As a teacher, I want to teach. Sounds simple enough, right? Wrong. Not only am I supposed to teach, but the NYC Department of Education wants data. Now, let me be clear about my opinion of data. I have no problem with using data to modify curricula or even evaluate teacher performance. I DO have a problem with ONLY using test scores as data. That is one incredibly narrow measure of how a student performs in a classroom and how a teacher teaches in a classroom.
But as a teacher soon learns working for the NYCDOE, they put up the hoops and we jump through over and over and over. Here is the problem though. Administrators want so much data, that the time spent entering that data begins to encroach on the time spent preparing meaningful lessons or giving students individual attention. I don't blame administrators as they are just doing what their told from their bosses. I enter data on Snapgrades (an online grade tracking system). I enter grades into spreadsheets (literally every answer for every student for every test needs to be entered and analyzed manually in a spreadsheet). I enter different lab data on a different spreadsheet (which is also entered on Snapgrades). I enter data using BUBBLE SHEETS (what is is, 1998!?) for attendance every period of every day (which is also entered into Snapgrades). I enter scores at the end of marking periods in a different spreadsheet (the same scores I enter on Snapgrades). Let's review. Data is entered on:
Snapgrades
Bubble sheets
Lab Spreadsheet
Test Tracking Spreadsheet
Marking period spreadsheets
With around 160 students throughout the entire day multiplied by the amount of data that needs to be entered for each one, clearly the amounts of data increase exponentially. Doing a bit of rough math, this works out to be somewhere around 80,000 pieces of data entered per teacher per semester. This data entry is just ONE aspect of teaching and really, it's not even teaching. Other tasks include:
Planning Lessons
Calling Parents
Emailing Parents
Managing Behavior
Getting students into class
Documenting Incidents
Dealing with students' personal issues
Preparing labs
Grading labs
Grading papers
Oh and all of this is supposed to happen in the 7.5 hours during the workday, four of which are used active teaching and lunch would fit in there somewhere.
I would love to see the morons from Wisconsin trying to strip teachers of their collective bargaining rights teach just one class of real students. They would not survive for a picosecond.
I am not a data entry specialist.
I am not a social worker.
I am not a police officer.
I am not a baby sitter.
I am not a lab technician.
I am a teacher. Please let me teach.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Ridiculous Parent
Today I received an email from a colleague informing me that a parent wanted to report me to the principal.
One thing I've learned as a teacher is not to panic. So I called my colleague and she explained the situation.
Apparently, today a student came into my class who I have seen no more than 10 times the entire school year. She ALSO came in with maybe ten minutes of class remaining. She didn't have time to begin the test I was giving, so I said she could come after school today.
Later, I find that I cannot stay after school. So granted, yes, I should have found this student and informed her. Instead, I left, granted somewhat hastily, without leaving a sign or touching base with the student. Apparently, when she showed up after school, she was accompanied by her parent.
As it has been described to me, this parent was livid that I was not there and appalled that I asked her student to stay after school.
Give. Me. A. Fucking. Break.
First off, I have no reason to believe this kid is going to show up after school in the first place. SHE DOESN'T SHOW UP TO SCHOOL IN THE FIRST PLACE. Second, as your student rarely, if ever, comes to class, I am doing her the favor of accommodating her by giving her the courtesy of showing up after school to take a test. Mind you, she showed up with ten minutes left of class and she's shown up so few times, I barely know what she looks like.
Now, as far as this parent reporting me to the principal. Bring it on. I will not have some irrational parent intimidate me, especially when they don't even ensure their own daughter is attending school. This shouldn't bother me, but it does. I look forward to seeing the outcome of this fiasco and putting this parent in her place.
She picked the wrong teacher to fuck with.
One thing I've learned as a teacher is not to panic. So I called my colleague and she explained the situation.
Apparently, today a student came into my class who I have seen no more than 10 times the entire school year. She ALSO came in with maybe ten minutes of class remaining. She didn't have time to begin the test I was giving, so I said she could come after school today.
Later, I find that I cannot stay after school. So granted, yes, I should have found this student and informed her. Instead, I left, granted somewhat hastily, without leaving a sign or touching base with the student. Apparently, when she showed up after school, she was accompanied by her parent.
As it has been described to me, this parent was livid that I was not there and appalled that I asked her student to stay after school.
Give. Me. A. Fucking. Break.
First off, I have no reason to believe this kid is going to show up after school in the first place. SHE DOESN'T SHOW UP TO SCHOOL IN THE FIRST PLACE. Second, as your student rarely, if ever, comes to class, I am doing her the favor of accommodating her by giving her the courtesy of showing up after school to take a test. Mind you, she showed up with ten minutes left of class and she's shown up so few times, I barely know what she looks like.
Now, as far as this parent reporting me to the principal. Bring it on. I will not have some irrational parent intimidate me, especially when they don't even ensure their own daughter is attending school. This shouldn't bother me, but it does. I look forward to seeing the outcome of this fiasco and putting this parent in her place.
She picked the wrong teacher to fuck with.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Jeopardy
Kids love jeopardy and I don't quite understand why.
If I can have them jumping out of their seat and screaming "ECOLOGICAL SUCCESSION!," I'll take it.
If I can have them jumping out of their seat and screaming "ECOLOGICAL SUCCESSION!," I'll take it.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Revival?
I has obviously been quite a span between my last post and the current one. Although I think it may have been beneficial and necessary. In the interim, much as transpired.
Vacation
First and most enjoyable, I was allowed to experience my first summer break as a teacher. Receiving paychecks and not working simultaneously is underrated. I don't want to overstate that teachers have it good, but you definitely won't hear me complaining about summer break. For the skeptic, teachers earn every penny of those paychecks during summer break. Most people wouldn't do this job if given the opportunity.
During those 10 weeks, I:
- went on an educational conference to Atlanta for a program called High Schools That Work (superfun! - the trip, not the conference).
- went camping with coworkers in upstate New York (also superfun).
- went to San Francisco and Los Angeles for pleasure and to visit family. If I wasn't in NY, I would be living in SF.
- completely disengaged myself from my profession for a healthy amount of time (every teacher should).
- did a ton of yoga.
- mentally healed from the trauma of first year teaching (now my students hesitate to call me anything other than sir;-)
1st Year Down
While chatting with my principal one day, I jokingly said that teachers age like dogs do; For every year they experience, they actually experience seven. In hindsight, this seems like more than a joke. With one year under my belt, I feel like I'm on top of my game. I can handle anything. As teaching is, I am certain that I have far more to experience, but it is nice to feel prepared for it.
I spoke to a coworker today. She's someone I always see, but have never formally met. That is one of the strange things about working in such a huge school (about 2000 students). I have spent an enormous number of hours with people in the same building doing the same thing with the same kids and I don't even know their name. Social quirks aside, we chatted about how you feel as a teacher throughout each year of teaching. She described the first year the same way I would - hellish. She said the second year, there's still a relatively steep learning curve and after that you stop changing as a teacher and the kids stay the same. Interesting thought and even a bit bleak, but it's nice to have someone else's perspective on teaching a few year into the profession.
Being Treated Like a Human Being
This year, there is still one thing of which I am unsure: Are my students actually much more well behaved or have I just improved as a teacher. It feels like the former. Either way I am not complaining.
