theeducatorbeat

Graduation. Walking up the aisle in your cap and gown, collecting your diploma, celebrating with family and friends and suddenly it’s time to start looking for a job. Panic sets in, where do I begin?  The first step is to have your resume completely updated.  Make sure you use a resume template specifically for educators. Why you may ask yourself? Is there a difference? Yes, there is. Education resumes highlight your core competencies,  educational background, organizations, awards, and volunteer activities. Word processing software usually has resume templates. If you don’t find it on your software, check out the world-wide-web. Search engines can locate templates for you that you can easily download.

Once you have your resume completed, make sure you have at least three letters of recommendation. If you are a pre-service teacher, letters of recommendation should include cooperating teachers, school advisors, and former bosses. Current teachers should have letters from administrators, fellow teachers, and team leaders.

Now where do you begin to look for teaching jobs? In today’s society, most school district has web sites where they list employment needs. If you have a school district in mind, do a web search.

If you are unsure of the local school districts, start by locating your regional office of education. You can do this with a web search or going to your university career center. Your state’s Regional Office of Education can supply you a list of local school districts and contact information. For example in Illinois, my local regional office of education in Lake County publishes a list of job vacancies every Monday. It lists teaching assistant, teacher, administrator, and other personnel positions in local school districts. If you don’t have a regional office of education, try your local library. Check with a librarian at the circulation desk.  Another great resource is the classified section in your local newspaper. Just be cautious and make sure to research the school districts advertised.

Once you have narrowed down your search and found a job opening, make sure you are qualified to teach it. With No Child Left Behind, school districts are feeling an increased pressure to make sure every teacher is Highly Qualified. If you don’t have the qualifications the position requires, don’t apply for it. Most school districts today have gone to the web, and applications are done online. Make sure to have the following information with you when you are applying: resume, current transcript information, names and phone numbers of references, and if possible try to have scanned copies of your resume, transcripts, and letters of recommendation. It makes the application process so much smoother. If you have a scanner at home or go to your local copying center and see if these documents can be scanned for you. It is a worthwhile investment.

Once you sit down to navigate your way through the application, give yourself at least 45 minutes. Applications are a timely and thought-provoking process. This is where school districts weed out the good, bad, and the ugly.  Once you have entered pertinent contact information and educational background, you will be asked what position your applying for. Remember apply for what you want and what you are highly qualified for. The next step is educational questions that will test your knowledge and show your teaching philosophy. Some common application questions you may encounter are:

1. Describe the skills or attributes you believe are necessary to be an outstanding teacher
2. How would you address a broad range of student skills in your classroom?
3. What have you read recently that has influenced your thinking about teaching?
4. What has been the most creative, independent, proactive activity that you have had your students do?
5. Describe the skills or attributes you believe are necessary to be outstanding when working in student support services.

6. When your students look back on their school years, how do you want them to remember you?

7. Please explain how your past personal and professional experience make you a quality candidate for the position for which you are applying.

In my experience, these questions come up again on different applications. Copy and paste your answers from the application into a word processing document. Save your word processing document as application questions and be ready to have them as a handy reference for yourself.

Once you have successfully submitted your application, most school districts will send you an e-mail or state on the application that you must send hard copies of your resume, transcripts, and letters of recommendation. Do this as soon as possible and don’t delay. Applications are a very serious process and the earlier your start, the better chance you have at a callback. After four days, follow up with a phone call to the human resources or personnel department. Make sure your application has been received and don’t be afraid to ask if interviews are being scheduled. Show a little initiative, but don’t be pushy.

Now you have completed your resume, application, and sent in necessary paperwork to the school district of you choice. The phone rings and you have been selected for an interview. Calmly set-up a time to interview and hang-up before you do the happy dance. Once you have your date and time scheduled, there is hard work still ahead of you. What are you going to wear? What do you bring with you to the interview? Here are a few tips.

