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Shawna Rothgeb-Bird Assessment, Pedagogical Documentation, Use of Technology

Google Forms as Pedagogical Documentation Tools

 

 

 

I really love using Google Forms for anecdotal notes (something like this). I hate having to keep track of sticky notes, photos/samples of student work, class lists with comments, etc. and then try to make sense of it all come report card time. A few years ago, I was introduced to the magic of Google Forms at a tech workshop, and I immediately jumped in. Since then, I’d say that the most common tech question I’m asked as my school’s digital lead is, How do I set up pedagogical documentation with Google Forms?

So… here I am with a tutorial! Fair warning: this post is photo-heavy because I’ve provided screenshots throughout.

 

Step One: Create a New Form

 

forms tut 1

 

Open up Google Forms and hit the “Blank” button under “Start a new form”. You should end up with something like this:

forms tut 2

Step Two: Change the Title & Add Student Names

Set the title (blue arrow) to something you’ll remember. If you have multiple classes, you should include the class name in the title. Then name the first question “Student Name” and select dropdown from the menu to the right (red arrow). Time-saving tip: if you have an electronic class list file, you can highlight a column of student names, copy (ctrl + C), and paste the names into the response field for the question. It’ll populate the list with all of the names from that column.

I recommend setting this question as “Required” (black arrow) so that it won’t allow you to complete the form without selecting a student.

forms tut 3

Step 3: Create the Learning Skills (or Subject) Question

Your next question should be where you select which learning skills and/or subjects you are commenting on. I like to set this question to a checkboxes response style (black arrow) so that I can select multiple learning skills/subject areas when appropriate. I often set this question as “required” as well.

forms tut 4

Step 4: Create the Comments Field

Next, you want to create a place for you to type in your observations. Google Forms is pretty intelligent and automatically selects paragraph as the response style when you name the question “Comments”. Paragraph simply means that when you open up the form, it’ll give you a large field to type into. I recommend paragraph over short answer so that you don’t hit a character limit. I recommend setting this question as required, since it’s… you know… kind of the point of the form. 

forms tut 5

Step 5: Create a File Upload Question (if you want)

I always include a “file upload” option with my anecdotal forms so that I can attach samples of student work (scanned work, photos, files from Drive). It can be really useful if students are doing group work, hands-on activities, or work that is otherwise hard to keep around. Also useful for keeping your piles of student samples to a minimum!

When you first select “File Upload”, you’ll get a notice like this, and you just need to click “Continue” (black arrow):

forms tut 6

Then your question should look like this:

forms tut 7

 

I don’t play around with the options there, personally. I like to leave it open and flexible.

Step 6: Set Your Form to Collect Responses in a Spreadsheet

This is one of the best parts of Google Forms: if you ask it to, it’ll collect every response you submit in a spreadsheet, where you can access ALL of your anecdotal notes in one place. You can sort by student name, learning skill, whatever. Responses will be date/time stamped, so you know when you made the observations. You definitely want to do this.

To set your form to collect responses in a spreadsheet, first select “Responses”…

forms tut 8

Then click this little green button (the Sheets icon)…

forms tut 9

It’ll pop up with a window that looks like this…

forms tut 10

And when you hit “Create”, it’ll take you to your new spreadsheet, where responses will automatically be added as you submit them! It’ll look something like this:

forms tut 11

 

That’s it! You’re done! Your form is now ready to use. 

Final suggestions:

  • Bookmark it and add the bookmark to your bookmarks bar for easy access.
  • Share it with teaching partners so that all of your observations are in one place.
  • If you use Google Classroom and have multiple classes, make the header for your form the same as the header for Google Classroom so that you know you’re in the right one.

Hope some of you out there found this useful! If you’re looking for a more visual/simple way to track student work and learning skills, especially those in Kinder and Primary, consider using Google Keep instead of forms.