I've begun to act much colder in the classroom. Last year, I would interact with students very personally, one on one. It is not that I'm opposed to such an interaction, but it's not practical when I am responsible for well over 100 students alone. I sometimes say (a bit cynically) that I want my kids to be afraid of me. I think I mean to say that I want them to be afraid of behaving badly in my classroom. It's actually quite the contrary. If approached politely, I am rather receptive and accommodating, but cross me, and well, you'll be sorry ;-)
Vacation
First and most enjoyable, I was allowed to experience my first summer break as a teacher. Receiving paychecks and not working simultaneously is underrated. I don't want to overstate that teachers have it good, but you definitely won't hear me complaining about summer break. For the skeptic, teachers earn every penny of those paychecks during summer break. Most people wouldn't do this job if given the opportunity.
During those 10 weeks, I:
- went on an educational conference to Atlanta for a program called High Schools That Work (superfun! - the trip, not the conference).
- went camping with coworkers in upstate New York (also superfun).
- went to San Francisco and Los Angeles for pleasure and to visit family. If I wasn't in NY, I would be living in SF.
- completely disengaged myself from my profession for a healthy amount of time (every teacher should).
- did a ton of yoga.
- mentally healed from the trauma of first year teaching (now my students hesitate to call me anything other than sir;-)
1st Year Down
While chatting with my principal one day, I jokingly said that teachers age like dogs do; For every year they experience, they actually experience seven. In hindsight, this seems like more than a joke. With one year under my belt, I feel like I'm on top of my game. I can handle anything. As teaching is, I am certain that I have far more to experience, but it is nice to feel prepared for it.
I spoke to a coworker today. She's someone I always see, but have never formally met. That is one of the strange things about working in such a huge school (about 2000 students). I have spent an enormous number of hours with people in the same building doing the same thing with the same kids and I don't even know their name. Social quirks aside, we chatted about how you feel as a teacher throughout each year of teaching. She described the first year the same way I would - hellish. She said the second year, there's still a relatively steep learning curve and after that you stop changing as a teacher and the kids stay the same. Interesting thought and even a bit bleak, but it's nice to have someone else's perspective on teaching a few year into the profession.
Being Treated Like a Human Being
This year, there is still one thing of which I am unsure: Are my students actually much more well behaved or have I just improved as a teacher. It feels like the former. Either way I am not complaining.
I've begun to act much colder in the classroom. Last year, I would interact with students very personally, one on one. It is not that I'm opposed to such an interaction, but it's not practical when I am responsible for well over 100 students alone. I sometimes say (a bit cynically) that I want my kids to be afraid of me. I think I mean to say that I want them to be afraid of behaving badly in my classroom. It's actually quite the contrary. If approached politely, I am rather receptive and accommodating, but cross me, and well, you'll be sorry ;-)
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Parental Accountability
In this weekly workshop series, this weeks main topics is blogging. As I already blog (however infrequently), this does feel a big pedantic, but I willingly oblige. The assignment here is to come up with an idea that is maybe controversial or stimulating and write about it. Last night in my graduate class, I think I came across a great starting point.
I often read another teacher's blog, Mr. Lee (his blog is linked on the right side of the page) and his most recent entry and poll I have found quite interesting. In fact, it has been circulating through my mind periodically. This is the concept of accountability. Who is accountable or responsible for the performance of our students?
In my second graduate class of the evening, we were discussing precisely this topic. It seemed that everyone was trying to give responsibility (or place blame, depending on how you spin it) to some figure or person in a students life. Mostly those figures included administrators, parents, teachers, politicians or students themselves. During discussion, one gentleman shucked everyone of responsibility, except for the teachers. I found this to be entirely irresponsible and quite frankly, irritating. He specifically said that students' parents are not responsible for their students academic well being because they lack to skills to be responsible.
That was the most irritating part. While parents may lack the skills to help their children with homework or even simpler tasks like acquiring notebooks or pencils, this does not relieve them of responsibilities. Lack of skill is not an acceptable excuse. I openly acknowledged that this may be a hard-nosed approach, but I think it's a hard line that needs to be drawn.
Kids learn by example. The first and foremost example from whom they may learn are their parents or guardians. So while parents may not have the skills to help their children, they should be required to figure out ways to be responsible. Some might say that jobs or familial obligations prohibit parents from participating in their child's education. Again, no excuse. This just means that a parent's priorities are not in an appropriate order.
Teachers, schools, educators, administrators, politicians and students constantly have accountability shoved down their throats, while parents are allowed to sit back and let the systems raise their child. It is disgusting and socially irresponsible. Parents should be held to the same (if not more) accountability as other figures in a students life. They had a child and they should take the appropriate responsibility to ensure that child receives a quality education.
I often read another teacher's blog, Mr. Lee (his blog is linked on the right side of the page) and his most recent entry and poll I have found quite interesting. In fact, it has been circulating through my mind periodically. This is the concept of accountability. Who is accountable or responsible for the performance of our students?
In my second graduate class of the evening, we were discussing precisely this topic. It seemed that everyone was trying to give responsibility (or place blame, depending on how you spin it) to some figure or person in a students life. Mostly those figures included administrators, parents, teachers, politicians or students themselves. During discussion, one gentleman shucked everyone of responsibility, except for the teachers. I found this to be entirely irresponsible and quite frankly, irritating. He specifically said that students' parents are not responsible for their students academic well being because they lack to skills to be responsible.
That was the most irritating part. While parents may lack the skills to help their children with homework or even simpler tasks like acquiring notebooks or pencils, this does not relieve them of responsibilities. Lack of skill is not an acceptable excuse. I openly acknowledged that this may be a hard-nosed approach, but I think it's a hard line that needs to be drawn.
Kids learn by example. The first and foremost example from whom they may learn are their parents or guardians. So while parents may not have the skills to help their children, they should be required to figure out ways to be responsible. Some might say that jobs or familial obligations prohibit parents from participating in their child's education. Again, no excuse. This just means that a parent's priorities are not in an appropriate order.
Teachers, schools, educators, administrators, politicians and students constantly have accountability shoved down their throats, while parents are allowed to sit back and let the systems raise their child. It is disgusting and socially irresponsible. Parents should be held to the same (if not more) accountability as other figures in a students life. They had a child and they should take the appropriate responsibility to ensure that child receives a quality education.
How Do I Want to Integrate Technology into the Class This Semester?
I want to communicate with my students the way they communicate with each other. Whether it is texting, emailing, calling or whatever it may be, any method aside from the usual chalk and talk is left to be desired.
The arrival of the second semester has begun with a sense of refreshment. New norms for behavior and performance can be established. Students have a clean slate in regard to their grades. For both of us, it is a chance to make changes so that the upcoming semester may be more successful than the last.
I would eventually like to get computers into my lesson plans so that students may use their technology-oriented skills to demonstrate their learning in my class. While I know behavioral issues may be the largest challenge while implementing this, I think it may work out better for all of us at the end of the semester.
The arrival of the second semester has begun with a sense of refreshment. New norms for behavior and performance can be established. Students have a clean slate in regard to their grades. For both of us, it is a chance to make changes so that the upcoming semester may be more successful than the last.
I would eventually like to get computers into my lesson plans so that students may use their technology-oriented skills to demonstrate their learning in my class. While I know behavioral issues may be the largest challenge while implementing this, I think it may work out better for all of us at the end of the semester.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Reflection Questions 1/22/09
While I find myself to be rather adept in regard to technology, there is certainly quite a list of unexplored ones I have yet to utilize. Keynote is a program I currently use to visually engaged my student, but it is a one way communication that occurs. I simply dictate, students record notes and watch short video clips and animations. While these have their own value, I am glad to have come across this website - www.voicethread.com - which allows users to create interactive slideshows. Students can comment on and respond to comments using voice, text, drawing and and even video. As many of my students are not confident enough or capable to richly express their thoughts through text, it seems this avenue of expression might lend them a new mode of showing me what they mean.
