What can the New Teacher Expect? Chapter 14 Dr. Paul A. Rodriguez

--Stuart D. Chandler, 5th Grade Teacher, Aurora Colorado Surprises of the first year The school milieu: the shock of familiar Administrators: mixed bag, as well as many hats and pressures Peers: a mixed blessing Instruction: so much to learn Students: friends or fiends? Parents: natural allies with different agendas The strange and the familiar Beginning teachers are often overwhelmed by their initial exposure to school False sense of security—new teachers have an enormous pressure and strain on the beginners Signs of stress—many new teachers experience depression and self-doubt School: a foreign culture—culture shock is the feeling of dislocation that people experience when they initially live in a foreign country. Rather than saying, “I have a job,” I say with delight, “I am a teacher!” it’s so much more than a job. It’s an awakening. --Stuart D. Chandler, 5th Grade Teacher, Aurora Colorado

Principals as colleagues—the principal is now a colleague, a fellow educator joined with you in the common task of bringing civilization to the young As leaders—principals are the official leaders in the school As helpers—principals are helpers As policymakers—principals are policymakers As crises managers As facilitators As dispenser of rewards As judges As buffers As sacrificial lambs Different priorities—confusion and potential conflict between the administrator and the new teacher may be expected Types of help from administrators: Dealing with specialized problems, such as an extremely reticent student Put you in contact with specialists Demonstration lessons or special presentations in your class Observe you in action, and provide focused feedback on your lessons

Colleagues—can be an ever-ready source of ideas and lead to their desire to stay in teaching Positive negative influence—sometimes colleagues can undermine a beginning teacher’s idealism, lowering their standards and offering no help at all Changing views of children—studies show that the longer college students stay in teacher education programs, the more positive and warm their attitudes toward students become Idealism—becoming a teacher, they have high ideals in general and become particularly idealistic about children and education during their preparation Students expect discipline—a discipline problem occurs when someone violates the expected orderly pattern of classroom behavior. Students are accustomed to being taught by experienced teachers who know how to manage and control them, usually rather effortlessly Social distance—establishing an appropriate social distance comes with experience Shared goals—the parent and teacher are natural partners. Both are working to help the child become a more fully developed person, and both want the child to be happy, sensitive, intelligent and well balanced

--Herbert Kohl, Teacher and Educational Writer Differences in perception Varied perceptions—teachers and parents are quite likely to perceive the same phenomenon in very different ways Judgments on students Differences of social class and experiences Overburdened parents—working several jobs The pain of change—going to school changes the child Privilege and responsibility—will vary with teacher and parent outlooks Teaching journal—can be any notebook that is large enough to hold your teaching thoughts and suggestions Cultivating humility—humility is a virtue that has been all but drowned out in our modern culture The love of nurturing and observing growth in others is essential to sustaining a life of teaching. This implies that no matter what you teach or how you present yourself to your students, you have to be on the learners’ side and to believe that they can and will grow during the time that you are together --Herbert Kohl, Teacher and Educational Writer

Values of mentor—am experienced teacher who is willing to act as a guide and confidant through the first year Establishing communication with parents—is a major goal and very essential Physical health—teacher need to keep themselves healthy Mental health—the stress and strain of a new teaching position can cause mild and severe depression. Know the signs Key Terms Culture shock Mentor Social distance Teaching journal