 

Michelle Fenn Combined Grade Classes, Constant Learning, Curriculum Planning, General, Inspiring Students, Math, Resources

Tools and Resources for Math Talks

One of the reasons that I spent so many years teaching the primary grades is that teaching math to older students terrified me.  Growing up I struggled with math.  I changed schools in the middle of my grade three year and missed a great deal of multiplication and division instruction which haunted me for the rest of my math learning.  I remember crying at the kitchen table over my homework and my father being distraught over not being able to help me.  I totally understand how a student feels when they shutdown and “can’t” get it.  That understanding along with having excellent tools and resources helped me immensely when I taught grade 4 and 5 mathematics.

Math Growth Mindset

Jo Boaler is a professor of mathematics education at Stanford University and the co-founder and faculty director of youcubed.  This fabulous website provides unique, research based instructional approaches to teaching math.  There are videos for students of different age ranges and the “Week of Inspirational Math” was what helped me to create a positive math learning environment with a growth mindset in my Junior grade classroom.  It doesn’t have to be the first week either-you can do it at any point.  Jo Boaler has also co-written a series of mathematics instructional resources called “Mindset Mathematics” for each of the junior grades.

Math Talks

Number Talks: Whole Number Computation, Gr K-5: A Multimedia Professional Learning Resource became my go-to resource when I began daily number talks with primary students and it made the transition to teaching math in the junior grades much easier.  The format of math discussion remains essentially the same no matter what grade level.  It is an expensive resource but well worth it.  If you want to give math talks a try there are some more affordable online resources that you can use as well.

Math for Love is a website that provides a number of online math talks for K-5.  EduGains gives a brief synopsis of how to develop your math learning community in your classroom.  Another great online resource for daily math talks is Which One Doesn’t Belong?  This website provides all sorts of pictures for math discussion. Eventually my students began creating pictures for other classes to use for their math talks after using the examples on the website. Math Talk Resources is a comprehensive spot for math talk information and connects you to many different math talk resource websites.

When students have the opportunity to discuss math and hear fellow student’s different perspectives, they begin to see their own entry point into every math problem.  They also begin to see the value of challenging each other’s ideas respectfully and adding to one another’s ideas. “What do you see and what do you wonder?” is a much friendlier way to open up math discussion than, “Who can give me the answer?” I am convinced that because my students engaged in respectful math talks they were able to transfer these skills into other discussion topics in our classroom.  For me, the anxious math teacher, math talks became the highlight of our daily math lessons and sometimes, the highlight of my day.

 

Shawna Rothgeb-Bird self reflection, Teacher Wellness

Returning to Work as a New Parent

Four weeks ago, I returned to work after being on parental leave for ten months. It was my second parental leave, so this time around, I felt much more prepared: I knew I wouldn’t be as rested, energetic, or rational as usual, so I did what I could to make my return easier on me. I took the time over the summer to plan out the first few weeks, wrote my long range plans in July, had my annual learning plan ready to go…

I was ready. Returning to work was still brutally hard.

It didn’t help that I had a challenging assignment, with many students in need of additional support that just does not exist in the French Immersion stream. It didn’t help that my second child doesn’t sleep as well as my first, so I was operating on an average of 3-4 hours of sleep. Mostly, though, coming back to work with a young child at home is just really, really hard.

The second week of school, I found myself reassuring a fellow teacher that feeling overwhelmed was a normal part of adjusting to life as a parent and teacher. She had just come back to work after having her first child, and she’d had a particularly rough night at home, followed by a rough morning in class. Everything she was feeling, I had felt myself – not just this past month, but two and a half years ago, too, when I went back to work after having my first child. I remembered how it felt to have someone else validate how I was feeling, reassure me that I wasn’t alone, and tell me that everything I was going through was normal.

Here is what I would like you to know, new parents who are now navigating life as both parent and teacher:

You are not a bad parent or a bad teacher, but you will feel like both. It took me a year of being back at work before I felt like I was almost back to being “myself” as a parent and a teacher. It was incredibly difficult to know that I wasn’t able to give the same level of attention to parenting or teaching that I was used to, and I hated feeling dissatisfied in the job I was doing on both fronts. I didn’t like rushing out of the house in the morning without being able to play with my baby. I didn’t like rushing out of school at the end of the day with calls left to make, assignments left to mark, and my plan for the next day being little more than a skeleton. I was sure that I was damaging my relationship with my baby and letting my students down.