It is ironic that my second prompt question for this response deals with blogs because as I type this response it is being included in my personal blog. The function of a blog is only limited to the imagination of its creator. I've considered creating and utilizing a blog for my students to keep them informed about assignments or their progress in my class. The trouble I have most is keeping the paperwork I collect from them integrated with a technological update so they can see how they are doing. Throughout the year, I have experimented with a few different methods of posting grades and communicating with parents and students alike. In the beginning of the year, I even asked them to email me just to see if they had the capability and used that means of communication with ease. While implementing a blog or some other form of communal technological communication can be daunting, I think, if well-executed, it can be extraordinarily beneficial for students, parents and teachers.
It is ironic that my second prompt question for this response deals with blogs because as I type this response it is being included in my personal blog. The function of a blog is only limited to the imagination of its creator. I've considered creating and utilizing a blog for my students to keep them informed about assignments or their progress in my class. The trouble I have most is keeping the paperwork I collect from them integrated with a technological update so they can see how they are doing. Throughout the year, I have experimented with a few different methods of posting grades and communicating with parents and students alike. In the beginning of the year, I even asked them to email me just to see if they had the capability and used that means of communication with ease. While implementing a blog or some other form of communal technological communication can be daunting, I think, if well-executed, it can be extraordinarily beneficial for students, parents and teachers.
Professional Development Workshop Series Integration
At work I am participating in a professional development workshop series that deals with the integration of technology in the classroom. As a part of this workshop, participants are required to keep journal entries. In order to maintain this blog and keep journal entries for the class, I am going to attempt to combine the two. So, from here on out, I intend to have the postings in this blog be responses to prompts for this workshop series. Hopefully I can save this sinking ship of a blog.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Fights, Paper & Budget Cuts
NEW POST
It's hard to believe I've been so busy and/or tired for the past two months that I have so severely neglected my blog. Although, I think the drastically diminished frequency at which I posted since the beginning of the school year indicates what this job really requires.
Much has happened since my last post. I decided to update now because I am sitting in the lab at school right now, on a Saturday, facilitating lab make-up. So far, there are only two students here and they're being quiet and cooperative. Compared to last time, I had around 50 students who were relatively disruptive. I've found that the best solution for Saturday lab make-up is to run it like a drill sergeant - I think I have that perfected.
STUDENTS THROWING STUDENTS
I had a disturbing incident this week on Thursday in my ninth period. After my students took a quiz, they were given time to work on posters illustrating and explaining cell analogies. However, as this began, a male and female student engaged in a heated verbal exchange. The female student got out of her seat, walked over to the male student and continued to yell in his face. He hit her in the face. They proceeded to hit and push each other back and forth. At this point, I'm on the phone calling for school safety. As I have become a little too well-versed in calling for school safety, I used the 10 code for a fight when I called. The front desk answered when I called and I say "I've got a 52 in 711." A 52 is a dispute; we have plenty of them at Graphics.
When I got off the phone and turned around, I saw the male take the female by the shoulders and throw her against the wall and into the chalkboard. This guy was at least a few years older than her and probably about a foot taller.
When she was thrown into the wall, another student in the room began to verbally defend her at which point the first male went over to him and started hitting his head like a punching bag. The two students who were being beat up quickly left the room just before safety agents arrived.
The student that initiated the physical violence has shown up to my class no more than 5 times the entire semester, so for him to come into the class and alter the dynamic was clearly not a good mix. As far as I am concerned, that student should be arrested and and charged with two counts of assault. I do not understand why this wouldn't happen. If this occurred on the street, this would surely be the case. I doubt he will be returning for the remainder of the semester.
On a lighter note, this is the first physical fight I've had since the last brawl involving a girl having a seizure. Of course there are a few bumps in the road in between, but for the most part, it's been pretty smooth sailing. I have become accustomed to dealing with nonsense.
C GRADE & RATIONING
Our school also received its grade by the city of a C for this past year. While that may sound bad, it is not necessarily horrible. Graphics has made loads of progress in the last five years. However, schools that received C's, D's or F's for three years in a row are dismantled and closed. This is our second year with a C.
Now that our principal is up in arms over this potential closure, we are receiving slightly different instruction from our administrators. At a faculty meeting, our principal gave us some very directed and somewhat ambiguous instructions. "We need to find was to pass our students." This has become a point of contention with teachers. Often teachers will say that our principal simply wants us to pass our students regardless of what they do. And to some degree, I agree with this perception of what is being said. If a student has now shown up for weeks on end, then decides to come back, the suggestion is to prepare a packet of work for him or her to complete so that we can have something on which to base his or her passing grade.
Personally, I think this sends a very poor message to students. Don't do anything, then wait until the last minute so you can pass by not doing much. However, I do not place any blame on my principal, but I do place blame on the systems and policies of the whole education system. My principal is simply doing what he needs to do to keep his school open. It's a sad state of affairs for NYC's education system, but it is a harsh reality.
The most aggravating part is that I see advertisements on the subway commending the NYC Public School System. It's an inflated presentation of progress to the public. Real problems aren't really being solved.
To further complicate matters, we have had over $900,000 in budget cuts. This has manifested itself as a paper shortage. For the remainder of the calendar year, we only have two boxes of paper for the entire science and foreign language department. I guess I shouldn't feel too distraught because other teachers from other schools have it much worse than I. It is difficult to go from a seemingly limitless supply to rations.
All I know at this point is that I have seven more teaching days until my winter break and I cannot wait until then.
It's hard to believe I've been so busy and/or tired for the past two months that I have so severely neglected my blog. Although, I think the drastically diminished frequency at which I posted since the beginning of the school year indicates what this job really requires.
Much has happened since my last post. I decided to update now because I am sitting in the lab at school right now, on a Saturday, facilitating lab make-up. So far, there are only two students here and they're being quiet and cooperative. Compared to last time, I had around 50 students who were relatively disruptive. I've found that the best solution for Saturday lab make-up is to run it like a drill sergeant - I think I have that perfected.
STUDENTS THROWING STUDENTS
I had a disturbing incident this week on Thursday in my ninth period. After my students took a quiz, they were given time to work on posters illustrating and explaining cell analogies. However, as this began, a male and female student engaged in a heated verbal exchange. The female student got out of her seat, walked over to the male student and continued to yell in his face. He hit her in the face. They proceeded to hit and push each other back and forth. At this point, I'm on the phone calling for school safety. As I have become a little too well-versed in calling for school safety, I used the 10 code for a fight when I called. The front desk answered when I called and I say "I've got a 52 in 711." A 52 is a dispute; we have plenty of them at Graphics.
When I got off the phone and turned around, I saw the male take the female by the shoulders and throw her against the wall and into the chalkboard. This guy was at least a few years older than her and probably about a foot taller.
When she was thrown into the wall, another student in the room began to verbally defend her at which point the first male went over to him and started hitting his head like a punching bag. The two students who were being beat up quickly left the room just before safety agents arrived.
The student that initiated the physical violence has shown up to my class no more than 5 times the entire semester, so for him to come into the class and alter the dynamic was clearly not a good mix. As far as I am concerned, that student should be arrested and and charged with two counts of assault. I do not understand why this wouldn't happen. If this occurred on the street, this would surely be the case. I doubt he will be returning for the remainder of the semester.
On a lighter note, this is the first physical fight I've had since the last brawl involving a girl having a seizure. Of course there are a few bumps in the road in between, but for the most part, it's been pretty smooth sailing. I have become accustomed to dealing with nonsense.
