Mentoring

I just finished using my new found movie making skills to create a video of one of my former students. He started his first game at A&M Saturday night. I have no illusions that my influence convinced him to attend A&M. He picked the best place for him. None of my teachers influenced my own decision to attend A&M. None of them really influenced my chosen profession. I did have teachers that showed the type of teacher I wanted to be and unfortunately the type of teacher I didn't want to be. My two favorite teachers from high school were complete opposites. Mr. Groves was the typical math teacher with a pocket protector and a single focus on math. He had taught math so long that he had worn away something in his elbow and could draw a perfect circle by flicking his wrist. He wasn't personable, but he was there every morning for tutoring, and he constantly worked to make sure I learned math. Mrs. Jones, my junior English teacher, was personable, funny, and outgoing. She was able to connect to students with her personality. I have tried to keep their examples in mind as I teach and work with my students.

My first year of teaching I was assigned a mentor, two in fact. I tended to refer them as Lucy and Ethel. Needless to say, they were not that much help. I wondered around the first few days of inservice until I met Marie. She is another English teacher who helped me get started at Allen. In the last 12 years she has probably helped me more than anyone. I still looked to her for advice and even send others to her when they need advice.

Teaching does not just involve the classroom. New teachers need help navigating the bureaucracy and the "backstage" action. Too many times teachers feel isolated. All the bureaucracy creates this. When I did my class work for certification, a professor told the class to stay out of the teacher's lounge for the first three years. I think this is disastrous advice.

Veteran and new teachers need each other to be sounding boards. So much happens in school we need each other's support. Other teachers have offered me support as I went through rough spots. They convince me to keep going. Books can tell you how to manage a class, design a lesson, and other things. But it takes another teacher to show you how to be a teacher.

On another not my textbook finally arrived. So when I finish my reading assignment I can go back and do the blog I missed.