Preparing for the Teacher Evaluation

This year, I was asked to be one of the evaluators of new teachers in the district. I like this because I get to use my experience to help others and also to make sure that we have quality (not just qualified) teachers in my field. After doing this I realized that maybe someone should tell new teachers how to prepare for an evaluation. There is a general meeting to discuss what is expected but I think more specifics need to be given. This evaluation is important because it determines whether this new teacher gets a contract to return so it is in their best interest to look their best. Here are some things that I would suggest:

1. If you get an email or phone call from your evaluator, respond promptly.
2. If you are given a time frame of when you are going to be observed, treat every day as if it might be the day an evaluator shows up.
3. Plan a place for the evaluator to sit in case you are asked where the best place is.
4. Be on time for every class. (You do not want the first impression to be that you are often late to class and the class is left unattended.)
5. Prepare your class that an evaluator may show up and what you expect from the class.
6. Look your best. (When you feel you look great, this will show confidence during your observation.)
7. Have your lesson plans and grade book filled out correctly and available for the evaluator.
8. Have several extra activities available in case your lesson ends early (whenever I was observed, I was so nervous that my lessons went faster than I expected.)
9. If you are expected to present a portfolio, make sure you have as much of the information required in it and ready to show the evaluator. Don’t make excuses that you are still working on it because this evaluation should be a priority.
10. Go over your evaluation form to make sure that you are covering each item in your lessons. (I have gone so far as to actually prepare a script for my lessons to hit these points until it becomes second nature.)
11. Connect your lesson to a real life situation for your students so they will see how they will use this skill.
12. Use a variety of teaching strategies. Don’t lecture the whole time or have a class discussion the whole time. They may work sometimes in your class but the evaluator wants to see a variety of teaching strategies during this time.
13. Don’t worry about bad behavior in your class as long as you show that you can handle it. The evaluator knows that kids might act up with a stranger in the room. This is your chance to show how well you handle discipline.
14. Give frequent feedback to the students to let them know how they are doing.
15. Ask for feedback so you know that they understand how to do the assignment.

I hope these suggestions will help you pass your evaluations with flying colors!

Is Assigned Seating Necessary?

I believe it is important in a classroom. I use assigned seating the first day of class because I think this sends a message to the students that I am the person in charge. Have you ever gone to a gathering that is chaotic and you didn’t know if anyone is in charge? I believe students feel that way in many classrooms. It also opens the door when I need to move students around because of personality conflicts or too much socialization going on during my lessons. I sometimes assign seats according to ability levels (the higher ones can help the lower ones if I am busy with someone else). Now this might cause you some concern but it is real life. If I’m having a problem on the job, I sometimes might go to a colleague for help rather than the boss so why not start this in the classroom. Sometimes their peers are able to explain things better to them than I can. I also learn a lot by listening to those conversations so I can tweak the lesson for a future class. As I’ve said before, I believe the students need to know what their limits are and will respect you for doing this. I feel it also sets the tone of the classroom and students feel safer if they know someone is in charge. Have you ever gone to a gathering that is chaotic and you didn’t know if anyone is in charge? I believe students feel that way in many classrooms.

Teachers Accused of Sex Crimes

Court Papers Reveal Teacher’s Relationship With Students
Teacher Sex Scandal on Dr. Phil
About 1 in 4 disciplined teachers accused of sex-related offenses

Maybe I live in a bubble but I was unaware of how bad this has gotten. Or is the media just reporting more of this? It feels like every day I read or hear on the news about another teacher who is accused of a sex crime. This has got to stop but I don’t know what it is going to take to stop it. I am frustrated because I have racked my brains trying to think of some way that the government could prevent this. These sexual predators are giving teachers a bad name so no wonder no one wants to go into teaching! Of course my husband told me to calm down and keep in mind that many teachers are accused who aren’t guilty so I felt like I needed to come up with a list that could help good teachers from being accused of this. All it takes is one student to be mad at you and they can accuse you of anything. Even if you are innocent, these accusations can ruin your reputation and career.

