Secrets for Secondary School Teachers (13 page)

When kids work hard for tests, they deserve to get their grades back as soon as possible. Whatever you do, don’t lie by telling them they’ll have their tests back within 2 days and not give them back for a week. If you are going to have problems grading the tests right away, tell the kids so they will know what to expect. Better yet, get the grades back to us as soon as you can. We need to know how we’re doing in your classes.

T
HE
M
AILBOX

Along with the things you initiate for your students to complete will be paperwork required by the school. Some days, it will seem impossible to keep your mailbox empty.
Every time you go by, there will be something in it for you to peruse—announcements, requests for information, forms to fill out, plus the countless catalogues and letters from text and instructional materials companies. It’s a good idea to check your mailbox frequently—before and after school, during lunch, and at other times during the day if possible.

In the beginning, it is wise to look carefully at the papers that are placed in your mailbox. Once you become familiar with the types of information you receive, you will be able to categorize and prioritize your responses. Daily announcements will be stuffed in mailboxes every day, usually at about the same time. Scan these for the information that pertains to you or your students. You can post an announcement of a forthcoming assembly (with the bell schedule for that day) on the class bulletin board for reference later in the week. College visits and college scholarship announcements can also be posted, in addition to competitions and performances that are coming up. Each day, you can refer your students to the latest additions to the bulletin board. Telephone messages from parents and messages from other teachers will be placed in your mailbox, too, another reason to check your box regularly.

Take a pen with you to the mailbox. Often there will be a request for information that you can provide on the spot. Such requests are very common at the beginning of the year as administrators check on the numbers of students, textbooks, desks, and other equipment. These forms are often placed in the mailboxes in the morning and usually require a quick turnaround time—the end of the school day. Also, there will be information sheets to be posted—fire drill procedures suspension rules, reminders about no food or drink in the classroom, and the like. The good news is that the amount of paperwork in your mailbox will decrease as time goes on. If you have a writing tool with you, you can process some of the paper and send it on its way.

Advertising catalogues, brochures, and flyers will find their way to you. It will take a little while in the beginning to sort through the new products that are being offered. But as
time goes on, you will be able to determine which companies have books or products that are worth your consideration for a particular course. File the catalogues by class or by publisher until you are in a position to request an order. You will also get information on various programs and competitions that you and your students may be interested in, as well as information on professional development opportunities. Check with other teachers and your department head for their opinions on the information you receive.

P
LANNING AND
C
ALENDARS

Just as students are advised to use daily planners in study-skills classes, we suggest that a calendar or electronic planner (personal data assistant—PDA) will be helpful to you as well. Such a planner is useful for keeping track of scheduled meetings, student activities, and deadlines for various projects. You can color code entries to distinguish between professional and personal entries, and you can indicate optional activities, such as attending a debate in which one of your students will be participating. You can also include reminders for forthcoming events.

I
N THE
B
EGINNING

The early weeks of the fall semester will be especially busy with the first department and school committee meetings of the year. There will be several tasks that must be completed right away; for example, an individual and department professional development plan may need to be written. Most schools require these to be submitted to an administrator. Emergency lesson plans may have to be written and filed as well. Once they are completed, they must also be updated from time to time. Also, texts and supplies will need to be inventoried and stored, at least temporarily. And, forms—well, this topic merits a section of its own.

F
ORMS

Certain forms are distributed on a regular basis. You can mark your calendar so you know when to expect them and when they are due back to a particular office. For example, athletic and activity eligibility forms are distributed on a regular schedule and are due back by a specific time. Some schools require these every week; others may only want them every third week.

In order to evaluate eligibility for sports and activities, some teachers make a notation in their grade books as to which students play a given sport or participate in a given activity. Then, they scan the list of names and check the grade averages for those students. Other teachers find this information distracting in the grade books, so they circle the names on the lists that are given to each teacher and just check the circled names against the grade averages in their grade books.

Unsatisfactory progress report forms are distributed at some point in the middle of the grading period. Teachers usually have several days to complete them. You can check the due dates, usually with the registrar or the principal’s secretary. Progress reports may also be requested for certain students on a weekly basis. These forms may come from the student, parent, counselor, special education teacher, dean, school social worker, or school psychologist.

Some schools have teachers complete daily attendance rosters. The forms are in the mailboxes in the morning and have to be turned in at the end of the day. Suspension lists and withdrawals are posted daily. The teacher usually has a part in the withdrawal process—checking in textbooks and indicating withdrawal in the grade book, which is a legal document. You may also have to sign a form. A good procedure to follow is to check the lists against your record book at the end of the day before you turn in your attendance.

Excused-absence lists are irregularly distributed, so you have to be on the lookout for these. Students may be excused for competitions, assembly preparation, sports events, field
trips, and other programs. In addition, several tests are administered throughout the year for different groups of students. You might consider marking these on your calendar, too, so you will know why students are absent.

O
RGANIZE
Y
OUR
W
ORK
S
PACE

Take a moment to analyze your work habits and your work space. Is your desk rather cluttered at the moment with papers, folders, and books? Or, have you seen the advantages to clearing your desk except for the current project?

