Thursday, August 22, 2013

Teacher Update - Living By Ben Franklin's Version of Happiness

I read a fantastic quote by Benjamin Franklin, whose biography by W.H. Brands I have been reading over the last two summers. It reads, "...Happiness consists more in small conveniences or pleasures that occur every day, than in great pieces of good fortune that happen but seldom to a man in the course of his life."


I'm now just about done with my second week of teaching at a new school. It has been a fantastic time but also days filled with more challenges than I anticipated. I suppose that is part of the reason a challenge is what it is. You can often predict how things will go and what the stumbling blocks will be. But when you are thrust into a new environment with a minimal amount of knowledge about the daily workings of a place, only time and experience in that space will truly give you the insight as to how to best overcome the challenges that come about.

Let me share some of the best things about my new job first.
1. The faculty. I have yet to meet someone that is not helpful or greets a fellow coworker with a "hello" or "how are ya." The interim principal, who has been at the school for years, is organized, friendly and pretty funny. Last Friday just before the final bell rang at 3:20, he came on the P.A. and told kids they'd done such a great job they were being given two days off (the weekend). Pretty funny! My Biz Ed coworkers are great, too. They are personal and we've shared a lot over lunch already. I have spent more time with three of the Biz teachers than anyone else in Applied Arts or Social Studies, simply because my office/desk is in the Biz Ed office. I have popped into the Social Studies office a few times and everyone I've met has also been friendly. It's the type of place you want to work.
2. The Students. Wow, what a difference. I had some great kids in Urbana. But even with the best classroom management skills on the planet, I couldn't have had an entire class of students have notebooks out, writing down a "word of the day" and waiting for me to give them the definition while I take attendance. It is beautiful. I pass students in the hall and they say good morning. The swear words in the hall are minimal, unlike the conversations I'd hear at Urbana. There is a lot of building up and an obvious desire to learn. I'm trying to do more "student-driven" learning. Letting the kids puzzle something out or peer helping when they have questions. Then the teacher trouble shoots or reteaches. It works! These students are involved in their school. The majority of kids I've talked to about things other than classwork are in a club or sport or will be. It is refreshing to see such driven young adults.
3. The technology. Lots of technology here. A larger school and more students which means the options are a bit broader and need is greater to have more available. I used Chromebooks this week in my Econ class. I had never used one, nor had most of my students and together we all got them logged on (challenging) and learning how to use Google Docs and be productive. There are several computer labs and there are four rooms in the Biz Ed wing that are labs and nearly every class (that I know of) in Biz Ed is taught in there. Every room I teach in has a Smart Board. Again, I've never used one and I'm picking it up pretty quickly. Using virtual business simulation software, which we were going to purchase at Urbana but had never used by the time I left. Kids love it!
4. The support. The mentor program is real here. My mentor is fantastic. He emails me about the littlest things just to make sure I know about them. He checks in about something he remembered to ask me before even saying hello. He is the type of person who comes early and stays hours late and even after over a decade in teaching it doesn't phase him. The new staff coordinators are also fantastic. One of them is my social studies department chair and my evaluator. She is also checking in on me and we've got a brief meeting, scheduled by her, to make sure I'm doing okay. These are things Urbana wanted to do but I didn't feel always followed through. Let's be honest though, my mentor my first year thought that just "scheduling" a meeting and talking for a minute "counted" and he could cross that off the list. It wasn't about helping me or making sure I was doing okay. It was about meeting requirements. I hope I am living up to the expectations the school and I have set for what I am doing. There is only one way to find out! Keep pushing hard, doing my best and keep asking questions.
5. The schedule. Block scheduling is awesome! Think about it - students have just four classes per day. That is only four things to think about and study. It is the idea of specialization at work! Workers perform better when they have fewer tasks or jobs to focus on. So do students. Instead of 7 or 8 classes to study for and memorize, it is four. Fantastic. Plus, Thursdays are late start so that teachers can have PLC (Professional Learning Communities) time and collaborate with each other. We do not have to come earlier or stay later. It is just late start for students. I love it. Much more accommodating for teachers and staff. We all put in so many more hours than people outside of teaching realize. Hours of prepping quizzes, worksheets, discussion prompts, debates, searching for videos, etc. When you are teaching new preps like I am, it takes longer to do all of that. It is a change after four years of having preps fairly well planned that just needed tweaking. Besides, in 90 minute classes, you can do three or four activities with kids and they won't get bored (hopefully) in addition to give them time for practicing those concepts being learned.

What more do I need? Challenges are few when you read all of that. My biggest is just pacing. I have to get everything taught in just 9 weeks. I am striving to pace my classes about the same if not exactly the same as other teachers who are teaching Econ and Intro to Business. That is the tough part. Learning technology is pretty tough. I am new to Google Drive and Google Docs and sharing documents and the new gradebook system and all the other procedures I need to log into for test recording. I will get it all down, I am sure.

I can already tell you that I hope I get to stay at this school for a long, long time. I'm working hard to make that happen. I have wanted to be a "lifer" at a worksite since I began working. It just hasn't happened yet. Perhaps because I wasn't using Benjamin Franklin's lovely outlook on what happiness is. I think I am closer than I have been in a few years. (That is not to say there are a few things I would like to have/experience yet). I am also working hard to keep you all posted on how this journey is going. So far so good on that line item, right?

I need to go pick out my red for school spirit Friday. It is the only day of the week we can wear jeans (although I learned that Thursdays we can if we have a "Just Read" or "Be Nice" t-shirt which I need to figure out how to order.) Happy almost Friday all!

Please leave a comment. Encouragement means a lot.
KB

4 comments:

  1. Hey, looks like the year is off to a great start! I'm teaching in a block schedule format as well, so your pacing comment resonates. Good luck and let's try and plan a lunch this fall!

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    1. Yes please Mrs. M!! I miss your positive energy!

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  2. Way to go Kristen, you are on a blog roll. So nice to read how great your new school environment is and how happy you are at your new school. Your students are going to love you and your peers will learn a ton from you too!
    You on your way to having a grand year!

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  3. We're all so happy for you. I thought from the beginning that this was a very positive place. Students tend to be a whole lot more involved when they feel good about the place they are spending their days. You're doing such amazing things! And we love reading about them. Have a great, relaxing weekend!

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