Neither of those things were true. My baby still loved me just as much as she did before I went back to work. My students were still learning and enjoying school. Some assignments never did end up being returned with grades, and some days I didn’t get to see my baby at all because I would leave before she got up and get home after she was in bed, but it was fine. I was still a good parent. I was still a good teacher. My baby and my students were still thriving – just as yours will.

Your priorities will change. I’ve always been heavily involved in clubs, eager to take professional development courses, willing to stay late at work to ensure that things were organized and prepared for the next day. Now, I’ve scaled back my extracurricular involvement dramatically, I haven’t done much PD outside of a few AQs, and I only stay late at work when I have absolutely no choice. It’s hard to make myself leave at 3:30 every day, because I know I’m leaving behind a pile of work that will never really get any smaller, but I have to or I won’t see my children before bedtime. Having time together to eat, talk, and enjoy each other’s company as a family is really important to me. Work, which used to be my top priority, now comes in second. I’ve watched my colleagues make the same decisions – leaving earlier, passing the torch for clubs and sports teams, making less time for work and more time for their family.

It gets better. It may take a long time, but you will get to a place where you feel like you have things under control. You will start to feel like you can balance your teaching life and your life as a parent. Then something will come along to change that (like having a second child, or your kids starting school, or your home life changing) and you’ll feel out of sync again, but it will come back. It’s hard every time, but it isn’t forever.

Ultimately, your children and your students will be fine. You may do more worksheets than you used to because some days you just don’t have it in you to teach that hands-on, super engaging, but very exhausting lesson you had planned. You may serve a dinner you said you’d NEVER serve because some days you will get home and not be able to fathom anything more complicated. That’s okay. Your students will still learn. Your children will still bond with you. You’ll have to make some hard decisions to do what’s best for you – and even when some days are absolute disasters and you’re an emotional wreck, it’ll still be okay.

Be kind to yourselves, parents. You can’t be everything to everyone, and some days, you’re going to feel like you failed at everything. We’ve all been there. Reach out to your colleagues for help, even if only to talk through what you’re feeling. Lean on them. We’re all in this together, and I promise you that we’ve got your back.

Tammy Axt General

Activities for Community Building in A Special Needs Class

This year, I am new to my school. My students are all new to the school. 2 out of 3 ERFs in the class are also new to the school. It is a whole bunch of new!! With all this newness,  we have spent a lot of September getting to know each other and our school. Figuring out where everything is and exploring our school has helped us develop a sense of pride and community within our new class and school. Here are a few activities that we used to get to know our school and each other:

1. School Scavenger Hunt

In the first week of school, we took the class on a few scavenger hunts. We looked for things that were really practical such as:

                                                                                               the office

office

   or the water fountains

water fountains

But I also included some really cool items in my school such as “The Kindness Rock Project” to help develop a sense of pride about the school.

Rock picture

 

The sheet that we used for our search is here: School Scavenger Hunt

2. During our Morning Meeting,  we took some time to get to know each other

We learned about how I love riding motorcycles as we testing out my jacket.

Krish3

We learned about how Miss. Gale is really into hockey

Mariana3

We learned about a love for swimming

Safrin and Kashvi

and a love of reading

Mariana5

3. We also had all of our families visit us for an ice cream party before school began.

Kabin ice cream

Relationships are the foundation of any successful classroom and will help us on our journey of learning this year.

 

 

 

Tammy Axt General

Changing Jobs

This year I have moved schools and made a fairly substantial switch in career paths from being a full-time music teacher in a K-5 school to a teacher of 9 intermediate students with Developmental Disabilities. It has been quite a big change but one that has brought a complete renewal of energy and excitement to teaching. I have always been a teacher who loves learning. I am constantly taking courses, AQs and conferences to continue to gain skills to help my students. But all the learning in the world didn’t match the energy burst of jumping into something brand new.

