1 post tagged “first year reflection”

Blog Topic:  Reflect back on your first-year teaching.  What went well, what didn't.  What do you want to do differently next year?

At the close of this year, I reflect on the lives of students I did touch, the ones I almost touched, and the ones I couldn't touch. As a teacher, it is a great disappointment to even admit to being incompetent, so I will talk about this first.  One of the things I was horrible at was getting to work on time. This was not for the entire year, though. Somehow, during the third nine weeks I just got too damn tired, excuse my French. I barely missed work, and when I did it was for a workshop.  I managed to even save days for use in the next school term.  I am going to work on making more time for myself because in the long run my students deserve fifty minutes of instruction time a day, not 45 because I'm finishing my breakfast as I am rushing to start the morning's class.  Also the fourth nine weeks proved to be the biggest challenge for me.  My students were a little too relaxed by the fourth nine weeks.  The relationship I had with them the third nine weeks should have taken place during the fourth nine weeks because they thought I was crazy the fourth nine weeks.  It is very difficult to balance coaching with classroom instruction when you coach a sport that occasionally leaves during the day.  Next year, I plan to use podcasts for my ninth graders since they will have MACS!! THANKS E2T2!!  That pretty much sums up the things that did not go well.

I think one thing worth mentioning that worked well with me was the relationship that I built with my students. I students hated me the first nine weeks because I was the biggest witch I could be (really want to put the word with the b!!) They claimed that they had run all of these teachers off but I had to get them straight.  I remembered telling them that I refused to be disrespected by a bunch of ignorant teenagers!! This occurred after I returned from a track meet absence.  My students knew that I was not playing with them!! With this being said, I do realize this comes from the established respect that we have as teacher and students. 

Next year I will be a lot sterner because I am teaching a E-3. I have am going to make the class as engaging as possible, but it is my goal to work them for the entire 50 minutes each day.  We do not have time to be casual, we can do that after school!! Our test scores must improve, and they will only improve if I bring my A-game!! Wish me luck!!!