Whenever a new opportunity is on the horizon I develop a set of expectations. Most of the time, those expectations are very wrong. The first week of MTC was different though. I expected for the other MTCers to friendly and supportive; and they were. It was great to find people of similar passion and motivation because there was an automatic sense of family and community. We established a great rapport from day one. That rapport made the first day jitters go away. I was so ready to start this new experience that I was not nervous at all. I was very excited about learning as much as I could because I knew that my opportunity to teach was coming so quickly. I learned so much in the first week. I already have a greater appreciation for classroom management plans and lesson plans.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
My First Week in MTC
Dr. Mullins shared a wealth of knowledge with us on the first day. Mississippi history is so rich and educational. Through Dr. Mullins' tour, I really got a lot of perspective. Moreover, I already felt like I was becoming a part of the North Mississippi and Delta communities. In addition, I really got a sense of the culture here at Ole Miss. Learning about the events that helped shape the university was eye-opening for me. James Meredith's story is particularly touching to me. Although I knew the story, hearing it again with much more detail really gave me insight into just how important his actions were.
My favorite part of the first week was the deficit model workshop with Buck. Growing up in a school system that is similar to the one I will be working in, I understood the effects of deficit thinking. The group scenarios were fun and informative because they forced us to identify our subconscious feelings. Moreover, they forced us to think critically about how to best handle what we are sure to be faced with during out first year of teaching. The question "Who Failed?" was stirring to me. First of all, I thought about how many ways failure can be operationally defined. Next, I thought about what was considered failure where I was from. Then, I thought about the factors that contributed to a student's, or a school's failure. So, I thought of a question; "If one fails, does everyone fail?" I think the answer to that question is yes. I want to make an impact at my school where everyone feels accountable for everyone. If that can be established, then I think that the amount of failure will go down and bring more success.
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I forgot to mention the deficit model workshop in my week one analysis, but it was definitely interesting. It's amazing that that way of thinking has become so common that we have come up with a name for it. Here's to thinking differently!
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