Notes from a New Teacher

RedKudo:

I feel perfectly fine being a teacher. I don't get angry, I just document, and etc. (Learned that from the airline job, actually.)

What I don't feel good about is kids coming to me that have somehow slipped through the system without the most rudimentary skills. Minimum skills tests be damned - we're talking about kids who don't know how language influences the decisions they make every day, from politics to credit cards. Students who do not know how to question "information" they're receiving, who don't know how to express themselves intelligibly verbally or in writing. I'll have to go on record as saying I do not believe it's as simple as apathy or disinterest, and here's why: I think I know what they're going through.

As in many professions, there are some truly extraordinary teachers, those who go out of their way to grow student achievement (staying after school to provide students with extra math instruction), buck the system and constantly improve their craft. Deming often mentioned "delighting your customers". I have two recent examples to pass along: A teacher organized an overnight trip to Upham Woods for the entire class. Another calls students at home with test results when they perform well.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at February 24, 2007 7:46 PM
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