Think of your work space in terms of zones. Keep the items you use regularly; by that we mean daily, in the immediate vicinity—on or in your desk. Items that fall into this category include textbooks, confidential information, grade book, lesson plans, paper and pens, and desk supplies kept in a drawer. If you are not going to use it right away, it probably doesn’t have to be on your desk.

Reference items such as the Teacher Handbook, dictionary, and curriculum resource materials should be placed in an intermediate zone, within arm’s reach, such as in or on a nearby bookshelf or table. If you must have piles of papers and materials, and some of us do, request or bring in an extra table so that you will be able to see what you have accumulated. This way you will be able to spread out your papers and still have a place to work.

Decide in advance where students will put their completed work so you will have access to it. Will they place it in a basket on a table on the side of the room or file it in a drawer? Where will they find their makeup work—in a basket, on the bulletin board, or in a file cabinet? Also, determine how you will return their work—will they have mailboxes or folders for retrieval or will you hand papers back personally? Establishing routines will make your life and your students’ lives easier.

Things you use from time to time, such as class sets of supplies or supplementary reading or folders/binders of resource
plans, can be stored out of the way in cabinets, wardrobes, or bookshelves on the side or in the back of the room.

Decide whether you will keep lesson plans, lectures, transparencies, and other information in folders or binders; or experiment to find out which is most comfortable for you. We suggest color coding your files, binders, and boxes for easy reference. It goes without saying, keep like materials together.

Space may be an issue in two particular situations. If you travel from room to room, you will only be able to bring what is essential with you on a cart. You will have to be extremely selective in your choosing. Carts have weight limits and can tip over if they are unbalanced. Also, it is difficult to maneuver a cart with objects that extend over the sides in hallways full of students. You will have to find a place for your reference books and supplementary materials, supplies, and student work. You might store them in a department office or in a room shared with another teacher.

If you inherited a room from another teacher, you may find the cabinets full of real or imagined treasures. You may want to box these items for storage elsewhere until you have time to go through them and decide what will be useful for you and what you can discard.

M
ANAGING
T
IME

Some days when school ends, you may feel totally overwhelmed, as if you put out one fire after another all day long. When you consider the next day’s work, you don’t know where to begin.

There’s no denying your days will be very full, and each day will be different from the day before. In order to manage your time efficiently, the first step is to create your “TTD” or “Things To Do” list. Next to each item on the list, it is also helpful to identify what resources you will need to accomplish each task. In some cases, you will need to gather additional information or consult with someone else. Sometimes, you
can even predict how long each task will take (just as you do with lesson plans). For example, you may identify several short items to do regularly during your preparation period, such as grading and recording makeup work. Other items you may do on a weekly basis, such as getting supplies or calling parents. Examine your list to determine which things need to be done right away, which items within a week, and which have later deadlines. Then prioritize your work and set a schedule for yourself for other things that must be done—personal shopping, dentist appointments, and so on.

It’s important to set realistic deadlines. There are only 24 hours in a day and you need to sleep, eat, exercise, and spend time with your family and friends. Remember, too, to ask for help when you need it. Other teachers may have models for you to follow and suggestions that will help you do things efficiently. A mentor can also help you prioritize your tasks.

There will be many requests and opportunities for involvement at the school, from coaching sports to advising clubs to curriculum development. You will enjoy these commitments, but they also take time. You may have to remind people several times that you are a new teacher, and that while you would like to get more involved, you are not ready to do so at the present. Target what you would like to do and put it on the list for next year!

A
T THE
E
ND

It’s hard to believe, with everything you are trying to remember as you’re just getting started in the job, but there will come a time when the academic year ends. Unfortunately, this brings another rash of forms to fill out and paperwork to complete.

At the end of each semester, you will need to post schedules for final exams. There will be forms for you to fill out regarding your preferences for teaching next year, textbook
needs and supplies, and maintenance requests for your room over the track or summer. Various evaluation forms also will be requested.

Teachers with senior students will have to report semester grades and fines. They may be involved in distributing graduation-related material, such as senior rings, caps and gowns, and invitations. This is the time for recommendations, resumes, and senior projects. Do not agree to review a resume or write a letter of recommendation if the student does not give you enough time to do so—at least a week.

All of this paperwork may seem overwhelming in the beginning. It is really just during the first few weeks and the last few weeks of the year that things seem particularly hectic. Before you become frustrated, remember that almost all professional jobs in contemporary life have their fair share of forms and paperwork to complete. You will become more efficient as time goes on. This is just the price we pay for the privilege of doing the fun stuff.

  8  

Avoiding Boredom—Theirs and Yours

If there’s one thing that kids hate most about school (besides having to get up early), it’s the boredom. I (Cary) think that most teachers are so repetitive and predictable. Whether it’s taking notes or doing problems on the board, the same routines are used over and over again.

My advice is: Avoid this! Take risks by trying new ideas. If students come to class and they already know they’re going to be lectured to all period, then interest is lost before things even begin.