Changed Impressions

Wow, I must admit that you really don't know someone's situation until you walk a mile in their shoes, or at least take the time to talk with them awhile about what their job entails.

After a lengthy conversation with one of our guidance counselors, I have to say that my intial impressions of them are not that far off; except that I didn't take into consideration the sheer number of students they deal with on a daily basis nor the other responsibilities that I was ignorant about.

Sometimes I think I have it rough dealing with 120-150 students in one year. They have to deal with anywhere from 250-300 students a year. The difference is that my biggest concern is getting them to pass my class, the counselors are trying to get them to pass "all" their classes while trying to help them decided what to pursue for the future and dealing with any mental, emotional, social or family issue along the way. It's no wonder that on first look they don't seem that interested in what CTAE classes they are going to take.

This is where taking a little time to connect with them comes in. Most of them are well aware that only 30% of these students will actually go to a 4 year colledge. So, where does that leave the other 70%. Well a good start is getting the students educated and interested in our programs. I learned the counselors are not negative to this idea, they just don't have time to develop or implement a workable plan.

I have decided that if there is going to be a progression towared more education for the students regarding CTAE, it will have to come from the CTAE teachers. This is something that I plan to work on for the rest of the year so that maybe we can have a better plan implemented for the students next year.