| When I think back to teaching high school, one of the | | | | This task was done so that I, like the rest of the good |
| most dreaded things was writing lesson plans. I realize | | | | soldiers, could turn in my lesson plans to the "head |
| now that great teachers should not have to write | | | | honchos" in administration. The amount of time, |
| lesson plans. Great teachers should worry about | | | | effort--not to mention paper--wasted on this mundane |
| teaching great lessons. Looking back, I realize I wasted | | | | of all mundane tasks was astronomical. This practice |
| a huge amount of time writing lesson plans that I never | | | | has to be changed. |
| really used and ones that nobody really looked at. So | | | | First of all, schools should have available for any |
| why all the fuss? | | | | subject, loads of prepared lesson plan books from |
| It seems that the administration personnel in many | | | | which a teacher can select and choose the most |
| schools use lesson plan writing as a way to keep the | | | | appropriate lessons. Thus, if you are teaching Algebra I |
| pack in line. It really is more a control thing than anything | | | | and you are covering linear equations, you should be |
| else. From my experience, I spent way too much time | | | | able to pull out one or two page lessons, replete with |
| fretting about writing plans that nobody cared about. All | | | | strategies, real-life examples, practice examples, and |
| my other colleagues as well hated the practice and | | | | homework, for this particular topic. If you are teaching |
| dreaded the task. Not one thought there was any | | | | Spanish I and are covering stem-changing verbs, you |
| value to it. Teachers have far too many responsibilities | | | | should be able to pull out pre-written lesson plans for |
| to be forced to writing weekly or daily lesson plans. | | | | this topic. Why should you have to spend hours if not |
| Indeed, what you get out of compulsory lesson plan | | | | days pondering what you are going to teach, how you |
| writing is the same stuff you get out of the history | | | | are going to teach it, and oh--by the way--how you |
| exam essay: a lot of fluff between a few--if at | | | | are going to write your lesson plan; all the while |
| all--worthy facts. | | | | stressing over your hundred and fifty unmarked |
| As a teacher of high school mathematics, I now realize | | | | papers, the two new quizzes you have to make up, |
| that I had available many resources which would have | | | | the grades you have to submit next week, the |
| obviated my need to write lesson plans. Nowadays, | | | | teacher's conference meeting you have to attend |
| you can go online and get good lesson plans and other | | | | after school, the five parents you have to call back, |
| materials at many sites. (See for some good math | | | | the extra help you have to give after school...you get |
| worksheets and other interesting stuff that could help | | | | the point. |
| you plan many lessons.) Any good school should make | | | | Any person who has taught knows how hard teaching |
| available to its teachers lesson plan books from which | | | | is. You have to do it to really feel the stress and |
| teachers can choose. Administrations should worry | | | | pressure that this job creates. Why make it any |
| more about hiring competent teachers and then letting | | | | harder than it has to be for the teachers? |
| them do their jobs. After all, any good teacher can | | | | Administrators: start streamlining some things and start |
| take a rough sketch and turn it into a fine drawing. | | | | providing your teachers with more of the tools they |
| When I taught algebra, for example, I would spend | | | | need. One good place to start would be providing |
| countless hours every week preparing lesson plans for | | | | them with lesson plan resources. Then maybe they |
| material which has been taught for hundreds of years. | | | | can worry about teaching not writing lesson plans. |