Primary Elementary Teachers Chatboard
http://teachers.net/mentors/primary_elementary/
Topic I Posted: How to be friendly with colleagues
Dates Spanning: 11/11/08 - 11/14/08
I have a few friends who are already teaching. When I am with them, and they are talking about teaching, it seems almost impossible to get a word in edgewise. Not only do they have a lot of teaching stories to tell but they also have a ton of gossip and complaints. This bothers me a lot. I have never been one to gossip (or complain much) and I don’t want to get sucked into those conversations. I don’t like the negativity. (Also, I know that gossip can only lead to trouble- and I don’t like drama!) However, I don’t want to appear as if I am snooty or antisocial because I do not participate in these types of conversations. I want to start my new career on the right foot. This is why I posted a new thread asking if anyone had any suggestions on how to be friendly with colleagues without disclosing too much personal information or appearing to be antisocial. I advised that I want to avoid gossip and be able to maintain a balanced, professional relationship with my future colleagues.
Responses to the Question I Posted:
One person stated that articulating such a goal is half the battle. He/she stated to be “warm” and I will be well-received. He/she also advised to “be uncomplaining” (since most others are) and to lend a listening ear to others’ complaints (but not gossip). This person explained that it is safe to be a good listener and that it’s easy to appear very social just by listening and laughing (at the appropriate moments) since there are so many other people who love to talk and/or dominate conversations. This person gave the most in depth response but a few other people suggested trying to stay positive- to refrain from complaining and to try to talk about positives of the day. One person recommended specifics such as talking about a good adult book, a movie I’ve seen, or a social event I’ve attended. Another person gave a caveat by advising to: “Watch what you say.” (I’m assuming this means, don’t gossip or be negative because you never know who you’re talking to or how it might end up affecting you!) On the other hand, another teacher stated that she has a different view. She explained that she was able to develop close relationships with her co-workers. She holds the belief that their expanded relationships caused their school relationships to improve. Unfortunately, this teacher did not offer any suggestions on building similar, close/strong relationships!
Useful Information for My Teaching Future:
After evaluating the responses to my post, I think the main idea is to remain positive- for myself and for the sake of others! In addition, while around my future colleagues, I will try to avoid gossip altogether- or at least not offer any additional input. I will also be a good listener and, when necessary, offer upbeat comments!
What I Would Tell Others When Joining a Teacher Listserv:
I would give others the most simple and logical suggestion: choose listservs that you have a genuine interest in- you might be surprised about what you can learn! People are very honest and usually very passionate about their opinions. There is a reason why people take part in these discussions- and (for most) the reason doesn’t appear to be boredom! Also, I think people like to talk about what they know or what they’ve learned. Being able to give a suggestion or some advice gives people a sense of satisfaction. Although there are some questionable responses, it is possible to weed through them. You can get a feel for who has a lot of experience (and who truly cares) just by assessing the information that is given- and how the person presents it (i.e. no grammar errors)! In addition, don’t be overwhelmed or disheartened by the negativity that you might come across. Unfortunately, a lot of people use the chatboards as a forum for venting rather than a forum for offering constructive criticism. All in all, listservs can be a great tool for teaching and learning- you just have to use them with the right attitude and take all comments with a grain of salt.
How the Experience Compared to My Expectations:
Honestly, I didn’t have any expectations about joining listservs because I had no previous knowledge about them! Now that I am familiar with how to use them, I’m definitely going to continue to use them through my career. I thought it was exciting to receive responses from strangers and I was really surprised (and thankful) that so many people took the time to answer! Actually, I thought- and still think- that it’s astonishing to see so many people take part in these discussions- especially knowing how little spare time teachers have! Additionally, it’s great to know that there is a safe place I can go to ask for advice and/or suggestions. I can remain anonymous all the while receiving many candid responses. (As a side note, it was interesting to see how varied people’s opinions can be! It just goes to show that even though we all have the same title (teacher), our different experiences shape and have a major effect on how we handle day-to-day matters.)
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Seventh Post
Teachers.Net Gazette (November 2008: Vol 5 No 11)
"beginning-teachers"
Topic: “A Reflection of Me: Why My Students Disrespected Me”
Date: November 1, 2008
This past week, I received a listserv email with a link to the Teachers.net Gazette. I was immediately intrigued by the short column excerpt that was included in the email. In this column, Kioni Carter, who is currently a life coach and educational consultant, describes her teaching experiences with the “bottom class” at a Brooklyn elementary school in 2004.