The awesome thing about running a program like mine is that all the students have alternative IEPs so you make programming decisions about the child’s needs and are not bound the Ontario Curriculum. The truly intimidating part of my program is that all the students have alternative IEPs so you make programming decisions about the child’s needs and are not bound the Ontario Curriculum. I have spent my entire career supporting children to meet some part of the Ontario Curriculum through accommodations, modifications and emotional support. Now that the Ontario Curriculum is not guiding some of my decisions about goals, it has been a pretty steep learning curve to develop a program that meets my student’s and family’s goals for life skills. However, it has been really awesome to work with families to decide what their child really needs. There have been so many days in my teaching career where I wished I could just focus on the child and their needs and now that is my full-time job.

I also didn’t realize how much I missed having the same students all day and having a close relationship with their families until this month. I loved teaching music but the relationships you build with families are a little bit different as you work with so many students. I love working with my families and supporting them to help their child. I already feel closer with my truly awesome families this year than I have in the past 8 years teaching music!!

Although most days, I am not sure where anything is in the building is or what teams are playing or practicing. I also couldn’t figure out where the pizza was that my students ordered or remember most people’s name on staff. Even with all of these challenges, I spend a lot of my time admiring the cool things I see and hear going on in the building. I see the cool popcorn enterprise that was started by one of the other classes for students with ASD called “McPopping”, I hear the band practicing Christmas songs in September and I see the excitement on kids faces as they head off to all the clubs and sport teams being run by teachers. All of the great work being done by my new colleagues is energizing!

A new year, a sense of renewal and a great new adventure. Can’t wait to see what October brings.

 

Will Gourley Advocacy for change, Advocacy for public education, Equity, General, Start of the year, Weather

Building upon balance

I’m back. You’re back. They’re back. We’re back!!!!!
And it could not have come at a better time. Or could it?

While our transition from summer to school traditionally begins after Labour Day, there are more and more students starting back to class in August than ever before. This is known in edu-circles as a balanced or modified year. It offers quite a few upsides that benefit our learners and with some time for adjustment, for our profession. So I ask…

Imagine if we all started in August with a balanced school year that allowed the learning to be spread out over a longer period of time, but with a few week long breaks built in? What are the pros and cons of such a shift in a historically established calendar? Is it possible to change a 100+ year old practice?

Helping out on the farm

A balanced school year makes sense on a number of levels. Especially, when we consider that the original reason for a September start stemmed from the need for students to be available to work on the family farm. In some areas of the province, farming is still a factor, but it is very evident, that the majority of the nearly 2 million students from K to 12 live close to or in cities. Most are not feeding a herd, driving a combine, or mending fences in July and August.

However, a greater majority of students are left to swelter in concrete jungles trying to stay cool. There are few if any universally accessible programs that do not require a computer bot like skill in order to register on-line for limited spaces. So no swimming lessons, city camps, or classes for all. In fact, the City of Toronto announced that it will try to add 70 000 new program spaces just to accomodate current demand.

Which means, for the foreseeable future, most students will still be given a summer sentence stuck indoors. It is no secret, our cities lack adequate child care, recreation, youth programming, and social spaces. What if all school boards were able to offer a balanced school year and provide working families with an option that would ultimately save them money in conjunction with municipalities? A kind of multi-tiered approach to community and education.

Who will pay?

With government money used for creating and subsidizing child care spaces, an investment in a balanced school year would relieve, not remove, the pressure by allowing younger school aged children to be in the classroom rather than a daycare centre. This in itself could save families 3 to 4 weeks of childcare costs that could then be spread out over time through the year rather than in one expensive 9 week chunk. Granted, that there are extra weeks off throughout the year, but they are distributed over the school calendar.

The biggest obstacle to all of this is from a purely structural point of view and comes from having to retrofit hundreds, if not thousands of elementary schools with adequate climate controls, aka air conditioning. Recent returns to the classroom remind us all that our elementary schools are woefully equipped to deal with irratic temperature fluctuations and extreme heat. 2 fans per classroom do nothing to cut through the sweltering heat on the first or second floors of any ill-equipped building – even with the lights off.

