March 2006 Dear NECTFL attendees: When I consulted with members of the Board of Directors
in January 2005 about the 2006 Conference theme, “Building on Common Ground:
Within, Across, Beyond,” we agreed that very few educators truly know what’s
happening at another level of instruction. Middle school teachers often are
unaware of what takes place at the postsecondary level, and secondary teachers
are often ignorant of the teaching and learning at the FLES level. This is
rarely intentional; time constraints and infrastructure make articulation and
communication a real challenge for the average educator. With that in mind, sixteen teachers, administrators, and
students from elementary through postsecondary levels were asked to be part of
a diary project which would give people a glimpse into the multiple facets of
foreign language learning and teaching.
Writers were assured of anonymity in exchange for their candor and were
asked to address a common set of five topics over a period of seven months: March: A typical day for me April: The best thing that happened this week, the
worst thing that happened this week May/June: My reflections on this year August: My hopes for the upcoming school year September: The reality of the first week of school In the pages that follow, you
will find excerpts of these entries, offering a series of snapshots that reveal
the real-life joys and struggles of our profession. Most of all, they attest to the fact that,
despite our individual differences, we really do share a lot of common
ground. A special thank you to Sister Mary Helen Kashuba of Gratefully,
Common Ground: Our realities are largely defined by the
parameters of time and space “My day begins at 5 a.m. as the first class starts at 7:20
a.m. and as high school students drive, if you don’t arrive to school before
6:45 a.m., you’ll spend 20 minutes waiting to park your car. My day at school ends by 3:30-4:00 p.m.,
depending on the need of students for help after school, but I do not
officially stop working on school-related work until 5:30-6:30 p.m.” (High school teacher) “I don’t think there is such a thing as a ‘typical day’ for
me. Unlike instructors whose jobs are defined
100% by teaching, professors are expected to divide their time between
teaching, service, and research. Since I
work for a research-oriented university, an active publication agenda is the
single most important consideration when it comes to tenure and promotion (and
consequently, is the aspect of my work that demands most of my time and
attention). In addition to research, I
have a considerable administrative load as [department] chair. [...] Due to the different (and often conflicting)
aspects of my job, I have been compelled to rationalize my time allocation
differently, depending on what day of the week it is: For instance, on Mondays and Wednesdays my
focus is on teaching and advisement. [...]
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I tend to work on my research and
publications (and I say ‘tend’ because these days are often interrupted by
committee meetings and other administrative duties). Fridays are catch-up days. [...] Unfortunately, many more administrative
duties often take over during those ‘catch-up days,’ so the weekends are the
only days when I can finally devote uninterrupted time to my research and
publications. Personal life? What’s that?” (University professor and
department chair) “Being in two schools and five classrooms requires strong
organizational skills. [...] I have an
old TV cart (as I was last hired, I got whatever was leftover) that on the top
shelf I have placed the textbook, workbook and audio CD program, and video
program for each level that I teach. The
middle shelf is for the textbook transparencies and holds my binder that I
bring to school each day with folders for each class and any teaching
transparencies I have made. The bottom
shelf has wire folder/paper organizers where extra photocopies go in case a
student loses one.” (High school teacher) “My day doesn’t technically start until 12:30, when I have
my first class, but I’ve been up since 8 anyway, eating breakfast, getting work
done, eating lunch. 12:30-1:20 I have
precept (a small sectional) for my music theory class. 1:30-2:50 I have Medieval French Literature,
and 3-4:20 is my Teacher Preparation class.
At 4:30, I get picked up to go teach piano, and I get back on campus at
5:40, which gives me 20 minutes to eat dinner before my woodwind quintet
coaching (technically my Chamber Music Class—the only ensemble I get credit
for). The coaching goes from 6-7:30, and
then at 7:30 I rush back to the Teacher Preparation building for an hour-long
colloquium with two special education teachers.
At 8:30, I have an hour and a half to do some more work—hopefully I’ll
finish my Educational Psychology midterm due Wednesday, or clean up my proposal
for summer thesis research funding. At
10, I have a clarinet lesson, which is my last activity for the day, and thank
goodness! [...] I’m clearly
overextended.” (College junior) “After dropping off my daughter at her school, I arrive at
mine at about 8:10. [...] I go to my
mailbox, where I find yesterday’s announcements (trash) and a request for a
parent conference. I go up to my room
and feed my fish, set up my board and objectives for the day, drink my coffee,
read my e-mail, and call the parent. We
agree to meet at 8:30 the next morning. [...]