What I like most about Carter’s writing is that it is a reflection. She doesn’t just describe the unruly students and the details of her memories; she reflects upon herself and explains how her thoughts, emotions, assumptions, attitudes, etc. impacted her students. Carter describes the thoughts that she had after her first day and the epiphanies she began to have over the next few weeks. She explains that she realized early on that most of her effort was focused on keeping the class under control because of the horror stories other teachers told about these particular students and because of her own assumptions about the students. Carter came to the conclusion that because these students had bad reputations, and there were few teachers who truly believed that they were capable of achieving success, the students learned to believe that they were unable to achieve- and acted on this belief! This insight caused Carter to “check herself.” She knew she would have to start seeing her students as valuable, smart, capable, etc. in order to make them believe that they were valuable, smart, capable, etc. Carter explains how she pointed out any and all success she recognized in her students to help build their self esteem and to encourage them to believe that they were competent. Eventually her students showed noticeable academic improvement and their behavioral problems became minimal.
Useful Information For My Teaching Future:
From my first semester in the Career Change program at St. John’s University, many of my professors have discussed the importance of self-reflection. Kioni Carter’s story epitomizes the value of self-reflection; it is obvious that her progress with her students was directly correlated with her self-reflection. I am learning that, as teachers, it is necessary to be aware of our thoughts, emotions, values, assumptions, prejudices, attitudes, etc. in order to give our students the best opportunity to improve and succeed. Understanding ourselves is crucial to understanding our students and their needs.
As a teacher, I will not only reflect on my learning experiences and what motivates me to teach, but I will also reflect on my hopes, values, perceptions, prejudices, etc. I will always try to be aware of myself so that I stay focused on what motivates me to teach, continuously monitor how effectively I am teaching, and make sure that I am not overlooking something or someone because of an unexamined prejudice.
"beginning-teachers"
Topic: “A Reflection of Me: Why My Students Disrespected Me”
Date: November 1, 2008
This past week, I received a listserv email with a link to the Teachers.net Gazette. I was immediately intrigued by the short column excerpt that was included in the email. In this column, Kioni Carter, who is currently a life coach and educational consultant, describes her teaching experiences with the “bottom class” at a Brooklyn elementary school in 2004.
What I like most about Carter’s writing is that it is a reflection. She doesn’t just describe the unruly students and the details of her memories; she reflects upon herself and explains how her thoughts, emotions, assumptions, attitudes, etc. impacted her students. Carter describes the thoughts that she had after her first day and the epiphanies she began to have over the next few weeks. She explains that she realized early on that most of her effort was focused on keeping the class under control because of the horror stories other teachers told about these particular students and because of her own assumptions about the students. Carter came to the conclusion that because these students had bad reputations, and there were few teachers who truly believed that they were capable of achieving success, the students learned to believe that they were unable to achieve- and acted on this belief! This insight caused Carter to “check herself.” She knew she would have to start seeing her students as valuable, smart, capable, etc. in order to make them believe that they were valuable, smart, capable, etc. Carter explains how she pointed out any and all success she recognized in her students to help build their self esteem and to encourage them to believe that they were competent. Eventually her students showed noticeable academic improvement and their behavioral problems became minimal.
Useful Information For My Teaching Future:
From my first semester in the Career Change program at St. John’s University, many of my professors have discussed the importance of self-reflection. Kioni Carter’s story epitomizes the value of self-reflection; it is obvious that her progress with her students was directly correlated with her self-reflection. I am learning that, as teachers, it is necessary to be aware of our thoughts, emotions, values, assumptions, prejudices, attitudes, etc. in order to give our students the best opportunity to improve and succeed. Understanding ourselves is crucial to understanding our students and their needs.
