Gamesmanship for Teachers

Uncommon Sense is Half the Work

By (author) Ryan A. Donlan

Publication date:

16 July 2009

Length of book:

216 pages

Publisher

R&L Education

Dimensions:

240x161mm
6x9"

ISBN-13: 9781607091035

Gamesmanship for Teachers, a must-read from working educator and author Ryan A. Donlan, provides a much-needed shot-in-the-arm for veteran teachers who are inarguably on top of their game, yet are currently bludgeoned by the many nonsensical notions in No Child Left Behind. Great teachers, now working in a much-maligned profession, can give themselves a pat on the back for great work. In this book, teachers discover the power of uncommon sense that this author shares with respect to pedagogy, politics, and the personal health of professionals. This book is a respectful blend of "by-educator/for-educator straight talk," game sharpening strategy, and a celebration of why great teachers went into education in the first place and why they should stay.

Part 1 No Teacher Left Behind
Chapter 2 Gamesmanship
Chapter 3 Straight Talk and a Prelude to the Gray Cloud over Education
Chapter 4 Getting a Proper and Just Handle on Oneself, One's Village, and One's Place in the Universe and the Gray Cloud
Chapter 5 What Our Journey Entails
Part 6 A Discussion for Seasoned Professionals Only
Chapter 7 What Are We Seeing in Our Newbies? The Wrong Reasons to Teach
Chapter 8 Thinking Back on Our Professional Beginnings, Why Did We Want to Teach?
Chapter 9 Never Smile until November? ... Not!
Chapter 10 What Is a Student: Philosophically, Theoretically, and Practically
Chapter 11 Your Role as a Teacher Leader
Chapter 12 Direct Advice that Teacher Leaders Can Use as Institutional Caretakers
Part 13 Through a Side Door in a School that's Not about Us
Chapter 14 When Parents Enable
Chapter 15 Instant Messaging for Parent Meetings
Chapter 16 "It's Not about Us"
Chapter 17 More on "Student as a Product": Education's Raw Material
Chapter 18 Cherising Those Baby Steps
Chapter 19 The Most Important Furnishing in a Classroom: Hope
Chapter 20 One's Teaching Load, a Clairvoyant Perspective
Part 21 Sharpening the Scythe for Healthier Teaching
Chapter 22 Teachers as Surgeons
Chapter 23 In the Trenches Now ... the Toolbox
Chapter 24 Power and Brain-Compatible Elements
Chapter 25 The Brainbox
Chapter 26 Absence of Threat
Chapter 27 Choices and Adequate Time
Part 28 The 101s of Professional Supervision and Evaluation
Chapter 29 Look-Fors for Principals
Chapter 30 The Look-Fors You Don't Want
Chapter 31 Professional Evaluation
Part 32 Making Your Life Easier through "Your Domain"
Chapter 33 Organizational Effectiveness through Student Responsibility
Chapter 34 The Grab Bag for Maintaining Order
Chapter 35 The Grab Bag for Placing the Responsibility of Learning and Succeeding On Students
Chapter 36 The Grab Bag for Minimizing Interruptions
Chapter 37 The Grab Bag, Wrapping Up
Chapter 38 Room Decor
Part 39 On the Road Again
Chapter 40 Professional Development (PD) and Conferencing
Chapter 41 People Watching at Conferences
Chapter 42 When You're the Presenter
Part 43 The Healthier You: A Light Heart Lives Long
Chapter 44 You Call It Efficiency or Multitasking, I Call It Burnout
Chapter 45 A Glowing Ember Is Easily Rekindled
Chapter 46 A Healthier Perspective on the Much-Maligned, Yet Uniquely Lovable Lounge Lizards
Chapter 47 Raconteurs in Lounges and the Follies of Leadership
Chapter 48 The Leaders We Need
Chapter 49 Conclusion: What Will Come from the Briar But the Berry?

Finally someone understands that it is not only foolish to legislate academic excellence, it is impossible.