New Kid on the Block: Surviving My First Year in the Classroom
By Mark Nichol
11/14/07
What does it take to ensure that new teachers have a fair shake at succeeding? Perhaps my experience is instructive.
I come from a family of teachers: My father, both grandmothers, and an aunt all spent time at the front of a classroom. A few years after I graduated from college, though I had not studied education, I decided to follow in their footsteps -- and the prospect of doing so excited me. After earning my teaching credential, however, I couldn’t find a full-time job. I spent a year and a half working as a substitute teacher, and when I again failed to get a classroom assignment, I resigned myself to another twelve months of pinch-hitting.
But then, two days before the start of the school year, a principal asked me to substitute indefinitely in a third-grade class whose teacher had abruptly taken another job. I showed up the next day, bright eyed and eager, and a couple of teachers happily skipped a long, boring districtwide teachers’ assembly to help me set up my classroom at the last minute.
When I greeted my thirty-two little charges that first morning, I had to be honest with them and tell them I might not be their permanent teacher, but I was hired at the end of the second day, and we settled into the routine. Soon after, I was told that my predecessor had loaded the student roster with many kids with behavior problems, but they seemed a nice enough group, and I knew from my experience as a substitute that eight-year-olds enjoy the novelty of a young male teacher. (The school had only one other, in a kindergarten class.)
I had delusions of being a super teacher, creating much of my own curriculum, and inspiring these young minds to think outside the box (this was long before such phrases as “project-based learning” had been invented), but that school year was very difficult. The principal, at the insistence of the parents of one of my students, transferred their son to another classroom, then promised he wouldn’t remove any other children from my class, but soon after did exactly that.
I dutifully followed all the advice I had heard and read about classroom management; nevertheless, I had trouble making it stick. I tried to reward engaged, well-behaved students with my attention and to give attention to the more difficult ones whenever I caught them being good, but my classroom was often chaotic, and I struggled to succeed.
The principal met with me informally about my challenges. Though he meant well, I left his office no more hopeful than when I had entered it. The vice principal observed my classroom a couple times as part of the evaluation process, but her official forms and officious meetings with me told me nothing I didn’t know about my shortcomings and offered little in the way of practical advice. (I also had the feeling that she, a brand-new administrator, was as overwhelmed in her job as I was in mine.)
At the end of the school year, I was exhausted from spending almost as much time at home preparing lessons and grading assignments as I spent in the classroom each day, but I hung in there, teaching in the relatively relaxing environment of summer school and determined to do better the next year. Plus, I was optimistic about the opportunity to work with slightly older children as a fourth-grade teacher.
Does any of this sound familiar? Share your remembrances of your first year of teaching, and read my follow-up to this post.
First Year As Public School Principal
Submitted by Matt Fleming (not verified) on September 16, 2008 - 14:08.
I am seeing this situation with new eyes this year. After 14 years in the classroom, I am starting my first year as a public school principal - at a K-4 school. BTW - all of my teaching experience was in grades 6 - 12. Do I really need to say anything else? Probably not - but I will anyway. I love my staff, these are the hardest working people I have ever been with. We are a Program Improvement school on year 4 in California, but we are making most of our growth goals for those all-important sub-groups. Like the author, I am the child and grandchild of teachers/administrators. I joke that I was genetically engineered for this job. But then the first day hits. I am learning once again that education is one of those professions where no amount of preparation is enough. There is a very steep learning curve even in admin. And just like I learned as a junior officer in the military, no battle plan survives first contact. I am working very hard to support all of my teachers and especially the new ones - still, I know that they could use more support. I hate the sink-or-swim mentality that our industry has adopted and I am already working to change it in my school. You just can't expect to see big changes right away. You do the best you can and settle in for a long, hard, slog.
First year teaching fears
Submitted by Jen (not verified) on August 1, 2008 - 07:34.
I'd been considering teaching for several years, and at the end of last year I finally decided to begin work towards a teaching license. I am almost forty with two middle-school age kids, I was getting nowhere in the job I had, and I thought I would enjoy teaching and be good at it since I really enjoy learning and sharing knowledge. After three weeks of intense professional development training (which I had to quit my job in order to take), I am no closer to finding a teaching job and I now have serious doubts about my ability to teach and, especially, manage a classroom. I am an introvert, very quiet and reserved by nature, and I worry that I will not be able to maintain control in the classroom. I have had several interviews, but have not been offered a job yet, and I'm positive it is because I lack the assertiveness needed to be a teacher. I have tried to tell my husband that I am starting to think this is a mistake, but he just gets angry at me, telling me I am a quitter and accusing me of wasting the money I used to take the preparation courses. My fears, both of getting hired and not getting hired, have become so powerful that I can't sleep at night and I've gone days without eating. I'm falling apart, and I haven't even gotten in a classroom yet. I have faced a lot of stressful situations in my life -- I've lived in foreign countries, been through a house fire, and even survived cancer -- and I've never been as scared as I am now. Can anyone suggest ways to deal with these fears and build my confidence?
