My New Teacher Biography

I am about to finish my 4th year as a teacher. However, getting the teaching certificate took 4 years so I took a New Teacher’s course, as it is mendatory. In this book I will try to share my thoughts from these 4 years, combined with material learned during the workshop. 

Classroom Management

In each session I really connect and learn the most from practical tips and other people’s experience. I think that the strategies that we discussed regarding classroom management are very useful.

The first and most important thing is to set clear and achievable rules. Students should know what to expect and the teacher need to be predictable and not surprise them with different behavior every time. In addition, as a continue to the rules, the routine is very important to help the students and the teacher – we are not afraid of what is known and familiar. Next, students should be engaged during the lesson and so they will not have time or need to interrupt. So, the lesson plan should take under consideration almost every possibility that students will get board and the teacher should be prepared in advance.

When and if we think about classroom management in our lesson plans, the lessons will be great and effective. Moreover, we will end the lesson with a positive feeling and not frustration.

Communication

In one of the sessions, we worked in breakout rooms and discussed a conflict.

I got the next conflict:

You are a high school teacher and notice a group of girls who are bullying one of your students named Anna. Anna has proven to be rude and disruptive in your classroom. What actions should you take as a teacher?

As I mentioned, I like practical information and this conflict remined me of I students I have. This is the second year that I teach her. The first year was terrible between us. We had no connection, she used to be so unpleasant during the lessons, didn’t do any effort and lied to her homeroom teacher and mother about what went on in class.

The conflict that we discussed in the session immediately made me think about the opportunity to make a connection between me and the student, to understand her better and maybe to understand the cause to her behavior. Maybe she is rude and disruptive because of the bullying.

This year I have a much better relationship with my student. One time she even walked in class and said “here is my favorite teacher”. I think I got to her by showing that I care in different situations. I think that one of the first situation was letting her know that I know her birth date. She was very surprised and I am sure it made some different, that I see her as a person and not just a student.

To conclude, communication is everything. It is the first step to “recruit” the student to learning, and not only.

I think that the next clip shows what I am talking about.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzvm1m8zq5g

Leadership

One of the discussions I remember best is about the question: Who is the first person you need when you feel overloaded or tired?

I think that in order to be good at what you do you need someone to lean on. It is very important to have someone to talk to, that understand what you are going trough and maybe give advice (although the listening itself sometimes can be enough). I am happy to say that I am very lucky to have a supportive net of teachers at school that I can turn to every time I need. It can be other English teacher in my stuff or other teachers I work with and know my students. Talking to them helps me stay sane and continue with what I do even better.

“A true leader has the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions, and the compassion to listen to the needs of others.” “Leadership is solving problems. The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them.”

I think this quote in the presentation is very strong and I want to be a leader to my students. I want them to trust me and relay on me to help them and be there for them.

Activities to use in class

I like using digital tools in class. They are fun and students like using their phone.

Padlet – I ask students to share things anonymously so they can feel comfortable making mistakes and sharing. At the same time they can see what others think. It can be giving examples about something we learned, their thoughts and so on.

Wordwall – A fun and engaging site to let students practice individually. In addition, I use it to prompt conversation.

Final thoughts

As I wrote in my opening, this is my 4^th year as an English teacher and 3^rd year as a homeroom teacher. During these years I was also a student at the college and I feel that everything we discussed was already known. Nonetheless, it is always great to here new people and their experiences, to review things that maybe I didn’t think about use them.

This year was very different in many levels. Covid-19 changed a lot of what we know and think. I think that I am more experienced now than I was at the beginning of the year. I have grown professionally since I had to learn a lot about distance learning. The things I learned help me now that we teach at school.  If I felt lost at the beginning of the year, now I feel relaxed, I think about the students as individuals and try to reach each one personally.