Over the last week I have had the first interactions with parents and students. Two students are really concerned about their grade and they have come to talk to me along with contact with their parents. I however had an issue with how do you tell a student the reason they are doing poorly in the class is because they are not putting any effort into the class at all. You just tell them. Ha, I told them that I felt like their effort in the class was not where I expected and grades were reflecting that. I also explained to them that part of their issue could be understanding how the questions are worded. I feel like that there is always a way to say something, that there never should be you did this and you didnt you you you.. I feel like I need to give hope -- yes these questions are hard so we need to not only work on effort but understanding how questions are worded.
I was observed over this last week. Things went great! I am very happy with how I am progressing, I just hope that I can show growth because I was rated rather high which is a little worry-some.
Really nothing super exciting this week, we started cells which is exciting because I really like cells and what cells lead up to. :)
here's to go things....
Monday, February 28, 2011
Thursday, February 17, 2011
I refuse to use red pen....
So the last few days I have been grading out a ton of stuff, Lab Write ups, Warms-ups, Exams with Essays, and tomorrow the students are turning in bottle ecosystems. I have been thinking though and personally always had a negative relationship with my graded papers and red pen.
so I bought markers :) all sorts of colors and I enjoy it. I dont know if the students appreciate my lack of red pen, but I sure do.
My philosophy on grading is to help that student take that piece of work that they put some sort of effort in and then I am going to put an effort into grading and helping them understand why they messed something up.
So why do we have those associations. Red pen meaning you really screwed up or that you always tell a person in theater to break a leg instead of good luck. Why? If teachers used many colors for grading all through school would there ever be and association with oh no look at the purple pen or green pen? Its funny all my life I have always thought red = bad/wrong
On the other hand we had a faculty meeting yesterday where a certain guy from central A.B. came and discussed Pay for Performance. This is something that is not if it's coming it's when it's coming. In a nutshell all teachers start out at same baseline pay (without taking into account board certification or advanced degrees or time) and based on what your students make on the eoc is what you get paid. BUT! you are also in some competition with other "team" members with your content area but yet are evaluated on colaberation??? then you are also compared to other schools through out the district???
this is a little disheartening and concerning to me a student teacher who has just started her journey.
hmm questions, concerns, worry.
so I bought markers :) all sorts of colors and I enjoy it. I dont know if the students appreciate my lack of red pen, but I sure do.
My philosophy on grading is to help that student take that piece of work that they put some sort of effort in and then I am going to put an effort into grading and helping them understand why they messed something up.
So why do we have those associations. Red pen meaning you really screwed up or that you always tell a person in theater to break a leg instead of good luck. Why? If teachers used many colors for grading all through school would there ever be and association with oh no look at the purple pen or green pen? Its funny all my life I have always thought red = bad/wrong
On the other hand we had a faculty meeting yesterday where a certain guy from central A.B. came and discussed Pay for Performance. This is something that is not if it's coming it's when it's coming. In a nutshell all teachers start out at same baseline pay (without taking into account board certification or advanced degrees or time) and based on what your students make on the eoc is what you get paid. BUT! you are also in some competition with other "team" members with your content area but yet are evaluated on colaberation??? then you are also compared to other schools through out the district???
this is a little disheartening and concerning to me a student teacher who has just started her journey.
hmm questions, concerns, worry.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
3rd Block
3rd Block is Honors Biology and it is also the block before lunch. Wow, they are chatty and always saying they are starving. I have used all techniques that I have discussed in all my education classes, but Monday a pop quiz is coming out.
Granted they are more of a "standard" preforming honors class they still should show the respect I know they have the capability of.
update from 2.11.11
I am having a hard time with the fact I feel hardly any of the techniques thus far have helped with my student teaching. Why yes I feel some of it is very pertinent I am glad I didn't just jump into a classroom and I am having this time to learn what to do how to do it and how to adjust.
I am having a hard time breaking through to my 3rd block that this stuff - biology is important and you can't just breeze through this class, I mean shoot it's an honors class come on put at least half amount of effort into it. I feel like they don't care because it's ecology and most of these concepts they have done in middle school and are pretty straight forward. So why half ass it??? I would be use this "adjustment" easy into biology period to my advantage completely. I guess I dont think like a high school sophomore though.
Today they had their pop quiz. They hated it because well they had homework that they would of had time to finish in the computer lab and a study guide to finish on VALENTINES DAY!