What to wear:

1. For men, a suit is always the best option. Conservative colors are best. You don’t want to be too flashy.
2. For woman, a conservative pantsuit or slacks and a button down top are always another option.
3. No matter if you are interviewing in an urban, suburban, or rural district, dress to reflect your personal style. Be comfortable in your clothes. You are going to be nervous enough, and wearing tight clothes or something that you have never worn before will contribute to a raised level of anxiety. Never wear jeans! You are entering the professional arena; leave the jeans for the weekend.

What to bring to an interview:

I am a firm believer that less is more. Administrators don’t have time to look through your student teaching portfolio. So here are some shortcuts that will help you pave the way to a successful interview.

1. Have an interview portfolio. This is a shortened version of your student teaching portfolio. Always have an extra copy of your resume, college transcripts, and letters of recommendation in your portfolio.

2. Have photos or a video of yourself teaching a lesson. A picture is worth a thousand words. Administrators want to see you in action. Don’t be afraid to show yourself teaching. Photos or a video speak volumes and administrators are going to be on the look out for that.

The first process applicants go through is usually an interview with an administrator. I have had a series of administrator combinations. Interviewers could range from building principal to associate superintendent or personnel. However, when special education is involved it is more common for an assistant superintendent of special education to be involved in the interview process. In my current job, I was living out of state and looking for a job back in Illinois. I was lucky that the school district I was working with was flexible, and they scheduled a phone interview with me first. I had a day and meeting time for the phone interview. The assistant superintendent of special education interviewed me. Now, interviewing for a teaching position is stressful enough, but interviewing for a special education position is even more difficult. We are considered specialists and screening interviews can consist of questions such as:

1. Do you have experience writing Individual Education Plans?
2. Have you ever written a Behavior and Functional Assessment Plan?
3. Have you ever conducted Initial or Re-Evaluations?
4. How would you handle a cross-categorical classroom that has a variety of learning needs?
5. Have you had experience working with a teaching assistant? How do you plan for a teaching assistant?
6. How do you involve parents in communication in your classroom? How often do you update parents?
7. How would you handle a serious behavioral student?
8. How do you know if a student is discrepant or not?
9. Have you had experience working with progress monitoring or direct instruction programs? What do you see is a positive about both?
10. What are some technology tools or programs you have used to help students with special needs?

These questions are specific and will test your knowledge. In addition, it will also let the interviewer know right away what type of candidate they have and if they want to pass you to the next round. My best advice is to practice these questions, but not be over rehearsed. Listen intently to the questions, write down possible responses on paper, and never be afraid to ask an interviewer to repeat the question one more time, or say, “ I need a minute to think about this.”  Showing your critical thinking skills is important and tells an interviewer that you don’t want to answer just for the sake of answering. The last component of the interview will be for you to ask questions. It is always important that you have two to three questions prepared to ask. Sample questions may be:

1. What qualities are you looking for in a candidate?
2. What are the job expectations for this position?
3. Will I have a mentor to help guide me during the first year?

If you are called back for round two and meet for a team interview, be prepared. Team interviews can have three to seven people. This round of interviews can be highly nerve-racking. You have so many people sitting around the table looking at you that is can be intimidating. Try to relax and remember you are there to showcase yourself. Positive attitude and confidence go a long way. However, you have to be very careful and remember that confidence can be mistaken for ego. On an interview I had several years ago for a 5^th grade teaching position, I felt that I had done a great job! I nailed every question and appeared very relaxed. When in fact, the interview committee felt I was over confident and cocky. Needless to say, I didn’t get the job. I was devastated because I felt I had the experience that made me a better candidate. However, in retrospect I should have taken more time to answer the questions instead of trying to fill up every question with a response right away.

When you sit down at the table for a team interview, you will more than likely be interviewing with the building principal and associate principal. In addition, at the middle school you will interview with the team leader and another member or two of the special education team. This time the questions may be geared more towards your teaching style and team dynamics. This interview process is getting to know you as a person and how you are going to fit into the team. Every team and building has dynamics that are positive and negative. If you reached this point, it is assumed that you have the special education knowledge for the position; now the team wants to see how you will fit in. Again, the most important thing is to be you. Now that doesn’t mean to wear jeans and let your hair down. It means to highlight your strengths as a teacher, show off your communication skills, and most importantly you love for teaching.

