Overall I thought summer training was awesome. Almost everyone in our class had little or no teaching experience so it was awesome to learn the basics of teaching and immediately implement them in my classroom. It is cool how our binder covering the summer course material has two tabs – one for classroom management and one for lesson planning. After teaching for only 5 weeks it is clear that if a teacher can have a firm grasp on those two topics they will be a solid teacher. Below are a few of the strengths and weaknesses of the six week summer training experience. STRENGTHS The community - Coming to summer training I was two weeks removed from my college experience where I lived with 25 of my closest friends on the same hall. Living in the same complex as everyone else in the program facilitated close friendships and an excellent support system. Training - I was accepted to Teach for America as well as this program and one of my friends who is a current second year assured me that the training in MTC was second to none. He was right. The Free Stuff! - Through various grants we've received an amazing MacBook, a free Masters Degree from Ole Miss and tons of other perks. I would've still completed the program regardless of these perks because I wanted the opportunity to teach but these perks make it all the more better! WEAKNESSES Inconsistency in Role Plays - For the last three weeks of summer training we typically had two hours of 'role plays' or times where we taught for five minutes at a time and veteren teachers acted out worst case scenarios that have actually occurred in the classroom of MTC teachers. Overall they were extremely helpful and allowed me to find that 'teacher voice' but some days it seemed more like we placed in impossible situations that were not realistic at all. Too Advanced Teaching Methods - Many times the advice we were given was great and given by teachers who were anywhere from 20 to a year removed from their first year of teaching. Their advice and methods were absolutely awesome but as a first year I feel as though I'll be in survival mode the first semester of teaching and some of the methods for teaching weren't practical for first year teachers. Outlook for the Fall Teaching my very own class is just a few short weeks away. It is exciting but also crazy to think. During summer school we always had the fall back plan of other teachers in our classroom if things didn't go over but that will all change once August comes. I think having a few weeks off from the program will be beneficial because I will be able to reflect on everything that's happened and I'll gather my thoughts for the school year. Should be interesting...
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Summer Training Reflection
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Sold post Bill. I agree with much of what you say. Your breakdown was nice - strengths, weaknesses, and an outlook for the fall. I liked the part about role plays. I probably agree with this point the most. Sometimes I felt like role plays were situations that forced us to fail. No matter what we would do, the "right" answer could not be found. Setting someone up for failure isn't always the best way to have them succeed in the long run. Anyway, sweet post Bill. See you in class!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI agree a lot with what you had to say about role plays. Don't get me wrong I think they have point, but often times they were so dramatic that it just did not seem real. It also seemed like I was never going to find the "Right" answer. I love the way you break things down. I have to agree that the perks are pretty nice. I agree with the fall back plan of other teachers. It is nice, but scary to think that in a few short weeks those teachers will be no where in site and it is scary to see who sinks or swims. I must agree though that one of my favorite parts is the class with monroe and our wide range of teaching experience in our group. it gave my more and more confidence getting advice and praise from others. I hope that we all have a great year and know that people are in our corner.
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