Response to first year teaching fears
Submitted by B. Johnson (not verified) on August 3, 2008 - 14:15.
Jan:
First of all, your fears and doubts are normal. Every teacher has them when they are starting out. Schools are still looking for teachers for next year. If you are not certified, you need to look at private schools and charter schools, public schools do not hire non-certified teachers unless they are going through an alternative certification program. If that is what the three weeks of intensive professional development training was all about then, contact public schools as well. Just to let you know that some schools are hesitant to hire people in alternative certification programs. You might also consider applying to districts in outlying areas around the city. They tend to be less picky because it is harder for them to find teachers.
Let me give you some interviewing tips that might land you the job. As an administrator doing interviews, I look for some visual cues and specific knowledge cues. The visual cues I look for are smile, look me in the eye, and enthusiasm. The knowledge cues are student-centered learning (ie--students can frequently explore, investigate and inquire), lesson design--the five e lessons, Madeline Hunter, or a simple learning cycle (Engage interest, present information, let them practice, check for learning, repeat), and a thirst to become the best teacher possible.
I used to consider myself as an introvert. Not any more. The way out of being an introvert is let your passion shine. If this is something you really want, let it show. Show them how much you love kids and teaching. The first question is always "Tell us about yourself" That is the precise opportunity for you to tell them that because, that is what they are wanting to hear. So tell them your experiences that make you a great teacher. DO NOT start with I was born...I lived... You want to let them see some of the passion that moved you to quit your job. Some of the successes that you have had with teaching children, or any teaching experience at all--training you have done at work, conference presentations etc...
The rest of the questions, don't sweat, just answer them as best you can. If you don't know the answer, say so and add, "I am a fast learner." Have fun in the interviews. What is the worst that can happen? You've been rejected so you already know how that feels. Don't worry about it. One thing that helps is if you go back through the interviews that you already had and prepare killer answers to each of the questions they asked you. Memorize those answers before the next interview and 9 time out of 10 you will be able to use those in answering some of the questions posed.
Education is in the process of changing. Being a teacher used to be a very lonely job. The concept of professional collaboration is much more widely accepted. So, to calm your fears, when (not if) you become a teacher, you will not be alone. There will be lots of people there to help you, support you, mentor you and guide you. You will have to ask for help, but as a new teacher that is expected and it is not considered bad form. Good luck
Ben Johnson
Natalia, TX
Finding a teaching job
Submitted by A. Cody (not verified) on August 1, 2008 - 13:38.
Dear Jen,
First of all, three weeks of training, no matter how intensive, is not enough to prepare someone to take over a classroom, in my opinion. I had a year of student teaching and still found my first year to be challenging. I think your queasiness may be rooted in your awareness of the preparation needed for this task, and I have to say that your fears may be well-founded. Second, you raise the issue of your confidence level. It seems like you could be setting yourself for problems here, if you combine inadequate preparation with a lack of confidence.
Your husband sounds like he is feeling a lot of financial pressure, as are lots of folks these days. In that context, his frustration is understandable. But he needs to understand that you will not be in a better position unless you make a career move that is really sustainable.
If I were you I would investigate volunteering at a school, or working as a substitute teacher. Then you could take charge of a class without assuming all the responsibilities of being the teacher of record. You can also become acquainted with the administrators and teachers at some schools, and if it turns out you really love teaching and are growing in your confidence, then you can seek a permanent position. There are often vacancies mid-year for various reasons. Good luck!
Anthony Cody
Re: First year teaching fears
Submitted by Stephen (not verified) on August 1, 2008 - 11:18.
Your story is pretty powerful; the experiences that you describe can certainly shake the foundations of anyone's life. Yet you have been drawn to a profession that may or may not be suited for you. Its really hard to tell at this point.
I would like to know more about what has led you to question your ability to do this work? In your professional training, were you in a classroom? Have you had the experience of planning for and managing a classroom program?
I'm wondering whether you are talking yourself out of this before you give it a fair shot?
I don't have any answers, but I do have one suggestion. You may want to use this time to get into some classrooms in a volunteer role. Get in and do some things with small groups of students. Watch some teachers in action. Hang out in a school and try to picture yourself there on a daily basis.
