After listening to the teach for America speaker in our class today, I was really interested to see how young people fare if they go into teaching right after college. The New York Times had published an article that was about a young teach in a Brooklyn school. The teacher was 22 and she was the youngest member of staff in the school. Ms. Bajun was her name, and she discussed the various challenges of being taken seriously with such a small age gap between her and her students, and other issues that she had in the classroom. Bajun explained that it was hard cultivating a relationship with the students but then trying to have a definitive line that was still professional. Bajun was always available to her students: at lunch, before school, after classes ended. So students would often visit her, but Bajun made sure that the relationship was never one of friends but of a student and teacher relationship.
The story about Bajun actually started because a photographer wanted to document young teachers and difficulties that they may encounter in their profession. In Alexis Lambrou's journey, the photographer with the vision, Lambrou decided that she had a calling for teaching. Now, in Lambrou's about-face career decision, she has the chance to teach photography to struggling kids.
In the FEEP program, I was placed in a Columbus school. I felt that the children didn't have any allies amongst the faculty, because there was a level of exerting control that the teachers enjoyed. I didn't like the authoritative approach used, so I decided I wanted to take a softer more approachable style when I taught. The kids responded well, and would soon ask to sit with me at lunch or to be tutored after school. Since I was only helping in the classroom, I thought that it was fine that I took a more nurturing role. I am worried after reading this article that I may be too soft as the main teacher of the class. I know that my approach worked when I didn't need to facilitate the majority of the learning, but if I had that responsibility then I may have to harden up. I hope that in my future classrooms that I can balance caring for the students with being too friendly, I want to have respect.
http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/12/teaching-for-life/?ref=teachforamerica&_r=0
I feel like there is no one way to teach a class so if you feel comfortable using a softer tone then do it! The kids will respond to you positively if you are natural and teach the way you want to teach.
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