I just finished my 8th year of licensed teaching and have been observed and evaluated many times. When I graduated from Indiana State University in 1999 I was very excited to start my first teaching job. After sending my resume to many school districts in Indiana I was getting a little frustrated, but about one month into the school year, I got a call for a unique teaching position. The job was technology and reading enhancement position and I gladly accepted. It all took place really fast. I received the call on a Thursday, interviewed on Friday and started on Monday. I even had to live in a hotel for most of the first week. Anyway, upon starting the job I felt I was use to being observed and evaluated, since all through college I was observed and evaluated. However, I soon realized that Principal and District evaluations were different than college professors. One reason I chose teaching as my profession is that I am very comfortable with being evaluated on performance. I have no problem getting up in front of people and leading a lesson, but the part I struggle with is the paper pencil stuff. My first couple of evaluations that year weren't stellar by any means. I had difficulty with classroom management and pacing guides. My principal and other teachers gave me advice and helped me greatly. Overall that first year was difficult, but my principal stood by me and supported me and by the second half of the year I had things under control. Towards the end of the year I found out that my position was not going to be funded the following year. Uh-oh what now? Now that I had one year under my belt I felt very confident that I could get a new teaching position. My wife and I then decided to move to North Carolina because she would be starting graduate school at Duke. Finding a teaching job in North Carolina was much easier than Indiana, after many interviews, I was offered four jobs. I chose to become a Technology Facilitator at Hillandale Elementary and haven't looked back. I was evaluated and hired by a principal who was retiring at the end of the year. When the school year started I wasn't sure who my principal and assistant principal would be and how they would evaluate me. As it turns out, they have been great and are still at my school. They were wonderful in helping me through the ILT (Intially Licensed Teacher) program. They are always fair and constructive when observing and evaluating me. I have been very fortunate to have administrators that care and want to see me succeed.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
"Being Evaluated"
I just finished my 8th year of licensed teaching and have been observed and evaluated many times. When I graduated from Indiana State University in 1999 I was very excited to start my first teaching job. After sending my resume to many school districts in Indiana I was getting a little frustrated, but about one month into the school year, I got a call for a unique teaching position. The job was technology and reading enhancement position and I gladly accepted. It all took place really fast. I received the call on a Thursday, interviewed on Friday and started on Monday. I even had to live in a hotel for most of the first week. Anyway, upon starting the job I felt I was use to being observed and evaluated, since all through college I was observed and evaluated. However, I soon realized that Principal and District evaluations were different than college professors. One reason I chose teaching as my profession is that I am very comfortable with being evaluated on performance. I have no problem getting up in front of people and leading a lesson, but the part I struggle with is the paper pencil stuff. My first couple of evaluations that year weren't stellar by any means. I had difficulty with classroom management and pacing guides. My principal and other teachers gave me advice and helped me greatly. Overall that first year was difficult, but my principal stood by me and supported me and by the second half of the year I had things under control. Towards the end of the year I found out that my position was not going to be funded the following year. Uh-oh what now? Now that I had one year under my belt I felt very confident that I could get a new teaching position. My wife and I then decided to move to North Carolina because she would be starting graduate school at Duke. Finding a teaching job in North Carolina was much easier than Indiana, after many interviews, I was offered four jobs. I chose to become a Technology Facilitator at Hillandale Elementary and haven't looked back. I was evaluated and hired by a principal who was retiring at the end of the year. When the school year started I wasn't sure who my principal and assistant principal would be and how they would evaluate me. As it turns out, they have been great and are still at my school. They were wonderful in helping me through the ILT (Intially Licensed Teacher) program. They are always fair and constructive when observing and evaluating me. I have been very fortunate to have administrators that care and want to see me succeed.
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What a story!Much like you, I just completed my sixth year teaching and began as a lateral entry teacher from the banking industry as a manager. My first four years were evaluated by a peer and one of the school's principals/asst. principal. I had no problems with classroom behavior or teaching the curriculum, mine issue was trying to put it all together and keeping it that way....it seemed that time was never available to keep up with it all and it was discouraging at the end of my first year. It has gotten easier has time progressed and it seems that the learning curve is endless as a teacher. We continually attend staff development or take college courses to keep up with the lastest this or that and then turn around and use it to teach a group of learners much like ourselves. Even though the demands are there, it has been a pleasure to be part of the educational system and watching students grow academically, physically and emotionally.
Good luck!
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