As a teacher, I will not only reflect on my learning experiences and what motivates me to teach, but I will also reflect on my hopes, values, perceptions, prejudices, etc. I will always try to be aware of myself so that I stay focused on what motivates me to teach, continuously monitor how effectively I am teaching, and make sure that I am not overlooking something or someone because of an unexamined prejudice.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Sixth Post
Primary Elementary Teachers Chatboard
http://teachers.net/mentors/primary_elementary/
Topic I posted: Unexpected teaching experiences…
Dates Spanning: 11/05/08 - 11/11/08
I keep hearing and reading about how teachers experience things that they never expected to experience or were prepared to deal with. However, these comments are usually mixed in with other topics. Also, I noticed that the chatboards usually end up being a forum for teachers to vent instead of a forum to share encouraging issues. Therefore, I decided to start my own thread on the Primary Elementary Teachers Chatboard to specifically ask teachers about some of the positive/negative things they have experienced- but never would have expected to experience as a teacher.
Responses to the Question I Posted:
It was my intention to encourage teachers to really brainstorm about this topic alone. I hoped that when teachers posted, they each would have a few stories to share. That being said, I was flabbergasted not only by the amount of stories shared per response, but also by the amount of responses I received in less than a week! Apparently this was a hot topic to chat about because I received fourteen responses! All in all, the responses were great! I really enjoyed reading them. Although some of teachers described incidents that made me sad, most made me smile, laugh, and generally feel optimistic about the field of teaching.
Well, I guess I’ll start with some of the negative experiences so I can end this blog post on a positive note… I have to say, some stories were really shocking! For example, one teacher described having to deal with a parent who was on drugs and would constantly beg for money. (This story ended with the parent stealing the teacher’s money from her purse!) This particular post reminded another teacher of her experience with a parent who stole her purse during parent teacher conferences and then went on to steal the teacher’s identity! Other teachers explained how they never expected to experience so many children with problems such as ADHD, mild to moderate autism, etc. Some more common negative responses had to do with not expecting: to have such little time to complete the very long list of teacher responsibilities, to discover that other teachers can be catty and disloyal (all the while appearing to be loyal), that sometimes being a teacher also means being a parent, that administrative decisions are not always based on the students’ needs …the list goes on. One response, and unfortunately the last response, struck me hard and brought tears to my eyes because I wasn’t even expecting to read it. (It’s hard to imagine having to experience it.) This particular teacher wrote about how he never would have expected (and definitely was not prepared) to deal with the death of a student- or how to help his class. On a brighter note, I’m glad to say that a lot of the negative comments were also tinged with humor. For example, one person described not expecting how often six year olds need to use the bathroom and many teachers spoke about the private (and quite humorous) details that students reveal about their families.
Now on to the positive… I can’t quite call the positive responses “experiences” because most teachers didn’t give specific examples of positive, unexpected moments. Nevertheless, teachers still had many positive things to say about teaching. Many people gave negative (but often funny) examples but then ended their response to my post by noting that regardless of all the off-putting things and excessive stress, teaching is still the most rewarding job of all; that teachers have an opportunity to make a difference in the life of a child! Another teacher wrote that he/she thought it was wonderful that he/she could be teaching a future president, that his/her day is never the same, and that most parents respect and appreciate you. (I was relieved to hear the last comment!) Someone else said that children are funny and entertaining- and keep you young at heart. (This person also suggested taking the time to laugh with your students and to enjoy “the precious moments” that happen in the classroom- which really touched me!)
Useful Information for My Teaching Future:
The information that I received this week is extremely valuable to me for more than one reason. First of all, when I was reading the responses to my post, I could tell that teachers were really passionate about the things they wrote. I felt that some of their words were practically jumping off the page. I’ve come to the realization that whenever teachers are passionate about their input, the offered information is usually good- and worth the time to listen to or, in this case, read! Another reason why these responses are valuable to me is because they enabled me to conclude that no matter how many negative things I might experience as a teacher, I can be hopeful that the positive will outweigh the negative! There isn’t a negative experience that could outweigh the positive experience of impacting a child’s life. I’m assuming that this belief is what keeps teachers in the field of education. I will try to remember this when I start teaching and things get hectic or I feel overwhelmed!
I also decided that no matter how busy I am, I’m going to take the time to make notes on the unexpected, crazy, silly, sweet things children say and do! I want to be able to write a book so that others, outside of the field of education, can get a small taste of what teachers experience on a daily basis.
http://teachers.net/mentors/primary_elementary/
Topic I posted: Unexpected teaching experiences…
Dates Spanning: 11/05/08 - 11/11/08
I keep hearing and reading about how teachers experience things that they never expected to experience or were prepared to deal with. However, these comments are usually mixed in with other topics. Also, I noticed that the chatboards usually end up being a forum for teachers to vent instead of a forum to share encouraging issues. Therefore, I decided to start my own thread on the Primary Elementary Teachers Chatboard to specifically ask teachers about some of the positive/negative things they have experienced- but never would have expected to experience as a teacher.
