Author Archives: theutahteacher

By Deborah Gatrell Civics is the study of the rights and duties of citizenship. Or is it? Encouraged by an outside special interest organization, Utah Legislators required Utah students to demonstrate competency in civics via questions from the civics section of the Federal naturalization test in 2015.  This should have been repealed when Utah’s secondaryContinue reading “Utah Civics Test Repeal”

By Deborah Gatrell Utah’s education system is experiencing what the medical profession describes as “shock.” Basic EMTs know that shock is an emergency where the body has insufficient blood flow. As a consequence, body tissues are starved of the oxygen necessary to sustain life and poisoned as waste products build up. There are three stagesContinue reading “Utah Education Suffers From Chronic Underinvestment”

By Deborah Gatrell This Spring, a student I know reported teammates for blatantly racist behavior. The student wasn’t satisfied with how the issue was handled and elevated it to school administration. When school administrators didn’t discipline the offending students, the issue sparked a social media campaign that pulled no punches. Meanwhile, this student’s car wasContinue reading “Anti-Racism in Education”

By: Deborah Gatrell Buckle up folks – we’re headed into a wild ride. Your voice in the conversation about how we adjust our tax structure is crucial to ensure sustainable funding for education in Utah. Town Hall meetings discussing tax reform start June 25th and end July 30th. The Utah State Tax Restructuring and EqualizationContinue reading “Reforming Utah’s Tax Structure: What Educators Should Know and Can Do”

By: Deborah Gatrell Utah educators should know how legislators are gathering information to revise Utah’s tax structure because it directly impacts education funding sources. For context, I strongly recommend reviewing what was discussed at the 30 May Tax Restructuring and Equalization Task Force kick off meeting. This summary with explanatory notes will help you understandContinue reading “Tax Task Force Kick-off Meeting: The Problem and the Process”

By Bridget Varner Do you have a favorite leader at your school? I have one, it’s the librarian at my school! We lovingly call her Mrs. T because her last name is a tongue twister. Her leadership makes my school a better place. As teachers, we are leaders! First and foremost to our students butContinue reading “Lessons In Educational Leadership”

By Machelle Rogers I must admit that one of my guilty pleasures is really liking food competitions-particularly Chopped, Iron Chef, and any one-on-one competitions, such as- Beat Bobby Flay, on the Food Network. I have watched these shows so much that I can tell you prior to judging, with a high percentage of accuracy, whoContinue reading “Chopped or Not?”

By Machelle Rogers Something came undone in me one night while I was watching the news and the weight of my chosen career came crashing down with a sudden clarity. I was watching a report of the Florida students and their planned re-arrival at their school the next day following a school shooting that tookContinue reading “Together for each other, every time.”

By Machelle Rogers I always thought I understood what intentional teaching was, though I knew I wasn’t very good at being consistent.  I guess that as I continued on in my teaching, trying to be consistent and keep a routine, I was becoming less and less intentional. Having said that, I have attended conferences, readContinue reading “Is Your Teaching Intentional?”

By: Deborah Gatrell If you’ve learned anything about the Legislative process since the late 1970s, you’re probably familiar with I’m Just a Bill from the first season of Schoolhouse Rock. It’s a great little segment and explains the legislative process quite well, for both the State and Federal levels. What’s missing is this key ingredient:Continue reading “Legislation: How Regular Utah Teachers Can Get the Ball Rolling”