Class-Dismissed

Jonathan posted at 5:15 PM - Comments (0)

Check out these tips for new teachers!

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Nothing from us until tomorrow evening, but I wanted to point you all toward one of our favourites, Duke Fandango. He's just written a fantastic post on tips for the teacher trainee.

Based in the UK, he's a teacher mentor himself and he's got a lot of great suggestions-- not to mention his quick wit and hilarious pop culture references. Let us know what you think of his list!

Labels: going above and beyond, link, list, practicum, teaching abroad, tips

Courtney posted at 11:08 PM - Comments (0)

RE: First Impressions

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

I found the day exhausting too, and not only because I wound up falling asleep sometime after 2:30 this morning and then woke up on my own at 6:30, an hour before I had to be awake.

No, I found it very overwhelming for many reasons. I didn't notice it right away, but as I left campus this afternoon, I felt incredibly drained. Which I guess is to be expected on the first day of such an "emotionally challenging" (or so says my prof) year.

I was definitely not expecting to be met with 749 other Education students this morning, that's for sure. There were so many people that Jon and I didn't even run into each other once, which was kind of disappointing. I'm not great with huge crowds, and I found myself missing the days of being one in 120 in ConEd. Once we left the auditorium for our classes of 25 students, I started feeling more comfortable.

I met the 7 other students who will be joining me at my placement school this year, which was quite a relief. I'm the most nervous about that practicum, so it's good to know I won't ever feel alone there, especially since I don't know the area well. The professor that teaches what is essentially our Practicum class seems really great-- funny, smart, and very reassuring. He told us in no uncertain terms how tough our placements are going to be, but also let us know that he was there to help us succeed and that he'd do everything he could to ensure that we have a positive learning experience.

The other big thing I did today was attend an optional lecture on teaching abroad. I've sat in on meetings like it twice before, but that was in my undergrad when I still wasn't exactly sure what I wanted to do. Now that I'm thinking more seriously about teaching internationally, I felt like I would have a different perspective. The two-hour session was very informative and interesting, but it definitely contributed to my general feeling of confusion and indecisiveness, which probably wasn't the best idea on the first day. Basically I'm left with no clear idea of whether I should stay in Ontario, go to another province, teach in an international school in a non-English speaking country, or work in a public school in an English-speaking country abroad. I want to choose a situation I'll thrive in where I'll have a good chance of being hired, but so far I have NO IDEA what that situation might be.

I keep reminding myself that my mantra needs to be, "Calm. Down." I have to quiet the frantic voice in my head that stresses me out and tries to convince me that I need to have everything figured out right away. There's no way I could make any decisions on the first day let alone before my practicum starts and my classes are underway. So I'm going to focus on taking things one day at a time and try to make the most of my time here.

Do you remember your first day of teacher's college? (for some of you, it was probably today!) What was it like? Did it all work out in the end? Got any words of wisdom for us new kids?

Labels: about us, anxiety, finding a balance, practicum, Queen's, reassurance, teaching abroad

Courtney posted at 10:39 PM - Comments (1)


