And just like that...it was over.
This is easily the 4th time I've read this book...and yet again I find myself drawn to tears over the way it all ends for her. The journey back three years later to see her 31 (well minus 16) graduate from 8th grade. The internal dialogue she has wondering if these same actions, attitudes, messages, pride, etc are also prevalent at majority white graduations is profound. Even more profound however for me is that nagging sense she has that she's not happy. As she ticks off the reasons she SHOULD be happy I am captivated by one thought...She's no longer making a difference in the kids lives. Regardless of how frustrated and annoyed I got with her throughout this book...That is the ONE thing I can truly point to as a success for her...She made a difference. Will you?
Now it's your turn...
Reaction:
What is one part from this section to which you found yourself having an emotional reaction? What was the part, and what emotions did it evoke for you?
Connections:
What were some things you found strong connections back to some of your Junior EDEC courses? What were the courses and how did you make the connections?
Extensions:
PIck one of the following:
pg 191
"The difference between a beginning teacher and and experienced one is that the beginning teacher asks, 'How am I doing?' and the experienced teacher asks, 'How are the children doing?'"
pg 194
"People snicker, "Those who can't do, teach."...to the bottom..."Everything they become, I also become. And everything about me, they helped to create."
pg 199
Pick one of the challenges listed on page 199 and 200 to respond to in regard to how YOU would've handled it.
pg 202
"How effective were her electronic quiz games, the marshmallow castle, the bubbles festival, and the sushi menu? That's for you the reader, to think about, and please God, all the governors and school board chairs, too."
Our first seminar session will be Thursday the 18th around 11 I believe.
Please bring your Esme book. We will do the activity with our children's book that we read during the NEXT seminar session so no need to bring that until the next week.
I find myself growing very anxious and excited for all of you to return.
See you soon!
Love ya!
Mean it!
Dr. VW
Reaction:
ReplyDeleteRight before the epilogue, she writes that the students leave her, single file. The beginning of the school year is daunting. 180 days, give or take, sounds impossible. And yet, the days disappear and the children that have been with her for a year have gone off to become doctors, gangsters, parents... Devoting a year of love and lessons to 30 or so students and then saying goodbye makes me more than a little emotional. Teachers are blessed and cursed though, with the inability to not love and lose students year after year. It’s sad and beautiful.
Connection:
Having the students write letters to future 5th graders was an authentic literacy experience, which we discussed in both of our lit classes.
Extensions:
The quote on 191 reminded me of a random clip I saw today of Matt Damon, who was at a teacher event supporting his mom, a long time teacher. A reporter asked him if teachers should essentially be judged harshly and held to a high standard because there are "bad teachers" in education. He promptly looked at the reporter like she was an idiot and said that teachers are doing what they are doing because they LOVE teaching and love their students. Of course there are bad teachers, and of course teachers should be analyze themselves and have some accountability However, I agree with Esme, that a mark of an experienced teacher is to recognize that the focus of the job is not on the teacher at all, but on a love of teaching and a love of students.
Megan...your emotional connection sounds much like mine...leaving single file...with tears in their eyes...what a profound way to end such an incredible year.
ReplyDeleteI will play devils advocate here a bit on the Matt Damon connection...is it enough that I love teaching and love my students if I'm not effective? To that end...who determines if I am effective? There were days that it was quite obvious that Esme did not love her students or what she was doing. However, as the test results trickled in...there was growth...lots of it as a matter of fact (is that the definition of effectiveness?). However, she challenged the norms, she did not teach by the calendar but instead backed up and gave her students what they needed WHEN they needed it not by the curriculum coordinators agenda. As evidenced by the Alphabet museum at the beginning of the year. This is the debate that will be hot on the burners in the next few months and years...decide now for yourselves how you will respond.
Reaction: When Esme discussed the students' last day, I could realy feel her emotions. I could tell that the emotions were mixed and she was sad, but also probably satisfied at the completion of her first year. I have never been with a class from start to finish, but I can imagine that if you are with the same class for five days a week for a year, it will be hard to let them go.
ReplyDeleteConnection: When Esme had her students write letters to future 5th graders, I connected it to all of the reflections that we do in all of our classes. We have learned that reflections are very important for us to really grasp what we have learned and how it will affect us. The letters that the students wrote were a great way for them to reflect on the year that they had just completed.
Extension: I can really understand the quote on pg 191. I believe that any first year teacher will be very concerned with how they are doing. You are doing something brand new and you want to be good at it and you want your principal to like you. However, after a teacher has gained experience they will learn it should be all about the students. The experienced teacher will be concerned about her students more than herself. I believe that any new teacher can go into the job that first year and say they know it is all about the students, but in reality, they consider their own success as more important than their students.
Caylin...I think you'll gain some insight into this emotion first hand this year! I'm excited for you.
ReplyDeleteReaction: I found myself reacting not to something in the actual “chapters”, but in a quote on page 188: “Desire for the fruits of work must never be your motive for working”. I really, really like this quote because this is something that is very important in what we do. Our job is going to be a lot harder than most think, but we should always do our best not for praise, but for the success of our students.
ReplyDeleteConnection: I thought the letter writing to the future fifth graders was a really fun idea. We haven’t necessarily talked specifically about this, but this reminds me of something we would have learned about in creative expressions or literacy when teaching kids different forms of writing.
Extension:
"How effective were her electronic quiz games, the marshmallow castle, the bubbles festival, and the sushi menu? That's for you the reader, to think about, and please God, all the governors and school board chairs, too."
These are the types of tools we learned about last semester and we are going to continue to experiment with to help further our student’s learning. I believe that her student’s would do a better job learning through manners such as these, rather than paper and pencil work because most children do. This is something that governer’s and school board officials need to take into effect when talking about budgets because I believe that schools/teachers deserve more so that we could teach the students in the best way possible that corresponds with their developmental level.
Reaction: Her children filing out one at a time the last day of school was sad/alarming/nostalgic for me. Will the last day of my class be filled with such normalcy? I want my first set of students to leave smiling, wanting to come back tomorrow, or something that didn't happen to Esme. And I know how the students leave the room says nothing about the kind of teacher I was or the effect I had on my students. I just know that I'll be emotional, so I hope they will too.
ReplyDeleteConnection: The letters the children wrote sounds like something we would do in creative expressions. I actually think I did this in 5th grade, and I enjoyed writing my letter/ reading a letter from the last 5th grade class.
Extension: P. 191: So true. There are many times when I wonder how is my lesson going? Am I saying the right information? How am I standing up as a teacher in this program? Then I stop and realize that it's not about me. I am educated. I've already made it this far. It's my job now to make sure my students achieve higher than I do and soar in everything. It's when I stop and completely focus on my children that I educate at my fullest ability. I cannot do well if my children are not doing well.