HDip next year

leann

hi all
ill be doing the HDip next year and wondering is there anyone here who has already done it?any tips on my first few days in the classroom and the difficulties of the course?!!

browneyedgirl

hi. in the same boat as you. starting my dip at the end of this month and it'll be my first time in a class room. most nervous about discipline and setting off on the right foot

bert174

They told us don't smile till Christmas - don't know if that is still the philosophy.

Have your lesson well prepared. Don't try to make friends with students as this will probably be seen as a sign of weakness.

Try to mix with the regular teachers, particularly those in your subject area, and try to find one that you can go to for advice if/when you have a difficulty.

Too often HDip students just sit in small groups and don't mix with the regular staff.

RealJohn

bert174 wrote:

Have your lesson well prepared. Don't try to make friends with students as this will probably be seen as a sign of weakness.

Try to mix with the regular teachers, particularly those in your subject area, and try to find one that you can go to for advice if/when you have a difficulty.

Agree strongly. Don't give them an inch and don't be afraid to give them a bollockin. Might be no harm to practice that in front of a mirror (seriously). Otherwise you could get lost for words or worse, say something you shouldn't.

And you can learn a lot from the other teachers, especially those in your subject area. They'll almost certainly help you anyway (the ones whose classes you're taking anyway) but don't be afraid to ask them for advice and learn from their experience.

spurious

Get to know the names of key people on the staff - Year Heads, class teachers etc. The kids will know you are a 'new' teacher, but to not have prepared the basics like knowing the names of people is very slack.

Let the kids know you like them - this will make things much easier for you. You don't have to go in all guns blazing, but you have to let them know you are serious about what you are doing. Trying to be their 'friend' is not what you are there for. You can show them you like them without being all pally.

You getting the Dip is also not what you are there for - you are there to teach those children. They did not choose you, but they absolutely deserve your best effort, and making friends with them and being 'liked' does not always lead to getting work done.

Under no circumstances use sarcasm.

murphyk6

Hi,
I'm a newly qualified teacher so take what I say with a pinch of salt. All the above advice is good.
1) Know the staff, (Get a list of names from ratemyteacher.ie)

2) As soon as something goes wrong talk to your cooperating teacher and any other helpfull characters take their advice and then try to sort it yourself quickly but if your fix is not working quickly then call in the cavalry. Also be as honest as possible with your supervisors they are there to help you. My own supervisor was harsh but very helpfull and totally fair.

3) Prepare your classes, then prepare them again. A good lesson with variety and activity is your number one defence aginst problems.

4) Read a short book by Roger Dunn, that might be Rodger Dunn. The college bookshop can get it. The tittle was something like "Does and don'ts of behavior management

5) If challenged, don't rise to it, side step by saying we'll talk for a minute at the end of class.

6) Keep eye contact with the class. Make sure that in the 40 minutes every child participates at least 2 or 3 times. Sounds impossible but its not. Ask loads of questions, simple ones (lower order) and chalanging ones (higher order). Step back as often as possible and let the students talk, act, get involved and generally give them a chance to get lots of attention.

7) Don't smile till christmass is as much a joke as it is good advice. Have a sence of humer, have a laugh, go along with silly jokes so long as they don't hold up the lesson. Try to have anything humorous in your lessons.

8) Sit in on other teachers classes, especially the teacher that the kids talk about (positively). Alan O'Neill was my model teacher. In one lesson on industrial revolution he talked about modernisation of roads and transport, so he had an account of a historical accident, the first fatal road accident. The women was killed by a car traveling at 7 mph. He asked How did she die, did they drive back and fort accross her a few times, all the while he mimmed the drivers actions and moved forward and backwards as if driving over a bump. The students loved it.

How do I know this is good advice?
I did it all differently at first and suffered the consequences, struggled to put it right and eventually got there.

Best of luck, its a tough year but interesting. Be yourself, be fun, be firm with the rules, give the students the rules and consequences they expect.
All the best

TheDriver

Been teaching for 5 years now and agree with whats being said here.
Always be stern but fair,
never get into a battle that you know your not going to win (even if ur right e.g. unruly student),
always keep record of all no homeworks, misdemeanors to hit back at them when it piles up,
be nice but don't be over friendly as they will run riot over you TBH.
Dress so that you look like authority, i always wear shirt and tie and it does make a difference!
DO not say you got the names from Rate my teachers! And be careful or you could be asking for Nelson Mandela!
Always give homework
Lastly, if anyone does anything, have a punishment. Standing is one that most hate with a vengeance but make sure they are put at back with no one to mess with and maybe put whole class standing either if you feel that way! You cannot put students outside door as u must still be able to see them to supervise them.

spurious

Make sure whatever school you're in gives you a copy of their handbook and policies.

When you give homework - ALWAYS correct it - few things as disrespectful to a child as for a teacher to demand work and not bother correcting it. When correcting homework, a comment alone is better for self-esteem than a grade and a comment - least useful is a correction that consists of just a grade.

If you have a very weak class, adjust your material - giving them yet more opportunities to fail is worse than useless. You want to challenge them, but not send them from your class feeling stupid.

Do not be afraid to ditch the textbooks altogether and go for some active learning. They will learn more and enjoy it.

The first 22 years are the hardest - it's been getting easier since...:D