I'm new to this teaching thing and still full of the gung-ho drive that more grizzled members of the profession chuckle at. Several profs have assured my cohort that the highly-detailed lesson plans they'd like us to produce will soon be mocked by practicum mentors who've mastered the art of lightning-quick lesson prep. And the fact is, they know how it really works. They know you can't deliver your best, most dynamic lesson every day, and that even if you could some days just won't work as well as others. They're comfortable telling students they won't get marking done by tomorrow because they have families at home. This isn't all teachers of course, but it seems to be the ones able to bring their best selves to class every day--maybe because that self is genuine. A tired teacher can certainly relate to her students, all of whom also have families and commitments outside the classroom.
While I have yet to find my own sense of balance then, I'm trying to appreciate my current state of mind as a learning opportunity. If some teachers emphasize the importance of leaving their work at school, then why shouldn't the same apply to their students? Likewise, if I understand the havoc caused by having assignments for every class due the same week, why wouldn't I try to coordinate due dates with my future colleagues? Or eliminate them all together, à la UDL? When I know how hard it can be to find time to read a simple article, why wouldn't I set aside time to delve into one during my class? I haven't spent much time looking into the debate of whether to homework or not to homework and have little practical experience to draw upon from a teaching perspective. I suspect, though, that my eventual opinion on it will have a lot to do with how I manage to find balance in my own life. Who knows, maybe the only homework I assign will be to get a good night's sleep--we all know how hard it can be to get an A+ on that one. For more reading on homework, check out these articles.
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We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. The trick is knowing how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out. Archives
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