C GRADE & RATIONING
Our school also received its grade by the city of a C for this past year. While that may sound bad, it is not necessarily horrible. Graphics has made loads of progress in the last five years. However, schools that received C's, D's or F's for three years in a row are dismantled and closed. This is our second year with a C.
Now that our principal is up in arms over this potential closure, we are receiving slightly different instruction from our administrators. At a faculty meeting, our principal gave us some very directed and somewhat ambiguous instructions. "We need to find was to pass our students." This has become a point of contention with teachers. Often teachers will say that our principal simply wants us to pass our students regardless of what they do. And to some degree, I agree with this perception of what is being said. If a student has now shown up for weeks on end, then decides to come back, the suggestion is to prepare a packet of work for him or her to complete so that we can have something on which to base his or her passing grade.
Personally, I think this sends a very poor message to students. Don't do anything, then wait until the last minute so you can pass by not doing much. However, I do not place any blame on my principal, but I do place blame on the systems and policies of the whole education system. My principal is simply doing what he needs to do to keep his school open. It's a sad state of affairs for NYC's education system, but it is a harsh reality.
The most aggravating part is that I see advertisements on the subway commending the NYC Public School System. It's an inflated presentation of progress to the public. Real problems aren't really being solved.
To further complicate matters, we have had over $900,000 in budget cuts. This has manifested itself as a paper shortage. For the remainder of the calendar year, we only have two boxes of paper for the entire science and foreign language department. I guess I shouldn't feel too distraught because other teachers from other schools have it much worse than I. It is difficult to go from a seemingly limitless supply to rations.
All I know at this point is that I have seven more teaching days until my winter break and I cannot wait until then.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
1st Marking Period, Less Frequent Posts
I find it is more challenging to keep posting so frequently on this blog. There is so much going on with work and once that's finished, the last thing I want to do it spend more time in front of my computer.
The first marking period just ended yesterday. Many of my students failed. Mostly they failed because they didn't complete the appropriate number of labs. Others failed because they rarely, if ever show up for class. I know the first marking period, there isn't too much oversight. As the year progresses, I am sure I will have more administration looking over my shoulder and breathing down my neck. They can watch all they want. I teach by the book and always cover my ass.
This morning, I received a memo telling me that one of my students was non-fatally shot. The memo said his grandmother called and shared that information. Apparently, while playing tag outside, he was "in the wrong place at the wrong time." To be frank, I don't buy it. Based on how this student has previously behaved, that explanation just doesn't sit right with me. I am sure there is more to it. I have an icky feeling it may be gang-related.
So far, it seems almost every week I've had has been at the most, only four days. Between Jewish holidays and Columbus day among other various days off, the actual time spent at school has been less than full-time. I am not complaining. While I do enjoy teaching a fun lesson to a well-behaved class, there are other times when I really have to earn my paycheck (see previous posts).
One thing I am very satisfied with is the people with whom I work. Many of the science teachers are new or newer. They are a great crowd and I couldn't wish for a better crowd to go to happy hour with at the end of a long week.
The first marking period just ended yesterday. Many of my students failed. Mostly they failed because they didn't complete the appropriate number of labs. Others failed because they rarely, if ever show up for class. I know the first marking period, there isn't too much oversight. As the year progresses, I am sure I will have more administration looking over my shoulder and breathing down my neck. They can watch all they want. I teach by the book and always cover my ass.
This morning, I received a memo telling me that one of my students was non-fatally shot. The memo said his grandmother called and shared that information. Apparently, while playing tag outside, he was "in the wrong place at the wrong time." To be frank, I don't buy it. Based on how this student has previously behaved, that explanation just doesn't sit right with me. I am sure there is more to it. I have an icky feeling it may be gang-related.
So far, it seems almost every week I've had has been at the most, only four days. Between Jewish holidays and Columbus day among other various days off, the actual time spent at school has been less than full-time. I am not complaining. While I do enjoy teaching a fun lesson to a well-behaved class, there are other times when I really have to earn my paycheck (see previous posts).
One thing I am very satisfied with is the people with whom I work. Many of the science teachers are new or newer. They are a great crowd and I couldn't wish for a better crowd to go to happy hour with at the end of a long week.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
1st Month Down
It's hard to believe I've been teaching for one month. In retrospect it feels like less than a few days. In practice, it feels epic.
I still don't think I have a good grasp of the reality of me being a teacher yet. It's very surreal. It's like I don't believe I'm a real teacher.
There are a lot of jobs where you can sit behind your desk or stand behind a counter and not really do much all day. Interaction with people can be pretty limited in jobs like that. While there are a TON of crazy things that can happen being a teacher (and remember this is only from one month of experience), it's still a very invigorating (?) job. I go into class prepared as can be, but I also go in prepared to manage the craziest events I can imagine. I guess in that way, it's sort of a rush.
I gave my first unit test yesterday. Most of my students failed. Many didn't even show. I completely expected both. Those who did pass are the ones that show up everyday and ready to work. Good for them. Those who did not pass were the ones who mess around during class, interrupt the lesson or only show up sporadically and late. Good for them too. Hopefully they will see that failure is a result of their behavior. Although, I am aware that I have to connect the cause-effect relationship of hard work and success for them as they are unable to do it independently.
I fully expect my students to improve their grades. From what I hear, the first two tests are pretty awful. It was quite disheartening to see the Scantron sheets shoot through the reader with such low percentages printed in dot matrix red ink. I was actually amazed to see one student actually get 100%. I still need to check it to be sure. I guess since most of the questions were multiple choice, anything above a 25% is better than guessing. Anything below that and it must have been just bad chance or they were trying to fail.
One step at a time I guess. For now I'll enjoy my time off next week.
I still don't think I have a good grasp of the reality of me being a teacher yet. It's very surreal. It's like I don't believe I'm a real teacher.
There are a lot of jobs where you can sit behind your desk or stand behind a counter and not really do much all day. Interaction with people can be pretty limited in jobs like that. While there are a TON of crazy things that can happen being a teacher (and remember this is only from one month of experience), it's still a very invigorating (?) job. I go into class prepared as can be, but I also go in prepared to manage the craziest events I can imagine. I guess in that way, it's sort of a rush.
I gave my first unit test yesterday. Most of my students failed. Many didn't even show. I completely expected both. Those who did pass are the ones that show up everyday and ready to work. Good for them. Those who did not pass were the ones who mess around during class, interrupt the lesson or only show up sporadically and late. Good for them too. Hopefully they will see that failure is a result of their behavior. Although, I am aware that I have to connect the cause-effect relationship of hard work and success for them as they are unable to do it independently.
I fully expect my students to improve their grades. From what I hear, the first two tests are pretty awful. It was quite disheartening to see the Scantron sheets shoot through the reader with such low percentages printed in dot matrix red ink. I was actually amazed to see one student actually get 100%. I still need to check it to be sure. I guess since most of the questions were multiple choice, anything above a 25% is better than guessing. Anything below that and it must have been just bad chance or they were trying to fail.
One step at a time I guess. For now I'll enjoy my time off next week.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Fight #2 + Seizure
Yesterday I was having a great day. Many of my students were enjoying the literacy lesson plan about genetic engineering that I had devised for them. I had them list foods they had eaten for the Do Now, then we went through them one by one identifying each food as living at some point, be it wheat in bread, beef in hamburgers, tomatoes in tomato sauce, etc. This was a great segue into a discussion about genetically modified foods. I passed out an article about genetically modified beef. A guided reading addressed different words in the article they did not understand and led into a great Q&A session about genetics, GMOs and their safety. Everything was going smoothly as ever.
