Posted by
Waski_the_Squirrel on Tuesday, April 28, 2009 12:19:15 AM
The school year is coming to an end. My last day of school is May 22. At this point of year teachers come to one of several realizations:
- "Oh gosh, so much left to teach and not enough time left!"
- "Wow, I got a lot done this year."
- "Right on target."
For the latter two cases, I have little to say except "Job well done" and "Figure out why it worked so you can do it again."
The first case is more interesting. I think we've all experienced the teacher who tries to cram it all in. Maybe we've even been that teacher (I know I have). The trouble with this approach is that the student is less likely to learn than before. If things are taught too quickly, students just can't absorb them.
The correct solution is to look at what you have left to teach and pick out the essentials. Teach those things well and accept that you won't get to everything. Then, figure out what happened so that you don't get into this trap again. Some possible explanations include:
- The teacher was too ambitious. Maybe he planned to teach more than could be taught.
- Too much wasted time. I think this one is obvious!
- Too many activities: they're fun, they teach well, but they're not always efficient. A teacher needs to evaluate activities for the payback they give.
- Weak students (it happens)
- Weak teacher (I hope not, but it's good to be honest with oneself)
- Too many interruptions: some of my colleagues in other schools have had weeks of school canceled (and forgiven) due to flooding and snow
- Going too slow: sometimes you really just need to speed up
- No plan to start with: if you don't know where you're going, you really won't get there
I hope the teachers in my readership are taking the time to evaluate their practice...and that they are not trying to cram everything in.