Simplify Your Teaching Life
The first part of the chapter talked about how teaching can be overwhelming. Teachers can begin to feel like they are always being told what to do and how to do it. This seems to take the joy from teaching. I hope to strive to be a teacher who comes to work because I enjoy what I do. I also have to bring my love for literacy along with me.
The next part discusses how teachers have little time to reflect because they are so busy. Many schools seem to adopt programs that add to the amount of work teachers have to. They believe these programs will "fix" the achievement gap.
As an educators we have to be knowledgeable. We don't need to jump on board with programs when we aren't aware of the research behind the program or idea. We also need to have knowledge on our students. As the teacher of your classroom, you must adapt ideas so that they fit your students. We need to focus on what is best for our students.
The section that talked about teach to the child not the label is so important to remember. We can't take a child's label and then begin to teach them. For example, not all ESOL students go home and speak only Spanish. Therefore we can't make assumptions about students based on the labels they have been given.
Finally, we have to go into our jobs each day with confidence. We have the resources, we have the strategies, and we have the students. We need to just go in and teach. Our ideas our supported by science therefore we know they will be effective. Scientific knowledge and our experience must go together in order to have students meet success.
Victoria, I like what you wrote about teaching to the child and not the label. This is also very important to remember when thinking about "programs". Many makers of programs advertise their product to be effective for certain labels (ESOL, learning differences, poverty, etc). It takes knowing what the students need first and then going from there when teaching!
ReplyDeleteHi Victoria,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you 100% that we have to be mindful that we don't treat students as labels or scores, but as people with interests and with opportunities to show growth and to learn. It will be important for us to teach with intent and with purpose, considering who we teach as much as what we teach.