Then, as my 9th period rolls around, only 3 students were actually on time. Many of the others were coming from their gym class, which I believe is on another floor in the building, so they have to hike up quite a few flights to get there on time. A few moments later, I had a few more students and most had begun the Do Now activity. One of my most disruptive students popped her head in the door and spoke loudly to some other student. I approached her and instructed her to come in, take her seat and begin the Do Now. She immediately left the door and went back into the hallway.
Moments later I hear someone yelling to get security. After yesterday, my phone had been destroyed. I do not know how as it did not occur in my presence, but it looked like someone took it off the hook and banged it against the wall. The handset was in two pieces. I tried earlier that morning to get someone to fix it to no avail (figures).
I yelled across the hall to another teacher to call 711, our version of 911 in the school. Seconds later, I was yelling at my students to get back into the classroom. They were yelling at me to "help her." My most disruptive student who had earlier popped her head in the door and left was now laying on the floor in the hallway convulsing - yes, having a seizure. I am guessing it was induced by another student who was being physically violent with her, who was supposed to be in my class also. I made sure that they were both marked absent on my attendance sheet. (CYA).
I had my AP, another AP from a different academy in my building, the whole security staff, two other academy coordinators and various teachers all involved. This was surreal and incredibly stressful. I fully expect my principal to have me in his office on Monday.
After the convulsing students was taken to the hospital and the other girl was detained my school safety, I was trying to manage all the highly disturbed students in my classroom. They were all very upset and became combative when I was asking for their cooperation. Two of them began to argue, which I successful tried to de-escalate. Before I knew it, I had School Safety Agents in my room again and they were removed. I did not prompt the removal, it was the safety agents that came in upon their own accord.
The AP from the academy came in and had a talk with the students. It filled pretty much the whole period. I stood their and watched. In last 15 minutes, I salvaged whatever I had left of a lesson. The AP left before the end. I kept my students on task for the next 10 minutes, but in the last five minutes of their last period on a Friday, they began to become more talkative about what happened. To pull them back in at least for the last few minutes, I had them turn over their agendas and on an exit slip write two things about what happened during the earlier incident. I got some interesting responses. "'student a' was slam 'student b's head into the floor."
I just can't believe all day, everything goes SO well, then in the last 47 minutes, it could not have been any crazier. Good thing there are metal detectors or I'm sure someone would be killed by now. What a fucking fiasco.
Then, as my 9th period rolls around, only 3 students were actually on time. Many of the others were coming from their gym class, which I believe is on another floor in the building, so they have to hike up quite a few flights to get there on time. A few moments later, I had a few more students and most had begun the Do Now activity. One of my most disruptive students popped her head in the door and spoke loudly to some other student. I approached her and instructed her to come in, take her seat and begin the Do Now. She immediately left the door and went back into the hallway.
Moments later I hear someone yelling to get security. After yesterday, my phone had been destroyed. I do not know how as it did not occur in my presence, but it looked like someone took it off the hook and banged it against the wall. The handset was in two pieces. I tried earlier that morning to get someone to fix it to no avail (figures).
I yelled across the hall to another teacher to call 711, our version of 911 in the school. Seconds later, I was yelling at my students to get back into the classroom. They were yelling at me to "help her." My most disruptive student who had earlier popped her head in the door and left was now laying on the floor in the hallway convulsing - yes, having a seizure. I am guessing it was induced by another student who was being physically violent with her, who was supposed to be in my class also. I made sure that they were both marked absent on my attendance sheet. (CYA).
I had my AP, another AP from a different academy in my building, the whole security staff, two other academy coordinators and various teachers all involved. This was surreal and incredibly stressful. I fully expect my principal to have me in his office on Monday.
After the convulsing students was taken to the hospital and the other girl was detained my school safety, I was trying to manage all the highly disturbed students in my classroom. They were all very upset and became combative when I was asking for their cooperation. Two of them began to argue, which I successful tried to de-escalate. Before I knew it, I had School Safety Agents in my room again and they were removed. I did not prompt the removal, it was the safety agents that came in upon their own accord.
The AP from the academy came in and had a talk with the students. It filled pretty much the whole period. I stood their and watched. In last 15 minutes, I salvaged whatever I had left of a lesson. The AP left before the end. I kept my students on task for the next 10 minutes, but in the last five minutes of their last period on a Friday, they began to become more talkative about what happened. To pull them back in at least for the last few minutes, I had them turn over their agendas and on an exit slip write two things about what happened during the earlier incident. I got some interesting responses. "'student a' was slam 'student b's head into the floor."
I just can't believe all day, everything goes SO well, then in the last 47 minutes, it could not have been any crazier. Good thing there are metal detectors or I'm sure someone would be killed by now. What a fucking fiasco.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Fight #1
I don't begin teaching until 4th period (there are nine in a day). Today, I had my lesson plan on bar graphs and line graphs prepared with some guided modeling of the activity and independent practice. The activity was going very well in my first class of the day. Everyone was paying attention, taking good notes, and getting their work done accurately and efficiently.
Just before the last ten minutes of class, a student asked me to use the restroom. He returned about 5 minutes later. When he walked in, he said something to another student in the class like, "she's mine (fine?)" or something to that effect. The student to whom he was speaking stood up calmly then took about a step and a half forward. At this point, he took one of the desks and flipped it a few feet in the air and it fell to the ground, at which point he charged the student that returned from the bathroom.
They commenced beating the living shit out each other. A few desks were pushed around as the two wrestled and punched each other on the floor. The two fighting are the only two sophomores in the class and the rest are freshmen. The other students mostly stood back and watched in awe with maybe one or two egging them on.
The desk flip was my cue to pick up the phone and call School Safety (ext 711, kinda like 911 teacher-style). After I did that, I partially stepped into the hall and yelled for school safety several times. Within 30 seconds I had the school safety agent assigned to the floor in my room trying to separate them. The middle-aged African American female school safety officer was unable to dislodge the two boys. She radioed for assistance. Another 30 seconds, I had two more, then eight, then 12 school safety agents (I think most in the building) in my room. I instructed all the other students to stand back. At some point, two deans were also in the room with I think maybe another teacher or two.
One students was removed and taken in the elevator with about 4 safety agents, the rest of which remained in my room. The second student was removed by school safety moments later. A dean, with whom I've worked before, politely informed me he would need me to write out the situation. I told him I'd be free 7th period and walked back into my classroom.
I firmly instructed the rest of the class to take their seats and to give me their worksheets (with 2 minutes of class to spare). The bell rang and I instructed them not to leave yet. I told them to hand in their worksheets if they had not done so already, to complete their exit slips and put the desks back in their original position. I replaced the desk that had been launched.
I gathered my things and headed to my next period.
Expecting fights and being the person of authority in one are two VERY different things. Luckily I've dealt with high-intensity situations before, so my gut immediate response it usually appropriate. My adrenaline was definitely through the roof though.
As strange and as twisted it may sound, managing a situation like that is MUCH easier than managing a class that is moderately disruptive to whole period. The problem is so big, it progresses out of my jurisdiction at which point I just pick up the phone and it dissipates in a few minutes. It's a default response where I am no longer responsible. Managing less intense classroom management problems is a far more daunting challenge. That one is persistent and falls mostly on me.
I've never seen a fist fight before. I guess this is a first. At least, now I know I can handle it.
Just before the last ten minutes of class, a student asked me to use the restroom. He returned about 5 minutes later. When he walked in, he said something to another student in the class like, "she's mine (fine?)" or something to that effect. The student to whom he was speaking stood up calmly then took about a step and a half forward. At this point, he took one of the desks and flipped it a few feet in the air and it fell to the ground, at which point he charged the student that returned from the bathroom.
