seem to come out of nowhere.

Yesterday I challenged my students, past and present, to journal or blog about this experience, because we are truly making history and their children and grandchildren would want to know what things were like in the "Great COVID-19 Pandemic" (see I just named it).  At 2:30 this morning my mind was rambling about thoughts on what all of this means so I decided it was time to start writing what was on my mind.  I am writing three separate posts.  One will be my thoughts on the unfinished business of how this school year ended.  One will be a message to the class of 2020.  That one will be both big picture and personal. 

This one is going to be an ongoing commentary.  It will be as much a meditation on what's going on as a recounting of events.  It will be disjointed and rambling because I plan on writing about what exactly comes to mind as I write.

Here is Post 1:

I have been watching the pandemic since the early cases in China.  I saw how the Chinese government was slow in reacting, not seeming to want to interfere with the Spring Festival travels.  Then it moved on to aggressive measures like locking down a city eleven million.  But they were too late, and I doubt we'll ever know what has really happened there.  It then moved to unexpected places like Northern Italy, and Spain.  It is truly now a global pandemic.

Most country's have now started taking aggressive actions, and yet the disease continues to spread.  America, because it is a republic, has 51 different responses.  Most are working hard and are taking unprecedented steps to slow the spread.  We regularly hear about "Flattening the curve," in other words take steps to keep people home.  It makes sense to me that we need to do what is necessary to avoid overloading our healthcare system.  Personally, I don't relish the idea of being treating in a hospital parking lot because we did not do what we could to slow down the rate of infection.  I feel like our state government has done an effective job of making decisions in a decisive manner.  Although I would have loved a bit more heads up on the first closing of schools announcement.  15 minutes before school got out on Friday was a shock to us all.

Virginia closed schools for two weeks at 2:54 p.m. on Friday March 13, 15 minutes before final dismissal.  I heard about it from a student who had gone to the bathroom and been told by a teacher.  I went out on the Web and confirmed that is was true.  To me the interesting thing was the range of emotions from the kids.  There were some who were at a complete loss about what they would do and what it meant and those who were excited about the idea of no school.  We had no time to prepare ourselves for what all this might mean,  We had been instructed to prepare a packet of materials to cover two weeks.

Teachers here worked in the building on Tuesday - Thursday of the following week.  Since we had no idea what was coming next, I spent much of my time looking at ways to deliver instruction electronically.  I have an advantage in that all of my class materials are on line so that part of delivery is no problem. Some of my kids are accessing the packets on line and turning in work by forwarding screen shots or pictures of the completed.  Clunky and rudimentary, but for now it will do.

Yesterday, Governor Northam announced that he was closing all schools for the remainder of the school year.  So are now in limbo.  We are waiting on directives from the Virginia Department of Education to be filtered through our administrators.  So for now, I continue to work at home, researching, checking student's work, and thinking.

Those reading this that know me know that I watch no CNN, MSNBC, or FOX for my information.  This is intentional, I am selective in where I get my information from.  I prefer to draw my own conclusions based on a broad sampling of sources.  As such, I am impressed by the steps taken by many states to stem the tide of the disease.  I am less than impressed by the waffling on the Federal level.  First it is not a big worry, only 15 cases and it will go away when the weather warms,  Out right lies about the availability of testing and needed supplies.  Now it seems the Federal responses are two fold, throw money at the economic impacts (if they can decide what they can agree on) and the economy is more important than the health impacts.  As one of those in the higher risk category, this worries me.  I am also concerned that Dr. Fauci, the greatest expert in our country on infectious diseases, now seems to have no seat at the table in figuring out our national strategy.

Thoughts on the "Big White Ghetto"

I have read a number of articles in recent months regarding Appalachia.  These include the New York Times piece, and the “Big White Ghetto” article.  I love how writers with no history in the culture swoop in to one community and write high profile pieces with overarching conclusions about a region. These articles and their themes are not new.   Such stories have been written about the region since the late 1800s.  All center around ignorant mountain folk who are too lazy to work and get by taking advantage of the system. 

