This week was full of new challenges both for myself as a teacher, but also as a new graduate student. One event I think best sums up the feeling of the week. I met the daughter of an old elementary school friend. She is a 7th grader in my building. I couldn't believe that I was old enough to teach my friend's daughter! Where has all the time gone? It reminds me of how much I have to accomplish over the semester and the goals that I hope to succeed at with my students by June.
Being a teacher is definitely a demanding job. As an undergrad, one of the first classes I took in the Education department was called Schools and Communities. Our first class the professor gave us a help wanted ad to look at. It was looking for a nurse, confidant, cheerleader, listener, etc. to work with children. It was an ad looking for an educator, and I think often of it because it reminds me of all the hats I have to wear at school. Those roles are part of the job, but certainly not the reason I became an educator. I am chasing the "light bulb" moment. I live for when a student of mine learns something for the first time.
This year our 6th graders are taking part of a 1-1 laptop program. The challenge has been the time spent in class getting them comfortable with the technology which is taking away from the curriculum. I try to tell myself that by the end of the year they will have come so far, but will I have actually taught them anything about history? And is that okay if I don't? Another concern is that as much planning as we did do to prepare for this initiative, it was impossible to prepare for everything. Keeping the teachers on the same page when it comes to keeping common procedures to maintain safety and order has raised many issues. This week students were changing security settings to personalize their netbook desktop with personal pictures because a teacher told them it was okay to do it! I hope that the technology will enable me to increase the "light bulb" moments after we sort out these issues. I like to stay positive and hope that with time the challenges will bring major rewards.
As a student this week I was able to have my first experience with a completely virtual classroom! I was concerned about not being able to submit assignments correctly on Blackboard and getting into the classroom itself (Wimba), but it turns out that I was completely competent. I also realized that I need to be more open to guiding my own learning and working more independently. I guess that by growing personally as a student, I will be able to allow my students to grow in new ways too. If you don't know anything about 1-1 initiatives, check out
Maine's Technology Initiative for 7th and 8th grade students.
