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| "Help Wanted" by Brian Rinker is licensed by CC BY-NC 2.0 |
Two years ago I was assigned
journalism, newspaper, and yearbook. With no prior experience, admin
deemed me the right choice due to my “creativity” ... as if
student publications were adorable scrapbooks to be assembled at a
kitchen table.
To say the last two years have been a
struggle is to diminish the stress, anxiety, lack of sleep, and
dangerous amounts of caffeine I have consumed since taking over the
journalism program. Where once I was confident in both my content
knowledge and my ability to help students become better readers,
writers, and thinkers, I now flounder and wonder what, if anything,
students are taking away from my courses.
The pre-institute course work has
helped to close my knowledge gap, but I am also acutely aware of just
how ignorant I remain. I remind myself to be patient as I
acquire more skills and confidence, but I would be lying if I didn't
say that my stress levels rise when I think of returning for a third year.
Chief amongst my concerns is that I am
teaching the three classes in the same class period across two
classrooms. I struggle to wrap my mind around the logistics of the
schedule, let alone how to effectively instruct, advise, and monitor
the students. Any advice on how to organize the classes so as to
maximize student engagement and minimize negative behaviors? Any
thoughts on how to plan instruction so that each publication receives
the attention it demands? HELP!!!
Jennifer Woolsey
Sunrise Mountain HS
Peoria, AZ
If I'm reading your post correctly, you've got journalism, yearbook and newspaper all in the same room at the same time? If yes, you should totally think about a convergent structure. Mark Newton (and I think Aaron Manfull) has a convergent class where there is one staff producing both the yearbook and the newspaper. If I'm not mistaken, VISTAj reporters cover events, and then the photos and reporting are used for yearbook and newspaper (although not the same photos/stories for both!). I have a hard time wrapping my brain around the complete logistics, but I know that it can work! Might be a solution for you.
ReplyDeleteErinn Harris
TJHSST
Alexandria, VA
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIt's really hard to keep all of the plates spinning at the same time, but I promise it gets better. I wouldn't focus on fixing everything all at once. Just start with the non-negotiables...things that you can't live with. When you've conquered those, then add another. This got me through the first three years. I am not where I want to be yet, but making progress!
ReplyDeleteI'm actually teaching the three classes in the same class period but in two different classrooms, so at any given point a classroom full of students will be unsupervised. The two classroom idea was admins solution to one classroom not having enough computers for all of the students.
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