Tutoring, teaching, and wonderful news

 

I've been tutoring in various ways to gain the skills to teach. One of my employers has given me two placements. One is assisting in a 3rd grade classroom at a school in East Harlem. The other is helping 7th graders prepare for the SHSAT, an entrance exam that a small group of public high schools in New York City use. The 7th graders all attend a middle school in Queens.

The 7th grade work is remote, so I meet with small groups of students after school over video conference. I turn my camera on briefly so they can see me, and then I turn it off to conserve bandwidth. There is only one student who chooses to turn his camera on. The others never do, and some are even reluctant to turn their microphones on. It's a difficult medium, but many teachers and students have learned to deal with it, and now some prefer it. The exam is in English and Math, and I never thought of myself as a good English student, but interestingly, I find I have things to say about the material. I guess I was a late bloomer in my appreciation for reading and writing.

The 3rd grade work is in person, thank goodness. I didn't really picture myself as an elementary school teacher, though I welcome the opportunity, and I find things to love about it, particularly the kids themselves. East Harlem is one of the most economically disadvantaged neighborhoods, and some of the kids don't make it into school reliably from day to day. Some are quite sharp and ambitious, and some seem rather lost. I aim to make a difference in each of their lives. Here, I am also helping them in English and Math. The school has been putting a lot of effort into preparing the students for the annual state exam. Third grade is when students first encounter this exam. As many people have complained, there is a lot of effort at "teaching to the test," which means preparing students for an exam rather than for life. I have the same complaint, because we could cover the material in a way that offers more long-term benefit than just the score on the exam. But it's the task on hand, and it's not entirely useless, either. Some of the kids are stressed over the prospect of taking the exam, so I told them not to worry. I might get in trouble for saying so, but I told a few of the students that they are not really being tested, it's the school that is being tested. The wittiest girl asked me, "What happens if the school doesn't do well? Will they close the school down?" I said I'm not worried about that, because this is a good school. She said, "They're going to close it down and turn it into a nail salon." This is from the mouth of an eight-year-old girl!

I am also still tutoring an autistic man individually, though this work is better described as mentoring. My student is now 19 years old. The state classifies this work as Community Habilitation. I find myself enjoying this even more than I had expected. In fact, it has opened my mind up to working with students with disabilities. The rapport that my student CI and I have developed is quite special.

A few months ago, I applied to NYC Teaching Fellows which accepts people who do not have degrees in Education. Many applicants are older as I am, looking to change careers. On March 24, I was accepted! There will be training in June and student teaching in July. In September, I will begin a full time teaching position in New York City. I will also enter graduate school for a master's degree in Education. The program pays a large portion of the graduate school tuition. It's a great deal for everyone. I'm honored and excited to be accepted. On my application, there was a question that asked, roughly, "How do you know you will make a difference to students in disadvantaged areas?" I was proud to offer my response: "I know I will make a difference because I am already doing it." I also had an opportunity to write about my journey, including the bit about being diagnosed late in life with ADHD. My disability explains my spotty academic record, and it also will give me an advantage at helping students with learning disabilities. The teaching specialty I have chosen is students with special needs in grades 7 through 12. At the moment, I think I would prefer to teach in a middle school, but if I land in a high school, I'm sure I will like that just as well.