A Day in the Life of a Teacher, and a Student

I read a fantastic article this past week, that summarized the experiences of a veteran teacher who shadowed two students for two days through high school. In summary: the daily experience of high school students contrasts greatly to that of their teachers.

So I would like describe both experiences, first from my perspective as a teacher, and then from that of a student, as summarized in the Washington Post article.

A Day in my Life as a Teacher:

 I'm in the school an hour before the students so that I can prepare the classroom, run through labs and lessons, record marks and prepare handouts. I often revise today's lesson based on the previous day's achievements. I check in with the secretaries in the office to keep updated on school-wide activities that may affect my class.

Once the bell rings, the calm is shattered by a wall of noise. Students plop their bags down on the desks, hold conversations, check phones, and some open their notebooks. Often I have requests to take up certain problems on the board. Then the daily annoucements start. I ask the students to quiet down so that we can hear them. Right after announcements, my lesson starts. We have 75 minutes together each day. I write the lesson on the board, I give out handouts, I answer questions. Sometimes we are in the computer lab working through a structured activity. Sometimes we perform a science experiment.

Yes, teaching is regulated by the clock and I watch it with an eagle eye. I spend the majority of class on the move: across the front of the room and mingling around the classroom so that I can have one-on-one conversations with students. Class wraps up with a debrief, assigned homework and a reminder of tomorrows calendar. Often assessment is involved (either self assessment, group assessment or homework). I test comprehension with mini diagnostic quizzes, comfort level questions or this new cool app called plickers. At the end of each day, I regularly coach, I am heading up the swim team this year.

How does this compare to the working world?

Before I became a teacher, I worked in a variety of office environments, a scientific journal, a Learning & Development consulting firm and a sales office.  I walk an incredible amount each day as a teacher, in comparison to the working world. Not only that, my daily working life is highly regulated, I live my life by reminders written on paper slips and ringing bells. I have a daily to-do list. I often need to be at a certain place at a certain time. In contrast to my working world jobs, I have many more stakeholders to consider. I connect with my stakeholders by means of hundreds of daily small conversations. I am perceived through my expectations and my actions, and I am extremely conscious of the messages I deliver through my words, and my demeanor. I am constantly seeking feedback from students for their experience of lessons, looking for teachable moments and opportunities to refocus attention on the lesson at hand. Yes, teachers test and evaluate a lot, both formally and informally. We keep track of where students are so we can move through the subject material as effectively as possible.

This is my experience of school through the eyes of a teacher.

This fantastic article this past week, on Grant Wiggen's blog site, focused on the high school experience through the eyes of a 15-year veteran teacher (his daughter, Alexis Wiggins) walking in the shoes of a student.

A Day in the Life of a Student: 

What struck me most in the article is the level to which the school schedule makes sure that students are doing what they need to, when they need to. In fact, basic needs are experienced as interruptions (stretching, social conversations, and bathroom breaks). To be honest, the level of scheduling reminds me of working life within a call centre, where compliance is king.

Not only that, students spend 90% of their time listening and only 10% moving and doing. Schools expect teenagers sit still while actively listening to each of their teachers, concentrating for 75 minutes at a time. Each day their participation is monitored by means of producing tangible deliverables. Classrooms are often shut off from the outdoors and lit with harsh fluorescents. The student life is a journey from 1 to 90 (each high school semester consists of  approximately 90 instructional days); every day is one more step toward to mastering a subject, and no two days repeat.

Frankly, when I think about student life, it's not a relaxing life. The day of a student is regulated by bells. Their class commutes are timed. They carry a full complement of pens, pencils, calculators, homework, blank paper and textbooks around to all of their classes. And they are asked to seamlessly adjust to the expectations of each of their teachers.

This article made me think of all the ways in which I can ease the sometimes stressful side effects of school structure. Most of these I am conscious of and I do already. Actions that I can take to heart are to:

1. Make sure hands-on tasks and collaborative group work each class allow for movement and conversation.
2. Limit my lessons to 20 minutes and consciously provide time for practicing learning each day.
3. Summarize key learnings so that I can focus on these classroom activities. Sometimes I summarize these mini quizzing with programs like Kahoot.
4. Proactively providing time to preview tests so that I can answer questions and reduce test and subject anxiety.
5. Continue to be conscious of my tone and word choices to be respectful of all students.

These habits create an atmosphere of communication and fairness.

As a teacher, it is no understatement that I interact with well over 100 people each day, striving to create a personal teacher-student relationship and a welcoming environment that nurtures learning. Everything that I can do to help learning and create a better experience for everybody is worth it.