*Courtney Langton* Courtney is an aspiring high school teacher. Her teachables are History and English, but she's happy to teach anything that doesn't involve numbers or formulas. Her particular interest is in promoting gender equity and anti-oppression both in and outside the classroom. She writes a detailed To-Do list every morning, and enjoys nothing more than a good book and a plate of bacon on a rainy Saturday.	*Jonathan Wong* Jonathan's primary interest is moral education. His teachable subjects are English and Music. He encourages critical thinking and hopes to teach his students to recognize, and strive for, what is truly important to them without forgetting to be compassionate, tolerant, and open-minded along the way. He likes making analogies and his favourite is one that compares life to jumping on a trampoline.
LINKS: Blogger Canadian Chalkboard Coffee, Calculations and Colombia! Mewlings Progressively Unnecessary TeacHer Finance It's Not All Flowers and Sausages So You Want To Teach? Classroom Confessions Teach Hub Web English Teacher Blogging the Renaissance	ARCHIVES: June 2009 July 2009 August 2009 September 2009 October 2009 November 2009 December 2009 January 2010 March 2010
And all that shimmers in this world is sure to fade... Sunday, January 17, 2010 It's been awhile since we've posted. I know, that's sorta how we preface every post. We're really sorry. But the good news is that we haven't posted because there's been such a comical amount of stuff happening that's kept us constantly busy and bewildered as we enter the "Job Hunt" phase of our year. You see, for the first semester of Education, we were all told to focus on doing well on prac and to leave the worrying about the future until second semester. Well, second semester has officially arrived and with it, said worrying. We had a special day last week that involved a slew of school boards coming to Queen's and telling us that there were no jobs. Basically. From what I was able to absorb, the day was primarily centered around 4 things: 1. Applying to the Ontario College of Teachers Basically, this involves paying hundreds (yes, hundreds) of dollars after we graduate in order to be granted a certificate by the OCT just to be allowed to apply for teaching jobs that don't exist. 2. There are no jobs in Ontario See Above. Every school board presentation I went to informed me that my chances of getting a job in that particular school board were bad to even worse. Some boards like York Region tried to make us feel better about the fact that only 30% of us will get hired. Other boards tried to make us feel worse. 3. There are plenty of jobs if you're willing to work overseas Ontario seems to have a mysterious abundance of teachers - especially those that apparently like marking English essays (we are a masochistic bunch). Teachers in other countries seem to understand that there is an improper workload-to-money ratio in this profession. This is usually offset by the understanding that the job is intrinsically rewarding and that we are making a difference in the lives of our future generation. Apparently, we are a youth-loving nation. We're also Canadian. 4. There was something else here I forgot In its place, I'd also just like to mention that none of the above really came as surprise to any of us. But at the same time, I try not to worry too much about it. I probably should (be worrying) but I figured it's hard to predict the future and all I have control over is what I do at the faculty of Ed. and how I do while I'm on prac. So far, both ventures have proven to be fairly successful. Does that success necessarily translate into the future? Of course not. But I figured it can't hurt to hope. Being an education is one of those careers where getting yourself to the starting line is almost as hard as the actual race itself. First, you gotta decide that you want to become a teacher and then apply to get into the program (easier if you do it through Con-Ed, though it means you have to decide early). Then you have to make it through the program without losing your desire to teach (no small matter in itself). And then in the end, if you do decide that teaching is the right profession for you, you have to get a job in an incredibly thin market. Mom wanted a doctor in the family. But would I listen? Nooooooooooooo Labels: anxiety, big questions, job hunt, teaching abroad Jonathan posted at 5:15 PM - Comments (0) Check out these tips for new teachers! Wednesday, September 2, 2009 Nothing from us until tomorrow evening, but I wanted to point you all toward one of our favourites, Duke Fandango. He's just written a fantastic post on tips for the teacher trainee. Based in the UK, he's a teacher mentor himself and he's got a lot of great suggestions-- not to mention his quick wit and hilarious pop culture references. Let us know what you think of his list! Labels: going above and beyond, link, list, practicum, teaching abroad, tips Courtney posted at 11:08 PM - Comments (0) RE: First Impressions Tuesday, September 1, 2009 I found the day exhausting too, and not only because I wound up falling asleep sometime after 2:30 this morning and then woke up on my own at 6:30, an hour before I had to be awake. No, I found it very overwhelming for many reasons. I didn't notice it right away, but as I left campus this afternoon, I felt incredibly drained. Which I guess is to be expected on the first day of such an "emotionally challenging" (or so says my prof) year. I was definitely not expecting to be met with 749 other Education students this morning, that's for sure. There were so many people that Jon and I didn't even run into each other once, which was kind of disappointing. I'm not great with huge crowds, and I found myself missing the days of being one in 120 in ConEd. Once we left the auditorium for our classes of 25 students, I started feeling more comfortable. I met the 7 other students who will be joining me at my placement school this year, which was quite a relief. I'm the most nervous about that practicum, so it's good to know I won't ever feel alone there, especially since I don't know the area well. The professor that teaches what is essentially our Practicum class seems really great-- funny, smart, and very reassuring. He told us in no uncertain terms how tough our placements are going to be, but also let us know that he was there to help us succeed and that he'd do everything he could to ensure that we have a positive learning experience. The other big thing I did today was attend an optional lecture on teaching abroad. I've sat in on meetings like it twice before, but that was in my undergrad when I still wasn't exactly sure what I wanted to do. Now that I'm thinking more seriously about teaching internationally, I felt like I would have a different perspective. The two-hour session was very informative and interesting, but it definitely contributed to my general feeling of confusion and indecisiveness, which probably wasn't the best idea on the first day. Basically I'm left with no clear idea of whether I should stay in Ontario, go to another province, teach in an international school in a non-English speaking country, or work in a public school in an English-speaking country abroad. I want to choose a situation I'll thrive in where I'll have a good chance of being hired, but so far I have NO IDEA what that situation might be. I keep reminding myself that my mantra needs to be, "Calm. Down." I have to quiet the frantic voice in my head that stresses me out and tries to convince me that I need to have everything figured out right away. There's no way I could make any decisions on the first day let alone before my practicum starts and my classes are underway. So I'm going to focus on taking things one day at a time and try to make the most of my time here. Do you remember your first day of teacher's college? (for some of you, it was probably today!) What was it like? Did it all work out in the end? Got any words of wisdom for us new kids? Labels: about us, anxiety, finding a balance, practicum, Queen's, reassurance, teaching abroad Courtney posted at 10:39 PM - Comments (1)