This is going to take a little bit of time. Most professional training programs are longer than 3 weeks. You may need to get some more in-school experience before you know for sure.
Would love to hear from others on this.
stephen
New Kid on the Block: Surviving My First Year in the Classroom
Submitted by Aida (not verified) on June 6, 2008 - 02:48.
Wow! What a year you had! I am in my last semesters to get my AA in Elementary Edu, and very excited and at the same time nervous because i dont really know whats coming ahead. You must be very proud of yourself beacuse more than half of first year teachers that go thru that just leave and change careers. Hope i can be as strong as you were.
First Year Teaching
Submitted by Renee (not verified) on May 24, 2008 - 05:25.
Mark-
I will be a first year kindergarten teacher in the 2008-2009 school year. I, like yourself, struggled to find a full time teaching position after recieving my teaching degree. I graduated in December of 2005, so it has taken me almost 3 years. It was a struggle and discouraging experience to go through interviews and substitute teach for a while. I have been an Specific Learning Disabilites tutor at the high school level for 2 years. While it is not a permanent position, I feel I have gained insight into the teaching profession. (At least I hope) Dealing with high school kids with learning disabilites and kindergarteners will be a drastic change for me next year. However, I hope to start off with a behavior management plan that will stick. While I know there are always kinks with any plan,I hope to stick by my decisions as an educator and "enforcer" (for lack of a better work) of the behavior mangement plan. I am comforted to know that I am not the only "new beginner" in the teaching profession that is wiery of starting and sticking to their plans in the classroom.
Special education
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on March 12, 2008 - 13:16.
My son was placed in a regular classroom with an inclusion teacher. he is in small group for all other classes but history/english (combined class). we told the school it was not a good idea but they said with his testing he would be okay. 1st quarter "d" second quarter "f" final exam "f" 3rd quarter "d already". i signed the iep because they talked me into this. they said he would be fine and that he could handle this. now he has to go to summer school and no one is taking him out of the classroom. I am trying see if an advocate can come with me and try to have a meeting with the school,but they seem to just walk all over me and use big words and i am being ou maneuvered by school administrators with their pursuasive arguments. my son is failing even if the testing says he is okay. he not surviving in a large class he can't. he is an A student in all of his small group classes. why are they doing this? is it the money? i'm so fed up
Special Ed Railroad
Submitted by Benjamin Johnson (not verified) on March 14, 2008 - 09:52.
I am an administrator and I don't agree with what you say is happening. No, they are not getting any extra money. They just want to minimize the "work" they have to do. Certainly, the administrators and teacher would be doing you and your son a disservice if they did not encourage the most rigorous placement possible. So challenging your son is a good thing. However, the thing that is worrisome to me is that there should have been an immediate change or adjustment before the very first "f". Your son's special education teacher should have intervened at the first unacceptable progress report. Did that happen? In the IEP I am fairly certain that it doesn't say that your son was to be placed in the regular classroom, with no aide or assistance from the Special Ed. teacher. Also, given the grade, it is pretty clear that the help the IEP describes, was not given during the year. In essence, the school did not follow the IEP and is out of compliance.
The special education law is clear on what rights a parent has. I need to point out that the law is there to protect you and your son, but be prepared because when you begin to apply your rights, given what you have already stated, you will meet with resistance. If you don't feel that you can hold your ground, by all means request an advocate, or at the very least another person who you think can help you stand your ground. Also, please understand that you want to work with the school as partners rather than adversaries, but if they force you, the law is on your side.
The other advice I would give you is to read the documents that they give you carefully. Rather than just calling the school, write them a letter. It may even be time to write a letter to the district Special Education Department. In that letter be detailed and include names and dates of when you met and who was there. State that you felt they were pushing you and your son into something that was not right. Indicate what you did when you got the progress reports and what the school said they would do and if they did it. If they do not respond after 10 days, then send a letter to the State Special Education office.
The bottom line is that the schools have to listen to you, by law. If you do not like what is happening in the IEP, you can appeal it, even if you signed it. Good luck.
Ben Johnson, Assistant Superintendent
First year teacher
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on February 26, 2008 - 18:51.
Thank you all so much for your honesty and transparency. As a first year teacher, I feel overwhelmed, discouraged, and alone many days of the week. When I meet with other first year teachers they all seem to have it all together and don't blink an eye at working 10-12 hour days. I have always wanted to do this job, but I want my energy, my hobbies, my relationships....my LIFE back! There are so many students I thought I could reach and now realize that I can't. I have wanted to hear so badly from someone else I am not completely crazy and selfish for having these feelings. Thank you.
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