It has been about 6 months since I last posted and wow has a lot happened in my life.
On May 1st, I was accepted into a teaching program called TNTP in Nashville, TN. On May 24th I had my car packed up and drove down to Nashville. Just like that, moved out and on track to start a career. I didn't really know what to expect. I was excited, maybe a little scared, but mostly excited to once again, live in a new place with new people and a new culture. I hit the ground running when I arrived and my orientation/training started on May 28th. Today is the last day of Pre-Service training and it has been the most challenging month of my life. Every day I was working my butt off from 7:00 AM - 6:30 PM in training sessions, teaching, or preparing for future lessons. Additionally, I was working on lesson plans at home and on weekends. Everyone in the program was basically working 14+ hour days. On top of that we were getting evaluated and if we did not perform well enough we would not pass the training. So, yesterday I received my final evaluation and PASSED with a score of 2.39 out of 3. I needed a score of 2.2 to continue. What a stress relief.
At times I was beat, felt down, or wanted to quit. But I would stop, think, work hard, and think about how I will do better the next time. I knew I could do it and now I can focus on the next step, which is teaching 8th grade physical science in the fall. Oh, by the way, on Thursday, June 12th I was hired at JT Moore Middle School. So I had a lot to lose if I didn't succeed. But I succeeded, for now. The most incredible part of this whole experience is that working as a first year teacher is going to be even more difficult than the Pre-Service Training. I couldn't be more excited.
For the past 2 years I have been considering a career as a teacher. My first step was to dip my toe into the teaching ocean by teaching English in Israel. Then I went back to Ithaca and worked in schools for more experience and learned more about how the public schools operate and tried to soak up as much as I could by watching professional, experienced teachers. This Pre-Service training was a test. Can I actually do it? Is this really what I want to do? Should I commit my life to teaching? The answer is yes. The realization that I can do it, and just as important, the opinions of my coaches, co-workers, and other people that know me agree that I can do it.
The start of something big happens now. Even though I passed the training, people have faith in me, and I have faith in myself, this first year is really the final test. This next year is going to be a huge step in my life and by far the most challenging year of my life. Bring it 8th graders, we succeed together.
PS. I just graded the summative test that my students had to take at the end of summer school. They averaged an 87.5. I am blown away. I guess I did teach them something after all
