Involuntary Service

When I was activated for duty in the reserves it was under "Involuntary Orders". I was going weather or not I wanted.

I feel a little bit like that now. I got to work on Tuesday and found out my job description was changing. We're facing a budget shortfall, and to make up the difference, we've added an ESL course to our summer workload. Too bad we couldn't add an ESL teacher too.

I have some background in ESL, although I never did get fully certified. I even taught an ESL course my first semester teaching. But I wasn't expecting to switch classes this summer, and I'm a little worried.

First of all, my boss, who has a background in psychology instead of education, will be teaching my regular GED class. He's a pretty capable guy, at least I would think so, but teaching is no easy thing to learn. I stayed up late last night trying to find any material I could give him to help prepare him for a classroom. Today when I asked if he was receptive to information, and he took the literature, but seemed to think he'd be fine on his own. He's taken Ed Psych, he said, and I guess to him that's all a person really needs....

And I'm a little insulted. I offered to help in developing some lesson plans, and while he said he'd listen to me, he also said he wouldn't guarantee that he'd listen to my advice..."because it would be a good chance to introduce the students to a different method of teaching". So he thinks the method of someone who has never taught before will be more effective than my own?

I think that in general there's a trend in education to think that it's something anyone can do with or without training, and with or without experience. I've got to tell you that there are very few "naturals" out there who don't need any help getting started. Teaching is a delicate balance, and how many people have you known that can just pick up a bike for the first time and just ride. Even if you're talented it takes time and practice. I'm not saying my boss questions my ability to teach, but he must have at least somewhat bought into this new trend if he's not scared to death of being unprepared for the classroom.

But mostly I'm worried about creating a whole new curriculum for a group of students I don't even know yet. We don't have test scores, or levels of speaking and writing ability. In fact, we're not sure how the assessments will be made, or by whom they'll be made. It's going to be a lot of work pulling a program together within the next month.

For continuity, it probably would have been better for me to continue teaching the GED class and my boss to teach the ESL group. Perhaps he wants to teach the GED class in case he has to eliminate my position in September. The money we will get only alleviates the budget problem until the end of summer, and then we're out of luck. He could want to keep the school going without me. Or perhaps he thinks ESL will be the more difficult class to teach and that time and experience teaching have made me the better choice for the job. I guess only time will tell.

I guess I could choose to leave now, but it won't be easy to find another job. And I really like my job. I'm rather hoping that my boss can find the funding needed to keep us open at least another year.