The bigger question that comes to mind is why our province still chooses to provide air conditioning to students in high school, but not from JK to 8? This type of systemic disparity does not seem fair. Are elementary school students and staff expected to feel they are being treated fairly by the government’s funding model? I can see fingers pointing in all directions here, but not a one is doing a thing to acknowledge or remedy the problem. Students suffering from heat exhaustion do not make good learners. Perhaps it’s time for our grade 5 Social Studies classes to mount a letter writing campaign to ask our government to do its job and serve its future taxpayers. We’d better hurry before that curriculum gets changed. http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/curriculum/elementary/social-studies-history-geography-2018.pdf

I feel we are about to see bigger problems in our province if facilities equity cannot be guaranteed in all schools. Think of it like this; the province buys or leases 1000s of vehicles each year. After a few years they are traded in or replaced with newer models and the fleet stays rolling. If Ontario maintained its government auto fleet like its schools, some would have hand crank windows, some might have air-conditioning, some would have low mileage, while others would be up on blocks. Most would need to go to the body shop for repairs and others would have to be towed to the scrapyard. Nobody would want to drive in an unreliable vehicle. So why are our schools being left to deteriorate through underfunding and repair backlogs?

How is it fair to expect standardized results when there are no standard facilities? Is it a class thing? A neighbourhood thing?

As teachers, we take pride in our workspace. We have witnessed all that can be done each year despite the structural shortfalls and disparities from school to school and board to board. We also know that the current funding model for our schools cannot be a band-aid solution. The recent cuts by the new provincial government are leaving school boards with open wounds.

It’s not all bad (well the above part is, but below is all sunshine)

This year’s return to school was ushered in with all of the elation, excitement, and chaos of its predecessors. How could it not be so? At my school over 600 hope-filled students converged on the playground for a surreal moment of truth. Who was going to be their teacher? In which classroom? Main building sauna or luxurious portable? I loved the chaos that was the first day. It was perfect weather for a July day in September. Perhaps in the future you will be reading this message in August. In the meantime, welcome back.

https://www.theweathernetwork.com/ca/monthly/ontario/richmond-hill

In my next post I’ll discuss the aspects of greater knowledge retention that come from a more balanced school year. What do you think of the idea of the school year spread out over a longer period of time? Please share and comment to continue the conversation. Thank you for reading.

Further reading

Interesting blog post explaining how education is funded in Ontario.

Kelly.McLaughlin Constant Learning, First Week Reflections, Learning About Your Students, Mental Health, Mindfulness, Questioning, self reflection, Teacher Wellness, wellness

School year start up

Well we are already four weeks in and hopefully it has been a great start of the school year for everyone. I am now teaching a grade eight class, teaching math, science, history/geography, language, art and drama. I was overwhelmed at first thinking about all of the subjects I would be responsible for but I have such an amazing grade team so I am truly thankful for all of their support and activities that have been shared.

September is an important month to get to know your students for not only their likes and dislikes but just honestly, do they enjoy school? Every student has their ideas of teachers, rules, subjects, reading, the list goes on and on. Just listening to them talk to other students during class teaches you so much about their interests and about how they have been affected by various things in their past school years. By grade eight students either LOVE or HATE being in a school. I am now faced with the task of continuing to develop that love or trying hard to turn around the hate.

I have been looking at new apps, reading exciting activities for my class to try, looking at fun trips, trying to think of new clubs/teams and I am hoping that I will engage some students who have been disinterested in the past. It is definitely a year long task to try to engage and involve all students so I hope to continue on that journey each day.

On a personal note, as teachers we often feel many emotions at the end of each day. There are questions we ask ourselves and things we always wonder. The one I have been asking myself a lot lately is, “Did I get to everyone?” I feel that is the hardest thing to go home with at the end of each day. That is why I am trying this year to make a few notes on who to go to first the next day and then actually following up on those plans. I am fortunate to finish early at the end of my school day so I can finish all my school work around 3:30/4:00 pm. That gives me roughly six hours of “me” time! That time is so important for our mental health and it is something I am also hoping to focus on this year. Shopping. stair climbing, doing the laundry, making a fun dinner, watching an episode of my favourite show…just a few examples of things I can do each night to stay positive and enjoy each day to the fullest.

