I had a conversation with a fellow intern on Friday, with the subject being an upcoming observation. She asked what I was going to be teaching, and I replied by saying that 11am was out math time. She responded by asking if I just do what is scheduled, and not worry about the observation, to which I said "yeah, I don't worry about when he (our field instructor) comes. I just maintain the routine as best I can."
Ultimately teaching is about the kids. If a field instructor wants to see me teach science, reading, math, etc, then they need to come when we have it scheduled. Rearranging the day for my convenience doesn't make sense for the kids, as resilient as they may be. Moving parts of the day around throws the kids for a loop. In a weird way, it isn't in our best interest anyway as the change can have the kids reacting oddly, making for a poor lesson and potential management issues.
I totally agree. Routine, consistency, and predictability is critical for kids. You start messing with the schedule and 'going with the flow' it throws them off big time. I work with some young teachers that while I admire the energy and dedication they make it practice to fly by the seat of their pants and that is stressful to the kids and to me, honestly.
ReplyDeleteThere is this notion that making things out of the ordinary or out of routine is 'thinking outside the box', teaching critical thinking, if you will. However, I think with all the sources of input kids get these days from media, their families, friends etc. Consistency and predictability is the best thing for them. Even if I can only give it to them for a handful of hrs in their day.
Chad,
ReplyDeleteI think you nailed it when you mention the stress that it puts on the kids (and others). As an adult, you are better prepared than a child to deal with consistent curveballs. But as a kid, school is sometimes one of the most rock solid things they've got. Look at breaks (holidays, midwinter, etc etc)... kids go a little loopy, and it isn't simply them being kids. The same goes for daily routine- changing all over the place can leave them guessing (and I'm not sure that is what we want).