Conversations with Educators

A+ is pleased to present a conversation with Bill Martin. Bill is a teacher at Fort Payne Middle School.

Bill taught chemistry and computer science at John Carroll High School in Birmingham. Prior to that he taught biology at the University of Georgia, and soil science at Auburn University. He started teaching while in high school as a tutor and summer camp instructor. Bill said, "I've had many opportunities to become a better teacher."

He spent summers at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, Bell Labs, and the Harvard/Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. He served as the State Contact for the National Earth Science Teachers Association, on the Leadership Council of the Alabama State Teachers Forum, and as president of the Fort Payne Educators Association, in addition to being on various advisory committees and taskforces.

Although he has received several teaching awards, he said, "What I treasure most is being selected as the favorite teacher of the senior class for the last several years. It is the impact on students that gives me my thrills!"

In what way can schools improve to meet student needs?

I view teaching as a public service. I see students and their parents as my clients, and I try to address their individual needs. All too often schools require students to fit into their system rather than adjust the system to meet the needs of the students and parents.

One example is extended day programs. At my school in Fort Payne some students are dropped off at 6 AM. Yet, no program exist until homeroom begins at 8 AM. I arrive about 6:30 AM, and my early eighth graders use my room as a study/homework hall. After school we have similar problems.

The school calendar is another example. We continue to operate on an agricultural calendar rather than even asking parents and students if they would be interested in a year round school year.

What do you believe is the best method to improve parental knowledge concerning student academic success?

Part of the public service issue could be addressed by involving the public in school policy decisions - at least gathering their views. However, educating the public about educational research is also needed. I think about all the time parents spend with their children at athletic events and practices as compared to investing time in their children's academic success.

For example, I recently organized a Town Meeting for Education. Dr. Joe Morton (Deputy State School Superintendent) and Dr. Maurice Persall (Samford Education Professor) spoke with us about the new higher graduation requirements and strategies which have worked in other systems. We had about 50 people in attendance.

After the meeting, I drove past the soccer field and basketball gym on the way home, over 500 parents were in attendance at these sporting events. Unfortunately, we value schools more for their athletic entertainment than we do as a way to prepare students for a meaningful and productive future.

How can teachers become more effective in the classroom?

Much of what I see are motivation problems. Students question "Why do I have to learn this?" We don't do a good job engaging students in their own learning. My classroom success has revolved around making learning real by learning about real things.

My dream as a teacher has always been to have children learn by doing, and as a result, they love to learn. Even with this strategy, I don't reach every child, but I'm successful with most. Even students who are not very successful still love my class. I work hard to make it fun and thought provoking. We role play, debate, experiment, question, build things, take measurements and so on.

What is the best way to revamp school curricula to engage students?

My recent efforts have centered on school design. We need to rethink what schools are all about. A major study lost in the World War II shuffle, the Eight Year Study, involved many schools across the nation. Each school was allowed to develop their own curriculum. As you can imagine each school developed their own unique approach.

Each school was compared to a traditional school and student progress tracked for eight years. In every case, schools which designed their own approach had more successful students. The lesson here is much like the lesson in my classroom. When teachers are excited about what they are teaching, students become excited, and learning becomes real and meaningful.

Maybe the way to apply this idea today is with charter schools. Certainly part of the school reform problem centers on the lack of models. Most administrators grow out of the coaching staff and have a military top down mentality. To break the pattern I think we need some opportunities to develop "break the mold" schools.