What are the enduring understandings that teachers need to grapple with?

This is again hard for me to write about with personal experience as a speech therapist not a teacher. But I guess it is similar in that I am asking myself these questions:
Did my students understand and take away from the speech session any learning?
Was my planning and then lesson functional for my students?
Where do we go from here? What is the functional purpose of this lesson?
As someone who works with very disables students I always ask myself is this a waste of their time, what are we doing this for, what is the benefit for my students? Can I justify what I am doing with sound therapeutic data and can I explain it the rationale to the families of my students?

Characteristics of a successful novice teacher

One of the most important characteristics a novice teacher needs is to understand and adapt to the culture and climate of the school they are teaching in. So many new teachers arrive in their new school and expect to continue teaching, communicating with their peers, parents and students as they had while student teaching. Many teachers that do not make it to their 3rd year in a school have not failed because they do not have the knowledge and skills necessary for teaching but because they were not a good fit within the grade level or the school culture.

Novice teachers need to be open to suggestions by their peers not just their supervisors and they need to have a great deal of perseverance. It would be so much better for novice teachers if all schools interviewed teacher candidates in a group setting composed of the teachers that the new teacher would be working closely with, if hired.

Fat Tuesday or Super Tuesday

Since I work in a school I know it's a Tuesday and that Mardi Gras is happening and also that I need to get out to vote since it is super Tuesday. But the only thing I keep thinking about is the GIANTS!! I still can't believe that Superbowl. I am the Giants fan that wanted Eli benched by week 5. I told my sons and husband that Eli's deer-in-the-headlights look said it all. He would never be the leader they needed. You don't win games unless the team thinks you can carry them down the field. Was I wrong! I am so sorry, Eli! You proved me wrong. But I will say when I saw him almost beat New England during the season I changed my tune. I told my family they were going all the way to the Superbowl to win. Once again everyone thought I was crazy.

So how does this relate back to Curr 530 you may be asking yourselves? Tom Coughlin the Giant's coach has obviously read Understanding by Design! How else can we account for the dramatic change in the way the Giants played in the last 5 games? They set their mission, to win the Superbowl, and worked backwards by design! Imagine that! Coaches have been using this successfully for years. Why did it take the education world so long to adopt it?

Curriculum, who's responsible?

I have always viewed curriculum as the backbone of every school district. Good curriculum can make bad teachers better and good curriculum can make good teachers outstanding. Schools so often believe they should completely control the curriculum. As a parent I have always appreciated when my kid's school district would ask, by questionaire, what did I think of the k-12 math, social studies,art or even gym program(just to name a few). It was my opportuntity to give my opinion, and boy do I enjoy giving my opinion! I enjoyed telling the district that the elementary art curriculum should try introducing students to different art modalities. Year after year of weaving yarn did not make much sense to me not to mention the kids hated it! I was able to question what was the point of memorizing the entire 5th grade social studies book. What is the point of testing memorization skills instead of knowledge?

Curriculum should be a cooperative enterprise from the State, the school district, the teacher and the parent, and when old enough the student. Shouldn't some of it be fun?