1. What did you do today? (Include something specific: event, episode, photo, conversation)
Today was the first day and I was happy to find my school and get settled in. I am working at MLK which is divided into six small schools. I am working with ***** at the school for the Arts and Technology. The first day was really good. The first thing I noticed about the building was the architecture- it is designed like a fishbowl with glass windows all around but because the hallway is near the windows, the classrooms literally have no windows or natural light. Additionally to this, ***** mentioned that the highest performing school in the building was on the top floor, the next highest on the next floor and so on to the basement which housed a school that received an F. I thought this was an interesting phenomenon.
****** is a Smith Alum who has had many Urban Ed Fellows and knew pretty much what to expect which made for a smooth day. She was extremely welcoming and brought us to her staff meeting which helped to orientate us with the teachers and administration. The principle talked about the schools Report Card which had just been released and how the school was ranked right in the middle. ****** had the first period free so she prepped us for her lesson plans of the day. This was really helpful because it enabled me to better assist the students. ****** teaches English for 11th and 12th graders. I was with Marina in her classroom for all of her periods and the students were very welcoming and friendly. She teaches a variety of classes: a 12th grade advisory, a 12th/11th grade honors class, an 11th grade special needs class, and a regular 11th grade class. The first class was her 12th grade advisory and we talked about the FAFSA, ****** and I basically got to lead a lot of the discussion right off the bat because the students wanted to ask "real live college students" about the FAFSA. ****** was really organized and all of the other teachers and students were prepared to see us/ had had other Smith students in their class before which I think made a big difference in their comfort level with us. The classes are focusing mostly on Regents Prep and College Prep. I think this positive initial reaction to us and good discussion set the tone for the rest of the day and relieved any anxiety I was feeling.
2. How did today go? Use a scale of 1 [awful!] to 10 [perfect day!] and explain why?
On a scale of 1 to 10, I would say today went about a 9 for a first day. The day and school totally exceeded my expectations and I felt a lot more comfortable then I thought I would. Finding the school was no problem and the commute is really nice, meeting ****** and the rest of the staff went really well, and the students were relatively respectful to us and excited to talk to us. I was concerned about not being able to connect with either my teacher or the students but thus far do not seem to be having a problem and the students were a lot better behaved than I expected.
3. What will you do differently going forward?
While Today I was able to help the students on their assignments I was not sure whether or not ****** wanted me to ask the students to not talk or not use their cell phones, etc during class. During last period I noticed that a girl was playing with her camera which I was pretty sure wasn't allowed but I did not know whether ****** wanted us to "discipline" the students or leave that to her. After talking with her after class she said that she would really appreciate if we did "discipline" the students and monitor their classroom behavior etc, so I will start doing that tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment