I did my first classroom observation yesterday.
I haven’t received anything/paperwork/directions yet from the program’s admin, so I went by what I saw on the Independent Study Guide (ISG) that someone posted online from the same program in a different state. It gave very basic guidelines of what to look for during the observation, and what to be aware of as well. I have to say, I was impressed with the teaching.
There were 2 teachers in the room – 1 general ed and 1 EC – but they flowed so well with each other that you really couldn’t tell which was which. They did a lesson for 6th graders on how emotion and situation affects plot, and dissected a book they were all reading by having the students suggest evidence of certain emotions in the text and then support those claims with evidence in the tests. Next, they plotted them on a graph, reinforcing math concepts of point of origin, neutral line and how the things are positive on the upper side of the neutral line, and negative on the lower side. It was really interesting to watch how they put this lesson together with the kids. They used the (?) Frayer model with I do, You do, We do, You do independently, and I was finally able to see a really good example of a full lesson, from what I know so far – introduction of the topic and essential question for the day (used later to assess learning), directed instruction (I do), working cooperatively with partners (you do) and finally, having the kids find, support and plot a point of emotion in the book on their own (you do independently). It was kind of cool to watch all of this come together, and the kids enjoyed it too… almost every one of them were engaged, with the exception of maybe a child or two sitting way in the back or on the outer edges on the sides of the room.
The coteaching was exceptional. These ladies literally flowed with each other, and worked so well together. One would start part of the lesson (ie. The I do), then the other would – without interruption – smoothly begin the second part (we do), and they switched back and forth as needed throughout the lesson. I have to say, I was impressed with this part. I also have to say, though, that I’m a little concerned with this part when it relates to me and where I’ll be placed this coming school year. We don’t know what kind of classroom we’ll be in just yet – coteaching, pull-out (resource room) or self-contained. I’m reeeeeally hoping for self-contained, so I don’t end up with a lot of drama in the classroom unnecessarily. One of the teachers was kind enough to talk to me honestly about the truth that some teachers encounter often… territorial general ed teachers who don’t want anyone else in their room, feel they don’t need you, and would really just rather you go away. While I understand someone wanting their own space to work with the kids their way, I also know that if you have a class almost halfway filled with exceptional learners, you need a Special Ed teacher in that room – better spoken, the exceptional learners need someone in the room who is simultaneously sensitive to their issues while believing in them and having patience in them enough to push them and hold them to the same standards as children without those issues. It’s an awkward situation from the outset, I know, but if schools (as they are here) are moving more and more toward having less self-contained rooms and more co-teaching, it’s a necessary evil that we all have to work to find a way to work with. I’m soooo praying for my own room my first year.
One thing I learned yesterday was that, even though almost half of the children in that classroom were exceptional learners (I couldn’t tell anything at all when watching them participate and engage in the lesson), all of the kids in that room were behind and needed additional planning and differentiation – not one of them was reading on a 6th grade level. That is just INCREDIBLE to me… but that’s a topic for another post. I wonder if I’ll ever understand how children can be passed from grade to grade to grade when they can’t READ and comprehend text. Omg. As a teacher, I know I’ve got a lot to learn concerning the differences between what is taught in the classroom and what administration/district/state/national policy makers determine as important. As a parent, it feels almost like a betrayal of sorts… I’m trying to understand how things have changed sooo much since we were in school that children can be passed to higher, more difficult and challenging grades while they are lacking the basic reading skills to succeed in those new places… smh. As I said before… definitely for another post.
So… I’ll get back to the great parts of my observation yesterday, and stop boring you with all my ranting and raving. I’d only been in the class maybe ten minutes or so, when the teacher greeted the kids for the morning. I guess the response was less than enthusiastic, so she greeted them again. Same response. So,she said something like, ‘I guess we need to do the pledge then, huh?’ And this really got reaction from the kids. I’m sitting there waiting for someone to begin a memorized thingie (or maybe redo the Pledge of Allegiance) while the kids sit in their seats…? One boy gets up, and stands on top of his chair. He stands on TOP of his chair. I’m looking around like… somebody has GOT to see this child doing this… why isn’t anybody saying anything to him? So he stays up there. And then… they ALL climb on top of their chairs and stand up there. Now the whole class is super-tall and standing nice and straight and tall on top of their chairs… Then the first boy belts out “I am”, and the class follows, loud, strong, excited, “I am”… him: “Somebody”…. They follow. “I can do anything I put my mind to”. He continues to call out parts of the pledge, loud confident and strong, and the class follows him like a call and response kind of thing. By the time they were done, they’d announced their faith in themselves, their teachers’ faith in them, the school’s faith in them and their commitment to work hard to learn whatever was necessary to achieve the things they wanted. WOW. That was amazing. It reminded me so much of a scene from the movie, Dead Poet’s Society (the standing on the desks part, and why you do it)… man…. I might just steal that one for my own class!!!!
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