My prep is first period, and I head down to make more calendars for my 3rd
grade classes. Each child has designed
his/her own 12-month calendar, with weather pictures and a descriptive sentence
for each, and now we’re numbering the calendar pages to assemble them. I think about the forests I’m decimating and
make the copies. Second period I’m
assigned to help a Somali boy with English.
He can’t be taken out of his classroom, so I stay in the room with
him. They finish up math (he is copying
random words from the book) and head down the hall for a double period of
Science. In Science they are trying to
glue tiny bones onto a skeleton of a mouse.
I think it’s gross and he’s holding his own, no need to talk much, so I
wander around and check the other kids’ work, since I’m also supposed to by
monitoring a Togolese student who spoke only French when she arrived last year
(she rarely needs my help) and a Kenyan girl (who spoke English already, but
administrators don’t seem to know that).
I’m in Science for a double period. [...]” (FLES teacher) “I’m fortunate not to
have to share my room with other teachers since our 7-12 building became a 9-12
senior high school several years ago when a new K-8 ‘Palace of Learning’ was
built. [...] Some days I feel like a
correcting machine—while kids are working on independent or pair tasks or activities,
I walk around to see if they’re on task and understand what they’re doing, then
I go back to my cart or desk and try to quickly correct papers or quizzes,
between questions and purposeful glances of vigilance over the working masses. Multi-tasking is second nature to me.
[...] After 27 years of teaching, I can
usually get most of what I need to get done at school during the school day.”
(High school teacher) “The Foreign Language in Elementary School (FLES) program in
my district is set up like this: I see
grades 1-5 once a week for 45 minutes.
On an average day, I teach 6 classes.
I teach 27 sections/week. That
means I see over 650 students. I’m also
expected to grade each student every report card marking. To be a full-time teacher, I teach at 2
schools. Once a week, I travel from one
school to the next during my lunchtime. [...]
Being a FLES teacher is a high-energy job. I deal with students from ages 5-12, so their
attention span is about 5 minutes! In 45
minutes, I do about 3-4 different projects.
I can’t simply assign a worksheet and have my students quietly work for
30 minutes on their own.” (FLES teacher) “[...] Block 2 arrives and here comes my 4/5 combined
class! This class contains 7 level 5
students and 15 level 4 students. This
year I have been put in the position of teaching two different curriculums in
the same classroom at the same time. It
is very challenging, but I try to make it work.
I was given a choice of teaching the 4/5 combined or losing the level 5
due to lack of numbers.” (High school
teacher) “A normal day in my school life consists of going to three
classes. This is known as block
scheduling. This year is my first year
in the system and frankly I hate it. The
classes are 90 minutes long and they drag on forever. The teachers can never fill the 90 minute
period so it becomes quite boring very quickly.
The good part of my day, however, is [lifting] weights which is only 45 minutes
and it allows me to relieve all the stress that I felt earlier that morning.”
(Middle school student) “Arose at 6:10 to be able to make observation of JC’s
Spanish class in school 10 miles away.
Observed a 90-minute block period of Spanish V (third year). [...]
Had an hour to kill before my next observation, another 10 miles
away. Got coffee and read materials in
preparation for the workshop I’ll be giving at NECTFL in about ten days. Observed AG’s 8th grade Spanish
class at a middle school. [...] Returned
to campus. [...] Began to prep a class
for tomorrow morning. [...] Answered
email and made appointments with freshman advisees. [...] Answered questions about a summer seminar I
am co-directing [...] and ran to FedEx an overnight to a seminar participant
who doesn’t ‘do’ technology. Around
3:30, the first student teacher, JC, came in for a debriefing, as she had a
class immediately following my visit. [...]” (College professor and
student-teacher supervisor) “7:30 am – Start at high school to meet visiting student
[interested in the International Baccalaureate program]. [...] 7:45 am – Meet
with Assistant Principal to plan for our grant meeting later in the day. 8:45 am – Go to my office in the District
Office. [...] 9:30 am –Conference call
with the IB coordinator at a neighboring high school to begin planning a
presentation. [...] 10:15 am – Go back
to the high school to meet with the Art teacher who will mentor one of my IB
candidates. [...] 10:45 am – Meet with
the Creativity, Action Service Coordinator.
