A Student Teacher's Perspective: Where is the "Warning Health Risks" Label for Student Teaching? (STB1)

This week was the first week that I spent at my cooperating center as a student teacher at Octorara High School. The school's marking period doesn't start till next week; therefore, my week was spent observing students and classrooms. Just through these observations I gained much insight as to the dynamics of the classes I will be teaching. Another thing I gained was sickness!

In the midst of lesson planning and gathering materials for my classes, I completely forgot about the health risks involved. My first day observing went great. I had a great time meeting the students and getting to know them; however, when I got home I began feeling sick. I must have picked up the stomach bug and spent the night .... well I don't need to go into too much detail!

 I woke up the next morning feeling better and decided to "climb back on the horse" and go back for the second day. I walked into my Ag classroom and was greeted by a not so nice substitute teacher. My cooperating teacher was out for the day and I was stuck with a rather grumpy substitute. As the day went on we warmed up to each other and the classroom dynamic got much better! What didn't get much better was my well being. Half way through the day I began sneezing and coughing. I came home again sick and spent another night with minimal sleep.

Despite catching a sinus cold, day two was a good challenge for me. It was my second day of just observing and because my cooperating teacher was out for the day he put me in charge. I had all of his classes by myself (plus the grumpy substitute) and it went great! It was a bit of a confidence booster in that it reminded that I can do this student teaching thing and I will make it through!

Because of minimal sleep from day two, day three only amplified my cold. The sneezing and watering eyes worsened and I felt bad for not feeling fully "there." Even though I wasn't feeling the greatest there were so many good connections that I made with students. Some of them just wanted to hang out in the classroom during a study hall or lunch. I made use of this time by asking them questions and getting to know them more. They must have not been too annoyed since they stayed. It was a great chance to get to know my students.

One thing that I have been hearing a lot is students getting thrown out of class, as if it is the thing to do or the norm. This greatly disappoints me. First, I don' think that sending students to the office all the time is beneficial for them. They miss the content in class and they will most likely return to class the next day more annoyed than they were the first day. That's not to say that certain situations wouldn't require an office visit. Secondly, it's important to understand why a student is acting out the way he/she is. From just talking to the few students that I did this week, I have come to understand that many come from some difficult situations. As teachers we often forget that there are difficult scenarios at home that effect a student's behavior in school. If students don't feel welcomed at home or school then that can really take a negative toll on their outlook on life.

My goal is to establish an organized and consistent classroom where rules are established and followed. If rules are not followed then consequences will follow; however, I want to be able to work out problems between the me and the student rather than immediately throwing the student out of class, as I have already seen.

Although I have had only three days of observing, there are many aspects about the Ag program that I have learned about. I have noted specific behavioral and organizational aspects that I really want to work on during my student teaching experience. These observations have most definitely helped prepare me for my first week of teaching next week. I have also learned that I need to continue to focus on maintaining a healthy lifestyle so that I can be fully functioning in the classroom. I don't mean to come across complaining about being sick; however, it was something that I did not expect my first week student teaching. What I realized is that although you may be sick, your students still depend on you!

This week was a short week because school was canceled Monday; therefore, we did not go to the Farm Show. I observed Tuesday to Thursday and Friday there was no school. My schedule next week is as follows: (I start teaching one class, animal science, and will gradually pick up more classes as the semester progresses)

Monday- No School/No Farm Show
Tuesday - No animal science this day, Observe
Wednesday - Animal Science: Introduction to Ms. Graybill's classroom and Identifying Animal By Products
Thursday: Animal Science: Looking at the Value and Purpose of the Swine Industry in the US
Friday: Animal Science: Developing a Timeline of the History of the Swine Industry in the US