Letter to Me: Student Teaching

Dear Quynh,

You are in the last semester of school and you will begin student teaching very soon. Although you know it isn’t going to be easy, you may not expect how extremely difficult it may be at times. During these rough times, know that you have supporters around you and that it is okay to ask for help and guidance. 

First, don’t be so afraid of being wrong. Being a good teacher doesn’t mean that you have to be the smartest person in the room. If you make a mistake, fix it. Take risks in the classroom. Afterwards, you’ll slowly start to see your students taking risks and they’ll no longer be afraid of being wrong because you made it okay. 

Second, know that it is alright if nothing goes as planned. Unexpected things can happen, like last minute scheduled state assessments, or the computers mess up and the dates have to be rescheduled and you lose 3-4 class days. I’ve learned that not everything will go exactly as planned, and although it may seem out of nature to you, remind yourself that all will be fine. Clear your mind, take a deep breath, and charge on! 

Third, say goodbye to your comfort zones! Students love it when you could be dorky and weird. Show them your true personality and have fun with it! There is really no better time to fail or make a fool out of yourself then now.

  

I’m reaching the end of the semester and although it hasn’t been long, I’ve learned so much already. I wish that I had been more comfortable in the classroom, or should I say, I wish I got to that point earlier on. It’s important to feel comfortable as you teach, but it does take time. However, don’t hesitate to follow the third advice as written above. Being in the program has given me so many ideas on how and what I should teach, so do keep a journal nearby at all times to jot down these amazing ideas from those around you. When you begin teaching your own classroom, keep this journal nearby as well because you will continue to be inspired by your students and your colleagues.

Whatever it is that you choose to do in your classroom, do it one hundred percent. And if it doesn’t turn out all that great, revise it for the next year and know that you gave it your best. Everything is going to be fine.

Getting Students to Talk

Our students probably love to talk and we know this because the moment we let our guard down, their voice level will rise at an increasing rate until we remind them of our expectations once again. However, when it comes down to class discussion or partner-share ideas, we often hear crickets instead. So how can we as educators help students redirect their speech to something a little more productive? This way, we can get students to develop effective discussions in the classroom.

The Center for Teaching and Learning at Stanford University wrote an article titled How to Get Students to Talk in Class, giving educators several helpful strategies and tips to help students speak in class. The article mentions wait time and this is something that is easier said than done for most of us who cannot stand the silence. However, is important to know that silence is okay! Students need time to think, and “If they seem to need more time to think, ask them to turn to a classmate and brainstorm some responses to your question for two or three minutes” (How).  This tip leads up to the next point that the article brings up and they call it “decentralize.” Decentralizing is about “getting students to talk to each other, not just to you” and to do this, “literally tell them to address their comments to each other” and “try not to respond to every student comment; instead ask the class what they think about what has just been said” (How).

An active learning strategy that the article mentions is to utilize something called: solo free write. This strategy requires the teacher to give students time to “jot down some ideas in response to a problem or question before you expect them to have an answer ready” (How). This strategy is going to allow students to map out their thoughts thoroughly first before jumping into discussion. It is a great way to slowly ease students into a discussion and if students get too shy to speak, you could simply ask students to read what they had written. Also, you can tell your students that they should also use the same paper to write down their classmates’ ideas or other interesting thoughts throughout discussion.

Discussions are extremely effective for students and it is a great way for students to learn to communicate with one another and share ideas. Students can learn so much more when they aren’t only learning from the teacher, but everyone around them including their peers. We need to create a safe learning environment for students to speak and engage with one another. 

Works Cited

"How to Get Students to Talk in Class." CTL: Center for Teaching and Learning (2015): n. pag. Stanford University. Web. 5 Apr. 2016.