Keys to the Classroom

Pat Jones is a veteran teacher, having taught primarily high school English, but also sixth grade through college: English, reading, and social studies. In those many years of teaching, she has found solutions to problems, to a mystifying chain of command, and to situations familiar only to those who have “been there.” In offering strategies to the newer teacher, it is her hope that those new to the profession will avoid some pitfalls. No career and no job can ever begin and end flawlessly. All teachers encounter bumps in the road. Ultimately, their success depends upon how resilient they are and how capably they can develop their own strategies for their unique work environment. Research has shown that if new teachers pass the three-to-five-year mark, their chances of remaining in the profession increase exponentially. Sometimes, the veteran teachers and administrators operate under the assumption that certain professional behaviors and plans are intuitive. For some, that may be true. For others, it is definitely not. The author believes that strategies can be taught to, and implemented by, anyone who has the genuine desire to teach. This book, then is only a guide. The author is a former department head of a large suburban public school. As such, she was in the position of offering advice to new teachers and to rectifying damage done either by omission or error. Few teachers, in her experience, ever sabotage their careers. Most find themselves initially overwhelmed by the tasks with which they are confronted as classroom teachers. Add to that daunting responsibility the demands of populations such as Special Education students, 504 students, and ESL students, and state testing for all populations. These elements contribute to an ever-changing landscape of rules and regulations. The demands on the teacher, who wants more than anything to teach, may become overwhelming. The fear of making one wrong move and putting one’s career in jeopardy has a paralyzing effect. What the new teacher needs to be reminded of, and often, is that mistakes made innocently rarely are career-ending moves. The new teacher needs encouragement, possible solutions and strategies, and a network of colleagues who can offer good advice and support. He or she does not need to be sent to a classroom to sort things out on the Friday before the first day of school. Granted, everyone else is busy, too. But the synapses firing in the mind of the new teacher may contribute to emotional overload even before the official start of school. We who are already in the profession are duty-bound to assist our new colleagues and foster the love of teaching we have experienced. Teaching is an art. Mentoring another to pursue a lifelong commitment to that profession is more than an art; it is an obligation.