The initial and team interview has passed and now you are thinking, “Now what is the next step?” Make sure you got the name of the principal or other top administrators that interviewed you. Drop them a thank you note, it is always a nice touch. Even though they may decide to go with another candidate, the note will leave a positive impression in the mind of the administrator. They may keep those little notes and when a position opens up or they know of something that they think you might be suited for, they might call you in for an interview or pass your name to their network of colleagues. The main message is never burn your bridges. Always walk out of an interview with your head held high and a firm handshake.

School districts handle interviews in a variety of styles. It has always been my firm belief that when a school district wants to hire you, they immediately let you know. The phone call you have been waiting for usually will come within 24-48 hours or even sooner. In my case, I had a job offer by the time I left the interview. Now some may say that is a little overzealous or be warned about school districts that offer you a job on the spot. The thinking is districts might be desperate to fill the position. However, in a well-established school district that you have done your research on, it can be safe to say it’s a good thing when they offer you a job on the spot. The key factor is do you want the position they offer?  As a new graduate looking for your first job, the job offer may not be glamorous or even in the district you want. But, it is a job that will give you a wealth of experience that you can’t learn from textbooks. Once you have accepted that first job, be sure to hold on tight because the roller-coaster is just getting warmed up.

What if a week has gone by and you haven’t heard anything? It may be safe to assume that you did not get the job. Don’t be discouraged, keep your focus and don’t give up. If you are comfortable a follow-up email or phone call to the interviewing administrator may be a good idea. It never hurts to ask them, “Is there something I can do to improve in my interview?” or “Do you have any advice on areas that I can polish my interviewing skills?”

You may or may not get the answers that you wanted, and some administrators may not have time to give a new graduate advice, but I think that any administrator who is interested in helping to mentor new, young teachers will take the time and give some helpful advice. After all, they were once in your position. Interviewing is a tricky thing and may not always be the most pleasant. We have all had interviews that we could have done better on, but one of the positives about interviews is that we can all learn from the experiences and make the next one even better!

Spring break. Two words that are the favorite among students and teachers alike. This time of year is sacred as the drab winter months are finally behind us and educators can see past the state assessments. This year, the focus for me has been “One day at a time”. I have had significant challenges in my classroom this year and a couple of months ago I was not able to see past the clouds. Then March came in roaring with spring like temperatures and the smell of summer loomed in the air. Finally,spring break was here! My son and I went to Hilton Head,South Carolina to visit my uncle. My uncle was an immigrant to our country and through hard work,perseverance, and discipline, he was able to capture the American dream. His monetary successes pail in comparison to his success of being a friend,cheerleader, and father-like figure to me. He encouraged me my entire life and always believed in me. To this day, he still is encouraging me.

My Beloved Uncle, my son, and me on the morning verandah watching the southern sunrise!

My uncle hosted my son and I for several days and we were able to see the sun rise along the South Carolina revenues, take in glorious weather, walk the river front in Savannas, and just relax at the Hunting Island Beach. Fun days in the sun. I managed to get some sun and increase my freckle foliage by ten-fold. Throughout our time in the South, I was struck with the natural beauty of the area. The trees,the water, and the genuine southern hospitality. One evening my uncle hosted some neighbors for dinner and one of the retirees, Miss Virginia, was a retired educator. She had been a principal in the Georgia school system. When Miss Virginia heard I was a special education teacher, it was like music to her ears. She said to me, “Miss Randee, tell me everything, how is special ed these days?” “Do you still have more paperwork then anything else?” My response was,”Things haven’t changed too much, still the paperwork.” Miss Virginia then went on to tell the dinner guests how special of a person I must be for the job I do. She explained to the guests that being a teacher is incredibly difficult,but being a special educator was an entirely different league and no one could begin to imagine the amount of work and tireless effort it takes to do the job. Then Miss Virginia turned to me and said,” You have earned this Spring Break! You rest up and relax!” Her words were as sweet to my ears as a mint julip is to my lips. I felt incredibly encouraged that I had a cheerleader in the crowd and I only met this dynamic lady 15 minutes before. So I took Miss Virginia’s advice and relaxed. I let it all go! The IEP’s, the behavior plans, common core, the stress, EVERYTHING! I truly enjoyed myself.

