Sunday, July 6, 2014

"If real learning is to take place, our classrooms must be dependent on the collaboration of its learners...






“Every day that you teach you have two options: be focused, passionate and caring, or to be focused, passionate and caring.” Robert John Meehan

"Teaching often requires risk, acceptance of novelty, rejection of any form of discrimination and always requires a critical reflection of its current practices." Robert John Meehan

"If real learning is to take place, our classrooms must be dependent on the collaboration of its learners, not solely on the knowledge of its teachers." Robert John Meehan

 “When I observed my students... I could often predict which ones were probably going to fulfill their dreams later in life. It wasn't necessarily the ones who failed the least. It was the students who failed, but kept at it until they got it.”  Robert John Meehan

 "As teachers, we believe that we are called to teach and that this calling, though often times requiring personal sacrifice, must be fulfilled to the most prodigious benefit of our students."  Robert John Meehan

"We need to trust ourselves enough to recognize that how we are teaching now, though it worked for a while, may no longer be as effective." Robert John Meehan

   "Did you have a favorite teacher because he or she was able to prepare you for a multiple choice test or because he/she inspired you?" Robert John Meehan

 "A gifted teacher is not only prepared to meet the needs of today's child, but is also prepared to foresee the hopes and dreams in every child's future." Robert John Meehan

"Becoming an exemplary teacher is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of the choices we make; it is not something that simply comes with experience, it is something that must be purposefully achieved." Robert John Meehan

Friday, July 4, 2014

A Teacher's Pledge


In Memoriam (Chicago) A Tribute to the children of Chicago



A Tribute to the children of Chicago

In Memoriam (Chicago) A Tribute to the children of Chicago

Robert John Meehan


A desk lies empty
A missing face to find
A child soon missed by some
Another life consumed by one


A classmate questioned
A missing child to find
While a desk lies empty
A hope dwindles with time



As a child's life once abound
A child's fate is now found
While a desk lies empty
A lifeless child is found



As questions of why arise
A time for tears to flow
While a desk lies empty
A prayer for a missed child we know



A quiet voice to miss
A child missed we know
While a desk lies empty
A question of why to know



A future now not to be
A tragic loss we are told
While a desk lies empty
An answer of why yet untold



A myriad of lives changed
Another youthful innocent lost
While a desk lies empty
At a life's innocence cost



A society believed so rich
And yet a life's worth so poor
While a desk lies empty
Another child's life's no more



A time to ponder a commitment
A life's question to answer
While a desk lies empty... 

First published in 1993. When will it ever change?



Thursday, July 3, 2014

The entire being of any Teacher is within our own hearts...


 "The entire being of any Teacher is within our own hearts. Although an education prepares us to teach, it is the love of learning that sustains us." Robert John Meehan

"It is shortsighted to believe that better education comes from setting up schools that exclude the very children needing the most help." Robert John Meehan

"I choose to believe that teaching the least desired children is the most noble choice of all." Robert John Meehan

"Critical Thinking: The purposeful reflective judgment concerning what to believe or what to do. Is this a lost art?" Robert John Meehan

"Becoming an exemplary teacher is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of the choices we make; it is not something that simply comes with experience, it is something that must be purposefully achieved." Robert John Meehan

 "The current reformers do not realize that learning is different from winning. Teachers can have the best game plan but they can't pick their teams." Robert John Meehan


"Republicans fear caps on CEO pay and bonuses will drain talent from those jobs. Shouldn't they have the same fears about slashing teacher comp and pay?" Robert John Meehan

Tuesday, July 1, 2014

There is no challenge too great for a teacher who has the will, the desire and heart ...


"The highest respect should go to those teachers who let their actions rise above other teachers' excuses." Robert John Meehan

"There is no challenge too great for a teacher who has the will, the desire and heart to make it happen." Robert John Meehan

"The strength of our teaching lies in the depth of our convictions and the integrity of our goals." Robert John Meehan

"A successful teacher can create a never ending legacy for generations to come." Robert John Meehan

"The highest level of success in the classroom is only reached with a continuous commitment to excellence." Robert John Meehan

 
"Effective teaching involves a highly distinctive set of human interactions and skills that are not measurable by multiple choice tests alone." Robert John Meehan


"Educate': educere. Essentially 'to educe', to draw forth from. The true work of a teacher:not putting in, but drawing out." Robert John Meehan

"Great schools are nurtured with the cooperation of many teachers with a common vision working toward a common goal of extraordinary student achievement." Robert John Meehan



Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Although most would see them only as an ocean of small faces, as teachers we see them as the waves that propel us.


"Teachers are unique problem solvers by character, temperament, and resilience. Teachers can not be manufactured."- Robert John Meehan

 "Great teachers illuminate the path to achievement, believing the best way to predict a child’s future is to help create it." Robert John Meehan

 "As teachers, we have the ability to rebuild the world for our students. By our sincere efforts we can make their world more rewarding, more gratifying and perhaps... even more significant." Robert John Meehan

 "The essential nature of any teacher is within our own hearts. Although an education prepares us to teach, it is the love of learning that sustains us." Robert John Meehan

 "Everything we do as parents and teachers must ensure that the child's inherent desire to learn is kept alive." Robert John Meehan

 "Although we may not have much control over the culture outside our walls, we can set expectations that uphold a higher standard." Robert John Meehan

"Pursue confidently your dreams of being a teacher. Teach each day as you once imagined you would. Don't let today's obstacles keep you from yesterday's dreams." Robert John Meehan

"The whole being of any Teacher is within our own hearts. Although an education prepares us to teach, it is the love of learning that sustains us." Robert John Meehan

  "Although most would see them only as an ocean of small faces, as teachers we see them as the waves that propel us." - Robert John Meehan

 "Effective teaching involves a highly distinctive set of human interactions and skills that are not measurable by multiple choice tests." Robert John Meehan

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Too many decisions about ed reform are made by people untouched by the change process...



"Teaching should always be the result of intense preparation, sincere effort, intelligent direction, and skillful execution." Robert John Meehan

"If you make sure you know every student’s ‘story’ and treat each one as an individual, you will have a connection." Robert John Meehan

"Accept no one's definition of your role as a teacher; define yourself. Never allow yourself to be made a victim." Robert John Meehan

"Education by itself is meaningless - education only takes meaning in the context of our decision on how we are going to apply it." Robert John Meehan

"Even the most talented teacher cannot be fully successful in a dysfunctional system over which they have little control or input." Robert John Meehan

"Teachers are just the cause of the day which dilutes attention from the real problems of greed, money and politics." Robert John Meehan

"Is the current goal "good schools" for some, just as we have "good health care" for some, "good housing" for some, and "good food" for some?" Robert John Meehan

"Too many decisions about ed reform are made by people untouched by the change process." Robert John Meehan

"We need to trust ourselves enough to recognize that how we are teaching now, though it worked for a while, may no longer be as effective." Robert John Meehan


                                     
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