I am hoping to talk to my students tomorrow about how to use our after school time wisely to better ourselves and to really add to our day. Our day isn’t over after school and we should really do our best to enjoy the time we have to keep ourselves positive and to make the most of our day.

These are just a few things I have thought about as summer ended and our school year begins. These four works have not been the easiest as being permanent now full time in a very different setting has made me think differently but I am staying positive and really reflecting on the good at the end of each day and looking forward to working on new things the next day.

I am looking forward to posting every few weeks about exciting ideas that occur in my class as well as all the ways I am staying positive and making the most of each day!

 

Kim Cousin Assessment, Building Inclusion, Classroom Management, Communication Tools, Communication with Parents and Guardians, Curriculum Planning, Diverse Learning Needs, Inspiring Students, Learning About Your Students, Making a Difference Through Education, Mental Health, Special Education

Building a Community

School begins by building the student community. We invite guardians into the space and include them in building the environment.  Often this is done with a newsletter or email introducing the subjects and the adults whom have contact with each child.  Any special events or classroom supplies are mentioned to assist students with a successful transition into the new year. September is a great time to host a, “Meet the Teacher” event. This is a time when family are invited into the school.  They are able to see where their child is spending 1500 minutes a week. They are able to see what students are doing and where they do it.  Samples of the work students produce are displayed in and around the school. The learning environment set up and seating arrangements are unique to each area. Some educators will include special items to make the space inviting and safe.  These objects, such as specific lighting, and seating will be board approved to meet Health and Safety standards.

Getting to know the students begins the moment your class list is in your hands.  Every educator is responsible for reviewing and updating the IEP’s (Individual Education Plans) of their students.  This can provide valuable information about one’s learning.  A survey or the wonderful, “One Page Profile” is another way students can share more about themselves. This is complimented by a conversation with the individual.  Each board suggests specific assessment in each subject.  As an educator choose the assessment that will be most valuable to your curriculum direction and the individuals you are educating. Ensure it will provide information to direct your year plan and understand your learners.  Continuous contact with guardians is important to help develop the necessary inclusion of those in the student’s community. Some educators will call each home at the beginning of the year to introduce themselves. Some will send home a letter with information about themselves and the class.  Each day includes a variety of interactions.  If you begin slowly with non threatening activities that keep students within their comfort level, they will grow to be more receptive of inclusion and community building. The community circle for these students includes peers, educators, support staff, custodians, administrators, family members and many more. Community involvement helps grow the circle of support.

My year began in a similar way.  As I was gathering information and building the school community I reflected on many of the unique situations our students encounter.

One students’ parent has a brain tumour, another child’s father died in a motorbike accident yesterday. One individual got their first goal in hockey, and another preformed as a main character in the local theater group.  Everyone including your peers bring something different to their day.  It is important that what you see in that individual, may not be what is actually going on. Empathy, patience and a smile every morning can make wonders in a person’s life. The small steps of communication and goal setting will provide the school group with a strength based community who will support each other when they feel others care.

This is a valuable time to build the community in order to provide a safe supportive space for all. Congratulations on setting the stage and tone for the valuable learning that will happen this year.

 

https://www.friendshipcircle.org/blog/2012/11/20/10-items-every-special-educator-should-have-in-their-classroom/

http://www.sheffkids.co.uk/adultssite/pages/onepageprofiles-1.html

http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/general/elemsec/speced/individu.html

https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-teaching-excellence/teaching-resources/teaching-tips/developing-assignments/group-work/group-work-classroom-types-small-groups

 

Deb Weston Health & Safety, Teacher Wellness

The Risks of Vaccination Vacations

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Canadian Health Headlines 2018

 Measles case confirmed at Skookum Festival, multiple Vancouver locations

Why does Europe suddenly have measles?

Mumps makes a comeback in Canada and the U.S.

