Teacher Interview Project

1. Teacher Interview Project Emilia Baker Ivy Tech Institute

2. INTASC Standard, Description and Rational Standard #9 Professional Learning and Ethical Practice The teacher engages in ongoing professional learning and uses evidence to continually evaluate his/her practice, particularly the effects of his/her choices and actions on others (learners, families, other professionals, and the community), and adapts practice to meet the needs of each learner. Name of Artifact: Teacher Interview Project Date: February 11, 2014 Course: EDUC 101 Brief Description: For this assignment, I was to interview two teachers that are still teaching. I will go over the similarities and differences between the two teachers in regards to their background, traits, values, beliefs, and their thoughts about the what are the qualities of being a good teacher compared the text. I will also go over some of the qualities and traits that I think I possess. Rationale: In the course of interviewing two teachers, I have learned many things in regards to the teachers doing continual self evaluations and I think this is the purest form of professional learning.

3. Tell me about yourself as a teacher. Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs Has always known since she was a kid that she wanted to teach. Would play school with her brother. Loves working with kids. Loves the challenge of coming up with ways to present an idea. Loves that education changes a bit every year. Has been teaching for 8 years. She has taught Title 1, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade. *Like the examples from the book she knew from an early age that she wanted to be a teacher. • Always knew that she wanted to be a teacher and always enjoyed school growing up. Knew from about first/second grade that she wanted to be a teacher when she was older. • Liked learning new things, being in the school setting, and working with kids. • She has been teaching for 6 years. • She teaches and has only taught second grade. • *Like the examples from book she knew from an early age that she wanted to be a teacher.

4. Effective traits of being a teacher? Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs Your own willingness to keep growing and learning. Passion and willingness to get to know your student as a whole person and not just someone in your class. • Flexibility: being able to change what you are doing in moments notice. • Compassion: knowing where a student is coming from. • Patience: “Because sometimes they don’t get it right away.” • Enthusiasm: You need to have a passion for it. They see how you feel about a certain subject and feed off of what you are giving them. • Organization: Being able to plan effectively and being intentional about what you are doing. • “Once a child is in my class I will always refer to them as ‘My Kid’”

5. Single most important Quality? Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs “Compassion: Your compassion towards the students. They know that if you don’t care then they won’t either. Even applies to just caring about them as people, not necessarily the subject matter that you are teaching. You can teach an amazing lesson but if you don’t have that relationship built with the students then they aren’t going to get much out of it.” • “Passion: If you have a passion for it, it keeps you going and keeps you motivated. If you are passionate about it, you do care about the kids and you will show some of those qualities as you are teaching.”

6. How do they match up with the book? • I found that both of their answers, passion and compassion, described the “qualities of good teachers: 5 Cs”. To be committed and courageous you need to be passionate and to be caring, conscious and centered you need to have compassion towards your students. The two qualities they described encapsulates the books 5 “Cs”. • Koch(2014) asserts that commitment, caring, courage, conscious, and centered are qualities that a good teacher should have.

7. Values, beliefs or philosophy about the teaching profession? How have they changed over the years? Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs Coming in to teaching: Had a goal for her students. She was so focused on the goal and not how to get her students there. She didn’t realize the individualized plans that it was going to take to get each student there. Now: Meeting them where they are at day 1 and going from there with each kid and getting them to their goals. It doesn’t need to be an educational goal but even a social or behavioral goal. Ex: She had a student where it was a big accomplishment that he made it through the day without having a temper tantrum. • Coming in to teaching: Very concerned about the academic side of things, and making sure the students learned as much as they can from her every single day. Making sure she kept up with everybody on that grade level. (more quantity) • Now: Not so much about memorizing facts, but how they learn and different strategies that the students will use. Not necessarily memorizing information. Also collaboration with other students with working in groups instead of independently. (more quality)

8. How is your classroom arranged? Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs Currently: Students desks are set up in groups. Central Rug: Gather for mini lessons. Teaching charts hung up around the room. Reading/classroom library: Bean bags set up for individual reading time. Lets kids sprawl out around room to find comfortable spot for effective reading. • Currently: Students desks are set up in groups. • Depends on classes: are they more social where they are talking when they are in groups? Do they need to be in rows? Are they needing to be facing the teachers desk? • Including technology more. (mini mobile computer labs, microphones for better listening) • Meeting Rug: Gather for mini lessons.

9. Strategies for effective classroom management? Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs Attention: Turn lights off, clapping, shh-ing Transition: 10 count or 5 count. Taking first few weeks of school to train them with what you want to accomplish from them with your attention getters. • Attention: Chimes signal, counting, hand signals, counting. Switching it up so it stays effective. (Depends on class) • Transition: 3 count - 1 to get attention, 2 means stand up, 3 means walk. • Modeling: Have a student show the wrong way to do it, have a student show the right way to do it. Seeing vs. telling

10. What does your lesson plans look like? How do you incorporate state standards? Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs Writing and reading: Typed out. Uses gradual release with attention getter and activate prior knowledge. Making sure she has higher level questions written out instead of trying to come up with them off of the top of her head. Makes sure she mentions learning objective. Uses the curriculum map for each subject when preparing lesson plans. • Typed Out: Not scripted but has a mission statement for the main subjects like reading, writing, and math. Those three subjects she has more detail written down. • More detailed compared to when she first started teaching. • Uses the core standard website when planning to make sure they are matching up with what they are supposed to be teaching. Also has a curriculum map that she refers to.