The Moment I let it ALL GO!

As the days went on, the educator in me was curious about the schools in Jasper county. Through the car rides, I got to see a couple different schools. The playgrounds, outdoor settings, and the layouts of school buildings. I began thinking about the classrooms,how they were decorated, the learning going on, and the young minds at hard work! The reasons that I had forgotten about for so long.

I felt renewed and refreshed and ready to go back to finish up the year. The feeling of empowerment to go back to the classroom and finish up the year with the rigor in which it started. I am geared up for the bumpy road of placement meetings, IEP conferences, and transition planning. Not to mention the lesson plans for the four different preps and two grade levels of students I teach. I will remember the ultimate goal of learning,rigor, and social-emotional standards. The most important plan that I won’t forget to write is my own. My promise for the remainder of the year is to remember the carefree smile my son had when he saw the beach for the first time. The joy and exuberance that I felt watching my son enjoy the seashells and sand beneath his toes is a feeling I will remember when I feel the stress creep up as I near the end of the year.
What will your plan be to make it to the end of the year? As always comments are welcome!

Morning sunrises!

My son's joy and exuberance as he hit the beach for the first time! Carefree days!

For all the working mom and dad’s out there, this one is for you. Spring is just around the corner and I can hear and see all the signs of Spring on the horizon. Just as I am seeing light to the end of the tunnel, Wham! I get hit right in the face with a common winter flu bug that has launched me right back into bed! Now, for some, I might hear, “what’s the big deal? Your sick, stay at home and get better!” For someone like me who eats, sleeps, breathes, my career, I can’t just sit and relax while flipping through the pile of magazines that I haven’t had a chance to read yet. The guilt of missing my classroom slowly creeps in and I find myself checking school e-mail and trying to keep up on the daily grind. But as I am doing this, I quickly realize that I need to start planning the spring and summer activities for my son. So my get well day has turned into the frenzied park district class search to make sure I have viable activities for my son to participate in. EEK! Does the cycle ever end?

So, instead of flipping through the Everyday with Rachel Ray, or Whole Living, I am flipping through three park district catalogs trying to maximize the time and days allotted for activities. The kicker of all of this, is that my mom, who takes care of my son (Fabulously, I will add) two days per week, is going to be the adult in charge of taking my son to his activities. This makes me feel even more guilty, that it is NOT me who is having fun taking my son to his pre-school activities.

So now, I am busily juggling the schedules of my son and my mom, daycare, park district schedules, and thinking to myself, Why? Why do I do this? Why do I do this job? Why do I even care so much about my students who don’t seem to care about me? Well, when it comes down to it, I care deeply. I care deeply about my work ethic, my students, and my commitment to the field of education. What I don’t care about is rat race. I am so sick of hearing about ineffective teachers, common assessments, core curriculum, core standards, leadership teams, etc. What I want to hear are comments such as, Great Job! You made that tough topic rock! Students are in a better place and more prepared because of having you as their teacher! Simple common courtesies go a LONG way!

I think we have to get back to basics where family is first. Eating dinner together, game nights, quality family time together. It’s okay to be sick or take a personal day. Working environments where taking family time is accepted and embraced, not frowned upon. There is so much pressure to be the best, the right teacher, global leader, 21st century skill based teacher. I personally feel split into two people all the time. Trying to be the best mom and wife while balancing being the best educator there is. I don’t think it is possible to be both all the time. Finding a balance is key and right now, I have no answers to that. All I know is that I want to be able to find a quality working environment in which I will not be made to feel guilty for taking days when I am sick.

I often have thought about the entrepreneurial spirit. Is it still out there? I have been tossing the idea around for years going into business for myself, what would I do? What can I do? What is out there? Opening a small business is time-consuming and would take me away from my family, but what about a business that incorporates family into it? I have been seriously looking into opening my own early learning center and looking for ways to finance options. I am seriously dedicated to this idea for the simple reason of family. No working parent should ever feel the weight of the guilt and feelings of stress when having to choose child care options. Children are absolutely the most precious commodity and their futures are bright. Finding money to pay for childcare and not just any childcare should not be a luxury item. It should be a right. A right for all families to have equal opportunities for early childhood education. This doesn’t just mean state of the art facilities, this means quality teachers, quality learning opportunities for technology, creative arts expression, reading, science, etc.