[...] 11:30 am – Go to the “Began my e-mail at 6 this morning [...] Then I went for a run—freezing out there
today!! But I didn’t want to miss today
since I couldn’t run yesterday or Tuesday because of the weather. Arrived at school at 9—in time for my meeting
with the dean. [...] Then I had a
meeting with four colleagues who make up our writing group. [...] Did e-mail between the writing club and my
program meeting. [...] Met with a
doctoral student about her dissertation data collection plan. [...] Met with two advisees. [...] Then I picked up some copies of materials for
class from the copy shop. [...] Class
4:30-7:10. [...] Went back to my office
to check email one last time and turn off everything. I’m always so energized after class [but] by
the time I get home, I’ll be tired.”
(University professor) Common Ground: Despite dealing with large numbers of
students, just one learner can make our day or break our hearts “I wish I could figure out how to get to Victoire. I overheard her on the speakers in the
language lab yesterday saying how much she hates my class. I don’t know if it’s the work or if it is
what we do, or what could get her more positive about the class. I hold nothing against her; I wonder what her
beef is about me? The truth in my
opinion is that she needs to do some work on her end and understand that it is
going to require some effort on her part.
I just hate that I care so much.” (High school teacher) “The other day, one of my period 2 students looked like
hell, so I told him to come see me. We
sent part of my planning period talking about his absolutely God-awful home
life. He agreed to let me take him to
the Student Services Office where I introduced him to the social worker. She’s been there a few years now and has
earned my respect and trust.” (High school teacher) “The worst thing that has happened recently [...] is the
recognition, after three weeks of the course, that a marginal student in an
advanced language class, who really needs the class because she’s been accepted
to study abroad next fall, has really no linguistic sense at all and is not
going to improve very much despite the time I spend with her outside of
class. I haven’t given up yet but it’s
very disheartening to have to keep giving someone Cs and below: How can you like something so much when
you’re not much good at it? She says
that she never received a good foundation, since it was her Latin teacher who
offered French classes in her school.
Hence another question: Is it
better not to start a language at all in high school than to start it with
inadequate instruction?” (Full-time
lecturer at a university) “The best thing today was learning that one of my
International Baccalaureate students has been awarded a substantial scholarship
to [a large state university] because of being in the IB program. She’s worked very hard and really deserves
this recognition.” (High school department chair) “Jack is a typical immature kid [...] in my Level II
class. He’s not big on following rules
and questions everything. [...] Jack is
[also] hearing impaired, which is not a problem unless he doesn’t wear his
hearing aids. Guess what? First day was the only day he wore his hearing aids [...] and it’s April [now]. [...] I asked [his Assistant Principal] about the
hearing aid issue as neither his hearing impaired counselor or ED counselor was
dealing with it. He said I should never
speak up for him to hear me and that if he wants to read his book and ignore
class goings on, then so be it and let him fail. ???
Um... I thought that as a teacher this was a no-no. By the end of our conversation, it was clear
that this man felt I cared too much about this kid and really needed to ‘get a
life.’ No wonder why this kid is so problematic; his mom ignores the behavior
(‘I can’t stop him’), the counselors don’t deal with him, and the A.P. will
dole the discipline or have me ignore him.
I feel at a loss because if this kid had solid, defined rules that he
must follow through the day and not just in my class, he would be a great
student. Is it wrong for me to expect
and want more for and from him? Well,
today we made a teeny weenie bit of
progress. He was a bit subdued today and
actually participated for part of class.
Later, he went back to his book, but I guess I should be grateful for
what little he gave me.” (High school
teacher) “The best thing that happened to me recently: One of my students had applied for a grant to
study abroad this summer as part of his major in International Business,
Language, and Culture. [...] [He] had
received word that he was an alternate in the competition. Without financial help, he could not go
abroad. When I returned from the
Northeast Conference, there was a letter stating that the recipient had
declined the award, and that he was to receive it. We were all delighted and are now helping him
to arrange his program.” (College professor) “The best thing that happened to me today was the receipt of
an online photo journal from a former student who is now overseas. There she was in the pictures, narrating all
the beaches and stunning seascapes in the company of her new friends and host
family. This young woman went all the
way through our transfer sequence, struggled with tough grammar with the best
of them and persisted to the university level.