On a side note though: I truly love being an "almost" teacher
Granted they are more of a "standard" preforming honors class they still should show the respect I know they have the capability of.
update from 2.11.11
I am having a hard time with the fact I feel hardly any of the techniques thus far have helped with my student teaching. Why yes I feel some of it is very pertinent I am glad I didn't just jump into a classroom and I am having this time to learn what to do how to do it and how to adjust.
I am having a hard time breaking through to my 3rd block that this stuff - biology is important and you can't just breeze through this class, I mean shoot it's an honors class come on put at least half amount of effort into it. I feel like they don't care because it's ecology and most of these concepts they have done in middle school and are pretty straight forward. So why half ass it??? I would be use this "adjustment" easy into biology period to my advantage completely. I guess I dont think like a high school sophomore though.
Today they had their pop quiz. They hated it because well they had homework that they would of had time to finish in the computer lab and a study guide to finish on VALENTINES DAY!
On a side note though: I truly love being an "almost" teacher
Friday, February 4, 2011
Getting into it...
First full week down and things I believe are going very well.
I have practically taken over all of 3rd block honors. I gave them an intro quiz on scientific method, variables and lab safety. As a majority the class did remotely well. They also have been doing bottle ecosystems as a side activity from other ecology discussion. We have discussed food webs, food chains, food pyramids, intraspecfic and interspecific interactions within species. I have learned some classroom management and still working on it. I need to work on raining them in when they come into the classroom, I feel like when they come in they run straight back to their bottles and the "structure" is misleading. Today we did a vital commodity lab where the students were different organisms and they meet up with students and eat or be eaten or nothing. They used beans to show transfer of energy and if they ran out of beans they died. Out of all the days today was the most stressful I was a bit frazzled. Today was good learning though. I mean I can't expect to go in and have perfect day everyday because that is what student teaching is for to realize what I can and can't put up with and set boundaries for things and realize that these are basis of being an educator. Monday I am going in starting with structure, students must sit down and start warm up as soon as they are in the classroom, not waiting for the bell to ring. Also I graded their energy pyramid quiz and I need to do some relooping with direction of energy flow.
W is great she is very constructive, but with a past that I have had with observations (at a previous job not to be named:) ) I am very reluctant to them. The past observations have been nothing but criticizing and a period of time where you have to completely defend yourself. So when she starts to constructively criticize I start to get really nervous and defense mechanisms start to build. Ive told myself it's a learning process.
Monday at seminar they assigned our ISL project which is all based on improving student learning. I have to administer a pretest teach a min of 5 lessons and then give post test and show growth in every student. So now I am preparing for that.
I may be only posting one post a week since I am getting into the thick of things... but I AM LOVING IT!
I have practically taken over all of 3rd block honors. I gave them an intro quiz on scientific method, variables and lab safety. As a majority the class did remotely well. They also have been doing bottle ecosystems as a side activity from other ecology discussion. We have discussed food webs, food chains, food pyramids, intraspecfic and interspecific interactions within species. I have learned some classroom management and still working on it. I need to work on raining them in when they come into the classroom, I feel like when they come in they run straight back to their bottles and the "structure" is misleading. Today we did a vital commodity lab where the students were different organisms and they meet up with students and eat or be eaten or nothing. They used beans to show transfer of energy and if they ran out of beans they died. Out of all the days today was the most stressful I was a bit frazzled. Today was good learning though. I mean I can't expect to go in and have perfect day everyday because that is what student teaching is for to realize what I can and can't put up with and set boundaries for things and realize that these are basis of being an educator. Monday I am going in starting with structure, students must sit down and start warm up as soon as they are in the classroom, not waiting for the bell to ring. Also I graded their energy pyramid quiz and I need to do some relooping with direction of energy flow.
W is great she is very constructive, but with a past that I have had with observations (at a previous job not to be named:) ) I am very reluctant to them. The past observations have been nothing but criticizing and a period of time where you have to completely defend yourself. So when she starts to constructively criticize I start to get really nervous and defense mechanisms start to build. Ive told myself it's a learning process.
Monday at seminar they assigned our ISL project which is all based on improving student learning. I have to administer a pretest teach a min of 5 lessons and then give post test and show growth in every student. So now I am preparing for that.
I may be only posting one post a week since I am getting into the thick of things... but I AM LOVING IT!
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