Those of you who know me would not argue that as much as I can keep them "relevant," I do my best to remain a creature of habit. Here I sit on this Sunday morning at a cafe ruminating over teaching, my social tendencies, writing projects, and love/attraction/sex. All of this with a background chorus of hip-hop/rap music. This entire construct, a recycling, I have circled and cycled through for the last three decades.
Teaching
There are certain phrases concerning my struggle with education the last half decade. Originally, that struggle was the reason I left California. And, ironically enough, the same exact struggle I ended up landing in when I came to New Orleans.
-education use to be a humanity, now it's politics and business
-we use to develop young humans and now we develop adolescent operating systems
-administrations are not transparent with staff and students
-...and so on
-and it may not be all that simple, but I am binary and need as highly a reduced fraction as
possible to drive myself into powerful and purposeful action.
Some networks seem to do things better than others--most networks have some different interests or strength they focused on. You would think there would be more cross-collaborate, like teachers who support each other cross-curricularly. Maybe they do, and due to where I have been for the last two years, I have been unaware. Giving where I am now, I have high hopes, potential certainty, that that will change for me.
Where have I been the last five years professionally:
Nola Year #1: ReNew Schools/Elementary Reading Remediation & Kindergarten Co-Teaching
Nola Year #2: McDonogh 42/ 7th & 8th Grade ELA
Nola Year #3: Carver Collegiate/Founding Freshman Teacher of Composition
Nola Year #4: Sophie B Wright/English II World Lit. General/Pre-AP
Nola Year #5: Sophie B Wright/English III American Lit. General/AP
Nola Year #6: Success Preparatory Academy...Here we Go!
Transition Why's
Nola Year #1: Wanted to go back to Secondary ELA Full Classroom Teaching,
had no spaces + lack of admin follow through.
Nola Year #2: School lost their charter, take over network re-offered me position--
charter network offered me a square on my "bucket list."
Nola Year #3: Admin lacked enough transparency for me to feel comfortable come EOY
Nola Year #4: Stayed--received highest growth award/offered AP training.
Nola Year #5: Lack of transparency, dialogue, openness.
Each school/network is like relationship with a significant other. Both sides of the relationship have strengths and weaknesses. What are they willing to compromise and what are they not? This is what creates the temporary or the longevity of the relationship. Sometimes you stay for the children, until you can't. Each school/network added a positive piece to my New Orleans experience, and I hope i returned the same. I am for excited for the culture I am joining at Success Prep this year!
to be continued...
Part 2: Introversion/Attraction/Friends
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