Handling Critical Incidents in the Classroom Essay

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Classroom

Compare and contrast prior impressions of teaching with the reality of your experiences in the classroom.

The moment teachers fresh out of college to get into the class environment, what they might have expected and what they encounter in the class can often be different (Melnick & Meister, 2008). The education profession is often a more complex profession than what many anticipate. Individuals who choose teaching as a profession should review why they did so in the first place if they are to overcome what awaits them. When new teachers enter the classroom, they are usually shocked by the challenges that come with being a teacher in the real world. At times, the reality is much more different than what the teacher anticipated. Beginning teachers often describe their first year in the classroom as a year of survival. Different studies have also backed this argument, labeling the first year in the classroom as a "sink or swim" situation for new teachers. The new teachers are expected to learn how to cope with the challenges in the classroom environment and also the challenges that accompany dealing with guardians, fellow teachers and administrators. When novice teachers get into the classroom environment, the shock often comes because they had idealistic expectations about being in the teaching workforce while they were under training (Nahal).

The beginning of a new school year is not only filled with excitement for children who are getting back to school, but also for beginning teachers. However, the excitement of beginning one's teaching career often dissipates as the start date for the school year gets closer. The excitement is replaced by anxiety and unsettling thoughts. Thoughts like whether one will be able to fill all the hours before lunch, or if a parent confronts one, will he or she be able to handle that situation in a professional manner. One also wonders whether they will be able to uphold the promises they made to themselves about treating all children in a fair and loving manner. Many fears can face an individual as the reality of becoming a teacher sets in. To put those fears into perspective, one just needs to imagine that he or she is a teacher and is having his or her perfect first year. Imagining the feel and the climate of the classroom in the perfect first year is important in the goal setting process. For instance, many new teachers would imagine that in their perfect first-year, they would be innovative and competent, and would deliver all the expected learning outcomes. Envisioning oneself as fun, flexible, respected and relied upon by colleagues and parents alike can also help in the personal goal setting process. However, having such great expectations can often leave one feeling burdened by their goals or expectations (Bluestein, 2004).

Being assigned a class for the very first time was both terrifying and exciting at the same time. It was a huge event for me. I had a mixture of feelings, and also felt a great sense of responsibility. As the head teacher handed me the keys to the classroom, I felt a rush of excitement surge through my entire body as I took the key. At the time I was taking the key, many ideas, images, feelings and thoughts rushed through my mind that I nearly forgot to thank the principal. I hurried to the class I was assigned and opened the room that I had imagined and was expecting to be "my zone," "my dream theater" and the class that learners would lovingly call "home." As strange as the thoughts and expectations seemed, they were true. It was not my belief that the classroom was just a physical space where educators could walk in and speak continuously and the children listened; to me, my responsibilities were not to be restricted to talk and chalk. I had imagined and planned for my classes to be interactive, engaging and inspiring to both the learners and my colleagues. I was aware that for me to create such a learning environment there was a need for me to tend to the different learning styles and paces of students, and take into account the different intelligences; these were things I was not only ready, but also very eager to do (Dancer, 2012).

When I entered the classroom I had been assigned, I felt that something was amiss. The room was not what I expected. Upon closer investigation, I noticed what was setting me off. The room was not as equipped or as clean as I had expected.

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Regarding equipment, the room only had twenty five desks, a wooden teacher's chair, a teacher's table, which was broken on one side, and a blackboard. Upon further inspection of the room, I noticed that many of the desks were broken; some had various parts missing and others had nails exposed, which I thought was dangerous. Furthermore, I noticed all the windows had no curtains and that only two of the six fluorescent tubes that the class had were working. I was deflated, most of the excitement I had disappeared. I felt frustrated. However, I decided to make the most out of the place. I assessed the situation and came to the conclusion that what I had anticipated for my classroom was still achievable. I was the newly hired teacher and believed part of the reason why I was hired was to improve learning outcomes in the school. I believed, to do this, the class had to meet some minimum standards. I went to the school's administrator and asked about the situation and what was being done about it. The administrator responded that there was nothing that was being done and there was little we could do about it. He further said that it was the responsibility of the department of education to fix such problems, and that compared to other schools within the district, ours was paradise. Later, I asked the administrator whether the school had a video projector that I could use to teach some of my classes. The administrator responded that there was one video projector available for the entire school and that it was to be used for science classes only and that for me to have another one, I would have to write a letter to the Department of Education and wait for their correspondence. I immediately realized that that was just another way of saying that I was not getting one anytime soon. My frustrations got even worse. I had not expected what I was facing then. Even though I had not anticipated everything to be perfect, it never crossed my mind that things would be that bad. Just to get away from the situation and ease the anxieties in my mind, I went to a park that was near the school and lied down on one of the benches. The meditative environment, among the trees in the park, enabled me to calm down a bit, and started getting my thoughts together. I decided that I needed to succeed in teaching because this had been my dream job since I was a child. I resolved to push ahead and overcome the challenges. I was aware that this was not going to be easy, and that my plans about creative and innovative learning would not be easily implementable, but still, I said to myself that I would make the most of the equipments and facilities that I had at hand (Dancer, 2012).

I had always thought that my teaching career would be a smooth ride. That all I ever needed was to be disciplined and committed for me to meet my job responsibilities; and that the commitment on my part would make the students have respect for me. I always expected that out of that respect and the kind of discipline I had, the students would sit there and attentively listen, as I gave them interesting bits of information. My thoughts were not all that unrealistic either, for I had anticipated the class to also have a few troublemakers. However, perhaps my expectations had been informed by the way students behaved when I was in elementary school. The classes were not that chaotic back then. It was my expectation that I could easily plan the activities for each day. What I did not realize was the kind of energy that I would need to spend in keeping the children attentive and motivated. The next time I set foot in the class I had been assigned to, I was downright terrified. The children were already in class. The scene looked like it was straight out of a junior high class in a low income neighborhood. The class was chaotic. Students were screaming, running around and not even one seemed to notice I was standing there. I went through the same kind of shock I had experienced the first time I saw this classroom when the students were not in. For the first few days, I….....

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