Op-Ed: ?What We Are Asking of Beginning Teachers Is Not Sustainable?

It was just after dismissal on the first day of school, and Miss S was straightening the desks in her now-quiet classroom. The door creaked as I entered to introduce myself as her New Teacher Center mentor. Miss S turned at the noise, facing me with puffy red eyes and a tear-stained face. Her first day had not gone well. She was already wondering how she was going to face tomorrow.

?It?s all right,? I told her. ?I was so overwhelmed after my first day I drove past my own house. It gets better.?

Miss S was an ?A? student in her teacher preparation program. She had completed her student teaching. She had worked as a teacher?s aide at another school. And even though she was a tough city girl, she was unprepared for the reality of being a brand-new 5th grade teacher in a high-needs school on Chicago?s South Side: the behavior issues, the discouraging reading skills, the expectations of the principal, the rush of data and records, the demands of planning and grading and so much testing! She had not eaten all day and welcomed, with shaking hands, the apple for the teacher I pulled from my bag.

More: Diary of a First-Year Teacher: The First Month

?Let?s talk about your day,? I suggested. We were able to identify a couple of things that went well and generate a list of challenges. We set next steps: establishing rules and consequences, implementing procedures, learning more about her students, both academically and personally. She practiced these steps again when she was moved to a third/fourth classroom after their teacher quit.

Miss S was ready to quit that first week, and again after her teaching assignment was changed not once but twice, and yet again at Christmas. This time of the year for first-year teachers is when they have made the predictable plunge from ?anticipation? to ?survival? and are mired in their ?disillusionment? phase. But guess who showed up, rested and determined, at a winter break workshop on discussion strategies? With mentoring support, Miss S had survived the hard months of constant demands and few rewards to reach the ?rejuvenation? phase. She was ready to look again at data and prepare her wide range of learners for testing.

On a warm spring evening, one of her third-graders saw her aunt shot dead as the two of them sat on their front porch. ?What do I do?? Miss S asked. ?What do I say?? She and her students made cards for the family. They welcomed their classmate back. She wanted to sit by the teacher, and Miss S said that would be fine.

We too often do not allow them the grace of time and the supports they need to grow.

Curious, reflective, persistent, deeply caring, Miss S was everything we hope for in a beginning teacher. And to think we nearly lost her because of working conditions that burn out a third of all teachers by year three and half by year five.

At the end of the year I watched Miss S line up her students for a garden-planting project on school grounds. They were orderly. She organized a game to keep them busy while they waited their turn to plant. The children worked together, carefully tucking young plants into the dirt. They were knowledgeable: They knew the parts of plants and how they grew from seeds because they had already sprouted beans in their classroom.

Watching the purposeful work in the garden, I realized how much growth, at every level, had taken place in one short school year. I had grown as a mentor thanks to Miss S; she had grown as a teacher from our work together; her kids had grown as scholars and citizens.

Teaching, like gardening, is a future-focused endeavor, rooted in hope. I hope Miss S is teaching for many years to come. The data tells us that what we are asking of beginning teachers is not sustainable because we too often do not allow them the grace of time and the supports they need to grow.

Editor's Note: If you would like to support an inner-city teacher who also is hoping to cultivate a school garden with his students, make a donation below. Remember, every bit helps!

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Leslie Baldacci is a former Chicago Public Schools teacher. Over the past five years, she mentored nearly 100 beginning CPS teachers through New Teacher Center, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to improving student learning by accelerating the effectiveness of new teachers and school leaders. She is the author of Inside Mrs. B?s Classroom: Courage, Hope and Learning on Chicago?s South Side.

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/op-ed-asking-beginning-teachers-not-sustainable-193900605.html

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