They commenced beating the living shit out each other. A few desks were pushed around as the two wrestled and punched each other on the floor. The two fighting are the only two sophomores in the class and the rest are freshmen. The other students mostly stood back and watched in awe with maybe one or two egging them on.
The desk flip was my cue to pick up the phone and call School Safety (ext 711, kinda like 911 teacher-style). After I did that, I partially stepped into the hall and yelled for school safety several times. Within 30 seconds I had the school safety agent assigned to the floor in my room trying to separate them. The middle-aged African American female school safety officer was unable to dislodge the two boys. She radioed for assistance. Another 30 seconds, I had two more, then eight, then 12 school safety agents (I think most in the building) in my room. I instructed all the other students to stand back. At some point, two deans were also in the room with I think maybe another teacher or two.
One students was removed and taken in the elevator with about 4 safety agents, the rest of which remained in my room. The second student was removed by school safety moments later. A dean, with whom I've worked before, politely informed me he would need me to write out the situation. I told him I'd be free 7th period and walked back into my classroom.
I firmly instructed the rest of the class to take their seats and to give me their worksheets (with 2 minutes of class to spare). The bell rang and I instructed them not to leave yet. I told them to hand in their worksheets if they had not done so already, to complete their exit slips and put the desks back in their original position. I replaced the desk that had been launched.
I gathered my things and headed to my next period.
Expecting fights and being the person of authority in one are two VERY different things. Luckily I've dealt with high-intensity situations before, so my gut immediate response it usually appropriate. My adrenaline was definitely through the roof though.
As strange and as twisted it may sound, managing a situation like that is MUCH easier than managing a class that is moderately disruptive to whole period. The problem is so big, it progresses out of my jurisdiction at which point I just pick up the phone and it dissipates in a few minutes. It's a default response where I am no longer responsible. Managing less intense classroom management problems is a far more daunting challenge. That one is persistent and falls mostly on me.
I've never seen a fist fight before. I guess this is a first. At least, now I know I can handle it.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Adjusting to Chaos
With the second week of teaching coming to a close, I find that I am beginning to adjust. I know what to expect when I go into my class everyday now. This is not to say I can anticipate everything of course, but I know what I'm in for.
One thing I'd like to put out there has to do with class size. You probably read that and think, "yea, you and every other teacher." I realize that teaching costs money and small classes cost money. We quantify these costs every time checks are cut to the city or to my checking out. It's a lot (well, the expense of education is alot- not my salary). To cut class sizes in half would cost somewhere around double, if not more for an initial transition period. Obviously that's a ton of money.
Let's look at this amount of money as a relative value now. Relative to the cost of our prison system, relative to the cost of law enforcement, relative to the cost of having a welfare system, relative to the cost of upkeep on our infrastructures, relative to the cost of dwindling innovation, relative to the cost of an economy that struggles to stay above water. Relative to those costs, the cost of halving the number of students in a classroom is pennies.
I realize students come from situations where their parents may do crack at home. Maybe they don't have dinner or breakfast. Maybe they have to work to support their parents. Maybe they have to watch out for their lives on a daily if not hourly basis. These things all have an influence. BUT, I am beginning to believe that a small class size would override these impediments to some degree. Managing a room full of 34 people, many of which come from less than great situations like those above, is a task that is not meant for the weak. In fact, it is hardly manageable if at all.
If one of the people who decides education policy in our governments were to be in a classroom and be expected to manage that many people of that sort, I'd bet my salary they would throw their hands in the air and give up. It is truly an overwhelming experience. On top of that, teachers are expected to have these 34 people from unfortunate backgrounds have substantial learning and achieve well. It is an unreasonable expectation.
I truly and completely believe many of our country's public school are in a full blown crisis. Teachers are given too many students to manage and therefore each student gets less quality attention. I hate admitting it, but I have no choice but to be this way with my own students. There are simply too many. If I were to give the attention I'd like to give to each and every student, I wouldn't sleep, eat, go home, nothing. I would have no time at all. Between calling parents, organizing and grading papers, recording grades, creating lesson plans and every other teaching-related task, it's simply not reasonable to have one person manage all of those things for 140 young people.
I am not asking for sympathy or a raise. I am asking policy-makers to reconsider the implications of having this educational crisis in our hands. What happens when people don't graduate high school, they can't read, they can't do basic math, use a ruler, form a sentence. We all suffer. If there is one thing I will work to achieve in education, aside from helping students-obviously, it is to reduce class sizes. It is the closest thing we can get to a silver bullet.
One thing I'd like to put out there has to do with class size. You probably read that and think, "yea, you and every other teacher." I realize that teaching costs money and small classes cost money. We quantify these costs every time checks are cut to the city or to my checking out. It's a lot (well, the expense of education is alot- not my salary). To cut class sizes in half would cost somewhere around double, if not more for an initial transition period. Obviously that's a ton of money.
Let's look at this amount of money as a relative value now. Relative to the cost of our prison system, relative to the cost of law enforcement, relative to the cost of having a welfare system, relative to the cost of upkeep on our infrastructures, relative to the cost of dwindling innovation, relative to the cost of an economy that struggles to stay above water. Relative to those costs, the cost of halving the number of students in a classroom is pennies.
I realize students come from situations where their parents may do crack at home. Maybe they don't have dinner or breakfast. Maybe they have to work to support their parents. Maybe they have to watch out for their lives on a daily if not hourly basis. These things all have an influence. BUT, I am beginning to believe that a small class size would override these impediments to some degree. Managing a room full of 34 people, many of which come from less than great situations like those above, is a task that is not meant for the weak. In fact, it is hardly manageable if at all.
If one of the people who decides education policy in our governments were to be in a classroom and be expected to manage that many people of that sort, I'd bet my salary they would throw their hands in the air and give up. It is truly an overwhelming experience. On top of that, teachers are expected to have these 34 people from unfortunate backgrounds have substantial learning and achieve well. It is an unreasonable expectation.
I truly and completely believe many of our country's public school are in a full blown crisis. Teachers are given too many students to manage and therefore each student gets less quality attention. I hate admitting it, but I have no choice but to be this way with my own students. There are simply too many. If I were to give the attention I'd like to give to each and every student, I wouldn't sleep, eat, go home, nothing. I would have no time at all. Between calling parents, organizing and grading papers, recording grades, creating lesson plans and every other teaching-related task, it's simply not reasonable to have one person manage all of those things for 140 young people.
I am not asking for sympathy or a raise. I am asking policy-makers to reconsider the implications of having this educational crisis in our hands. What happens when people don't graduate high school, they can't read, they can't do basic math, use a ruler, form a sentence. We all suffer. If there is one thing I will work to achieve in education, aside from helping students-obviously, it is to reduce class sizes. It is the closest thing we can get to a silver bullet.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
The First Week
The past four days have been a complete blur.
Day 1: No keys to anything in the school. Reviewing the syllabus and expectations with students. Planning lessons.
Day 2: Diagnostic assessment. Not much activity during the lesson for me, but damn a lot of grading.
Day 3: Igniting (not burning) a student's money with an acetone / water mix leading into a discussion about observation v. inference. They loved it.
Day 4: A slide show with pictures of people who look like scientists but aren't, and vice versa. Students learned that anyone, regardless of appearance can be a scientist.
I knew there would be a lot of papers. Somehow the true gravity of that fact did not set in until I carried them around with me. I'm already working on ways to minimize that. I also purchased a projector on eBay and used it in the slide show on Friday. Allowing them to voice their input during the slide show was great fun. They get so involved and everyone was engaged. It seems like my students are pretty visual... and talkative.
