Hi, everybody. I hope you're all having a warm January. I really could use your advice right now. I'm feeling like a failure. I got hired at this new district, and it has been going amazingly well. I'm not going to lie; it is quite difficult, but I am happier than I was at my old school. This is my third year teaching. I'm working with a support teacher who chats and gossips about me incessantly to the other teachers. I'm the primary teacher of that class, but she often takes control. I make all the lesson plans, but whenever I speak out to take command of the classroom, she tells me to sit down. My name is on the kids' report cards! What's worse: She thinks I'm not a good teacher and that my kids won't benefit from having me around. I don't know why, but she's really getting to me. I plan on confronting her today after school. But how can you tell if you're a good teacher? What makes a teacher good?
As strange as it may sound, sometimes we're better off doing the work ourselves without any support personnel. If your "support teacher" is more trouble than she's worth, speak to your P. about having her reassigned to support someone else - tell the P. that you don't need her support. You will occasionally come across co-workers (teachers, secretaries, clerks, janitors) who may inappropriately boss others around. When this happens to you, just ignore them! Once you give in to their condescending directives, it establishes a pattern. Confronting her may help to some extent, but will probably not stop her gossiping. BTW, it has been my experience that few principals have the backbone to assertively put a stop to such misbehavior - been there more than once. How did the meeting with your support teacher turn out? If she refuses to cooperate, assign her to do her work at a back table and let her know that from now on you will be the one teaching the class. Period.
Thanks for being so sweet. I have to tell you, I am so in love with this job. I love education. I love surrounding myself with books. I love standing up there and teaching my kids the importance of literature. I just hate it when she says mean things about me. Almost on a daily basis, she will embarrass me in front of my students by saying, "Oh, you shouldn't have been a teacher. You should have been a librarian!"
Glad to be of help, however I just realized I failed to answer your question which BTW is an excellent one that has never been asked throughout my entire career! I think if you were to ask a hundred people that question you'd probably get a hundred different answers! Aside from all the usual descriptors, I would have to add the following attributes which IMO are often sorely lacking in many teachers. Humility A good teacher is able to openly admit to not knowing about something relative to the curriculum and does not hesitate to ask others for help. Perspicacious A good teacher is able to apply one’s knowledge, experience and intuition to analyze and assess the integrity of instruction as it relates to student achievement. Perseverance A good teacher demonstrates perseverance when instruction falls short of the mark by effectively revising subsequent lessons to ensure mastery by all students. Values Knowledge A good teacher understands the value of learning and is not intimidated by others who may be more knowledgeable about pedagogy. _______________________________________ How long has it been going on with your support teacher making crass remarks about you in class? If she still hasn't been reassigned to a different room, tell her in advance that if she dare say anything inappropriate again in your classroom that you'll have no choice but to ask her to leave the room immediately - you're not going to tolerate any further abuse from her. It definitely is not in her job description to assess your fitness as a teacher. In your situation, I would definitely restructure the class so that she remains in a subservient role per her official position. You must have a very high tolerance for being bullied by this immature woman!
In-class support teacher. It's kind of like a resource classroom. I'm definitely going to talk to her tomorrow after school.
This sounds like workplace abuse. You need to report her actions to your principal immediately. That's really not okay. Even if another teacher may have more experience or skill than you do now, you are never going to gain that skill by constantly deferring to her and letting her take over. You need to be the one in charge of your class and making the decisions and mistakes so you can learn from them.
Wait, are you Pink Cupcake? Or something like that? You sound an awful lot like a poster that I remember from when I used to be on here more often...
