MAIT 402: Response #1

            When I student taught at Mount (MDHS) the best moments were when students trusted me enough to share their life experiences i.e. their immigration stories, their worries about finding employment after school or getting into college. These moments were as rewarding as the moments when I got one of my troubled students to write a complete five paragraph essay. Most of those life story moments came from my ESL students.

On a Sunday morning last fall, almost a year and a half after I left Mount, when I was moonlighting as an assistant to the Game Day Director for the Raiders (a former life), I heard someone call, “Miz Garcia”. It was one of my former students from the transitional main stream class I student taught. In fact, it was one of my favorite students. She was one of my favorites because unlike me she knew, understood and was brilliant at math and science. I had seen the grades and test scores to prove it and she wanted to be a nurse. I fully supported that decision, so when she asked if she could ask me some questions that day on the field I handed over a card with my email address and told her to send me a message. For several weeks we emailed back and forth about the community colleges, her options and the Dream Act and then I stopped hearing from her. I don’t know if she is enrolled somewhere for the fall. I only know I’m crossing my fingers that she is. It would be a shame for a brilliant girl like that to be held back by her immigration status, yet I know that it is an all too likely possibility.

Having been an ESL student myself, for however brief a time, I feel connected to these students; having parents who are immigrants turned citizens I know most of them face a long and tough road. I’m not a counselor nor do I have the ability to grant these students a green card. The best I can do for them is give advice and teach them how to read, write and speak so that at least language is not a barrier. In a nutshell, what Ball’s “The Subject Matter Preparation of Teachers”, says to me is that having acquired competency in my subject it is now my job to teach students how I got there. It is my responsibility to teach them how to think and give them the necessary tools to think for themselves at the end of the process. Nothing can really change my belief that this is my main objective as a teacher: teach students how to think for themselves, express themselves and respect and understand what others are saying when they are doing the same.

That being said, I’m still floundering in regards to my line of inquiry. I’m thinking of a unit plan, but due to some articles I have read regarding creative writing and ESL students I’m flip-flopping as to the content of that unit plan. I’m a little lost and I feel comfortable being that way for at least another week.

On a bright note, I was contacted today about being a CELDT tester in the fall. Its five to six weeks of employment so at least it’s an option and a start.

This week I responded to: Heather, Jose K. and Debamitra.