I'm somewhat dreading calling all their parents. It's a ton of students so phone calls will take quite some time. I think I should spread it over one week actually. These are the initial calls as an introduction. Hopefully they will deter students from misbehaving in the future.
I have my DOE email address setup, but I'm still trying to figure out how to route it to my iPhone. I think it may require some less than legitimate configuration.
Overall, this week has been quite stressful and required a ton of work. However, when thing are running smoothly, I love it. I know it's only the first week, but I think I've chosen the right profession.
Day 1: No keys to anything in the school. Reviewing the syllabus and expectations with students. Planning lessons.
Day 2: Diagnostic assessment. Not much activity during the lesson for me, but damn a lot of grading.
Day 3: Igniting (not burning) a student's money with an acetone / water mix leading into a discussion about observation v. inference. They loved it.
Day 4: A slide show with pictures of people who look like scientists but aren't, and vice versa. Students learned that anyone, regardless of appearance can be a scientist.
I knew there would be a lot of papers. Somehow the true gravity of that fact did not set in until I carried them around with me. I'm already working on ways to minimize that. I also purchased a projector on eBay and used it in the slide show on Friday. Allowing them to voice their input during the slide show was great fun. They get so involved and everyone was engaged. It seems like my students are pretty visual... and talkative.
I'm somewhat dreading calling all their parents. It's a ton of students so phone calls will take quite some time. I think I should spread it over one week actually. These are the initial calls as an introduction. Hopefully they will deter students from misbehaving in the future.
I have my DOE email address setup, but I'm still trying to figure out how to route it to my iPhone. I think it may require some less than legitimate configuration.
Overall, this week has been quite stressful and required a ton of work. However, when thing are running smoothly, I love it. I know it's only the first week, but I think I've chosen the right profession.
Friday, August 29, 2008
First Day (w/o students)
I should be in bed asleep right now.
However, when I got home today, I made two turkey sandwiches, ate them and got in bed by 6PM. I woke up at 11, still tired, but I figured I'd answer a few emails, input some scheduling things into my calendar and organize things a bit.
The first day involved:
- Hearing various authority figures speak
- Hearing the phrase, "I'm sure you all know this already..." (I didn't)
- Meeting other science teachers
- Meeting my new AP
- Being overwhelmed and inundated with copious information
- Perpetually having a deer-in-the-headlights look in my eyes
- Making an exponentially growing to-do list
- Finally discovering my file number (Dept. of Ed. ID #)
- Waiting on hold for DOE IT to give me an email address, to no avail
- A 1 on 1 Q&A with my new AP, asking her questions to which she didn't know the answers because she's only been there for four days
- Failing to find out how to connect to the school's wireless network
- Failing to acquire keys to my classroom
- Being disappointed that I have not been assigned to a science classroom (sans sink, lab bench, white board - only chalk)
- Being delighted that I have a well-spaced schedule the begins at just before 9AM and ends around 3:30
- Staying well past my obligated time to organize my thoughts and reduce my anxiety
- Realizing what exactly I have to do for next week
- Realizing I do not have a mailbox to receive essential correspondences
- Being overall pleased with my school, in light of others' horror stories
- Redundant professional development that used materials identical to those in NYCTF training
I think that's a conservative synopsis of today's events. Tomorrow should be a whole new barrel of fun. I can only imagine how much the level of fun increases when students arrive. As you can tell, I'm being sarcastic, not because I don't like what I'm doing, but just because it's quite overwhelming right now. I'm sure the dust will settle in a few weeks and I will feel like I have a level head, but right now, everything is kind of a circus. Goodnight.
However, when I got home today, I made two turkey sandwiches, ate them and got in bed by 6PM. I woke up at 11, still tired, but I figured I'd answer a few emails, input some scheduling things into my calendar and organize things a bit.
The first day involved:
- Hearing various authority figures speak
- Hearing the phrase, "I'm sure you all know this already..." (I didn't)
- Meeting other science teachers
- Meeting my new AP
- Being overwhelmed and inundated with copious information
- Perpetually having a deer-in-the-headlights look in my eyes
- Making an exponentially growing to-do list
- Finally discovering my file number (Dept. of Ed. ID #)
- Waiting on hold for DOE IT to give me an email address, to no avail
- A 1 on 1 Q&A with my new AP, asking her questions to which she didn't know the answers because she's only been there for four days
- Failing to find out how to connect to the school's wireless network
- Failing to acquire keys to my classroom
- Being disappointed that I have not been assigned to a science classroom (sans sink, lab bench, white board - only chalk)
- Being delighted that I have a well-spaced schedule the begins at just before 9AM and ends around 3:30
- Staying well past my obligated time to organize my thoughts and reduce my anxiety
- Realizing what exactly I have to do for next week
- Realizing I do not have a mailbox to receive essential correspondences
- Being overall pleased with my school, in light of others' horror stories
- Redundant professional development that used materials identical to those in NYCTF training
I think that's a conservative synopsis of today's events. Tomorrow should be a whole new barrel of fun. I can only imagine how much the level of fun increases when students arrive. As you can tell, I'm being sarcastic, not because I don't like what I'm doing, but just because it's quite overwhelming right now. I'm sure the dust will settle in a few weeks and I will feel like I have a level head, but right now, everything is kind of a circus. Goodnight.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Vacation to a Close, School to Open
As much as I have enjoyed my vacation between training and the school year, I do think I am ready for some academic activity. Although, I also think I should be careful what I ask for.
SAN FRANCISCO
Last week I returned from my 6-day vacation to San Francisco, CA. It was definitely one of the best vacations I've had in a while. What a beautiful city too! If you're interested in seeing pics, go here. My vacation also got me thinking about a few different things. I love NYC, but I tend to forget how nice other cities can be also. This spurred me to google SF's teacher salaries. Unfortunately they do not quite commensurate with those of NYC. While I understand the cost of living may be slightly lower there (although not quite the price of real estate), I would not to be able to build capital as quickly as I would here. So that got me thinking about what I could do with my two months off in the summer - go to SF of course! Really this is just some fantastical brainstorming at this point, but it's good to know what's available.
CERTIFICATION
I have been putting off my certification for a number of reasons, none of which are good. At the end of training, our group/class had to somewhat finagle our own workshop on getting certified (of course, NYCTF or CCNY didn't do that for us, even though it is essential to our positions). So a "certification officer" (whatever that means) from CCNY led us through the NYS Education Department's website. Most of us went through it until we came to the part where we were asked to enter our credit card information to pay the $50 fee. We were told we could go home and return to this site, all of our information saved, and pay the fee on our personal computer.
Later I came home to do just that and found that I could not add my certification and pay the fee because I already added an identical certification at school. I figured I'd call the state ed dept and figure it out later. So after a few attempts to solve the problem myself, I gave them a call - busy. So I randomly clicked around a bit and under some counterintuitive link found the solution to my problem. For the most part, this has alleviated my anxiety.
However, we have been told multiple times that we will be certified for either grades 5-9 or 7-12. I am determined to have my certification for the higher grades as that is where I've acquired my job and I really have no desire to teach middle school (high schoolers here are probably like middle schoolers elsewhere anyway - unfortunately). Hopefully the state won't reject my application for the higher grades because that would mean I wouldn't have certification during my first month or so of teaching (depending on how long it takes them to process certification applications). While this is a formality, it is one on which my salary disbursement depends and therefore essential for my livelihood. Needless to say, I really hope they grant me the certification. (If they don't, I have to reapply, including another $50 fee, and the state would presumable grant me the 5-9 certification.)