Whooping cough outbreaks in Canada tied to lower vaccine immunity

Update on invasive meningococcal vaccination for Canadian children and youth

How HPV is causing more than just cervical cancer

Tuberculosis in Canada: Over 1,700 people diagnosed

Vaccinations – In my grandmother’s day, they didn’t exist. Both my mother’s parents and many of their relatives died of complications due to Tuberculosis. My mother’s parents met in a Tuberculosis sanatorium and my mother was born there in the late 1930s. My mother lost more than a year of school due to contracting Mumps, Rubella, and Rheumatic Fever. My mother’s school lost several children due to what are now preventable diseases – and she saw many child-sized coffins during that time.

In Canada, there were no antibiotics until the 1940s (BBC,1999,  A brief history of antibiotics). The 1950s brought significant vaccinations improving public health and eliminating Polio in most of the world. The Smallpox vaccination eliminated the disease worldwide in 1979 (The Immunology Advisory Centre, 2017, A brief history of vaccinations).

As a result of immunization, my children did not contract these preventable diseases nor do they have the telltale vaccination Smallpox scar as I do.

 So what changed?

In the late 1990s, the manipulation of medical data was done for profit (Weston, 2013). A most notable and unconscionable example is the scientific publication of data linking the childhood Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) vaccine to autism and gastrointestinal difficulties in children that was published in the well-respected medical journal, The Lancet (Wakefield et al., 1998). Wakefield and colleagues based their data results on a study of 12 children, which were, in turn, manipulated to discredit the MMR vaccine. Wakefield was purposely trying to discredit the MMR in order to promote his own Measles vaccine. This study was later found to be fraudulent, and the paper was retracted by The Lancet (The Editors of the Lancet, 2010).

The fallout from this publication connecting the MMR vaccine and autism resulted in a significant reduction of immunization of all vaccines among school-aged children (Smith, Ellenberg, Bell, & Rubin, 2008), and a resurgence of previously preventable childhood diseases (Dominus, 2011).

Some children cannot be vaccinated.

Some children have significant health problems which prevents them from getting the full spectrum of vaccinations. Not vaccinating one student is not impactful as populations can rely on herd immunity  which comes from most people (the herd) being vaccinated.

Herd Immunity Works

A public health problem occurs when a large percentage of the population do not get vaccinated or fail to update their immunization. For mumps, herd immunity is about 90% vaccinated. Another challenge with vaccinations is that one shot of the vaccine does not provide full protection. With Measles, one dose provides 93% protection while a second shot give 97% protection from the disease.

Vaccinations do not always work on the very young or very old.

An additional challenge with immunization is that not all people respond to immunization. Very young children and seniors may not develop a very strong immune response thus making them even more susceptible to preventable diseases, even with vaccinations. This is particularly relevant for the yearly Flu vaccine. During school-administered vaccinations, I often remind my own students that vaccinations are not to protect them but to protect the very young and very old people in their families.

How do the lack of student’s vaccinations impact teachers?

In the fall of 2009, my grade 7 student had a birthday party, with most of the class attending. Most of the students came down with H1N1 and so did I. When it struck, I felt like a truck had hit me. I could hardly walk. My students, of course, recovered faster. At the time, the H1N1 Flu vaccine had not yet been released.

By January 2010, I was still weakened from my H1N1 Flu experience. A shopping trip to Buffalo – USA, resulted in me getting a “100 day cough” which turned out to be Whopping Cough. At the time, my doctor and her family were very ill with H1N1, so it took me months to finally see her – and instead I had the see of a series of walk-in clinic doctors. When my doctor did see me, she took one look at me and announced I had Whooping Cough.

Having Whooping Cough was a nightmare – I spent many nights sitting up coughing instead of sleeping. I took every Wednesday off for several weeks as I was so tired from coughing and not sleeping – I could hardly drive myself to school – it lasted 5 months. The next year, I contracted Whooping Cough again, as getting the disease does not make a person immune. My doctor informed me that the immunization only lasted about 4 years and public health relied mostly on herd immunity to control outbreaks. Now I get the DPT vaccination (diphtheria, pertussis-whooping cough, & tetanus) every 4 years.

