1 Struggle is learning to say no. I like to be busy, but there are only so many hours in day. I'm pretty effective at managing my time , and I work quickly, efficiently, and accurately. But I interact with other people who, through no fault of their own, are not always able to meet my demands as quickly as I'd like. Instead of getting upset at them, I need to say "no" more often so I do not overload my schedule to the point where it could easily collapse. But I like to be active! Argh, the struggle!
2 Accomplishments I'm proud of are being nominated to be a part of the Inaugural CSISD Teacher Leader Academy and being a part of CSISDchat as a participant each week. The first one is humbling because I was selected to be one of four teachers on our campus to be a part of it. All of them have more experience than me, and as I was painfully reminded of yesterday, all of them are younger than me. For both of these accomplishments, the benefit is that I am getting to constructively interact with fellow educators and share insight, questions and growth together. The work with TLA has led my team to really dig into the peer coaching elements of education, and I am a stronger teacher for it.
3 Things I want to accomplish before the end of the year (by August) are
- to take at least one of my Cougar Speech Students to State UIL,
- develop a new teacher handbook for my campus (part of grad school),
- and work with my administrators on what the next steps for coaching on our campus looks like and my role in it.
4 reasons I remain in education are simple
- I feel challenged by it. I get bored with things, but education has let me constantly be challenged and tested. I want to keep growing.
- The students. To make an impact in a person's life is VITALLY important to my life's purpose. Seeing the small, but sometimes significant changes students make to succeed is so rewarding.
- It is fun. I look forward to my classes, and to going to College Station High School everyday. Its exciting. And..
- I've worked in a career that drained my soul. I stay in education because even if we do not get paid what we are worth, I get my worth from daily doing something I love and am passionate about. Don't ever think that more money will make you swallow the bitter pill of not enjoying your job a little easier. Do what you love.
5 People who I hope take the challenge are: (Some may or may not have blogs, but I am issuing the challenge anyway.
- Amanda Mann inspired me to write another "5" themed blog on Monday, so I am returning the favor now. I just took a high school psychology class to observe her class and saw a teacher who loves her students, loves inspiring them, and loves learning. She energetic and eager to reach all the students she can.
- Kristin Lehrmann is my wife an excellent special education teacher. And she doesn't blog, so I might lend her mine for a bit. I also got to watch her in class today, and while it may seem to some she is frenetic, I see it as she is more in-control and observant to the specific needs of her students than most of us could hope to be. She is almost intuitive in her teaching, and I really love watching her serve the students she loves.
- Julia Mishler is an assistant principal at my school, CSHS. She is an innovator and a risk taker. She is excellent at developing relationships with students, and laying out ideas and concepts for us teachers. She expects much of her colleagues, and it makes us better.
- Tiffany Parkerson is our interim principal and she has excellent insight as an educator. She has great vision and really seems to have her finger on the pulse of where education is headed. She is patient yet persistent with change initiatives and is a great leader for our school. She has also been a great voice of encouragement for me as an educator.
- BJ Kurtz is an educator I know as @BJKURTZ from Twitter. I "met" her through CSISDchat this past year and I have seen her desire to grow as a technology innovator, but also as a blogger. I'm very interested to hear what she has to offer!
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