A New Home
July 31, 2011
The past few days have been a hubbub of activity that I’ve been reflecting on, but haven’t had the time to jot down in detail. Even now, I feel I would be doing myself a disservice if I tried to broadcast all that has happened in the past few days, but I will at least key you in on the main events that have transpired and ideas that I have entertained over the past 72 hours.
Events
· Teach for America Summer Institute came to an end – I survived.
· I moved out of St. John’s University and met my August roommates in Brooklyn.
· I travelled to Bath, Maine for a leadership retreat with my new employer, Hyde Leadership Charter School in the Bronx, where I am currently composing this overview.
Ideas
· Despite our overwhelming inexperience, we (the Teach for America 2011 corps members in New York City) worked our asses off this summer and as a result, students learned and were inspired. I am proud of what we accomplished.
· After mulling it over quite a bit, I am disappointed in myself. I decided that I set too low of expectations for myself at Institute, trying merely to survive the experience than truly change the trajectories of my students. You may think that I am being overcritical, but don’t – I forgive myself and am recommitting to my next 2 years and beyond. To become a truly transformational teacher, I need to be relentless and not settle for a pragmatic point of view that complacently concedes, doing one’s best is all that is required. I will go above and beyond.
· I am ready to be a teacher – sort of. This last one is a bit tricky. I’ve had a lot of back and forth these past few weeks about the feasibility of my readiness to teach at the conclusion of Institute. “I’m not ready yet. This is ludicrous. No one can become a teacher in 6 weeks,” I told myself. But not so. I have had a wealth of experiences and challenges over the course of my life that have prepared me, in a way, to lead a classroom. In addition, these past 6 weeks have taught me, in a shotgun blast of knowledge to the face sort of way, the bare bones basics of teaching – classroom management, classroom culture, setting big goals, tracking progress, investing students, planning lessons, executing lessons, checking for understanding, aligning assessments and objectives, and so on and so forth. With this basic toolkit, I am ready to start as a teacher. I am not suggesting, nor would I be arrogant enough to suggest that I am a good teacher. I truly think that becoming a good teacher is a process that results from time, experience, experimentation and consistent reflection. In this regard, I think I am ready to start as a teacher, but am fully aware that I am the base of the mountain and have far, far to climb.
· I belong at the Hyde Leadership Charter School. After just a few hours of discussion this evening and speeches from both the founder (father, Joe Gauld) and current president (son, Malcolm Gauld) of the Hyde Foundation of schools (7 total), I believe with all of my heart that this is exactly where I am meant to be. Hyde schools preach the development of student potential over the aimless dissemination of subject matter; fostering the intellectual, emotional and spiritual growth of individuals through a curriculum infused with character content; and collaboration with parents to an uncommon degree to build communities of learning and long-term commitment. I realize I am sounding a bit lofty and aloof with this glorification of the program, particularly since I’ve only spent 1.5 hours learning about the education model and haven’t seen it in action, but basically I just want to communicate this – I am happy. During the session this evening, at the top of a page of notes, I wrote, “How did I make it here? This is a dream come true.” I then drew a simple picture of a big smiling face. For all its simplicity, that face represents a lifetime of experiences that have brought me here; through struggling self-awareness and a chaotic, uncertain adventure to a conference room in Bath, Maine where, surrounded by a host of talented teachers who have dedicated their lives to urban education, I realized, I’m home.
· And finally, the east coast is charming. I went for a run through Bath tonight and enjoyed the heck out of the red-bricked streets, adjacent river, winding hills and old school churches. I feel like each corner I turn I’m going to chance upon a scene of revolutionaries on horseback or a mob of witch hunters. I suppose my imagination is getting the better of me. Regardless, after 6 weeks in Jamaica, Queens, the fresh air, night sky and dancing trees of Maine are a refreshing contrast.
Good night,
Josh
1. DESTINY – Each of us is gifted with a unique potential.
2. HUMILITY – We trust in a power and purpose beyond ourselves.
3. CONSCIENCE – We attain our best through character and conscience.
4. TRUTH – Truth is our primary guide.
5. BROTHER’S KEEPER – We help others achieve their best.
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