So, where does this leave me? Definitely relatable to other working parents. I don’t have the answers, but always looking for ways to continue to help others. Please know that I have truly enjoyed reading everyone’s comments on twitter, linked in, and through word press. Please leave comments on the web page so others can learn from something you might have to say. I leave this last comment. Thank you for reading the blog and I always look forward to communicating and learning from all of you!

This week I had the unique opportunity to take part in an online conversation using the Social Media network, Twitter. I have to say that at first it was awkward but after awhile I really got the hang of it. The positives were that I was able to connect with educators from all over the country and have unique conversations that enlightened me. The drawback is that you have to be quick on your texting fingers. I found insightful,relevant comments and educators really committed to change. Throughout the week I have gone back to the twitter feeds and reflected, asked more questions, and actually got some answers. I have really started to fall in love with twitter for the ability to connect with people who are in my mind education royalty. For example, I can follow Barnett Barry, Rick Wormelli, and even Robert Marzano. You can tweet ideas and even get responses.
I even get to read tweets from others and I find new web sites and resources to investigate. It is addicting! If you haven’t checked out twitter, you are missing out.

Well the subject of this week’s blog has to do with mentor teaching. I have had the pleasure this week of hosting a  pre-service practicum student for one and a half days. Having a practicum student allowed me a few moments of self-reflection while driving back and forth to work. First, I want to start off by saying thank you to the special person who was the guest in my classroom. My guest really walked into what I thought was a fire storm. I was pulled in multiple directions and even though I felt a little guilty, I had to remember that this was just part of my normal.

Working with my guest, made me think back to my days of student teaching. I had a awful experience. I was not prepared for the classroom and worked with someone who took me in to make her program look good. What I learned during that time was that I had to rely on myself to get through the 16 week process. I didn’t really learn what it took to be a teacher. I was just trying to figure out how to please my cooperating teacher and get her to acknowledge that I was doing a good job. That “good job”  never came and I walked away from that experience thinking that I would walk away from teaching permanently. The student teaching experience had scarred me for life.

I wasn’t prepared to enter the teaching profession and decided to accept a position as a teaching assistant. I was working in a self-contained elementary classroom and that is where I met my “mentor teacher”. Mrs. B, as I will call her, was a long-time veteran special education teacher. She welcomed me with open arms and as I began to get to know the kids and Mrs. B., the more I fell in love with teaching. Mrs. B let me teach lessons, plan a unit, and really built my confidence up. She shared with me tricks of the trade, setting up grade books, documenting for IEP’s, and overall treated me with kindness. A “Good Job” from her was priceless and meant so much. A time in my life that I will never forget. From that point forward, it made me realize that this was my personal mission and passion. To help pre-service teachers to be their very best. To give them confidence and wings to carry on for the next generation.

Over the years,  I have found that I have come into little contact with special education student teachers. I often see colleagues hosting student teachers for content areas, but none for special education. I start to wonder why? Our job is just as important as others. Our students are just as important. It brings me to wonder what the pre-service programs are like for special education teachers? Are these future special education teachers going to be prepared to enter the classroom with content knowledge or just behavioral knowledge? If our programming for teachers is going to change, our pre-service teachers in all areas need to spend more time in the classroom. Practicum hours are not enough and just like school psychologist interns, I feel and I may be a minority here, student teachers need to have at least a year working as an intern prior to taking a teaching position. Mentor teachers are extremely important to this process and the vitality of the job.  Making this commitment is time consuming but I feel worth the commitment.

