BUMPS IN THE ROAD?

All I can say is that I really need a bigger room at school! Okay, that 173 count is now up to 181 students. It may not seem like a big deal to those who don't teach, but when the class sizes reach 32 and 33 students in a classroom, problems do arise. If the other foreign language teachers had the same or even close to the same number, I would not be as unsettled as I am. Oral work? Forget it! Do you know how long it takes to get responses from over 30 students in one class period? There isn't enough time because you have to mix up the activities to keep the students listening and responsive. Grading papers? In the good old days I always had each day's papers graded by the end of the day because of student cooperation and willingness to learn through actually doing their own work and not cheating when we corrected answers in class. This is now and not the good old days, so it takes two days to grade a major test because I don't use scan-tron tests (multiple choice, matching, etc.). I may have to create a file of scan-tron tests, even though that type of testing is really not beneficial to students in a foreign language class.

On the bright side, the students that I have are decent--no ruffians, bullies, potty-mouthed kids so far! There is a lot to be said for having students you like even if you wish there were fewer of them. Their first test was last week and I am really proud. Class averages were great! Four of the classes averaged in the upper 80's, one class a 76 (no surprise to me), and the one that makes me really happy is 6th period with an average of 92.

My student teacher didn't show up the first two weeks of school and his supervisor from the college sent an email to check up on him. I'm not sure if this one is going to work out or not from the get-go. He did show up yesterday, so we shall see what happens!


Bumps in the road, maybe so,
since school is in full swing.
Too many students, too many rules
for me to do my thing!

The art of teaching is at stake
when red tape ties my hands.
So don't complain, Administrator,
when I don't meet your demands.

I'll do my best to do what's right
for the students, not for YOU.
When you cruise into my classroom,
oh, don't tell me what to do!

I'll hurdle the bumps in my own way
and take it all in stride.
But if you challenge my classroom realm,
be prepared for a bumpy ride.