The pride in her eyes is quite a reward for me. She has always remembered to keep me in the
loop all through her journeys. I feel
the best is yet to come with this one.
The worst thing that happened was learning that a student who had been
struggling to manage her time, life and a particularly bad flu season would
finally have to withdraw from my 101 class for this semester. I sensed from the beginning that she had
taken on a lot, but I always try to provide that safety net to keep them
going. Sometimes, however, life
intervenes and it seems it happens a bit more often for students who manage
full-time jobs, families and other responsibilities. My hope is to see her again in my class one
day.” (Community college professor) “My elementary level class has a very good spirit. The students seem to get along quite well,
and work frequently in pairs or small groups.
Unfortunately, one of the students took offense at a remark made by
another person, thinking that it was racially insensitive. I have never experienced any such behavior in
a language class, intended to increase cultural awareness. I did not hear the remark, and believe that
there was some misunderstanding. We are
in the process of working things out, and I trust that we will return to the
same understanding spirit. However, it
was a difficult moment for me and for those concerned.” (College professor) “Last week, I had to select ONE candidate for a full-time
position from a pool of about half a dozen part-timers that have been working
for me for more than a decade. Families,
livelihoods, careers were at stake, and by definition only ONE person was going
to be happy with my choice. Making that
decision was incredibly difficult and consumed an enormous amount of my time
and energy.” (University professor and department chair) “Retention so far has been great except in one sad
case. A young man who transferred from
another city community college had had AP language and one year in
college. He appropriately chose my class
as the next stop in his journey to a degree.
However, could not understand a word I said in the language!! He told me that his former college teacher
would always stop the class and speak in English whenever there was a blank
look on the faces of any students.
Consequently, by his own report, they learned a lot about writing and
reading but not much about listening and speaking. This young man was unable to communicate in
the language at all. It just so happened
that a colleague sat in for me one class and he told her his plight. She independently made the same assessment
that I did. In order to function at the
2nd year level, he needed to go back and review. He ended up trying to sit in a few more
times, even trying to solicit the use of English in class, but finally left us
because the level was not right. This
kind of case pains me. There is little I
can do if students are not required to speak the language in the classroom for
one full year. I do not want to create
the impression that I am inflexible with my natural approach. I am willing to speak English on break, in my
office, in e-mail and very occasionally when there is no other way in class. I just cannot see how my students will
improve speech fluency and listening comprehension when the lessons are in
English. This was not seamless
articulation. Sigh!!” (Community college
professor) Common Ground: Our satisfaction largely depends on our
relationships with our peers “My reality [...] is an existence full of writing reports,
answering questions that have nothing to do with academics, writing grant
proposals to get money, and listening to my colleagues complain and
complain. The university is not a place
for discussion, exploration, and vision; for me it is nothing less than a
business, a place where individuals are looked at for what can be taken from
them. Don’t get me wrong; most times I
still love the students, but I am left cold in an environment in which
micromanagement is the norm. So I close
my door, both literally and metaphorically and begin to prepare for my
classes.” (University professor) “Taking over a classroom mid-year is no easy feat. I was fortunate to be able to overlap with my
predecessor for one week. [...] My co-workers in the language department are
extremely supportive and a joy to work with.”
(Middle school teacher) “This year I decided to go back to college to study
French. It is the fulfillment of a long
held dream since leaving high school some thirty-four years ago. [...] The class is thrilling, yet at the same time
it is a source of great frustration for me. [...] Most of the students are barely in their
early twenties, and they are carrying a full college course load. Dans
la class de française les étudiants sont intelligent mais ils n’aiment parlent
de français. [In French class,
the students are smart but they don’t like to speak French.] My classmates will not respond to a simple
‘Ça va’.” (Community college student) “In my office, the
atmosphere is a bit more fun and open this year. I know that there is some political stuff
going on, but I don’t know anything about it.