So what can teachers do to prevent outbreaks of preventable diseases?

  1. Update your own immunization
  2. Immunize your children
  3. Ensure your elderly relatives have their immunization updated
  4. Wash your hands, often.
  5. Stay home when you have a fever, rash, diarrhea, and/or vomiting

As teachers, we care very much about our students and their health. As teachers, we can advocate for the immunization of students. And we can work to protect the health of others.

Collaboratively Yours,

Deb Weston

This blog is for the purposes of information only and is not a venue to engage debate.

References

Dominus, S. (2011, April 20). The crash and burn of an autism guru. New York Times Magazine. The Editors of The Lancet. (2010, February). Retraction–Ileal-lymphoid-nodular hyperplasia, non-specific colitis, and pervasive developmental disorder in children. The Lancet, 375(9713), 445.

Smith, M. J., Ellenberg, S. S., Bell, L. M., & Rubin, D. M. (2008). Media coverage of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine and autism controversy and its relationship to MMR immunization rates in the United States. Pediatrics, 121(4), 836-43.

The Editors of The Lancet. (2010, February). Retraction–Ileal-lymphoid-nodular hyperplasia, non-specific colitis, and pervasive developmental disorder in children. The Lancet, 375(9713), 445.

Wakefield, A. J., Murch, S. H., Anthony, A., Linnell, J., Casson, D. M., Malik, M., … WalkerSmith, J. A. (1998). Ileal-lymphoid-nodular hyperplasia, non-specific colitis, and pervasive developmental disorder in children. The Lancet, 351(9103), 637–41.

Weston, D. (2013). A Positive Constructivist: An Internal Debate on Opposing Educational Philosophies. Teaching and Learning, 8(1).

Deb Weston Teacher Wellness, Women's Health

Let’s talk about P

Let’s talk about P

Image result for teacher bladders

Yes, this blog is about teachers’ urination and the lack of opportunities to do so!

I’ve been teaching over 19 years now and I know I am having a good day when I have eaten my lunch – before 3 pm, and had a pee break. Teachers often joke about this, but based on anecdotal evidence, I believe that teachers are so busy that they often don’t have time to pee.

Teachers are known to have large bladders, probably due to their practice having to hold it. Too bad some of our “break-seeking” students haven’t tried this yet. After several bouts of whooping cough and two months of bronchitis (and two natural childbirths), I found myself paying attention to the special underwear protection commercials. I felt resigned to using these products for the rest of my life.

One day while sitting in my physiotherapy clinic, I noticed signs for women only Pelvic Floor Therapy group information session. The thought of not wearing protective products daily compelled me to signup. The session was very informative.

Did you know that holding back on urination actually helps develop pelvic floor muscles and bladder control? Instead, I was rushing to the washroom in order to avoid an accident.

Other things that strengthen bladders include limiting coffee and tea (I am still drinking my two cups every morning – for my students’ sake). Bladders and the rest of the human body need regular hydration through the drinking of water. I find teachers often have a drink in their hands as teachers need to talk a lot in their job and vocal cords need to stay hydrated to keep working well.

The last thing women need to do strengthen their bladder control and pelvic floor is Kegel exercises (you were probably wondering when I was going to get to this). After having a private session with my physiotherapist, I discovered that when doing Kegal exercises, you are not supposed to use your leg muscles. My therapist showed me how to do proper, pelvic floor strengthening, Kegel exercises. She also showed me how to sneeze and lift things to avoid the dreaded leakage. Further, she gave me excellent tips such as doing Kegals at stoplights and other times when my partner might notice. Within a few months, I was free of the protective products, and still am.

My physiotherapist, a woman, is specially trained and certified in Pelvic Floor Therapy. She also had two natural births in the last few years. This therapy made a huge difference to me in my life.

So when you see a woman at a stoplight, in her car, with a concentrated look on her face, consider what she may be doing for her own health and wellbeing.

Collaboratively Yours,

Deb Weston