#RuralEdChat is a chat that focuses on the needs of the rural educator. This chat has been revised by Tammy Neil (@MathNeil), John Martin (@edventures) and Natalee Stotz (@nataleestotz).
I'm Tammy. This will be year 28 for me. People are starting to ask when am I going to retire. You've got to get tired before you can retire! #RuralEdChat
And also, as always, I'm Matt, a software developer in Seattle, and also a volunteer remote teacher for high school computer science with Quincy HS in Quincy, WA #RuralEdChat
Tonight we will be talking about those educators that are new rural educators. We will use the Q1/A1 format unless a conversation breaks out. Also, don't forget to add #RuralEdChat so we can all share the knowledge you are sharing.
I spent 16 years in public education, most recently serving as a library media specialist. I currently help with outdoor education programming at a nature reserve. #RuralEdChat I remember being new to teaching and new to teaching in a rural setting so vividly!
Sharon Huggins here. I live in Lake County... where the fires are. Pacific Time. I teach 2nd grade & I'm also the tech teacher for my school & a new-teacher mentor, and the union secretary, and, and, and... #ruraledchat
A1: I wish I had been told (repeatedly until I listened) that no one will have a perfect year. Don't stress over the things that don't go correctly. Just keep moving and caring for the kids. #RuralEdChat
#RuralEdChat I wish that I had been told the value of templates and having a mentor teacher. Templates save time and headache, why reinvent the wheel and
mentor teachers keep you out of trouble.
A1 As a new teacher I wish I was told my “in basket” will never be empty. Taking care of my wellbeing is part of my responsibility to my students and colleagues. And that paying attention to the learning conditions is as important as my instructional practice #RuralEdChat
A1: I wish I'd been told that some lessons will fail, that I'll need to adjust my schedule and pacing on lots of days, and that it'll all turn out ok anyway. #RuralEdChat
YES! I was just teaching my Web Design class about templates this morning. Lots of time savings there. #RuralEdChat
Good to see you. I know you've been VERY busy.
A1: Where everything was stored & where I could get things & which of those items I had to pay for with my own money or how all that worked as I stocked my classroom. I remember this quandary so vividly. Wait, what? There's a storage shed w/ Science supplies? Why did I not know?
We get assigned one in CA. I don't know if that's a thing elsewhere. It's part of our required induction program during the first two years after receiving your credential. You have to complete it to clear your credential. You partner w/ a senior teacher. #RuralEdChat
Yes! I knew going in that lesson delivery is only part of being a good teacher, but I certainly didn't realize just how much work (and how important) conditions, culture, and relationships are. #RuralEdChat
A1: I wish I'd been told that some lessons will fail, that I'll need to adjust my schedule and pacing on lots of days, and that it'll all turn out ok anyway. #RuralEdChat
A1b: I also wish I had been told I didn't have to grade everything. Back in my early days there wasn't conversation about "learning" but only about students getting good grades. #RuralEdChat
We get assigned one in CA. I don't know if that's a thing elsewhere. It's part of our required induction program during the first two years after receiving your credential. You have to complete it to clear your credential. You partner w/ a senior teacher. #RuralEdChat
A1 I wish I'd been told that I could trust my intuition, slow down & consider depth vs breadth. I put my hand over my heart thinking of my students those first few years. I was so worried about covering curriculum & felt so much pressure to adhere to the scripts #RuralEdChat
This will be the first year in a very long time in which I have a mentor (unofficial) instead of being mentored. I switched to a new school. So thankful for someone to turn to with questions. #RuralEdChat
I know, right?!?! I seriously remember this being a huge issue for me & the other new hires. What can we get 4 free from the office? What do we already have in storage? Can we trade desks for tables? What is the teacher budget supposed to cover? What do teachers buy? #RuralEdChat
** Q2 **
New Teachers: What haven't you asked yet that you wish you could?
#RuralEdChat
DM @RuralEdChat if you want us to share it without using your name/account.
This was my entire first semester (and several times since) I didn't know how to really teach a full class, my partner teacher didn't know CS, and we both were clinging to the scripts and plans long after we should have adjusted #RuralEdChat
I do executive mentoring with school leaders that includes their strengths, wellbeing, goals, and challenges. The discussions are deep and lead to self awareness. #RuralEdChat
** Q2 **
New Teachers: What haven't you asked yet that you wish you could?
#RuralEdChat
DM @RuralEdChat if you want us to share it without using your name/account.
#RuralEdChat I have been a mentor teacher to a few new teachers. You have to be on your A game, because they are watching you and learning from you. It also allows you to see yourself through someone else's eyes.
** Q2 **
New Teachers: What haven't you asked yet that you wish you could?
#RuralEdChat
DM @RuralEdChat if you want us to share it without using your name/account.
** Q2 **
New Teachers: What haven't you asked yet that you wish you could?
#RuralEdChat
DM @RuralEdChat if you want us to share it without using your name/account.
A2 When I was teaching I should have asked students what they do best and how they do and incorporated that strengths conversation in their learning. #RuralEdChat
Had a good prof (@AnnKSchulte1) who stressed reflective practice & action research in the classroom. That constant plan-implement-results-reflect-repeat kind of thing. It reminds me of the way coaches teach athletes a way of thinking about sports w/ goals & visual. #ruraledchat
A2: To join in with some of the "I should have asked" answers: I should have asked, realistically, how much homework are students in my school accustomed to. Even if I wanted to change that norm, I needed to understand it first! #RuralEdChat
** Q2 **
New Teachers: What haven't you asked yet that you wish you could?
#RuralEdChat
DM @RuralEdChat if you want us to share it without using your name/account.
