So, now that we’ve all been formally “observed” for our first time, does your perspective of yourself as a teacher change? I was talking with my Master Teacher about two schools potentially closing in the Edmonds School District. So, not only will there be 35 students in our program looking for a job this summer, there will also be two school’s worth of teachers who need to get placed somewhere too. It is difficult for me to consider myself a competitor in a situation like this because I don’t know much about my competition.
It’s interesting that we do activities in class with people who are interested in teaching the same grade level. We are supposedly a group collaborating together, but when it comes down to it, that’s our competition. Will we be applying for the same job at the same school? Who would win? It is a legitimate concern, because we all live and desire to work in relatively the same areas and thus strive for the same positions. Game on.
Yay competition! Bring it on! Some people are all about it, some people hate it, some people complain about it, some people thrive on it....
ReplyDeletewhich one are you?
While we all are our own competition we are also a pool of resources and ideas. Sure we will need to placed throughout the area, but I see this group of people as strong resource. I am currently learning so much from the mistakes I am making and others are making because we are sharing them.
I am constantly gaining new ideas from everyone around me, and all of the master teachers that they are linked up with.
Ok I see that we are competition but we also need to actively see each other as support for this new world we are about to enter into. I find comfort in knowing that we are all going to be embarking on this next leg of life knowing we have similar foundations!
I agree. I will agree more when we all have jobs and can really call each other colleagues. I do see the importance of gaining knowledge from others in an attempt to improve and advocate for education and the education system but at this point in our career there is a very fine line between the two viewpoints. We can absorb a lot, grow as individuals and as teachers, but how will that impact our future when we can't get a job in this field?
ReplyDeleteI'm not a negative person, just practical and I have heard too many stories about students from the previous cohorts still waitressing and bartender until they can find a teaching job. I like to plan ahead but at this point, I can't plan for anything past June 5th and that concerns me.