You know how many people say that teachers have it easy? I do not think I ever really believed that, but now I know I completely disagree with that. This group teach is not easy- and this is just one three hour class. Soon we'll be doing this everyday, exciting and a little scary.
What I have liked about getting this group teach together is choosing texts, activities, and what we want our students to learn. I like that you can go many different places with just one text; I like that one year I may choose to teach American Born Chinese and focus on discrimination and the next I'll teach the same book but focus on identity. There is always something new or different that you can do with the same text and I just like that we can do that. This group teach has made me realize this because each group member has had different approaches to the same texts. It is not like only one group member is right; it's just the book(s) can be taught in so many ways (and I love that).
What I haven't liked is the uncertainty that goes along with every lesson. I do not know if it will work. Will it run smoothly? Will it engage my students or bore them? Will it clearly get the point across? I don't know until I try it and even if it works the first time it may not work the next time. I am just not a huge fan of the uncertainty.
Overall this group teach has been interesting. It makes me excited to plan my units, but it also has shown me how much work I will have to put in to diminish some of my uncertainty and worry. There is no way that any teacher has it easy.
I completely agree with you. Teachers do not have it easy. I do not think I ever realized just how much work the teachers do behind the scenes. I heard students complain all the time about teachers in middle and high school, but I think that it was mostly towards the ones that obviously did not plan much in advance. I think the group teach has taught me so much about what it is really like to put our theory and ideas into practice. I have the same uncertainty as you with how the lessons will go.
ReplyDeleteI like that you addressed that the novels can be taught in any direction. That is one thing that I liked about having a group of 5 for this teaching experience. We can put our ideas together and come up with some great things to do.
I am excited for your group to teach us! Good luck!
I agree that teachers do not have it easy. We have so much do plan and think about. Not only do we have to figure out what kind of lesson we are going to do but we have to think about our students and how they are diverse learners. We have the hardest job in the world I think.
ReplyDeleteI like the group teach as well. It was interesting to hear everyone's ideas on the topic and get everyone's ideas combined. I am excited to see your lesson and I hope to learn some new ideas while being your student.
I also wrote about how challenging teaching seems to be with all the hard work, time planning and organization that goes into it. Anyone who thinks that teachers have an easy job should step into the shoes of a teacher for a day. I think it would be a real eye-opening experience for them!
ReplyDeleteI liked how you pointed out that there is always something new or different that you can do with a text. I think with teaching as a whole, there is always something new that can be done and that variety is the best thing. That is one of the reasons I love the thought of teaching as a profession. Every day is a new experience and a new challenge! This is what truly motivates and excites me.
Doing all of this work has also made me very excited to get into the classroom and teach my own lessons, however it also has really overwhelmed me and scared me a little bit with how intense it is and not knowing if it will be successful or not. I guess it’s all about stepping out of your comfort zone and taking that risk! Ultimately, something will be learned from whatever you do, success or failure, and make you become that even better teacher.
Bethany, I completely agree with everything you had to say. I hate when people give teachers a hard time and think that the job is a luxury where you get summers and weekends off. It involves a lot of planning and every day has a new task to take on. I think our group teach is going well and I also liked to heard everyone else's ideas on each text. Everyone had good ideas and it was interesting to see what everyone came up with. I also liked trying to decided what would work and what wouldn't. As for the uncertainty, I also don't like that about teaching. I like to know that my hard work pays off and I don't like the unexpected too much. Right now, it feels like everything is going too smooth for comfort but I hope the lessons goes as well as planned. It's amazing how many different activities and strategies we worked out before choosing the three we did. I just hope this lesson planning gets easier with time!
ReplyDeleteI know that I am reiterating a little of what others have already said, but I love how you talked about going in different directions with texts!
ReplyDeleteI remember being a little uncertain about where to go with a novel after reading. This group teach is extremely helpful with that because it has given me four other minds to work with. Also, I am really beginning to understand how to take meaning from a novel and make it real and alive.