I just stay out of it because it is better that way. People do vent to me, but I won’t say
anything. The good thing this year is
that my other colleague has been a bit more collegial to me. She has been good about sharing with me,
which is good. In fact, I even
encouraged her to run for our local [foreign language teachers’ association]
board, and she did it. I hope that sooner
or later she and I can collaborate to really build our program and make it
strong.” (High school teacher) “Today the teachers’ union grievance chairs came to
call. The meeting turned out to be a
cordial one but in our district no administrator looks forward to a union
visit. They came because a new middle
school teacher had remarked that there were ‘so many’ Saturday workshops that
she has attended since starting here.
The grievance people wanted to check this out and told me that it was a
‘dangerous’ trend! (to have ‘our’ people working on Saturdays!!!) After a fair
amount of discussion we all realized that whenever I mentioned a potentially
worthwhile workshop or meeting she felt compelled to attend. I hadn’t realized I had so much power!” (K-12
District Supervisor). “I want to do some field trips with my students in 1st
and 2nd year, but it seems the reaction I have gotten from my
colleague is that they do it in the 3rd level. I don’t understand why. I think it’s good for them to get out and see
some things if possible. I would love to
take them [...] to do a cooking lesson, or take them to the Art Institute to
see the Impressionist collection. I
guess I will have to wait until I am tenured.” (High school teacher) “It’s been decided—my roommate has mental problems. (My friend who is a psychology major
diagnosed she’s bipolar, and I’m starting to think it’s true.) Besides that, college life is fine, although
the work load is intense. I can’t wait
for Spring Break to get here.” (College freshman) “Today, not unlike any other Monday, included AP classes
upping the homework loads in preparation for the AP exam which is approaching
quickly, college prep classes with students who often times turn to humor and
disruption when they become frustrated and do not feel the need to allow other
people to have a shot at learning, and honors classes with many students who
should not be in them. It’s frustrating
to deal with day after day, week after week.
It’s actually quite funny to observe the different atmosphere and
behavior when comparing an AP class to a CP or even Honors class. Even when you get a little relief with a
well-prepared teacher and fellow students who are eager to learn, other
stresses arise like all of the material still needed to be covered for the AP
tests.” (High school student) “The worst thing in the office today, and actually most of
the time, has to do with the climate where I work. The BIG BOSS does not know how to listen; he
dismisses everything as beneath him, and everyone as incapable. We had a meeting this morning with several
people. The meeting went fine until he
began to criticize.” (University professor) “Best happening—One of our young teachers had to request
emergency personal leave because her mother had suddenly become very sick. Our school has lots of subs but none who
speak a foreign language. I was
overwhelmed by the kindness of her colleagues who each and all came to me and
either asked what they could do to help or told me what they would like to
do. In a little time, we had all her
classes covered for as long as she needed to be away and her extra-curricular
activities also taken care of.” (K-12 District Supervisor) “The worst thing in class today was when people in one of my
classes would not be quiet and were being disrespectful to the teacher. I understand people lash out when they are
experiencing difficulties with the work but it’s kind of ridiculous when they
prevent everyone from learning. It’s
also kind of ridiculous when teachers can’t keep the situation under control.”
(High school student) “Wanting a full-time position with the potential for my own
classroom led me to find a new job within the district for the fall. [...]
I [also] had a real issue with the one teacher who’d been there longer
than I: she’s bossy, would stay in the
classroom when I was teaching (um—still does for the first 5-20 min. of class),
wasn’t into collaborating (but would peek at my stuff)—why put myself through that twice? I’m going to a middle school, which I think
will be great. I think most teachers
like to ‘nest’ in a place they feel good about.” (High school teacher) Common Ground: We are self-reflective and thrive on
life-long learning “My Level IV kids are really struggling with their five
minute speeches about a cultural topic.
They’re sophomores and juniors and seem to be helpless when it comes to
synthesizing the information they find into a logical, meaningful
presentation. Have we held their hands
too much? Have we made them too
dependent on ‘scaffolding’ every task?
In our attempts to reach the bottom have we neglected the skills at the
top end? [...] My kids want to get the
As and will do what I tell them to do.
However, if I don’t constantly tell them that what they’re producing is
‘ok’ or ‘good enough’ they are frustrated; if I do tell them that what
they’re producing is ‘good enough’ they stop any deeper level thinking.
