It's the night before my first professional development and I'm really nervous and excited. In all honesty, I'm getting really sick of reading about education and discussing those readings in courses because it puts education in abstraction. I am impatient now but once I begin co-teaching I'm sure I'll have a laundry list of things to learn at PD's.
Over our 2 weeks off, I've taken the time to get together with friends from the cohort and connect with friends of mine who have taught in inner city areas. It's given me food for thought. First off, it appears that those of us who've been in classrooms before, particularly urban classrooms, have a sense of maturity and foresight that the rest of us lack. They care about making connections with one another because they know we'll need the support. There's this sense to scramble to get ready for things--to read every single homework assignment, do extra credit, etc, in my courses. I feel myself resisting that urge because I'm trying to keep the perspective that I will learn so much more through experience than through discussing theory.
To be fair, though, we've had plenty of courses this summer with readings that seem very concretely applicable. For example, the workbooks on designing lessons in "Curriculum and Instruction" seem really helpful, and there are some techniques from "Content Literacy" I hope to use. The reading my new principal just sent us, the introduction to "Teach Like a Champion," by Doug Lemov, seems very useful. It blows the other readings into the water in terms of perceived usefulness. This was only the intro, but the book describes very concrete ways to get students' attention, save time, hold them accountable for class participation and achievement, and encourage learning. I found myself taking particular note of the strategies my instructors this summer used with us as a class in addition to the ones they described. They were clearly very skilled. Lemov makes a valuable point--theory is wonderful but it's also helpful to know what to do at 8:25am when x, y, or z is happening. Of course teaching isn't exactly a formula, but to have ideas for what to do when, and how to shape a valuable atmosphere seems important!
I guess I've just been doing my best. I've been doing my best to do well in school this summer and so far I have. I've taken the readings seriously, the writings seriously, I've taken the discussions and the lessons to heart. I've learned more than I ever thought I would, really.
Lemov quotes coaching legend Bobby Knight as saying, "Many have the will to win, few have the will to prepare to win." It's making me think a lot about what it means to prepare and how I best feel prepared. Preparing takes foresight and planning. A person who prepares well takes small actions over time that lead to a larger event so that when the larger event comes, they are ready. I believe in adopting a mindset that works for you, a positive attitude that helps you get through constructively any ups and downs you might have. That mind-set can then guide everything else.
When I am teaching more of the lessons and have specifics to prepare, I will do so. The example Lemov gives is of a teacher who rehearsed her questions for her students during her commute to school and anticipated incorrect answers so she could think of follow-up questions to each one. This allowed her mind to be freer to observe her students in class and make sure they were on task. I look forward to those specific steps I can take to feel prepared. Until then I'll have to continue to think about what it will take for me to "win" here, or be successful as a teacher.