Responses to the Question I Posted:
It was my intention to encourage teachers to really brainstorm about this topic alone. I hoped that when teachers posted, they each would have a few stories to share. That being said, I was flabbergasted not only by the amount of stories shared per response, but also by the amount of responses I received in less than a week! Apparently this was a hot topic to chat about because I received fourteen responses! All in all, the responses were great! I really enjoyed reading them. Although some of teachers described incidents that made me sad, most made me smile, laugh, and generally feel optimistic about the field of teaching.
Well, I guess I’ll start with some of the negative experiences so I can end this blog post on a positive note… I have to say, some stories were really shocking! For example, one teacher described having to deal with a parent who was on drugs and would constantly beg for money. (This story ended with the parent stealing the teacher’s money from her purse!) This particular post reminded another teacher of her experience with a parent who stole her purse during parent teacher conferences and then went on to steal the teacher’s identity! Other teachers explained how they never expected to experience so many children with problems such as ADHD, mild to moderate autism, etc. Some more common negative responses had to do with not expecting: to have such little time to complete the very long list of teacher responsibilities, to discover that other teachers can be catty and disloyal (all the while appearing to be loyal), that sometimes being a teacher also means being a parent, that administrative decisions are not always based on the students’ needs …the list goes on. One response, and unfortunately the last response, struck me hard and brought tears to my eyes because I wasn’t even expecting to read it. (It’s hard to imagine having to experience it.) This particular teacher wrote about how he never would have expected (and definitely was not prepared) to deal with the death of a student- or how to help his class. On a brighter note, I’m glad to say that a lot of the negative comments were also tinged with humor. For example, one person described not expecting how often six year olds need to use the bathroom and many teachers spoke about the private (and quite humorous) details that students reveal about their families.
Now on to the positive… I can’t quite call the positive responses “experiences” because most teachers didn’t give specific examples of positive, unexpected moments. Nevertheless, teachers still had many positive things to say about teaching. Many people gave negative (but often funny) examples but then ended their response to my post by noting that regardless of all the off-putting things and excessive stress, teaching is still the most rewarding job of all; that teachers have an opportunity to make a difference in the life of a child! Another teacher wrote that he/she thought it was wonderful that he/she could be teaching a future president, that his/her day is never the same, and that most parents respect and appreciate you. (I was relieved to hear the last comment!) Someone else said that children are funny and entertaining- and keep you young at heart. (This person also suggested taking the time to laugh with your students and to enjoy “the precious moments” that happen in the classroom- which really touched me!)
Useful Information for My Teaching Future:
The information that I received this week is extremely valuable to me for more than one reason. First of all, when I was reading the responses to my post, I could tell that teachers were really passionate about the things they wrote. I felt that some of their words were practically jumping off the page. I’ve come to the realization that whenever teachers are passionate about their input, the offered information is usually good- and worth the time to listen to or, in this case, read! Another reason why these responses are valuable to me is because they enabled me to conclude that no matter how many negative things I might experience as a teacher, I can be hopeful that the positive will outweigh the negative! There isn’t a negative experience that could outweigh the positive experience of impacting a child’s life. I’m assuming that this belief is what keeps teachers in the field of education. I will try to remember this when I start teaching and things get hectic or I feel overwhelmed!
I also decided that no matter how busy I am, I’m going to take the time to make notes on the unexpected, crazy, silly, sweet things children say and do! I want to be able to write a book so that others, outside of the field of education, can get a small taste of what teachers experience on a daily basis.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Fifth Post
Student Teachers Chatboard
http://teachers.net/mentors/student_teaching/posts.html
Topic: How to Prepare for Student Teaching
Dates Spanning: 10/29/08- 11/05/08
Responses to the Question I Posted:
Last week I started my own thread in the Student Teachers Chatboard and asked for suggestions on how to prepare for student teaching. I received three responses- one being Steve’s response which was already discussed in my last blog post. As opposed to Steve’s response (which more or less left me in the same state of mind that I was in prior to my post), the other two responses were quite helpful and encouraging!
