This site is a class blog space for new Career and Technical Specializations and Heathcare Science teachers enrolled in the New Teacher Institute (NTI) at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia.
Tuesday, November 1, 2016
Disconnect and Disengaged
Going through day to day life can sometimes prove to be a daunting task within itself. However, I will remain thankful and grateful to be met with that challenge daily. I have been overwhelmed this school year, and am still trying to play catch up! The constant PLC meetings, Collaboration meetings, SST meetings, IEP meetings, Parent meetings, Department meetings, Instructional Lead meetings, Parent calls, Grading, CHAMPS after school program, Online surveys, Health surveys, Planning Period trainings, and NTI assignments all seem to never come to an end. Be those as they may, I have found myself over the last two weeks, assigning more student projects which allows individual and/or small group participation. While students are in class working diligently, I have been utilizing that time to grade, complete forms, and try to catch up. Although, that has been beneficial for me, I have noticed not being as connected with my students as I once was. In my mind, students would prefer to work alone rather than take notes while I lecture, but it turns out they actually do enjoy hearing from me! Who knew? Lol All that being said, I am going to make an effort to become reacquainted with my students.
It is so easy to put it on " auto pilot", but it does do a disservice to our students. I know it's heard to believe but regardless of what they say they do like hearing what we have to say. Every time that I am out , for what ever reason, the kids always want to know where I've been/ why I was out. They miss me and not just because they cannot go into the shop without me but I had one today say that they haven't got to speak with me today and they missed that because we have a guest speaker. Something I learned a long time ago was you never know who is watching you and what lives you are impacting, good or bad, even when they don't seem like they even care.
ReplyDeleteYou are so correct! We received confirmation through Dr. Burns that our student's brain are no where near fully developed, so they don't always know how to put their thoughts and feelings into words! I also had a student in my 2nd level class ask me why haven't you lectured to us? We need you, we learn when you talk to us about stuff! I am seriously going to reprogram myself, come to the realization that I am not a robot, set attainable goals for grading, and reconnect with my students. Thanks for your insight! It is much needed, and appreciated!
ReplyDeleteYvonne, you are so right! The never ending meetings make it impossible to get any work done. I have yet to figure out why we have meetings about what we haven't accomplished when we can't get it accomplished if we're constantly in meetings! I had to do something similar to my students this past Friday and I felt so bad. However, I had to get my work done. They really do want to hear from us, even when it seems like they're not listening. There's a delicate balance but I think that's why the breaks exist - to help us rejuvenate so that we can all engage each other appropriately upon our return. Kudos to you for being such an awesome teacher!
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