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Oct. 15th, 2004 11:49 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
zana16Yesterday in Calc M said something to the effect that this was the first time ze had ever understood enough to be able to do the homework without help.
This was the first constructive criticism I've received.
The problem with working at a Quaker school is that while we talk and talk, there is no feedback procedure that actually works. I have no idea whether my students understand what's going on because they don't tell me. I can ask, I can try to work them through the process.... but nobody wants to offend me. Nobody will tell me when what I'm doing isn't working. It's the most frustrating thing, because I never know if they're learning what I'm trying to teach them, and I'm still a first-year teacher and have absolutely no clue what (or how) I'm doing. I'm working mostly out of the text, and the textbook sucks, and I have no idea how to find labs to do that fit our budget (that budget would be a big zero) or how to help the student who knows everything but has severe testing anxiety and keeps failing the tests, and I have very smart students who work harder than they should have to to be able to understand what I'm saying.
And all this while we're still worrying about our students with drug problems and anorexia/bulimia problems and cutting problems and...
God, I need some time off.
This was the first constructive criticism I've received.
The problem with working at a Quaker school is that while we talk and talk, there is no feedback procedure that actually works. I have no idea whether my students understand what's going on because they don't tell me. I can ask, I can try to work them through the process.... but nobody wants to offend me. Nobody will tell me when what I'm doing isn't working. It's the most frustrating thing, because I never know if they're learning what I'm trying to teach them, and I'm still a first-year teacher and have absolutely no clue what (or how) I'm doing. I'm working mostly out of the text, and the textbook sucks, and I have no idea how to find labs to do that fit our budget (that budget would be a big zero) or how to help the student who knows everything but has severe testing anxiety and keeps failing the tests, and I have very smart students who work harder than they should have to to be able to understand what I'm saying.
And all this while we're still worrying about our students with drug problems and anorexia/bulimia problems and cutting problems and...
God, I need some time off.
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Hugs!
Date: 2004-10-16 05:54 am (UTC)Have you tried anonymous voting or quizzes that don't count toward the grade?
Hmm, don't know much about test anxiety, but there has to be some sort of reference on the internet. . .
Oooh. . .have you tried giving lollipops for honest constructive criticism. . .
:)
As for the "Everything" in everything else, good luck to you and yours.
With love and a (teddy)-bear hug,
your lil sis, Aprille
Re: Hugs!
Date: 2004-10-16 05:18 pm (UTC)