Shifting Up a Gear

I should have started a blog a long time ago... not almost a month into teaching. But, I refuse to play catch up, so I am just gonna start in the present and perhaps fill in the rest along the way.

Yesterday I had a PLC (Professional Learning Community) at Crazy Horse School in Wanblee, SD on Pine Ridge Reservation for Teach For America. In the PLC, Catherin Pozniak, the Executive Director for the South Dakota Corps, revealed the goal percentages for 1st and 2nd year corps members. And frankly, it was disheartening. The goal for my year is for 21% of the teachers to make significant gains (1.5 years of student growth) and 56% solid growth (1 year).

It really was a sobering moment to see those stats up on the screen. TFA, an organization dedicated to the ideal that all children can recieve a good education, has such low goals for our corps. Now, I know they didn't get these numbers out of thin air, it was based on the years of data that they have collected from the SD Corps. But still... it hurts to see such low expectations from an organization with such ambitious and lofty goals. And to know that many teachers aren't even making solid gains (what every teacher AT THE LEAST should be doing) is very frustrating to see.

But, I didn't take those numbers and let it bring it down. I am using it for fuel to make sure I have my act together. I need to get organized and open all lines of communication. I need to talk to Gen Ed teachers, administration, TFA Staff, other TFA Corps Members, Mentors, and family to make sure that I am working my hardest to guarantee that my students will become successful.

One very bright spot of the PLC was meeting Ian, the Program Director (PD) on TFA Staff. He will become my PD and take over for Kim Marsh in a few weeks. He was a Special Education teacher in Arizona for a couple years and thus knows a lot of what I will be dealing with. To have someone with a lot of experience in Special Education on Staff will be a huge plus. Even more, he has taken a strong interest in my placement, since it is so different from all the others.

Time for another week of teaching. I hope my new focus and energy will help get a lot of unknowns solved and questions answered. Plus, I have my first IEP meeting on Friday, along with a couple Change of Placement meetings this week, so lots of knowledge and experience will be gained.