<sigh>” (High school teacher) “Chemistry is currently my favorite class in school. The best thing about it is the teacher. He knows how to grasp your attention and make
it fun to learn. Unfortunately, my
French class is the complete opposite. I
don’t know how my teacher even has a degree in French. I can even talk more fluently than she
can. I would have to say this is the
worst thing about that class. Languages
are supposed to be fun to learn because you are eager to be fluent with people
of another nationality. Since my teacher
can’t talk fluently, the class is basically pointless and boring all the
time.” (Middle school student) “Worst thing: I went
in with one lesson plan and ended up teaching a completely different one. In the first class I taught, I had too many
activities, so that I ended up not getting to the presentations (which was the
whole point of the lesson). Between the
first class and the second class, I scrambled a little trying to figure out
more realistic timing, and adapting the new lesson to meet the new
circumstances (i.e., the host teacher forgot to ask the kids to bring
calculators, the class computer wasn’t working so I couldn’t show my PowerPoint
presentation or show the kids how to find the exchange rate online). That was a little hectic, and taught me that
I really need to think about what I’m going to say and how long I’m going to give
the kids to do certain activities. I
certainly don’t want to have the anxiety again of changing my lesson plan in
the middle of the day.” (College junior and pre-service teacher at a middle
school) “At our institution, we are still in the middle of the ‘slow
revolution’ of technologically enhanced learning that has been working its way
through higher education for what seems like forever now. [...] Technology may be a big thing to us, but not
to our students. For some, the nagging
questions have nothing to do with the technical matters. For others, they could teach us the
ways to really engage them with the new tools.
Increasing the modes of communication does not necessarily inspire them
to ask more questions or for help when they need it. [...] We have an opportunity if we pay attention to
our students’ changing attitudes and preferences. In every generation, the focus is on working
smarter. I’ll spend a lot of my summer
thinking about the opportunities and challenges of teaching smarter.” (Community college professor) “[This morning] I had a meeting with four colleagues who make up our writing
group—a group we started this year on kind of a spur of the moment, but we meet
faithfully every 2-3 weeks and go over pieces that we are writing. Today was my turn. I’d emailed my article in progress to them
over the weekend so they’d have time to give it a read. I’m trying to get it into the mail this
month. It was a very productive
meeting. I still have some things to
work on, but it really helps to have someone else read what I’ve written. No matter how clear you think you are, there
are always some pieces that need more work.
I just wish this writing process were quicker, but I feel like I am
getting better at keeping things in a forward motion.” (University professor) “The transition from social studies to foreign languages has
been rather easy. I don’t see myself
teaching social studies ever again. I
really like teaching a foreign language, so much more than social studies that
it is hard to believe. I wish I could
find some kind of a Master’s online or something that would allow me to combine
the language with a technology and curriculum degree. [...] I’m just crossing my fingers that I get the
scholarship to study abroad this summer. [...]
I want it badly because then I would feel more knowledgeable.” (High
school teacher) “Being a non-native speaker, learning more about the
language and culture I teach is an eternal and joyful preoccupation.” (High
school teacher) “I am eligible to take a pension in five years. That makes me laugh just thinking about it
because I feel I’m just BEGINNING to get a handle on what this craft is really
all about.” (High school teacher) “I’ve created the FLES program I’ve been teaching in for the
past 8 years. [...] I noticed my 5th
graders leaving the elementary school and not remembering basic questions in
the language (i.e., ‘What is your name?’, ‘How are you?’, ‘What’s the weather
like?’, and ‘How old are you?’—topics we covered in previous grades but don’t
have the time to review). Before school
started this year, I created my ‘Questions of the Day’ that I placed on the
wall. [...] So I would take about 5
minutes reviewing important questions in the language—time I feel was well
spent.” (FLES teacher) “This past year flew by.
I learned and did so much. It is
probably one of my most fulfilling years, although I’ve led a rather short
life. It was a very difficult year for
me emotionally, but I’m starting to recuperate.
Hopefully next year I’ll have a better handle on my life and can really
stick to a neatly organized schedule—something I learned this year that I need
to do.” (College freshman) “This year has been an interesting one in that our
department underwent a self-study for what’s called Program Review. It always begins with a ‘Oh, my God, not that
again!’, but the exercise does lead us to examine our mission and our practices
in a way we don’t normally do. How do we
serve the interests of our undergraduates? our graduates? our faculty? What has changed in the seven years since our
last review? How have we moved with the
times? Does our program offer students a
solid foundation, while allowing faculty to teach to their own research? How do we compare to our peer institutions?