Yeah, I think I've mentioned before in #RuralEdChat that our profs encouraged us to think of ourselves as expert professionals practicing a craft rather than a technician working from a scripted manual. I think that is a critical element of job satisfaction 4 most teachers.
@937Nathan#RuralEdChat That is so true about teachers trying to keep up. There are curriculum changes, schedule changes and policy changes. Even veteran teachers struggle sometimes.
** Q2 **
New Teachers: What haven't you asked yet that you wish you could?
#RuralEdChat
DM @RuralEdChat if you want us to share it without using your name/account.
Agreed. As a fellow edtechhead, you must also appreciate, like me, the advent of digital grading aides & instafeedback like Flubaroo, Google Forms, Google Classroom, etc., as well as old school peer-partner feedback. #RuralEdChat
I have to remember that often the process is messy. Grading in the middle of learning doesn't do anyone any favors. I try to wait until I think they can prove what they've learned. #RuralEdChat
Maybe not ignore, but scan & check for understanding (CFU) looking for pops rather than details. That's why I like dry erase boards & Plickers & similar. #RuralEdChat
A3: If you are an assigned mentor, that may be dictated through required meetings. Unofficially mentoring someone means you can invite them to events off campus to help them realize they matter beyond the classroom. #RuralEdChat
A3 Creating a thriving school culture includes a focus on the wellbeing of the adults in the building. Asking each other how they are currently experiencing life? When we are thriving we are at our best. #ruraledchat
A3: Build that relationship - just like we build those relationships with our students - be it formal or informal, planned or unplanned. Too much is at stake not to.
#RuralEdChat
I do! Canvas's Speed Grader has done wonders for giving quick feedback and providing "check your understanding" problems. I honestly have to make sure I don't formative assess them to death :) #RuralEdChat
A3 #RuralEdChat not to add another meeting to so many meetings, but find time to sit down and talk to new teachers, have a stress relief then a solutions time for the stress. Most of the time I found there is a process and a solution for each issue.
meaning my training in undergrad was focused on the big picture, social justice, inquiry-based learning. However, I ended up in first teaching position where I was treading water. #ruraledchat
I definitely conflate the two. I'm always trying to improve on feedback and shift the emphasis from grades to understanding, and I agree, that's certainly a topic's worth of discussion! #RuralEdChat
#RuralEdChat A3: I remember my mother talking to new teachers and just checking on them. She already had over 20 years and would smile, laugh and ask question, not to pry, but see how they were mentally.
A3: If you are an assigned mentor, that may be dictated through required meetings. Unofficially mentoring someone means you can invite them to events off campus to help them realize they matter beyond the classroom. #RuralEdChat
Q: "Was there ever a question you didn't ask that looking back on it you should have?"
A: I suspect others may share this one with me...how much & what kind of help I could and *should* ask for from others. #RuralEdChat
I think there is also an implicit or perhaps inferred sense of pressure 2B all-and-everything & be the confident & complete master of your classroom & craft from day one. I think we should do less student teacher programs & more apprentice-to-master teacher programs. #RuralEdChat
A4: Some schools in neighboring districts actually have extremely low attendance on the first day of hunting season. A friend of mine told me this story in disbelief until she lived it. She was shocked. #RuralEdChat
When I bring this up with non-rural friends, even other volunteer teachers, it's always laughter followed by incredulity when they realize I'm serious. #RuralEdChat
For me, it's establishing what & how we're resource. I'm techie & I'm a hoarder & I work late. So everybody knows they can come to me for tech & talk & stuff after hours. I know I can go to LG for anything organization-related BF school in the AM & MM for culture. #RuralEdChat
Teacher training: "You're preparing your students for the next steps in their lives!"
Student in reality: "I'm not going to college, or trade school, or leaving this town, and I'm not sure I"m graduating. Why do I need to learn this stuff again?"
#RuralEdChat
#RuralEdChat@SHuggins67@937Nathan
Same for me, and I hate it when I see new teachers are thrown into committees and expected to contribute when they are still learning the ropes and getting use to all the other stuff.
Encountered this while teaching in rural KY. There was also attendance issues around the tobacco season. All were considered excused absences due to the needs of the families.
#RuralEdChat
Side Question:
How do we help our newbies understand that not everyone will be supportive? How do we help them spot the backstabbers?
(Very sad there are backstabbers in education, but there are.)
#RuralEdChat
I was fortunate in that my fellow teachers, tenured when I was new, appreciated me taking on extras, but knew when I had reached the fill line & then stopped me & prevented others from taking advantage. They put their feet down like Mama Bears or Secret Service. #RuralEdChat
In reply to
@try_rebooting, @wmjackson, @937Nathan
A4 I think some of the challenges are deeply ingrained ideas about where one is from, "outsiders," generations of families, etc. Connection can be difficult with those barriers. #ruraledchat
Tenured teachers need to watch for that with the new teachers and protect them. Straight up. We've all seen the stats on teacher burnout & retention, yeah? #RuralEdChat
As we wrap up, I want to leave us on a positive note:
Last Question: What unique benefits do we have as rural educators? Let's celebrate them!
#RuralEdChat
Side Question:
How do we help our newbies understand that not everyone will be supportive? How do we help them spot the backstabbers?
(Very sad there are backstabbers in education, but there are.)
#RuralEdChat
#ruraledchat. Even though this sounds foreign to many, it is how we feed our families. Both raising our own food and hunting and gathering. It is still a way of life.
AG! I love it that people taking their turkeys to fair will stop & do an impromptu "field trip" in the parking lot so the kids can see & discuss the turkeys. And then we can walk over to the HS Ag farm & churn butter & shear sheep & see chicks under warming lights... #RuralEdChat
