I think I've officially put this off for long enough...
Overall, I had a great time on my observation. I met some great (and some not-as-great) teachers, learned a lot about the realities of dealing with ~30 rambunctious teenagers, sat through awkward lunches in the staff room, and got to teach a couple times.
Originally I had planned to go to Penticton Secondary School, and stay at my sister's house a few blocks away. However, I ended up being placed in Summerland Secondary School. At first I was feeling a little apprehensive about the situation, but it turned out to be a really great tight-knit little school.
I didn't have a lot of structure, nor did I have a mentor teacher. However, the English department head kind of took me under her wing, and helped me out a lot whenever I had questions (or got lost).
I ended up following her English 12 class while they did a short story unit. On the second day she asked me if I would be interested in teaching a lesson, so I went about planning to teach irony (my second biggest English-nerd pet peeve). It was a little nerve wracking, but the lesson went over fairly well. The students were pretty well-behaved, and my only real problem was that I ended about 10 minutes short, and wasn't really sure what to do with them (I just got them to silent read).
I also spent a lot of time attending Bridge classes. Summerland has a program for grade nines who are referred from middle school as students who may not be suited for regular grade nine academic classes. These students typically have behavioural problems, and many of them have learning exceptionalities as well. All of these referred students take their grade nine academics together, in the same room, with the same teacher. Needless to say, it seemed like quite the challenge. However, the teacher was amazing! She did a great job of keeping the students under control and at least partially focused - a huge task for a group of students with a wide variety of needs and abilities. I found it incredibly inspiring to see her work with these kids, and it made me seriously consider the option of pursuing a masters for special ed - something I hadn't really considered before. I spoke to her a bit about her "strategies", and she said that she really tries to push to build self-esteem. There was very little scolding for bad behaviour, and most of the class was centered around positive reinforcement. For example, in English Bridge, the teacher generally reminded the students that they would be allowed to read from _Hunger Games_, the class novel they were in the middle of, if they finished all their work on time. I was really surprised at how effective her whole system was, and it gives me hope!
Honestly, the most awkward thing about being on observation was sitting in the staff room at lunch. I think this stemmed from this sort of liminal feeling that goes along with observation. We aren't teachers yet, we aren't TOCs, we aren't even really students at that point, so why are we there? Maybe that was just me, but I think I will feel a lot less awkward when I'm out on the 5wk practicum, and actually have a purpose for being in the school.
That sucks that you had the awkward feeling in the lunch room. I can see where you are coming from, but at the school I observed at most of the teachers were hearkened back to their observation and practicum days and in general they were quite welcoming. All except that one guy who made fun of me for wearing a tie. *grumble*
ReplyDeleteI remember how uncomfortable it was sitting in some staff rooms. It is an awkward 'place' to be.
ReplyDeleteI think your comfort level will improve too.