Wrapping Up the Semester

The week before Thanksgiving we participated in a panel discussion with teachers from Foreman High School, Calvin Park High School and Team Englewood. I learned so much from those discussions which I feel were way too short. Honestly, anytime I come into contact with an educator I try to absorb all the information I can from them. I feel that they are our most valuable resource. The fact that the panel was comprised of graduates from UIC was even more amazing! They were once in our shoes, they have completed the program and are now full time teachers. They offered so many helpful tips and ideas that I will carry with me during student teaching and beyond. What I appreciated the most was their brutal honesty. They offered a glimpse of what it is like to be a UIC graduate working in the “real world;” this unique experience was different from my fieldwork. Yes I have received wonderful and meaningful advice from my cooperating teachers but what made the panel’s contribute more prominent was that fact that they graduated from UIC, they learned how to teach from the same courses I have taken, so in some weird way I found their words more comforting and especially significant. Their success stories felt comforting in that, with our shared education background, I TOO would have similar successes. Now, I understand that this is somewhat irrational but honestly, it did ease some of my nerves about student teaching. It felt sort of like, “Hey we survived the gauntlet, we were armed with the same tools that you are armed with so you’ll be just fine!” Feel free to call me crazy though!  :p

That new-found sense of encouragement also came from one of the panel member’s reflection on his educational career. The question (which I can vaguely remember) was, “What parts of your education did you find to be untrue or unhelpful in a real classroom setting?” To which he replied (something along the lines of) “I was surprised how often I turned to my course materials for guidance during student teaching.” It was comforting to know that every sleepless night (many people can attest to this), those countless cups of coffee, the enormous bags under my eyes, and my hard work will eventually pay off. That everything I have done up until this point was not in vain, thought at times, I will admit I have questioned the validity and importance of some tasks. It is nice to know that I can rely on my coursework to guide my future instruction!! <3

One interesting moment from the panel came from my discussion with the teacher from Calvin Park, when talking about the CCSS she mentioned that her school required her to attend a training seminar about the standards. Being that she is a fairly new teacher her administration sent her to the training, along with other newbies. While at the training she mentioned that it felt like one whole review to her, largely due to the fact that UIC preps us to teach in urban settings. She mentioned that she was surprised that more than half of the teachers participating in the seminar were seeing this material for the first time! She said she was shocked that many of these new teachers had very little knowledge of the CCSS. She told us that our educational background and all the work we have done at UIC has given us an “advantage” of sorts over other teachers. This of course was music to my ears considering the fact that in my spare time I hold mock interviews in my head where I envision how I would conduct myself in an interview. Hey, I’ll take any advantage I can get! :D

The next big take away from the panel came from my discussion with the duo from Foreman High School. They offered us some amazing advice about job interviews. They advised us to keep archives of student work throughout student teaching to use in our interviews. They suggested keeping work that demonstrated the students’ growth over the semester. Another tip they gave was to be able to discuss standards in depth. During interviews many administrators may test your knowledge of the CCSS so be sure to know at least a handful of “go-to” standards that you can discuss, create lessons for, and differentiate on the spot.

Here is a list of some of the other helpful tips the panel offered:

• Be the best dressed person in the building (because ST is a three month interview)
• Ask about “copy rations” in your first meeting with your mentor teacher
• Establish rapport with the staff (front desk, copy person, security)
• Don’t be too hard on yourself, teachers are human too and they make mistakes. It’s okay as long as you reflect and learn from them. Acknowledge your mistakes so that the kids know you’re human too. Learning never stops, you grow as a person and as an educator everyday!

As this semester draws to an end, I can’t help but look back at what I've learned in my last semester of undergrad. I truly feel that this semester has prepared me for student teaching… or at least, I hope. J I am so excited about student teaching. The thought of having my own classroom serves as the constant motivator as I wrap up my final projects and my final semester of undergrad classes. I want to wish everyone good luck on their units. You guys have been awesome!

P.s. Special shout out to Sam, you were the best partner J

P.S.S. Summer, thanks for putting me back together when I fall apart, luv yah gurl!