About a Teacher

There are things to be learned when class is not in session. Perhaps the big lesson of this internship is that teaching is always about learning! But I digress. On to the lessons so far this week.

First, no matter how meticulous a teacher is in setting up assignments, someone will be unhappy. Granted, our class has twenty students and we only had concerns expressed to us by two; but still, there were two who were disgruntled! (Really, this is just an observation and I didn't lose any sleep over this.)

Second, the first lesson can teach you other lessons. When the first complaint came, my first response would be to immediately defend myself. My mentor, however, remained calm and quiet, listened to the concern and then rationally and firmly explained the assignment and why the process was just as important as the result. (Who knew we were teaching algebra?) Then came the discussion and eye-opening realization that words usually aren't the most important part of a voiced concern or complaint. Usually there is a story behind the words, a pattern of behavior that explains the words. So when starting out as a teacher or when teaching a class in which all or most of the students are new to the teacher, it may be best just to observe for a while, keep calm and wait for the pattern to unfold.

Finally, I learned on Tuesday that if you hang out with professor types, there might eventually be cake! A fine reward, I must say.

Until next time!