11. How much time do you spend outside the work day on preparation and grading? Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs 1-2 hours per day during the week. Every 2-3 weeks will come to classroom on the weekend to do extra work about 3-4 hours. Makes a point that when she leaves work, she leaves work. (no bringing work home – married with children.) Comes early to school to do extra work. • 1-2 hours per day during the week. 4-5 hours during the weekend. • Comes in on the weekend. • Planning for her is week by week, sometimes day by day. • Adding in adjustments from what wasn’t covered that day to what needs to be covered the next day. • Comes in to class about an hour early and stays about an hour late.

12. What is the most difficult challenges for teachers? Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs Time Management: Doing everything you want to do in the day with your students and feeling like you are successful and effective. Balancing home life and work life. Tricky kids: running out of things in your “grab bag” of things to do. Needing to be two places at once. • Depends on the year and the children you have. • Meeting the needs of the kids. With the different levels of learners, readers, etc. and making sure they are all getting the attention they deserve. • Time Management: Having enough time in the school day to get your lesson taught. Plus having time your personal life but also making sure you are prepared for your classes. • Keeping up with the newer things in education that are being expected. • Staying organized.

13. How do they match up with the book? I found that the interviews with the teachers in Chapter 2: Teaching Stories related a lot to the types of worries that Ms. Hampton and Mrs. Jacobs were facing. They were worried about organization, staying on topic with their lesson plans and making sure they continue to be effective teachers. They continue to make sure they are on top of their game and making sure their classes are refreshing and fun. According to one teacher, “there are so many facets to being a good teacher that require all of your attention, that multitasking alone isn’t possible”(Koch, 2014, p.31).

14. Most exciting aspects of teaching and your work? Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs The “light bulb moment”: The look they give when they put two and two together. Readers workshop: Seeing kids falling in love with reading. Their love of learning and making it their own. • The children's enthusiasm. • Being able to see their growth and improvement over the year. • Their love for school. • Older students that come back and visit you because of the impact that you made on them.

15. How do they match up with the book? • According to one teacher, “when I started teaching, I lived for the light bulb moments – the times when difficult concepts finally clicked for a student”(Koch, 2014, p.29). • “Contrary to popular belief, I do not find it exciting when my students get 100 percent on their tests”(Koch, 2014, p. 29).

16. Who has given you the most support in learning to be an effective teacher? Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs Previous colleagues at her first school. Her team of 3rd grade colleagues that help with questions or advice. Her husband: he is also a teacher. Veteran teachers • Student teaching supervisor. • Her team of 2nd grade colleagues plus the veterans.

17. How do you encourage involvement of parents and families in the school and in your classroom? Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs Weekly newsletter and emailing back and forth. Had to learn how to have parent volunteers. She was so used to doing everything on her own. Previous school didn’t have parents that were able to help because of economical reasons. Parents now are ready and willing to help. Previous school parents weren’t very interested in their children's school work or helping in class. • Doesn’t have to try to hard. Parents want to be involved. • School has a parent night in the beginning of the year where parents can volunteer to be classroom helpers. • Does do a weekly newsletter and she has a class website to keep parents informed of classroom activities and what they are learning. • They have a homework contract that has they read 15-20 minutes a night with an adult.

18. Advice for future teachers? Holly Hampton Colleen Jacobs Make sure you are someone who loves learning and are passionateabout what you are doing. Know that the first few years are going to be hard and there will be mistakes. Make sure you know that you are not only for your students but what you are teaching them. • Have fun. How can I have fun with the kids tomorrow? • Realize that you are inspiring them and remember why you got into teaching. • Trust yourself as a professional and your instincts. • You don’t have to be a cookie cutter model of everyone else.

19. Qualities I Possess? It is hard to assess myself in regards to my best qualities because, for the most part, I am very self conscious and it is hard for me to say I have this, this and this. If I was to choose which qualities that I have I would have to say I am committed, caring, and conscious. • Committed: I am in for the long haul. I plan to keep up with the standards and continuing education for my future career and adapt as times change. • Caring: The best part of wanting to be an elementary school teaching is seeing the ways that your students strive to achieve their new heights and accomplishments. • Conscious: Having a background as a dance instructor has really helped me in regards to my presence around kids. You have to make sure you are being respectful of not only yourself but of them as well. They need to know that you don’t dismiss them because of the age difference or that they are “just a kid” to you.

20. Final Remarks/Summary • At the end of my interview process I felt that these two teachers are completely different. Yes, they may have similar answers, but their differences in their teaching background make each of them their own. Holly has only been a teacher in a more economically stable district, where Colleen has worked from the inner city schools coming out to her first year at this school. What was great about interviewing them was that you could see the love they both have for being a teacher, regardless of the monetary statues that their school district has. I think they both evoke the qualities and traits needed to be amazing teachers and from viewing their classes I can tell that is what they both are.

21. References • Hampton, Holly & Jacobs, Colleen. Personal interview. 11 Feb. 2014 • Koch, J. (2014) TEACH. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth