First, I’d like to say that I will be trying to update more often now, because the year is off and running, so most of the beginning of the year chaos is calming down a bit. Second, I’m writing this while two students sit in my office in detention.
The technology coach section of the job is running along smoothly. The high school technology coach and I work well together, so that is a huge bonus. So far we have offered two after school workshops: one called Mac Basics, for those people who are totally unfamiliar with the Mac, and another called iMovie Intro to show the basics of iMovie. (By the way, I’m not to happy with the new version of the program, but whatever.) The teachers are eager and very fun to work with. In the coming weeks we are going to offer some workshops on Wikis and blogs and how to use them in the classroom. In addition to the workshops, we are roaming the halls and helping teachers in the classrooms. Last week we handled the account set up for the online textbooks that the school is using in middle school math. I think the teachers we very relieved that they didn’t have to handle it all alone. Plus, it set a great tone for the school year — both the middle school principal and I were in the classrooms helping out right from the beginning of the year. Teachers need support; more importantly, teachers need to feel supported and comfortable. Also we have started a Wikispace to share technology help and ideas with the faculty.
So I’m into the third week of this new gig and I’ve found that the discipline part of the job, the part I was dreading, is actually the easy part. Before, as a teacher, I hated discipline and having to come down on a student for breaking rules. I’ve discovered why it was such a pain now, because it was personal. The student broke the rules in my class; the student disrespected me; the student basically pissed me off. Now a student comes to my office, I don’t feel that way. When I read the report, or hear the story from the teacher, sure it bothers me, but I’m not emotionally involved with the situation; therefore, handing out the punishment, or tough love, or whatever is not a reflection of my personal feelings or attitudes. It’s just the job. It is a very liberating feeling. I think it is good for the students, too, because they don’t have to see another angry person; instead, they get a smile and a detention.