I Can't Believe this is Happening
It feels pretty surreal to think that in about a week, I will be in front of a classroom full of 30 students or so beginning teaching biology. I am looking forward to it, though I do expect it to be a considerable challenge. I am more concerned about establishing good classroom management practices. Content won't be an issue. Tomorrow some other teacher in my department and I are meeting for lunch to socialize and discuss this upcoming year. From what I can tell, it seems my immediate coworkers are very helpful and cordial. I certainly look forward to working with them. Hopefully after tomorrow, I'll have a better sense of what to do/expect for the upcoming year.
SAN FRANCISCO
Last week I returned from my 6-day vacation to San Francisco, CA. It was definitely one of the best vacations I've had in a while. What a beautiful city too! If you're interested in seeing pics, go here. My vacation also got me thinking about a few different things. I love NYC, but I tend to forget how nice other cities can be also. This spurred me to google SF's teacher salaries. Unfortunately they do not quite commensurate with those of NYC. While I understand the cost of living may be slightly lower there (although not quite the price of real estate), I would not to be able to build capital as quickly as I would here. So that got me thinking about what I could do with my two months off in the summer - go to SF of course! Really this is just some fantastical brainstorming at this point, but it's good to know what's available.
CERTIFICATION
I have been putting off my certification for a number of reasons, none of which are good. At the end of training, our group/class had to somewhat finagle our own workshop on getting certified (of course, NYCTF or CCNY didn't do that for us, even though it is essential to our positions). So a "certification officer" (whatever that means) from CCNY led us through the NYS Education Department's website. Most of us went through it until we came to the part where we were asked to enter our credit card information to pay the $50 fee. We were told we could go home and return to this site, all of our information saved, and pay the fee on our personal computer.
Later I came home to do just that and found that I could not add my certification and pay the fee because I already added an identical certification at school. I figured I'd call the state ed dept and figure it out later. So after a few attempts to solve the problem myself, I gave them a call - busy. So I randomly clicked around a bit and under some counterintuitive link found the solution to my problem. For the most part, this has alleviated my anxiety.
However, we have been told multiple times that we will be certified for either grades 5-9 or 7-12. I am determined to have my certification for the higher grades as that is where I've acquired my job and I really have no desire to teach middle school (high schoolers here are probably like middle schoolers elsewhere anyway - unfortunately). Hopefully the state won't reject my application for the higher grades because that would mean I wouldn't have certification during my first month or so of teaching (depending on how long it takes them to process certification applications). While this is a formality, it is one on which my salary disbursement depends and therefore essential for my livelihood. Needless to say, I really hope they grant me the certification. (If they don't, I have to reapply, including another $50 fee, and the state would presumable grant me the 5-9 certification.)
I Can't Believe this is Happening
It feels pretty surreal to think that in about a week, I will be in front of a classroom full of 30 students or so beginning teaching biology. I am looking forward to it, though I do expect it to be a considerable challenge. I am more concerned about establishing good classroom management practices. Content won't be an issue. Tomorrow some other teacher in my department and I are meeting for lunch to socialize and discuss this upcoming year. From what I can tell, it seems my immediate coworkers are very helpful and cordial. I certainly look forward to working with them. Hopefully after tomorrow, I'll have a better sense of what to do/expect for the upcoming year.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Quiet Before the Storm
Rumor is that the first year of teaching tends to be the most difficult. Given that, I would like to do my best to enjoy the free time I have during August. So, I booked a five-day vacation to San Francisco, CA.
I've been to CA before, but other parts such as LA, Palm Spring, San Diego... SoCal basically. However, from all the ranting and raving I keep hearing, it seems SF is one hell of a city, even on par with NYC. Now I love NYC, so I have a hard time imagining this. I'm totally open to the idea of falling in love with another city though.
One of the great things about teaching is that a teacher's skill is in high demand just about everywhere. So if I happen to fall in love with some city and I want to move and live there, I would probably be able to find a teaching position relatively easily. Certification would be a hurdle of sorts, but often NY's certification is transferrable to other states. I would also like to make sure I am vested in the pension system here before I make any drastic moves, so that means at least five years. Also, the perfect amount of time to hone my skills and build a reputation.
Don't get me wrong. I realize I have not even begun teaching, technically. I think having some healthy foresight and a future plan of options is a good idea though. NYC is great, but I imagine after a few decades it can really wear on a person, unless you're exorbitantly wealthy.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
The End of the Beginning
Yesterday was the last day of my obligations to NYCTF for the summer. The closing ceremonies began at 10AM at CCNY with a continental breakfast. All of the SAF groups gathered at their respective tables in the faculty dining room. Each group gave about a five minute skit to the entire group of CCNY fellows. Ours was "Fellow Feud." My friend and colleague (he will be working at the same school as I will be) played the host and we had questions and answers that mocked the wide variety of education jargon we have reviewed for the past two months. While our skit as somewhat slapped together, it went over surprisingly smoothly.
Following an hour and a half or so of skits, we were informed that our checks had yet to arrive. (This came as no surprise to me as organization has not been NYCTF's forte, to say the least.) However, after some socializing in the interim, we were finally able to collect our checks. After that, it felt kind of strange. Going from having obligations for the majority of my day to having none at all was kind of like slamming on the brakes. I'm not exactly sure what to do with myself. I intended to go to Governor's Island with another Fellow, but I think that will fall through because of some impending thunderstorms.
Thunderstorms aside, I am glad to be finished. My brain is now supersaturated with education jargon, acronyms and classroom management techniques. All of these are quite useful, but I am relatively sure I am at my limit for the time being. Now it is a waiting game. My next obligation is to show up at my school on the last Thursday in August for teacher planning / preparation days. Students show up on the second of September. I feel pretty adequately prepared too, which is, no doubt, a comforting feeling. Bring it on kids.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Coming to a Close
I'm a bit bothered that I have not posted in a while, but it is with good reason. I am in the home stretch of training. The last day of my graduate course is today. I still have to revise a few lesson plans for the final project, but aside from that, there are no more scheduled meeting times. That means my last 12 hour day is today! YAYAYA!
Next week, I still am required to go to my field training site to observe and teach. This is often the highlight of my day. I get to work with students as a whole class, in small groups or one on one. Establishing a healthy academic relationship with them is satisfying for me and beneficial for them. Today was the midterm for two sections of Living Environment I've been observing and occasionally teaching. Unfortunately, I do not expect many of them to do well. During classes they were often not engaged or enjoying themselves and therefore not effectively learning.
I do not quite understand this, but when they were finishing the test, they found it acceptable to hand it into me telling that it was finished. I would look at it, see that there were at least five questions not answered. I returned it to them saying that is was, indeed, not finished and that I wanted them to try to answer the questions. It seems that many of them are so easily satisfied with low mediocrity or failure.
One student insisted that he did not know and had nothing to write. I insisted that he write something, even if it was that he did not know. Hopefully this well let them see that they must know when something is finished before they can finish it well. Obviously, this presents an overwhelming challenge for both student and teacher. Most importantly, I think they do understand that I have a genuine concern for their academic success. My ability to address that in summer school is limited because these are technically not my classes, but it gives me insight into what I would like to see in the fall.
Also, next week, I must attend my Student Achievement Framework sessions from 2-4 at CCNY, a much better and earlier time slot than 4-6. Once next week is over, I am free for most of August until the last week on Thursday when I have to report to my school for teacher orientation. In retrospect, training has gone by extremely fast even though it felt like time was static while I was in it. I look forward (with some mild trepidation) to establishing my own class in the fall and continuing to learn how to help students do well in every aspect of their lives.
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