Presenters PPP for the Winter Symposium

1. Winter Symposium
PPSD Teacher Induction Program
presentation by Keith Catone, Adeola Oredola, Dulari Tahbildar
January 15, 2015

2. Agenda
12:45-1:15 The Importance of Mattering (Keith)
1:15-2:15 Culture & Cultural Capital (Adeola)
2:15-3:10 Strategies for Teaching Across Difference (Dulari)
3:10:3:15 Wrap-Up (Keith)

3. The Importance of Mattering
“Real” by Kendrick Lamar
o On real recognizing real: Love & respect
 What makes us real?
● When are you your most full self?
● How do you know you are human?
● What reminds you that you are a person, living and
breathing?
● How do you know what you are worth?
● What makes you important, how do you know you are
important, and who or what helps you to know?
(from Carla Shalaby)

4. The Importance of Mattering
What Mattered in My First Year Teaching
o On purpose, passion, power, possibility, and...
 Pedro!
 My roommate: “How can you quit when you know
that this is the worst it will ever be? It only gets
better.”
 My ‘mentor’: “You’ve got a great rapport with your
students.”

5. The Importance of Mattering
From Do You Matter? in 2009 to
#Blacklivesmatter in 2014
o On solidarity: Who & what matters in our classrooms?
 “They don’t want to be you, they want to be their best them.”
(Carla Shalaby)
 Tú eres mi otro yo. / You are my other me.
Si te hago daño a ti, / If I do harm to you,
Me hago daño a mi mismo. / I do harm to myself.
Si te amo y respeto, / If I love and respect you,
Me amo y respeto yo. / I love and respect myself.
(Luis Valdez)

6. Culture & Cultural Capital
5 min My Story
10 min My Teachers
15 min Identifying Cultural Capital
25 min Culturally Relevant Education
5 min Community Resources

7. Strategies for Teaching Across Difference
2:15-2:25 Crossing Boundaries & Building Bridges
2:25-2:40 But That’s Not In My Job Description!
2:40-2:55 Authenticity
2:55-3:10 Teachers Are Learners Too

8. Strategies for Teaching Across Difference
2:15-2:25 Crossing Boundaries & Building Bridges
● Stand Up/Sit Down
● My story
● Breakthrough Providence
o Dual mission
o Who are our students
o Who are our teachers
o Our approach to teacher training

9. Strategies for Teaching Across Difference
2:25-2:40 But That’s Not in My Job Description!
“I absolutely loved being an advisor! It was really pleasant seeing my advisees grow not only
academically but into independent leaders. Advisory period was so essential - it gave me that time to
talk to them not as a math teacher but also as a mentor. It allowed me and my advisees to reflect on
their personal growth and their room for improvement.”
- Shasterine De Los Santos
BTP Student ‘11, BTP Teacher ‘14
● 10 min: Flip the Script
● Strategies:
o Ask different questions
o Call home for good stuff
o Become familiar with something that your students enjoy
o Organize something (anything!) for students, with students
● Challenges?

10. Strategies for Teaching Across Difference
2:40-2:55 Authenticity
“If they see how much I love it, how much I love being in front of them, how much I love being there
with them, then maybe that will motivate them to take that challenge, even if it’s boring or hard. It is
possible to be excited about doing well.”
- Genesis Garcia
BTP Student ‘07, BTP Teacher ‘12, ‘13
● 10 min: Dear Me
● Strategies:
o let your personality shine through an“authoritative mentor” prism
o have an informal conversation with each of your students once/week
o show you care in a tangible, personalized way
● Challenges?

11. Strategies for Teaching Across Difference
2:55-3:10 Teachers Are Learners Too
“[Breakthrough has] forced me to think about teaching as so much of an ongoing process of learning. It
keeps me excited to come to work every day, because I know I’m going to learn so much.”
- Thom Finley
BTP Teacher ‘12
● 10 min: Self-Assessment
● Strategies:
o be transparent with students about your learning goals
o ask students for their feedback on your teaching
o create opportunities for your students to teach you something
● Challenges?

12. Wrap-Up: “Homework”
Choose 1-2 of these strategies based on today’s presentations. Your Consulting
Teachers will be working with you on follow-up and reflection!
● Form a study group with other teachers to read, reflect, and act together about how
to build solidarity with your students, their families, and the Providence community.
● Answer the “What makes us real?” questions for yourself (see Slide #3), then with
your students.
● Develop a daily routine in your classroom that reinforces how much each person
(including yourself!) matters.
● Try to recognize and strengthen cultural capital in at least one student each week.
● Learn more about community resources for students and families and reference
them as needed throughout the year.
● Create a set of questions to start meaningful conversations with your students.
● Have an informal conversation with each of your students once/week.
● Create opportunities for your students to teach you something.