Mentor teachers have, in my opinion, an obligation to help prepare and nurture, not only the future students; but the future teachers of our country. We have to embrace the model “I do, we do, you do” with student teachers. Student teachers are not there to make our professional lives easier or to do the grunt work. They are there to share in the collaborative process, be a part of the problem solving team, and enhance the profession. Sharing techniques that are new to the industry while learning tried and true tricks that are still relevant. That is the beauty in this process of reciprocity. So after being around the block for a few years, my leadership take-away is that we all continue to strive to learn from one another and we all strive for the “good job”. Mentor and/or cooperating teachers and student teachers are a pair that need to work together in sync. One is not good without the other.

In closing, perhaps my blog this week might be to idealistic or self-centered, but it was my thoughts. I don’t have any answers but continue to hope that through my professional work at school and my moonlighting as a blogger, some good will happen as a result. Thanks for reading and again, look forward to any comments on the blog.

Have a great week~

Yesterday I received my complimentary issue of NEA Today in the mail and I put it to the side for when I had 5 minutes of uninterrupted time to thumb through the issue. I usually pile it on the stack of magazines in my powder room but this morning I found a few minutes to thumb through it. I came across this feature article, Leading the Profession NEA’s bold new plan for true education reform by Will Potter and Tim Walker.

It immediately caught my attention because I have often thought over the last few years that our education programs need reform as many teachers are not prepared for the classroom. I know that I wasn’t when I first started. The NEA has come up with a three-point plan to help take education reform to the 21st century. I have attached the full plan to this blog for all to read. The three key points are as follows:

1. Raising the bar for entry: Entry into teacher certification programs and student teaching internships need to have an increase of rigor and admission standards.

2. Teachers ensuring great teaching: More advanced teachers should take on more responsibility to mentor and help novice teachers and/or take on more difficult student cases.

3. Providing union leadership to transform the profession: continuing to have a clear voice in policies that effect the state of education in this country.

This is an interesting and timely move by the NEA and I hope that these ideas spark conversation and change to our profession. Teaching is one of the greatest and most challenging of all professions. We are given the tired, hungry, poor, and some overindulged, I-generation of students and we have to educate them to become contributing members of society. Not an easy task at all!

Don’t forget as educators we have a responsibility to have our voices heard. Keep contacting your local legislature and stand up when you feel your voice isn’t being heard.

Happy Reading and as always comments are welcome via Twitter, on the Blog, or through e-mail at educator_beat@gmail.com

Leading the Profession

So as the day has been carrying on, the reading of the day has centered around data driven assessments. Are they as valuable as all my reading suggests? Well, I don’t know about you, but I have been using data like crazy. Not just data to support the learning but data to support how I am communicating with parents. This week has been crazy and I know that I have collected data from the number of promptings to whether a student walked safely in the hallway. As a special education teacher the data has been invaluable to me. It has driven my reevaluations, iep goals, and general communication with parents. But despite the data for behavior I have really struggled to derive assessments for the academic piece since my students are discrepant on so many levels. So my question I have been pondering: are special education teachers responsible for content area assessments to drive instruction or are our curriculum based measures enough? I feel as a teacher first, I always have a duty to academia. But as a specialist I have a duty to help close the gap. I am curious to thoughts on this. Please leave comments as I value the conversation.

As educators, we are given this day to observe the undeniable hero, Martin Luther King Jr. As I am home with my son today, I am again humbled by the service and strength of this man. Dr. King truly was a hero of unsung proportions. As I reflect on the life and times during the Civil Rights Movement, Dr. King, and so many activists whom go unnamed, I am left with these quotes that still rings true today…

“One of the great liabilities of history is that all too many people fail to remain awake through great periods of social change. Every society has its protectors of status quo and its fraternities of the indifferent who are notorious for sleeping through revolutions. Today, our very survival depends on our ability to stay awake, to adjust to new ideas, to remain vigilant and to face the challenge of change.”-MLK

“We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there “is” such a thing as being too late. This is no time for apathy or complacency. This is a time for vigorous and postive action.”MLK

“We must remember that intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education. The complete education gives one not only power of concentration, but worthy objectives upon which to concentrate. ” MLK

To all who are putting their life on the line for our freedoms, for teachers who put their minds and souls into everything they do for the betterment of our future generations, this educator says thank you to all educators, service men and women, and all public servants out there!-RK