One person, “New Teacher,” gave very thorough suggestions about how to begin and continue following through in a teaching career. The information he/she provided was quite detailed and obviously written based on experience. Even though this person calls himself/herself “New Teacher,” I can tell from this response alone that he/she has been paying attention and is becoming knowledgeable in the field of education quickly. He/she proposed more than common sense suggestions (i.e. “get enough sleep”); “New Teacher” offered ideas that I probably wouldn’t think to do prior to starting student teaching (and my first teaching job). For example, he/she suggested learning as much as I can about the school I will be in ahead of time- such as school demographics, the school’s mission statement, information about the principal and staff, the school’s overall goals, grade level goals, discipline policy, homework policy, rewards/incentives, etc. He/she also advised to learn as much as I can about classroom management ahead of time so that my student teaching time does not become all about getting the class under control- as it should be about teaching lessons and assessing progress. “New Teacher” highly recommended the book Setting Limits in the Classroom to brush up on classroom management procedures.
The other useful response came from “Cybrary Man.” He was nice enough to link me to his website which has a Student Teaching page! I explored many of the educational sites that “Cybrary Man” compiled on his website. He has links for all grade levels and subject areas to help student teachers/teachers prepare but I mainly reviewed the student teacher links. Most of the information on these particular student teacher websites is valuable and I noticed that there are some main tips that most sites provide. Some of these tips include: being on time, planning ahead, being flexible, befriending the office staff, being professional with fellow teachers, etc.
(I thanked all of the people who took time out of their day to respond to my post.)
Useful Information for My Teaching Future:
All in all, I learned that there is no way to be over-prepared for student teaching- or teaching in general! It is becoming clearer by the day that there is a lot involved in being a great teacher- but one major aspect of being a great teacher is to know and accept that teaching is a continual process. I’m always going to have to improve upon something; I’m always going to have to change this, tweak that- and generally grow as a person!
http://teachers.net/mentors/student_teaching/posts.html
Topic: How to Prepare for Student Teaching
Dates Spanning: 10/29/08- 11/05/08
Responses to the Question I Posted:
Last week I started my own thread in the Student Teachers Chatboard and asked for suggestions on how to prepare for student teaching. I received three responses- one being Steve’s response which was already discussed in my last blog post. As opposed to Steve’s response (which more or less left me in the same state of mind that I was in prior to my post), the other two responses were quite helpful and encouraging!
One person, “New Teacher,” gave very thorough suggestions about how to begin and continue following through in a teaching career. The information he/she provided was quite detailed and obviously written based on experience. Even though this person calls himself/herself “New Teacher,” I can tell from this response alone that he/she has been paying attention and is becoming knowledgeable in the field of education quickly. He/she proposed more than common sense suggestions (i.e. “get enough sleep”); “New Teacher” offered ideas that I probably wouldn’t think to do prior to starting student teaching (and my first teaching job). For example, he/she suggested learning as much as I can about the school I will be in ahead of time- such as school demographics, the school’s mission statement, information about the principal and staff, the school’s overall goals, grade level goals, discipline policy, homework policy, rewards/incentives, etc. He/she also advised to learn as much as I can about classroom management ahead of time so that my student teaching time does not become all about getting the class under control- as it should be about teaching lessons and assessing progress. “New Teacher” highly recommended the book Setting Limits in the Classroom to brush up on classroom management procedures.
The other useful response came from “Cybrary Man.” He was nice enough to link me to his website which has a Student Teaching page! I explored many of the educational sites that “Cybrary Man” compiled on his website. He has links for all grade levels and subject areas to help student teachers/teachers prepare but I mainly reviewed the student teacher links. Most of the information on these particular student teacher websites is valuable and I noticed that there are some main tips that most sites provide. Some of these tips include: being on time, planning ahead, being flexible, befriending the office staff, being professional with fellow teachers, etc.
(I thanked all of the people who took time out of their day to respond to my post.)
Useful Information for My Teaching Future:
All in all, I learned that there is no way to be over-prepared for student teaching- or teaching in general! It is becoming clearer by the day that there is a lot involved in being a great teacher- but one major aspect of being a great teacher is to know and accept that teaching is a continual process. I’m always going to have to improve upon something; I’m always going to have to change this, tweak that- and generally grow as a person!
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