1. Never be alone with a student in a room with the door closed. I talk to students out in the hallway if there is a problem. If a student comes to my room during my planning period, I always leave the door open. If I hold any student for detention, I usually join up with another teacher and we hold our students together in one room.
2. Never drive a student anywhere in your personal car. I have seen teachers offering rides to students who are waiting for parents or can’t reach anyone at home. Let an administrator handle this situation.
3. Never be in a vehicle alone with a student. On field trips, I have seen teachers take a discipline problem to the bus to wait on the class. I would not suggest this.
4. Be very wary of touching a student. My special ed students got a light pat on the shoulder (I used to give hugs but in this day and time you have to be careful).
5. Do not tolerate any sexual jokes or comments in your presence. If a student acts inappropriate by talking about sex, drawing pictures about sex, joking about sex or anything like this, immediate tell them to stop it. Report it the next time it happens. If you don’t, you could be accused of encouraging it or not doing anything about it.
6. Be very careful about the clothes you wear. I see too many young female teachers wearing low cut blouses and tight pants. It may pass the teacher dress code but is this really the message you want to send to your students?
7. Be very aware of any student who may show signs of having a crush on you. When this happened, I mentioned my husband and family a lot and encouraged them to visit and meet my class. This usually helped.
8. Last, don’t put yourself in any position where a student could accuse you of something.

It’s sad that we have to even think this way but unfortunately it is the way the world is. We can rant and rage that this isn’t fair and teachers shouldn’t have to do these things, but is it worth the risk to your career?

Useful Information for In and Out of the Classroom 11/02/07

It is Friday again and I would like to share some interesting sites that I’ve found. As a teacher, I feel we have to keep up to date concerning research in our field and current issues in the education system. I hope some of these inspire you, inform you, and even have you asking questions. If you have any sites you would like for me to check out, please let me know.

CyberGuides are supplementary, standards-based, web-delivered units of instruction centered on core works of literature.

Stossel in the Classroom: co-anchor of 20/20 offers FREE 34-minute DVD, which includes six segments from 20/20, chosen and edited specifically for the classroom. FREE downloadable and printable Teacher Guide with suggested discussion topics and activities for your classroom to supplement your Hype and Consequences video segments.

Our Kids Reading Recommendations: Our Kids is devoted to raising special kids with special needs and the books that are recommended are great!

abcteach: This is the place for kids, parents, student teachers, and teachers that offers free printable pages. Why reinvent the wheel? I hope you can use some of these or at least adapt the ones that are there.

NASAexplores provides free weekly K-12 educational articles and lesson plans on current NASA projects. Printable and downloadable, these supplemental curriculum resources meet national education standards.

Personality Conflicts

All through life, you are going to meet someone who just grates on your nerves! Even in your classroom this happens. For a long time I felt guilty if I didn’t like a particular student because I thought it meant that I wasn’t a good teacher. Then I suddenly realized that Hey! I didn’t have to like all of my students!

As long as I was consistent and fair with all of my students, it was alright not to like every single one of my students. As long as I teach equally to all of the students, even the ones I don’t particularly like, it is okay to feel this way. Students are pretty smart in picking up these vibes and followed my lead. It is not okay for me to pick on student, ridicule them, or encourage others to ridicule them. It is not okay if I don’t let this student have an equal chance to participate in the lessons as the others do. When this happens, it is time to reevaluate my motives for teaching. If my motive is only to work with people I like, then teaching is not the career for me.

In the same respect, it is also okay not to be liked by all of my students. Many times I have had a student tell me they hate me or draw pictures of me as a monster (they hated getting homework every night!). I believe that God put me on this earth to teach these students and not necessarily be their friend. They have enough friends but not enough teachers and I have enough friends that if they aren’t one of them, I’ll live.

As long as they are learning, I don’t care if they like me. Many years later many students have come back to me and thanked me for setting limits, demanding respect, and expecting them to give their best. They admitted to not liking me at the time but later realized how much they learned in my class compared to classes where the teacher cared more about being their friend than whether they were learning or not. It is times like this that make me glad I'm a teacher!