All,
As you saw if you visited my blog last night, I did not post like I promised I would. Like I said then, I'm sorry, and so I'll say it again: I'm sorry. So, since I got done with classes relatively early today, everyone else from my suite is in class for the moment, and I don't have Duck Hunt to distract me, I'll make up for yesterday's lack of a post. To do so, I'll write a double post, if you will. Just to tell you in advance, I'll be combining ideas 1 and 2 from Monday: my take on the first day of classes and the philosophies and implementation of syllabi on the first day of class, as they relate to each other. I think I'll take some time, do some more reading, note taking, and observation before I post on topic 3 (PLCs as a means for in-house professional development run by special educators for general educators). One, it's kind of a beast of an idea, and two, I don't feel I know enough about either PLCs or the special education system to proffer an educated or implementable system. With that said, let me begin.
Part I
My take on the first day of classes
I have no clue how many of my facebook friends read this blog and check my status updates (I know they can be twitter-lik
e at times, sorry), but on Sunday night my status read:
New khakis? Check. Button-up shirt and sweater vest? Check. NC State logo bow tie? Check. Textbooks? psshh...who needs those? Tomorrow's gonna be a good day.
If you can't tell from that status update, the amount of "academic" and "big" words I use, and the topics of my post, I'm a pretty big nerd. I love school (well, not all the time) and I think that's part of the reason I want to be a teacher, I don't want to leave school, ever. The prospect of walking into a classroom on the first day of a semester and starting the process of acquiring new skills and knowledge is exciting to me. Maybe I'm weird, who knows?
When I look at the first day of classes each semester and my attitude towards them, not much has changed since the first days of school each year in Elementary school. As you can gather from the above quote, I still dress up. I enjoy getting dressed up, and the first day of classes is another opportunity (read: excuse) to do so, but it goes beyond that. I think that it makes me different in a class of 300. It sends the right message to my professors, and while it may put some of my peers off, at least they'll be able to spot the nerd easily and avoid me if they so choose.
Maybe it's just in the College of Education or just in the smaller classes I've taken during my time here at NCSU, but there seems to always be time allotted for icebreakers on the first meeting of class. I usually am not that enthusiastic about them to start with, but by the end I see the value in them and appreciate the fact that the professor is making an honest attempt to not only get us to learn each others' names, but also to learn our names as well. Obviously, playing an ice-breaker type game in a class of 300 is a logistical nightmare, but it is what it is. I genuinely appreciate the effort of these teachers, and it's usually a nice transition into note-taking or whatever the class entails, so if nothing else it's a little bit of social time before one is expected to sit quietly.
This is my sixth semester here at NCSU, and in the past five semesters I can't remember one where I actually introduced myself to each of my professors, and especially not on the first day. I actually felt that it would benefit me and my professors, and again, make a good impression if I made the effort to do just that this semester. What I've learned is that professors tend to enjoy talking to students one on one, they are not nearly as intimidating as they look at the front of the lecture hall, and they may even remember your name and face. Everything I just said didn't come as a surprise and they're things I've always known, but having them reinforced is always nice. In introducing myself to my Geology professor (a 300+ person class), I learned that not only does he have a multitude of online resources on the course website for me and other students, but he also has material on his website specifically for K-12 Science teachers, a resource I may just use in the future. He also took a second to offer his (positive) opinion on the textbook used to teach Geology at the middle school level, which hit home with me (yes, I still remember those skinny Prentice Hall books that changed every unit) and showed me how dedicated he is to Science education at all levels. And to think, this guy has taught (by his calculations) somewhere near 25% of NCSU students/alums since he began here roughly thirty years ago. It's kind of mind-boggling to me.
I guess my love of school, and all that comes with it (excitement, dressing up, enjoying ice-breakers, and talking with professors) stems from how energizing I find school to be. I have not always been energized by school at all levels, but now that I'm in a program I'm truly passionate about and enjoy spending free time learning about school has become a lens to focus that energy and interest in Education. The first day of classes embodies this to me. I love learning new things, and the first day you walk into a class you know that you're going to learn something new, even if it's just what the professor looks and acts like or how the guy who is sitting next to you really doesn't need to eat at Taco Bell. Ever.
