I haven't really posted since my school year started. That is because life has been crazy with the school year starting (and for some weird reason new teachers to JSD have some 40 hours of things to get done but no extra time to do them) and with starting a Master's Program through University of Saint Mary. I finally feel like I can stop going at 100 mph. I can go only 75 now.
Anyway... time for a quick reflection.
I wanted to become a completely new teacher at the start of the year. I was determined. I felt like I could do it!... but then school actually started. I instantly had to get into survival mode. I struggled to just get the next day ready. I had emails to answer, evaluations to complete, professional portfolios to complete, and mounds and mounds of homework and tests to grade and put in. I had absolutely no time for anything I wanted to do. Instead I only had time for the things I needed to do to stay afloat.
This has led me to contemplate: why can't I shake out of the traditional way of doing things? Why is it so stinkin hard? Well, before I can do that I need to have some sort of foundation. I need a place to start. CURSE BEING A NEW TEACHER!!! I love teaching, but being new is such a hindrance. I don't know how students will react to anything. I don't know how I'd normally teach anything because it's my first time teaching it. I'm hoping that as the year goes on I can catch up and make something happen, but no guarantees right now.
On another note, during the little bits of time I find in the bathroom or on the train to work, I've been reading John Hattie's Visible Learning for Teachers. He and Dylan Wiliam should be friends. His book says many things that Embedded Formative Assessment says: Make success criteria very clear, find out what students know, and teach accordingly (so far). Hattie's book has a lot about teachers working together to accomplish goals. Overall, it's been a good read.
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