When I was assigned the task of interviewing my
mentor teacher on her methods of planning for instruction, I thought, that it
would be easy. I thought that I would sit down with my teacher, ask a few questions,
get a straight answer and that would be that. As it turns out, the questions
didn’t seem to be as easy to answer as I had originally thought. My teacher
seemed confused and unclear on how to answer what I had been inquiring. I asked
about her process, what guides she follows and what methods she uses including
specific details she may consider when planning. Although she tried her best to
answer, I still didn’t feel satisfied. The process of planning for instruction
has been one of my greatest conundrums when it comes to learning how to be a
teacher. As I have progressed through all my classes thus far everything has
made sense. I know to teach from my heart and care about my students, I’m
learning that it is important to incorporate all types of cultures into my
program, I understand the importance of differentiating instruction and
scaffolding, however when it comes to knowing what and how to teach my vision
goes fuzzy. Suddenly, it’s all very unclear to me.
Again and again my mentor teacher pointed out how
she uses the standards and the curriculum to base her lesson plans off of, but
again and again I failed to get the sense that I had a concrete definition of
what I would need to do in my future career. At this point in time, it seems that
I am missing a piece of the puzzle and I might not ever find it until I reach
my student teaching or first actual teaching job. I am beginning to believe
learning this process is something that must come from experience rather than
paper, pencils, books and questions. Although these are all rungs in the latter
to my success, there is nothing quite like simply being thrown into the real
thing to make you learn quick and adapt to a new norm.
With all that being said, I began to venture outside
of just my mentor teacher’s
suggestions in the hopes of finding more answers to these resounding questions.
I talked to my mom, dug for her input and pleaded for an outline or overview on
what to do. When even her advice didn’t suffice I talked with the art teacher
at the same school my mentor teacher works. This is where I found my answer.
My interview with her was practically pleading,
begging for an end to my search. From here on out I stopped “playing the role
as teacher,” I stopped trying to present myself as a prepared, intelligent
young women who was ready to finally become a teacher. And lastly, I skipped
all the propriety. For that moment, I remembered I was only a student and that
above all, right then, that was also my
job. I said to her, “but how do I know what to do,” (a final attempt at gaining
an answer with continuity). She said, “There is no single way to answer that
question.” I was floored. All this time I had been searching for something that
does not exist. She explained that it’s a different process for every person
and every school and most importantly, every group of students.
Specifically, she emphasized the importance of
keeping behavior in mind when planning. She discussed a term called the “responsive
classroom,” which she said is beginning to be a large focus for many schools.
From what she discussed with me, the term means that students are learning how
to be responsible for themselves. This means that students should be able to
figure out how to work through problems on their own and in groups rather than
the teacher having to instruct them all the time. She pointed to her own class
as an example. Their ability to clean up and work on their projects together,
to understand transitions and when it was important to listen for instruction
without having to be reminded was all part of this idea.
Later, she even showed me her lesson book. She
explained that you can pull information and resources from ANYWHERE. When
sitting down to write her own, she often spreads all her materials out in front
of her. She begins with the standards and goals and works from there to develop
a plan, pulling whatever she needs as her ideas flow. This method reminded me
so much of my own style. When studying or trying to plan something out I often find
myself crisscross apple sauce in the middle of my bed with papers and books
scattered around me. I tend to hop along, following my train of thought rather
than a more methodical strategy. For me it’s what makes the most sense,
especially since I am very forgetful. It gives me a sense that my resources are
right at my fingertips whenever I may suddenly need them. When I have an idea I
feel more comfortable to run with it no matter what I may have been previously
working on for fear that I may lose that train of thought and never get it
back. With that being said, I have a
feeling that my best planning is going to come from my classroom floor. Given
my learning style and need to spread out and jump around, I may find that doing
this on my classroom floor after or before school might be a great strategy.
Not to mention having a big dry erase board behind me could be another thing I
could use to jot down ideas or make charts on as I go along, I fully intend on
utilizing my space as needed.
Overall however, I am beginning to realize that all
the answers and things I need to know are not necessarily going to be presented
to me in the years that I am an undergraduate student. Just like my mentor teacher
said to her students today, “don’t forget, I am a student too, just like you.”
As teachers, it is more important to realize that we are also students, always
adapting and always learning new skills rather than fretting over the notion
that you need to know all about teaching before you get the chance to actually
be one. We learn from experience and from here on in, I must take comfort in
the fact that no one expects anyone to be the perfect teacher now (or later)
but rather, to be the even better student.