[...] It seems clear, on the whole, that
today’s students want to be able to use the language for communication rather
than to immerse themselves in literature as in the past. Our task is to have them see that literary
and cultural studies are essential for someone who really wants to understand a
language and culture. An uphill task, to
be sure, but we’re working on it!” (Full-time lecturer at a university) “This has been a peculiar year for me because it marks the
last year of my full-time teaching. I
will teach part-time in the fall, and then retire on December 31, 2005.
[...] During our certification ceremony,
the day before graduation, I told my student teachers that I was proud to be
passing the torch on to such a motivated, talented group of young teachers, and
I sincerely meant it. We do have one
thing in common. We both have a lot to learn.
They from their perspective, and I from mine. That is what has kept me interested after 36
years of teaching. The learning never
stops. There is always a fascinating
book or cultural artifact around the next corner. There is always another corner of the world
to visit. There is always another
approach to try with one’s students to get the point across better. Our profession faces many problems and it
always has, I suppose. But how bad can
it be when they pay you to keep reading, learning, traveling and
experimenting?” (College professor) “My French class ended on May 20th and just as
quickly, with lack of use, did my new, improved French vocabulary begin to recede. Quick do something, I thought. Haunted by the fear that all my hard work
would go to waste, I logged on to RTL Radio “We are very blessed to have a new beginning each year. I am grateful for the opportunity to start
anew and try different activities and revisit some of the more veteran
activities, perhaps with a new twist.
As supervisor, I think about key information that I want to share with
teachers. What is most important, beyond
the paper trail details of the organization?
How can I hook them and send them off energized and ready to go? Above all else, I try to find a key article
or a few words to reflect upon. Then I
always leave them with a challenge: Try
one new activity/idea/project per term and remember—take one day at a time!”
(K-12 District Supervisor) Common Ground: Our lives in education revolve around
transition and change “Today wasn't such a bad day at school except that once
again my [high school] transcripts were a disaster! During my lunch I had to
rush from office to office and from counselor to counselor in a desperate
attempt to print out a correct copy of my transcript for a scholarship. At
least my counselor and I managed to fix it a bit, but my transcript still
didn't come out absolutely correct—my GPA is actually higher than what is
reported on the transcript.[...] For the
past three weeks all of us [...] have been struggling and holding on to our
nerves by a thin thread. It's definitely time to start summer vacation!” (High school senior) “For me, this has been a humbling year: a new job that
included teaching and supervisory duties, in a new state. Change is difficult, but change is good. As a result, I have helped teachers through
the certification process, dealt with challenging parents, and supported year
long curriculum planning and lesson development, all with a very different
perspective and a great deal of compassion.”
(K-12 District Supervisor) “It's so strange to think about the
fact that I will be living on my own and in college in 2 weeks. I have
been waiting for this period for such a long time, but I’m actually starting to
have second thoughts about all this. I guess it's just another fear that I have
to face. I hope that during this year I will not only be able to achieve good
grades but also enjoy myself. I met a lot of nice people during my orientation
and I hope that I will meet a lot more like them. During my first year of
college, I not only want to get to know the school, but I also want to
experience the real world, and establish connections with the so-called
‘important’ people. Because at the end, it seems that that's all that counts.”
(High school senior) “This year is particularly bittersweet, because I will be
leaving this school after 13 years. Am I
totally sad? No. This year has been a difficult one, in which
I did not teach my program for half of every day. [...] I was assigned to do other things every
morning which were not a part of the foreign language program, and for which I
am not trained. These were the reasons I
made the decision to transfer. [...]