As I look around my classrooms (maybe not my education classes so much), I don't see the same enthusiasm from my peers. It bothers me that I find school such an exciting time and place, but others see school as the end product. As a diploma only. Please, leave a comment and let me know that I'm not the only one that enjoys school. Feel free to tell me why you think my attitude is uncommon, or at least I perceive it to be. I don't care, but please someone tell me I'm not the only one that feels this way about school. Or am I?
Part II
Syllabi: Student-Teacher Contract or Waste of a First Day?
I guess the subtitle under Part II is a little misleading, because I think one would be hard-pressed to find a teacher that didn't subscribe to the idea that their syllabus is a means for expressing their expectations for students and giving the students an idea of what they can expect from them. In that sense it's an informal contract, although I'm pretty sure if there was a discrepancy between grading procedures as described in the syllabus and how grading procedures were actually implemented, one would be able to use the syllabus as a means to right said discrepancy. With that being said, it is the implementation of syllabi and their effect on the first day of classes that has me thinking (Danger, Will Robinson! Danger!).
There was a stark difference in Dr. Blanchard (Introduction to Science Education) and Dr. Kimberley's approach to their syllabi, and I wondered why this could be, since their philosophies on syllabi (at least, according to what they said implicitly and explicitly) are roughly equivalent. It was Dr. Blanchard that actually gave me the notion to think of syllabi as student-teacher contracts, as she used those exact words during class on Monday. She also went on to say that she won't expect any more of us than what she outlined in the syllabus, and she may even expect less (only if we're lucky), but there are clear expectations for both herself and students alike on paper and in front of us. And, besides showing us where to find it on her Vista page and giving us a cursory look at what it contains, we didn't really talk that much about it. In fact, she explicitly told us that reading it over was our job and that she expected questions about it next class meeting. Now, compare that with Dr. Kimberley (who I have thoroughly enjoyed in the two times I've sat in Witherspoon), who used the first class meeting for reading the syllabus to us. He even said something along the lines of: "here's where I assume you can't read." Which is funny, yes, but also sad. We wasted a whole fifty minute lecture period going over class procedures and whatnot. In my opinion, it's a waste.
If syllabi are really to be seen by both teachers and students alike as contracts for each other's expectations of how the class is to run, then both must take them seriously. For students it's a free class period to nap, do homework, text, browse facebook, or a myriad of other things. And, I can't with any accuracy say what they are to teachers as a whole, so I won't. Basically, all that's to say that if teachers expect us to read and absorb the information on the syllabus, don't waste a class period reading it aloud to us. Professors give students an easy out for not reading it: they just read it to us. The flip side of that is that when a professor hands out/shows one where to find their syllabus on the web and tells/asks/implores that one read it carefully, then actually do it. This will save both sides a lot of headaches down the line, and while students (myself included) may not like jumping right into lecture our first day back it may just put the class on track for the professor to cancel class the day/night of the Carolina game or on a random day during the semester (music to every one's ears).
Think about it, chew on it, spit it back out, do what you want (if anything) with the above post. I hope this was worth the wait. I feel as if I put in a double dose of effort and words in this post so, even though I didn't keep my original promise from Monday, hopefully this makes up for it.
-Jason
p.s.- Just a quick plug: if you're going into education, are currently a teacher, or going into any sort of business where you'll be working with others, then reading Building a Professional Learning Community at Work: A Guide to the First Year is something I'd recommend. It's written by Parry Graham and William Ferriter (a Wake county teacher whose blog I follow entitled The Tempered Radical). Check it out (or, if you go to State, you can borrow my copy when I'm done reading it). It's relatively cheap and so far it's been a good read for me and it seems as if it will continue to be a good read.