Zacharia Eastman is no stranger to the classroom. After all, he’s been a student for at least the last seventeen years. Yet this fall he heads back to school as a student teacher. As a regular feature to Works Sighted, Eastman will report his progress as he moves to the front of the class.
From NU’s Webb Hall to a Classroom in the Kingdom
by Zacharia Eastman
Becoming a teacher is more than simply picking a subject, such as math, biology, or English, and getting a degree. A teacher is required to graduate in a major area, take enough courses in education to equal another major, and finally, and always last, to student teach. And, before walking into the classroom, there are a couple of practical details that need to be addressed; foremost is finding a school to student teach within and a mentor teacher to serve as a day-to-day advisor.
Finding a School
Finding a school and mentor teacher are closely related. While taking education courses, students must also observe and work in various schools. As a result, they become familiar with a variety of institutions and educators. The qualities in a school and mentoring teacher that a student-teacher looks for are different for each student. Some school qualities that I considered were: school size, student/teacher ratio, the environment of a school (both physical and sociological), and how the teachers interacted with each other and the staff.
I chose to work in a school in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. Comparably, it is a rather small high school, averaging roughly 400 students. When it comes to education, however, “big” isn’t always “better.” Supposedly, a small school is ideal because the capacity to teach and learn is greater. The student to teacher ratio is about 15-20/1 per class. In a school this size, teachers and students can get to know each other quite well—not much different from Norwich University.
For readers unfamiliar with “the Kingdom,” as it is called by those of us who live here, it is a rural area where the outdoors is still greatly appreciated and enjoyed. In about eight minutes someone can go from the ‘city’ to the middle of nowhere. Much of the economy is based on agriculture, logging, and tourism. It is often referred to by many people as, “the real Vermont,” or, “what Vermont used to be like.”
Finding a Mentor
Choosing a mentoring teacher is also a very important step in the process to become a teacher. In theory, the student teacher is supposed to develop from the mentor teacher a personal pedagogy (theory of teaching) and learn how to teach the subject area. The process of choosing a mentoring teacher more or less follows in this manner: observe the teacher teaching several times, talk with the teacher to see if they are willing to take on a student teacher, interview the teacher to learn more about their theories, and, finally, meet with the teacher and the supervising professor to finalize the placement.
Three of the four student teachers from Norwich this semester have returned to schools where they were once students.Like the others in my student teaching cadre, I have decided to work with teachers that I had in high school or knew during high school; I am working with two teachers in order to learn a wider array of styles and techniques. My decision to work with one of my teachers is a direct result of what I remember of the courses I took with him. This teacher was able to get some of my classmates, who before never fully did their work, to complete reading and writing assignments. Although I have my memories of the classes, I cannot reconstruct exactly what it was that compelled these students to actually do their work. It is my hope that by fulfilling some of my student teaching obligations with this teacher, I will be able to study his pedagogy and fully understand how this feat was achieved. In contrast, the second teacher with whom I will work, I never had as an instructor. Since it is a small school, however, I knew that she was a very competent and well liked teacher. I have found in the past week that she is also held in very high esteem by her colleagues.
Taking the Praxis Tests
Other formalities that must be completed prior to student teaching is taking Praxis tests and compiling a portfolio. The Praxis I & II are, respectively, tests of basic knowledge throughout each of the subject areas, including pedagogical knowledge, and specific knowledge in the subject area that a person is going to teach. When I took Praxis II, one section asked specifically about Percy Bysshe Shelley’s “Ozymandias.” The questions ranged from those regarding reading comprehension, such as what pieces of the statue remained, to inference questions like, what is the meaning of the inscription. Fortunately, I had no trouble with this poem, or the questions about it, as I had thoroughly discussed “Ozymandias” with Linda Karch, professor of English, as part of Survey of English Literature II (EN226).
The Praxis tests are a mandatory examination that is required to receive a teaching license; Vermont requires a higher score than many other states. After taking both tests, I worried about whether or not I had achieved a high enough score. The fear of not passing originated from both the relatively high cost, around $100, and the need to have them completed before student teaching began. In addition, there was a large amount of guess work that went into some questions about authors I had never heard of, or works I had not gotten around to read. I do not, however, believe that it was simple luck that helped me through this; but rather, a well stocked arsenal of testing strategies earned over the years, such as looking at when the texts in question were written, and comparing it roughly to the time period when an author would have lived.
Compiling a Portfolio
The portfolio often fills a three or four inch D-ring binder. It includes articles such as letters of recommendation, Praxis score results, work from the various courses that the applicant has taken, and short essays addressing principles and competencies as laid out by the state of Vermont. The principles and competencies are benchmarks for knowledge and performance that the applicant must prove that he/she has achieved. Proof of meeting these benchmarks comes from courses and working in the schools. The principles address five general areas:
Learning- the continued education of the teacher;
Professional Knowledge-keeping up to date on knowledge regarding teaching and learning;
Colleagueship– the ability to work with colleagues, giving students the best possible education;
Advocacy- helping to improve education in and out of the classroom independently and with the community;
Accountability- demonstrating growth as an educator and ethical behavior.
Ideally, a student teacher would receive letters of recommendation from math, science, and humanities professors. Not having taken any math or science classes recently, I received letters from Patricia Ferreira, associate professor of English, and Scott Fields, professor of English, and Barbara Clarke, assistant professor of psychology. The letters of recommendation needed to speak of my abilities as a student, classroom activities they may have observed, and, if possible, my prospective ability as a teacher.
My student teaching experience began on the 21st of August, and so far has been quite interesting. The timeline for what we do as student teachers is fairly predetermined; however, teaching, and classes, never follow the prescribed plan; we’ll just have to see how it all goes.
For legal reasons of confidentiality governing public schools, Zacharia Eastman cannot name the specific school where he is student teaching or the teachers who are serving as his mentors
