Soon I will be a first year teacher! I do not mind saying that I am scared to death of this eventuality. I have wanted to be a teacher my whole life and I am now rounding the corner and heading into the final few laps of this journey. So what exactly is it that I am afraid of? Is it the students? Certainly that cannot be the issue I am raising three children and have been a football, basketball and soccer coach for all of my adult life. Children are a large part of my life already, so what is it that makes me sit up in bed at four in the morning? Just between you and me, it is the fear of failure. Not the fear of being a bad teacher, I have been a coach far too long to doubt my ability to teach. No, my fear comes from being afraid that I will miss the potential of a student and fail that student. I do not mean fail as in giving the student an “F”, I mean fail as in not recognizing that student’s potential and helping that student realize the possibilities they possess. I do not have that fear in coaching, I coach youth league sports and know that if I miss the potential of an athlete there will be a long line of coaches after me that will surely pick up on that child’s potential. But teaching is another story, I will teach at the high school level and potential must be recognized then or it may be too late for my students. So how do I swallow that fear and move forward with confidence? I will tell you what my gut and my heart tell me to do, treat every student as if they have the potential to cure cancer or write novels or design bridges or conduct an orchestra or teach or anything that will make that student a productive citizen. Each and every one of my students have will have some potential, some will want to be good mothers, others will want to be a great mechanic, some will want to go on to college and some will have no idea what to do with their lives.
So what is the reality I will face as a first year teacher that will try to derail my ideals and goals? My courses so far have taught me that the typical classroom will have students that do not speak English as a first language, students who live in poverty, students with disabilities and a host of other diverse backgrounds. One controversial subject in schools right now is the inclusion of special education students in general education classrooms. This is not a new practice but the majority of schools are moving towards eliminating the special education classroom altogether. Special Education teachers move from class to class with the students to provide the extra instruction they need. Often the special education students are pulled from the classroom during quizzes and tests to take them in other classrooms. This allows the special education teachers the give modified exams and extra help. Many would argue that the inclusion of special education students do not belong in the general education classes. Some would say the time it takes to keep the special education students up to speed will take away instruction time from the other students. I would agree that these concerns are real and something to be discussed. However, I would not agree that special education students should be excluded from general education classrooms. I would also argue that not having special education classrooms at all may be a detriment to the students who need extra instruction and time. I sympathize with the teacher who has a vastly diverse classroom with different levels of understanding and ability with a finite amount of time to prepare all of the students for a standardized test that is the lynchpin for not just the student’s success but also the school’s success and ultimately the teacher’s success. Preparing students for such a test is a stressful and daunting task that in the context of having to prepare students who may have difficulty reading or even speaking English, can seem impossible. I have been taught and assured that there are several instructional methods that will allow teachers to include all students regardless of ability or development level. These strategies include allowing students to learn new material in several ways. An effective teacher will often present lessons in manner that allow the auditory learner, the visual learner and the kinetic learner to succeed. Is this more work for the teacher? You bet it is! But teaching is a profession of passion and putting in extra work or going above and beyond what is required is standard for any good teacher. To gainsay a student the opportunity of a general education classroom is to give up on the student. It is impossible to know what each student is truly capable of until we, as teachers, have given that student every opportunity to flourish. Will I have a student in my classroom with the potential to do great things? I have no idea but I have made a commitment to myself to treat each student as if they do.
"Treat every student as if they have the potential to cure cancer or write novels or design bridges or conduct an orchestra or teach or anything that will make that student a productive citizen."
ReplyDeleteThis phrase really struck a cord with me. I may even put it on an index card so I can keep it always in sight, because I think a huge problem in our schools is giving up an students before they ever have the chance to begin. We should not expect them to fail until they can show otherwise. We should demand they succeed until we see they need help.
I do share most of what you are sayin. But I am going to share with you all students of education is trained very well but the question who is holding the same real feeling towards his future students? who will really care? We are going to do it, it is just a matter of experience.
ReplyDeleteThis fear, "being afraid that I will miss the potential of a student and fail that student", is one that is shared by parents and educators alike. As a parent I fear failing my children. Failing to give them what they need to realize their potential, failing to do everything "just right". I have decided that I must be convinced that I will do what I can to the best of my ability and pray that it is enough. I would imagine a similar solution would work for a teacher...do what you can to the best of your ability and pray.
ReplyDeleteAs I have already lived the life of the beginning teacher, I can well agree with the teacher on the video at the end of your blog.
ReplyDeleteThe first year is an experiment. You will plan classes too long or too short. You will give tests and quizzes that are too simple or too difficult. You will learn how to grade papers with varying degrees of judgment. You will tweak your rubrics until they reflect what you really want them to say.
You will have the strange sensation of hearing your own voice while you are talking, and constantly checking for accuracy and volume control. You will be truly exhausted at the end of a school day, and at the end of the school year.
The rewards of your student's successes will buoy you in times of uncertainty. You might have a yearbook for the students to sign, and comment on their experiences in your classroom. I always passed out a teacher "review" form so the students could anonymously rate many aspects of their time in my courses. It opened my eyes to how they learned, or didn't; how they suggested lessons would work better for them based on their past experiences, and many more points that they wouldn't normally dare to speak about to my face. It helped me to become a better teacher every year.
I wish you the best as you enter the profession of teaching (or as the Chinese would say, "t-ching"!).