These stereotypes have been in our popular culture for decades.  As a kid growing up in Western Kentucky we watched the “Beverly Hillbillies,” a sitcom about poor folk who strike it rich and how they don’t fit in in California. Al Capp’s comic strip “Lil’ Abner” told the continuing story of the poor folk of Dogpatch USA.  (The irony of both shows is that the hillbillies usually outfoxed the city folk.)  Are there people living this way in Appalachia?  Well sure.  Is that the defining characteristic of the region? No.  Having lived half of my life in Central Appalachia, I know that the truth is far more complex than the stereotypes that have been around for generations.  If you want to see those stereotypes blown to smithereens, I encourage you to read Jim Webb’s “Born Fighting.”  He tells the story of the Scots-Irish in America through his own family’s experience.

I am not a native to Appalachia.  I live here by choice.  Being a “not from here” who has lived in small communities in multiple regions gives me a good perspective on rural poverty vs. urban poverty.  No, I will resist the temptation to write about urban poverty based on my visits to Norfolk, VA, Richmond, VA, Nashville, TN, St. Louis, MO and Lexington, KY.  Then I would be guilty of the same arrogance of “knowing” a place as the writer of the “Big White Ghetto.”  What I will attempt is to discuss rural poverty as seen through the eyes of someone who spent twenty years working to reduce it, with marginal success.  (I will come back to those successes at the end of this piece.)

I know that most of the country sees Appalachia as all being the same.  This is as foolish as assuming that every urban area is the same.  Living here, I know that not every community is the same.  It is foolish to compare remote Jackson, KY to that mecca of hipsters Asheville, NC, even though both are in Appalachia.  The region has amazing diversity in communities and qualities of life.  While the population is predominantly white, you find amazing diversity even in the smallest coal mining communities, which have Italian, Polish, Hungarian and African American roots.  Anyone who spends more than a few days in the region will attest to this diversity.

I grew up in a small town in the rural Jackson Purchase of Kentucky.  It is a region of small towns and farms.  It is a region of haves and have nots that has benefited from TVA projects in the past.  When my mother was a child, it was like much of the rural south.  You had rich landowners, merchants and then the rest of the people working to get by.  Sharecropping was a means of employment for many.  Growing up I saw little in the way of poverty, since I lived in a college town and most of my relatives had moved up economically.  My glimpses of poverty were when we visited my dad’s family in Arkansas.  All I realized as a kid was that they lived differently than we did.  As I got older I was able to make the connections that they lived differently because of poverty and different familial expectations.  We were raised to work hard, and were expected to get college educations and live better lives than our parent’s.  I found that my cousins had less of a work ethic, and there were no expectations of education being a path to a different life.

When I completed school, I worked for several years in Economic Development.  I was one of those people whose job it was to help put together projects and financing to bring new employment to communities.  My focus was rural communities.  What I found was rural communities come with a set of challenges that are the same whether they be in South Central Tennessee, Western Kentucky, Southside Virginia or Southwestern Virginia.  The first challenge is remoteness.  Many of these areas are not easy to get to, or are not on major transportation routes.  The second challenge is lack of or inadequacy of needed infrastructure.  Things like water, sewer, rail, natural gas, electrical and telecommunications are either not present or not up to modern standards.  The third challenge is lack of a skilled workforce.  This is in part a result lack of educational opportunities, lack of an emphasis on education, and the out migration of the best and brightest looking for a better life; leaving behind a population less educated and motivated to work.  The fourth factor is quality of life.  Rural areas, in part because of lack of resources, do not offer the level of social, cultural and retail amenities many people demand.  The cycle of poverty just makes most of these challenges difficult to overcome.  Ironically, for those argue for self-reliance as the way to solve this, most of these challenges are not something that can be overcome without large-scale investment.  The source of this investment usually comes from the government in the form of grants and low interest loans.

