Despite the premise of the article, which is to say that the inevitable reality of your first year of teaching will include a roller coaster of emotions, I still wish I was entering a new school as a teacher. I am happy to hear that my friend Mia has gotten a position in Virginia, although I hope she doesn't read the attached article so as to not implant this idea in her brain. In Ellen Moir's Article, Phases of First-Year Teaching, she notes that the anticipation phase begins in students teaching. The student teacher tends to "romanticize" the role of teacher; "New teachers enter with a tremendous commitment to making a difference and a somewhat idealistic view of how to accomplish their goals." I must agree that there is a certain safety net to student teaching. As I wrote about in a past blog, a student stole my cell phone, which thankfully was recovered due to my savvy cooperating teacher. It was thankful to have her support me and I will always remember the experience as a lesson learned. Student teaching also made it possible for me to check every assignment, every test, and lesson plan with my co-op. Although, some schools provide a mentor to pair a first year teacher with (someone obviously in the same field), other schools do not provide such services, which is something you might want to ask in your interview. This brings us to the survival stage where the new teacher may "spend up to seventy hours a week on schoolwork." Teachers in this stage often feel overwhelmed because they lack the tailored lesson plans veteran teachers collect over the years. This brings us to the disillusionment phase of the year. In this phase, "new teachers begin questioning both their commitment and their competence." The article talks about how the added stress of meeting the parents on back to school night gives new teachers more anxiety on their already vulnerable esteem. This coupled with the stress of maintaining classroom management and upholding a challenging and interesting curriculum begins to challenge the new teacher's dedication.
Thankfully, in January, the new teacher begins to feel rejuvenated, after a winter break, he/she can prepare for the next curriculum with a better understanding of the students needs and a more stable routine. Finally, the reflection stage allows a teacher to look back at the year and make plans for the next year, knowing what worked well, what needs changing and what could be thrown away. This in turn allows a teacher to go back to the anticipation stage, feeling confident for next year's curriculum.
If you'd like to read more about the stages of a first-year teacher, the articles are attached below.
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