Have you ever tried something for the first time? Maybe riding a bike, target shooting, cooking? It can be tough. Every bump in the road can feel like a monumental disaster, leaving you wondering if you'll ever be able to make it. Well, that's a bit how my week has felt.
Don't get me wrong, it has been a great week and I have learned a lot. But much of that learning has come from the struggle. My biggest struggle has been with a few students in my first-period class, Animal and Vet Science. Every day, I come in excited to teach and hopeful that my lesson will be engaging. And every day, they grumble about the work and sometimes refuse to do it. As a happy-go-lucky people pleaser who feeds off of positive energy, I've been struggling. Don't they understand how hard I am trying? Why won't they do the work like the rest of my students? Why don't they like me?
While this has been discouraging, I know that with time, I will learn to have a thicker skin and some of the students will come around. I also know that sometimes you can't please everyone. Mr. Hughes has assured me that these students are stubborn in all of their classes and I shouldn't be too discouraged about their attitudes. A few other teachers have encouraged me to show the students that I care and try and get to know them a bit more. Over the next few weeks, I am determined to not let this get me down. I will do my best to get to know my students better and encourage them to participate in my class.
I also need to work on the timing of my lessons, almost every day this week I have found myself with way too much time left in the period when I run out of materials. Again, I know that time and experience will help me a lot in getting better with filling the period and preparing lessons that are long enough but I am going to focus on really improving on this during my student teaching.
Student teaching is a lot like riding that bike but luckily, our cooperating teachers, university supervisors, peers, and teacher mentors are great training wheels. They hold us up when things get unsteady but even when we fall, it's important to get back up and just keep pedaling.
Don't get me wrong, it has been a great week and I have learned a lot. But much of that learning has come from the struggle. My biggest struggle has been with a few students in my first-period class, Animal and Vet Science. Every day, I come in excited to teach and hopeful that my lesson will be engaging. And every day, they grumble about the work and sometimes refuse to do it. As a happy-go-lucky people pleaser who feeds off of positive energy, I've been struggling. Don't they understand how hard I am trying? Why won't they do the work like the rest of my students? Why don't they like me?
While this has been discouraging, I know that with time, I will learn to have a thicker skin and some of the students will come around. I also know that sometimes you can't please everyone. Mr. Hughes has assured me that these students are stubborn in all of their classes and I shouldn't be too discouraged about their attitudes. A few other teachers have encouraged me to show the students that I care and try and get to know them a bit more. Over the next few weeks, I am determined to not let this get me down. I will do my best to get to know my students better and encourage them to participate in my class.
I also need to work on the timing of my lessons, almost every day this week I have found myself with way too much time left in the period when I run out of materials. Again, I know that time and experience will help me a lot in getting better with filling the period and preparing lessons that are long enough but I am going to focus on really improving on this during my student teaching.
Student teaching is a lot like riding that bike but luckily, our cooperating teachers, university supervisors, peers, and teacher mentors are great training wheels. They hold us up when things get unsteady but even when we fall, it's important to get back up and just keep pedaling.
Victoria,
ReplyDeleteYou have just summarized why the student teaching placement/internship is so important to all of our candidates entering education. You need to see, feel, and act upon the moment that is at hand. I look forward to seeing your continued growth and remember to "Keep your Head and your Standards High"!
-Dr. Ewing
Victoria, sounds like the student teaching internship experience is doing exactly as it should. A few pieces of advice to help you along. 1.) As you are experiencing, some students will test your patience and ability. This is completely "normal". You have a toolbox full of strategies and techniques to connect and reach these students. Try them all 2.) A hard to swallow truth is that as an educator, there will be students that come and go without you ever reaching way you wish. Again, this is normal. 3.) Try your best, try everything you can think of and at the end of the day if you've done all you can think to do, than it's out of your hands. Get to know your students, build as much trust as you can, but understand, you can't reach EVERY one of them. As far as pacing, this will come with time and practice. Have some questions on standby to help draw out student interaction, which in turn, extends your lesson time. Again, time and practice. Keep up the hard work, sounds like you're learning as much as your students, which is AWESOME!
ReplyDeleteDid you push kids over when they were riding bikes?
ReplyDeletejk
Keep smiling