In my experience, successful projects could overcome some of these challenges.  Utility expansion or extensions were not that hard to accomplish.  We could put together job-training programs to meet prospective employer’s needs.   Where we always came up short was in eliminating the remoteness.  Those kind of improvements are decades long in coming, expensive to accomplish, and not often politically popular.  Overcoming the amenities challenge does not happen until population and local resources reach a certain critical mass.  As for that group of the population lacking the interest and desire to work, I have no idea how to change that mindset.   From my experience, fighting rural poverty is the same whether we are talking about Appalachia or anywhere else in America.  The only detriment that is unique to Appalachia is the availability of level land for large-scale development.

Now let’s talk about rural successes.  These successes usually combine certain factors; access to Interstate highways, investment in necessary infrastructure and enlightened local leadership.  When opportunities come to these communities, they have the tools to exploit the opportunities.  Some communities, like Beckley WV have the added benefit of a powerful politician who is able to steer key improvements and projects to them.  Others, like Blacksburg, VA have the benefit of being anchored by a major university, which also bring inherent benefits.  The greatest engine for rural economic development has its roots in the great depression.  TVA was created to control flooding, and bring electricity to what was then a remote and backward region.  Bringing flood control to the Tennessee River Valley helped improve agriculture and the electricity brought industrial growth and the modern world to the area.

Yes, I know that this has gone far afield from the critique of narrow focused articles on what is wrong with Appalachia.   My point is that the challenges of Appalachia are not unique to the region, nor do they apply to the entire region.  I do not have a magic solution for the problem of poverty and the underclass.  Careful observation of the world will show the behavior characterized in the “Big White Ghetto” is not an Appalachian phenomenon, but a global one that has been around for all of time.  Then again, I am not alone in that.  I do suggest that anyone who posits simple solutions to the problems of poverty, whether urban or rural, is misinformed or intentionally misleading.

What I Have Learned in 2014

I stole this from a friend a few years ago, and it is part of my holiday traditions.  So here goes:

1. That the West Side of Lane Stadium is more interesting than the East Side.
2. That football fans will pay big $$ for season tickets and then not come to games.
3. Other fans will sit and watch the action on the big screen and not on the field.
4. Even if you never post anything, Twitter is a great way to keep up with what is going on in the world.
5. There are great advantages to teaching the same group of kids two years in a row.
6. I can take a day off and the world not come to an end.  (My workaholic friends will understand.)
7. Fantasy football is just a glorified, stat based, football pool, and something I do not have time for.
8. The College Football final four selection shows that in many things it is always going to be about your name and not what you have accomplished.  (Hear me Buckeye fans.)
9. That a kid who has to stay home from school to look after younger siblings is being cheated.  First by not being given the chance to get an education.   Second by having adult responsibilities put on them when they should be allowed to be kids.
10. In spite of all of our efforts there is tons of misinformation being spewed out as fact.  It becomes tiring trying to dispel the intentional and unintentional drivel that is spewed over the Internet.
11. No matter how hard I work to get kids motivated to learn, I do not have the ability to overcome the external factors of culture and poverty.
12. With $1.5 billion spent on the most recent Congressional elections, it is safe to say that  political speech belongs only to the very rich.  As an average citizen, without the $$$ to make my opinions heard, I am voiceless.
13. There is a certain joy that I get as a teacher in watching kids evolve from awkward 6th graders to poised 8th graders.
14. It is ironic that I live in a state that has prided itself on politics and government that does thing the right way, and will have its last Governor sentenced for taking favors from a guy of questionable ethics; and elected a Governor known for his political fundraising.
15. We are reaping the harvest of privileged and entitled generations. It is becoming hard to find people whose default reaction to every situation is not in your face anger.
16. As I get older, I care less about the opinions of others.  (As if I have ever much worried about such things.)
17. Good instruction has little, if anything, to do with the latest trends.
18. Whether my kids pass an end of the year assessment is less important to me than them understanding that history is about learning from the past so that we can prepare for the future.  Their understanding that nothing happens in a vacuum, and that when they can find the threads that connect past to present, they will better anticipate the future.