Girls' and Young Women's Initiative
is produced BY Students FOR Teachers
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Girls' and Young Women's Initiative
is produced BY Students FOR Teachers |
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In order to get more into detail about teachers we decided to interview some teachers from Grand Street Settlelment and also teachers from our school.
Jennifer and I interviewed our homeroom teacher, Audrey Martin We asked her if she enjoyed teaching children or, as we prefer young adults. She told us yes that she did enjoy teaching us. We also asked her why did she choose teaching over other professions. She told us that she really did choose it, and that she just needed to support her family. Mrs. Martin said that her children, her student's, and herself are what motivate her every morning to get up and go to work. Mrs. Martin prepares her lessons by reading the material. Then she writes out an outline of the chapter. She also identifies all vocabulary and concepts. She went to school for four years to get her B.A. in Elementary Education and her M.A. in Special Education. She believes that a good teacher is a teacher that has respect, patience and understanding for individual's differences. As a teacher, sometimes my students and children do have to deal with my bad day, but I am honest with them so it's usually okay. Mrs. Martin finds that the paperwork and beauracracy the most frustrating part of her job. She has high expectations and I find many students are used to that expectation. She told us that a student-teacher relationship should be respectful with a realization that each can teach the other. Mrs. Martin told us that an ideal student should be one who works to his/her potential is a good peer, and has values and morality. She treats all of her students like teacher's pets and it is hard to do. She never thought that she would love teaching so much. Mrs. Martin thinks that you cannot stereotype the qualities and experience of an effective teacher.
Louisa and I interviewed Penny from Grand Street Settlement. At first she was a nurse then she became a Special Education teacher. She works in a Junior High school and she also works in Grand Street Settlelment to help out with the younger kids that go there. She is around kids all day including her own children. We interviewed her because we wanted to know what makes a good teacher in her opinion. To become a teacher, she says that you have to go to college for at least 6-8 years (if you are determined). She also said you have to be a good character to overcome challenges. The teachers teach you how to teach the students that they are going to be teaching. The minimum requirement is a B.A. You must pass state requirements and city requirements. For the city requirements, you have to have a B.A. and you have to pass an oral and written exam. For the state requirements, you must pass a series of exams. As you can see she went through a lot just to be a teacher. We asked her if it is fun teaching students and her answer was that it wasn't only fun, but it was rewarding. I think she meant that by teaching other students what she knows and passing it on to them. It is rewarding because she is sharing her knowledge with them. Every student might remember something special or something they learn for the rest of their lives. That must be a great feeling for her. We also asked her why did she choose teaching over other professions. Her reply was she knew she would make a difference in a child's life because she speaks two languages, Spanish and English. Then we asked her what was her motivation and what makes her wake up in the morning.Because as a teacher on the Lower East Side, she is the most consistent person in most of the children's lives. We asked her what she does in the classroom, for example, what you do to prepare a lesson? She says she prepares her lessons according to the child's needs. When I heard her say that, I thought that she was very considerate. If a child is having trouble in a subject I think she takes time out to explain it to them and try to put it so the child could understand it much more clearly. Other questions we asked her were, what were her academic and behavioral expectations for a student? She said for each student to work to his or her highest ability. She also said each child is an individual. She thinks that a teacher-student relationship should be one of mutual respect should be one of mutual respect. She thinks one should act with love towards another. Penny agreed with us that teacher's pets aren't fair and she said that you should try to be equal to one another. She said that teachers usually choose boys over girls to answer some of the questions they ask. That's why she went to an all girls' high school. She was very aware of that and experienced not being called on too. Now she is trying to do something to fix it or change something about it. We asked her what makes a good teacher and she said 1) gives homework & checks it, 2) gets to know their students individually as a person, & 3) reaches out to the community. Penny said that she doesn't separate her home life with her school life because there is a continuation. Our last question was did you feel differently when you first started teaching from how you feel about teaching now? Her reply was yes. When she first started, she was highly motivated. Now, she does what she has to do. But she is still interested in teaching.
I interviewed my social studies teacher, Mr. Neequaya, in order to get his take on education. He studied psychology for five years. He teaches now and eventually plans to get his masters in psychology and open a school in Ghana. Mr. Neequay thinks it is fun teaching students. He enjoys understanding how the youth are developing mentally. I feel that Mr. Neequaya is a good teacher. But, he feels that the down side to teaching is the Board of Education, because it can be frustrating. He chose to teach because he feels that it is important to share knowledge and experience with future generations who will control the world. Mr. Neequaya's motivation to teach is "spiritual growth" which requires innovation and patience. He believes that everyone "has the potential to attain levels of mental and spiritual awareness that would uplift mankind in general". In order to do this, he prepares his lessons trying to relate his history lessons to how they effect the youth and society today. One important topic our group discussed was the student-teacher relationship. Mr. Neequaya believes that the teacher should serve as an example to the students in behavior and self-control. He describes the ideal student as "one who strives further then what was taught in the class and is always inquisitive". In order to keep equality among students, he rewards students who give effort and encourages those who do not. He does not agree with having favorites even though he is very aware of them. We also discussed how he separates his home life from his school life. My teacher said that "in society, we wear many masks with friends and family and work associates. We all have the ability to separate one situation from another. I meditate every morning for 30 minutes which helps me to relax and focus". I learned from this interview that teaching is much more involved and difficult than it really seems to the students. I feel that Mr. Neequaya is a perfect example of a good, motivated teacher and I hope that he can not only help students, but motivate teachers as well. Without teachers like Mr. Neequaya, learning would not be fun.
I interviewed Marie. This is what she had to say. "I teach in the school of P.S 140 in the Lower East Side of Manhattan. I am a 7th grade teacher and I teach math. I enjoy teaching very much. I choose teaching because it gives me a chance to make a difference in children's lives. What keeps me motivated is going to work every day. When I prepare a lesson, first I look at the topic I have to teach, then I think about interesting ways to present the information to my students." "To become a teacher takes a lot of hard work and a lot of studying to do. You also have to go to college for 8 years and I also studied teaching journalism. What I think makes a good teacher is having a good sense of humor and to have an open mind." "I separate school from home life by spending time with my friends, doing activities that challenge me. If I have a bad day, I tell my students in advance and most of them cheer me up. One of the things that annoys me most about teaching is, students who don't try. If they don't try on their own, I try to motivate them. My academic and behavior expectations are high. I alos expect 100% of that." "My ideal student is the one who tries hard, who is motivated, and caring. The way I keep equality among students is to try to treat every one the same way and be aware not to pick a teachers favorite. Over the years I have learned a lot about teaching students and myself." 
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