Is there a better topic for my final required blog than that I don't enjoy the emphasis being placed on technology?
I realize that there are numerous advantages that can theoretically be garnered from the blogs and the video cameras and the iLife or whatever the hell it is called, but I simply am not a fan. I see all these things as shiny bells and whistles; unfortunately it seems that they are being regarded not as an adornment, but as some necessary and critical aspect of the program. I have no problem with the use of computers or whatever else; I just see it as a little absurd when their use becomes required. I also don't want to waste my time fiddling with some camera or program I don't understand when I could be writing lesson plans or sleeping or eating or reading a book.
But the iMac chess game is fun.
What is going to happen when I go to school?
I haven't a clue, to tell you the truth. As far as I understand, I will be using a set of classroom rules that are as of yet undecided upon--meaning, all of my high school teachers have to agree on a common set of policies to consistently enforce. The idea sounds terrific in principle, but if the dithering back and forth between all of the MTC is any indication, it may well take us days to figure out what our rules should be.
With that being said, it will be nice to have a single set of rules throughout the school so that the kids won't complain about being unfairly treated. Let's just hope that we can establish a set of rules and that all the teachers will abide by them. It's not difficult to imagine a teacher who, having been shouted down for the inclusion of one rule, says to himself, "I don't mind if kids chew gum. I just won't enforce the gum rule." And chaos reigns. But in all likelihood, chaos may well reign anyways, so I'm not really worried.
It looked better this time. I didn't stare at the ceiling so frequently. As I mentioned in the other review, I said "Okay?" too much. All in all the lesson was just fine, except for the fact that the kids were struggling with the concept I was trying to teach them. I don't know what else really needs to be said: poise was fine, knowledge of the subject looked good, I called on all the students, I turned off the lights and the kids didn't fall asleep, I've mastered the use of the overhead, I even improv'ed a new part of the lesson when I realized that time was going to become an issue.
I've realized I can't beat myself up over the fact that the kids are struggling with the information. So it's still a failure on both my and their parts, but I'm not going to take it personally and I'm not going to lose sleep over it. There are other days and other lessons to tighten up the kids' knowledge.
And after seeing their final exams, it looks like they understood everything just fine.
I would like never to watch myself on film again. I think the lesson went alright, but there’s just something about watching myself do all the stupid things that I only half-consciously know that I do, which is not really a lot of fun. It’s the same with mirrors; unless I know I am approaching one, it freaks me out to look over and see myself doing whatever I was in the midst of doing before I looked over.
So now that that’s done with, to the lesson: it seemed to go well enough. This was the first of a two-part lesson about writing persuasively; in this lesson, they debated each other aloud, in groups, as to who the best rapper and basketball player were. The next lesson would focus that energy and show them how what they just did could be as easily done in writing.
I think the kids understood the lesson. My main problems were twofold: 1. I have this idiotic habit of, when I’m walking around the classroom lecturing, staring off into space like Plato pontificating, instead of looking at my kids as I talk. It is absurd. Let’s hope I can cut down on it.
The second problem is with classroom management. The kids were well-behaved until they split up into groups. Slowly they started veering off-topic, but there was never an instance where it would have been easy for me to drop the hammer and shut them up by making an example of one kid. So instead I did nothing and the lesson slowly degenerated. Ultimately everything was fine; the kids debated and cheered and seemed to learn something, but there was a lot more off-topic talking than I would have preferred. How exactly I would go about being a better classroom manager, I don’t know, but that’s what they pay the Ed. School professors the big bucks to find out.
PS. Ann,
I wrote this and then my Microsoft Office Test Drive expired and I had to go find a real copy of Office because, after the Test Drive expired, I was locked out from all my Word files (of which this was one). Considering my plight (and it's quite a plight), would you still like to give me full credit?
