Rookie Teacher “Under Fire”

How can new teachers improve in the classroom?

“Use teachable moments as a blueprint for what you should not do in the future.”(Germany Kent)

I’m currently reading a provocative book entitled “The Coddling of the American Mind” authored by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haida. As you you can tell by the title, there’s plenty of concern about the decline of our current educational system. In light of this issue, I thus present the following story of one aspiring educator who would be tested severely to pursue his dream to teach. See if you can spot those rookie teacher mistakes yourself that places this novice teacher “under fire.” Click on the following link to more fully understand the main thrust of this issue.

https://youtu.be/fdEbpoGVr4w?si=HC8NRnkeF6niB92C

 

Rookie Teacher “Under Fire”

On the night before his first day as an instructor, Jacob felt fully ready to teach. For his professors had always praised him for mastering those challenging tenets of educational psychology in his undergraduate university classes while his teaching internship at the familiar high school of his youth once provided a comforting setting he could thrive in. Know however that this novice teacher would tomorrow face his first real test of his resolve to teach as he wanted to yet there would be no assurances that his work contract would last more than one year.

So with considerable relief, real teaching seemed at first a “breeze” for Jacob. For as he met each of his 11th grade American History classes with his typical smile and optimistic tone that first day, he felt comfortable as his students routinely introduced themselves individually. Yet on each of these friendly occasions, there seemed to be minimal conversation about those parameters of expected behavior to be followed by these aspiring, college bound juniors in class. So with his students notably quiet on this matter, during this latter part of each class orientation, Jacob instead decided to open channels of communication more. So he designated four or five group teams be formed throughout the first day , each with the freedom to select their own unique group name. In addition, he made clear that team leaders elected by each group would be provided opportunities to teach the entire class at various times of the semester.

In the ensuing months, Jacob undertook a consistent routine of starting each class with a short lecture about the assigned textbook content with the bulk of the classwork to follow being accomplished in these small group sessions. At some point before the end of each class, he would then allot time for each team to report back to the entire class about ideas they discussed. But he noticed at times that some groups seemed unwilling to do so. In so declining to speak, he heard frequent complaints from team leaders that the ideas discussed were either too unpleasant to deal with or it was not politically correct for them to talk in front of the entire class. So being the “kind soul” that he envisioned himself, Jacob on these occasions “gave in” to these student concerns and allowed them to reconvene on their own time in a more private setting and submit their answers online.

Sadly, this yearly “grind” for Jacob of teaching his students in this more student trustful way eventually took its toll on his psyche when their exam scores began to plummet. But with no turning back from spreading a more student empowered atmosphere as his current teaching preference, he pressed on to make his approach to teaching work. Yet would next year be better if Jacob’s given the chance to learn from his mistakes to teach full time there again?