However, I am looking forward to making the change to middle school,
where I have been assured I will teach ONLY foreign language all day
long!” (FLES teacher) “Well, it’s almost time to wrap up Year 27 as a
teacher. I leave this year with very
mixed feelings for many reasons. I start
thinking I’m Tevye of Fiddler on the Roof. On the one hand, I had very weak level 3
classes but on the other hand I had pretty strong level 2 classes, which is
good for the future. On the one hand, I
got to know some kids well this year, even some who weren’t my students; on the
other hand I feel bad for a few that I might lose. On the one hand, I’ll have a Level V class
next year, but on the other hand that class moves me from three preparations to
four. [...] Overall, however, the good outweighs
the bad; there are ‘goods’ for which there is no bad.” (High school teacher) “This year everybody seemed a little bit younger. Perhaps it is because this year my youngest
child graduates from high school and will soon be on her way to “I worry about the way homework is given in the Freshman year [at my high
school]. It seems several teachers don’t
give homework during first semester because they think that it is better to
help [the students] adjust to high school.
Thus, the Math teachers, fellow foreign language teachers and I are the
enemies because we give homework. [...]
To me, how will [our students] know that, when they get to college, even
junior college, they are expected to do things on their own?” (High school
teacher) “There it was, the familiar brick building beckoning me back
after a long, eventful, amazing summer.
When I entered through the doors for the first time of the new school
year something hit me. I am a
senior. This year I would finally see
how my hard work for the past 12 years would pay off. It feels nice to be the top of the school,
but in the back of my mind as I go for college visitations and fill out
applications I know I am only on my way back to the bottom of the food chain. After this year, it is ‘welcome to the real world.’ It’s kind of nerve wracking to think
about.” (High school student) “I think switching from high school to middle school was a
good move [...]. I feel less on guard,
more willing to be flexible and understanding.
I found that with high school kids, with an inch given, many took the
proverbial mile and I had to be firm when I would have liked to be more
yielding. Thus far, I feel I have a
greater compassion for my 12 and 13 year olds and that despite their lack of
maturity (that’s an ironic statement, seeing as few 14-18 year olds are
mature), they are eager to learn, fun to work with, and have less emotional
baggage than their older peers.” (Middle school teacher) “I have rounded the retirement corner, I believe, so that I
am not as conflicted about retiring as I had been for several years. I am much more relaxed than at any other
beginning of school year in the past. A
retired colleague told me that at some point an internal switch gets pulled, so
that one begins to recognize that it is time to make a change. That has happened to me in the following way:
I have lost interest in the routine and sometimes petty concerns of my
department; I look with amusement upon some of the foibles of my institution and
administrators; I do not regret at all the committee meetings and wheel
grinding of faculty administrative assignments. I have begun to go through
thirty-seven years of old files, marveling at some of the documents that I have
found while unsentimentally pitching the majority of them into the wastebasket. I have been thinking about post-retirement
projects, both scholarly and not, that I want to accomplish. On the other hand, I am concerned with my
teaching, as always. [...] It’s obvious
that changing perspectives on course material, an always-varied student
audience, and the challenges that both present are what keep us active and
interested in our core endeavor, teaching.”
(College professor) Common Ground: Despite the challenges and frustrations,
teaching is inherently rewarding “I love my job, despite the pre- and post-class work
involved. There’s nothing like seeing a
student grasp a particularly concept, taste a new food they enjoy, understand
what’s being read/said for the first time in the target language. I teach to inspire creativity, critical
thinking, and to help young people aspire to greatness. It’s nothing special; it’s what all teachers
do” (High school teacher) “Seeing that light bulb click on is still what I look for—it
is such a gift to see and feel that excitement.” (University professor) “Watching the kids grow from gawky Freshpeople to semi-adult
Seniors is the best part of my job nearly every day.” (High school teacher) “Sometimes, I have to think about what I would do if I
wasn’t teaching. I know I couldn’t really
leave it. I would have to work in
something education related that would allow me to be creative. I like the creativity side of teaching a
foreign language. I never really felt
that as a social studies teacher I was very creative. As a foreign language teacher, I’m tapping
into my brain and trying to see things in a different way.” (High school
teacher) “In spite of the challenges, I think that it is an amazing
and rewarding job. Every day there is
always something new to explore, something new to learn. The best part is that we do make a concrete
and palpable difference. The sacrifices
are well worth it.” (University professor and department chair) “I’m writing this journal entry from “It took me 8 years and 3 states to find my ideal job. I know it is possible that I am a bit
enamored thus far and that things will change, but I am sincerely and truly
happy to get out of bed each day and see those smiling faces.” (Middle school
teacher) 