Throwback Thursday: Student Teaching

STUDENT TEACHING

I did my student teaching during the fall semester of 2004. It was officially my 9th semester as a music education major at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. It didn't take me 9 semesters because I was slacking. Most semesters, I had 20 credits, and even had 22 credits once. A music ed degree required over 150 credits at that time. I was busy. I don't understand how I did it! I'm glad I don't have to do that again.

This Throwback Thursday post will focus on what my life was like at the time I was student teaching. I am sorry I don't have many pictures. This was in 2004 when people didn't carry cameras around on their phones or document every part of their life!

Let me take you back to Fall, 2004...

1. I lived in a tiny 1 bedroom efficiency apartment in Ebensburg, PA. I didn't mind that it was small, I was just happy to be living alone. I drove a silver Cutlass Ciera from the 90s that my parents bought for me. I didn't know anyone in the town and didn't care because I was an extreme loner in college. The summer was a different story- I would choreograph and perform in musicals with all of my theater buds. But during college semesters, I was focused on my studies and just getting by without getting too stressed out. I drove home three and a half hours every weekend. I was so homesick. 

Picture of Cutlass Ciera

2. I ran 5 miles every morning in the dark before work. I ran the same route day each day and still remember it precisely. Back then, I loved listening to music when I ran. Here are some of the tunes that were on my mp3 player. (Wow I just realized 11 years later I still use an mp3 player while I run and have not graduated to a fancier piece of technology!)

Stroke 9- Little Black Backpack

James- Laid

The Darkness- I Believe in a Thing Called Love

Shivaree- Goodnight Moon

3. The first half of my student teaching was done at Central Cambria High School and Middle School with a middle aged man as my co op teacher. I taught high school choir (not every day, I would have effed up that choir if I had!), and 7th grade general music (two classes every day). As far as 7th grade music, I was totally in charge for those classes. I had fun making up units for the students. I remember teaching them how to swing dance and write rap songs.

As far as high school choir, I mostly just took turns singing in the soprano and alto sections. Some days I was in charge of warming up the choir or just teaching one particular song. I remember one day was my big observation that my co op teacher was going to be watching. I effed up REALLY bad. I mean, I was horrible. My co op teacher was pissed/disappointed in me. I remember crying in his office. I don't remember what I taught but I know what went wrong- I was SO NERVOUS and I felt like I didn't know what I was doing! Which makes sense, right? I mean, it was my first time teaching an entire chorus period. Of course I wasn't going to be good at it. But judging by my co op's reaction, I was more than just not good at it- I was horrible! Well, a few days later I tried again and I hit it out of the park! Whew!

And I have not taught a high school choir since! (Hahahaha!)

4. The second half of my student teaching was done at Central Cambria Elementary School with a different co op teacher. She was in her mid 20s and was getting married in a few months. While I taught her classes all day long, she made wedding plans. It was... interesting.

I really disliked my situation at the elementary school. My co op teacher... I just didn't understand her. It was like she expected me to read her mind. For instance, on my first day at the school, she left the faculty room early while I was still eating my lunch. I did not know why she left and she did not give me a reason, so I just finished my lunch. Then I went to the band room because I knew band was next. Well, she was in there furiously trying to set up about 25 folding chairs for the band students. "It would have been nice if you came to help me set up." she told me. I kept my mouth shut and helped, but in my head I thought, "How was I supposed to know we had to set up chairs!?" Like I said, she wanted me to read her mind.

I taught a lot of different things at my elementary placement. I taught instrumental lessons to 4th and 5th graders- clarinet, flute, sax, baritone, trombone, and drums/mallets. I taught the elementary band once or twice but taught two 5th grade music classes daily. It was a crazy schedule. At the end of the day, we traveled to the high school because my co op teacher taught high school band. I did have a piece I would conduct with the band, but we will get to that later...

I felt very uncomfortable at this position. My co op teacher had me jump in my very second day on the job and teach all of the instrumental lessons. She barely allowed me to observe her at all. I thought it was odd then, and find it even more odd now. I have had student teachers and I never made them jump in and teach everything right away. I would have them observed/help for a couple days, and then they slowly picked up classes until they had the full load of teaching.

My co op teacher at the elementary school clearly didn't like me. She accused me of not being committed because when the bell would ring at the end of the day, I would immediately leave, rather than stay after school. I explained to her that when I left school, I went directly home to my computer to work on lesson plans for the next day or practice the trumpet (which I was for some reason playing with the high school band). After she gave me that critique, I would stay after school and practice the trumpet for a few minutes at the school to appease her wishes.

She also told my IUP professor in charge of my student teaching that she didn't think I enjoyed teaching. That made me livid. I was straight up with my professor. I told him that student teaching was very stressful and doing things for the first time makes me uncomfortable. I was not doing a good job at hiding all the times I felt uncomfortable. My professor was satisfied with my answer and understood how I was feeling. It wasn't that I didn't like teaching, it is just that I didn't feel comfortable yet.

I was too young and inexperienced to realize that my elementary co op teacher was not making things easy for me until an incident that happened while I was teaching high school band. Two flute players in the front row, who were normally very respectful students (one was actually the daughter of my first co op teacher at the high school), were chatting and mildly goofing off during my rehearsal. I was surprised they were goofing around because it was so out of character. I gave them one or two kind warnings and they knocked it off. Well, it turned out that my elementary co op teacher told the students to goof off to see how I'd react. (Every teacher reading this is now gasping.) How extremely inappropriate! I thought it was odd, and then my feeling was validated when I told some of my music teacher friends what had happened. They assured me it was completely out of line for my co op teacher to do that. My high school co op teacher emailed me and told me his daughter told him what happened and he was livid. He confronted my elementary co op teacher and told her, "Don't you ever tell my daughter to do something like that again!" I was too young and inexperienced to understand what all was going on, but obviously, looking back with some life experience under my belt, I feel validated by that one!

5. So to wrap it up, I would say the 3 and a half months I was student teaching were probably the darkest time of my life. I obviously learned a lot, but you never really learn how to teach until you actually have your own classroom. I am so glad that is an experience that I never have to do again, and now I get to reap the benefits of all of my hard work and have a job that I am very thankful for. And guess what? I still feel uncomfortable doing things for the first time- especially if someone is watching me! Maybe I am a little better about hiding it now.

Here are some pics from student teaching. These were taken at the high school band concert in which I conducted a piece.

Me and my high school/middle school co-op teacher.

Me, my HS/MS co-op, a fellow student teacher, and another faculty member

Me and my friend Jenna, another student teacher

Teachers, tell me about your student teaching experiences!

Congratulations if you actually read this whole thing! (Hi, Mom! Hi, Julian!)