Letters | After-School | NW Education

Supporting New Teachers

I wanted to congratulate you on the current issue of Northwest Education, with the focus on new teachers (New Teachers, Winter 2001, http://www.nwrel.org/nwedu/2001w/index.html). I found the articles to be informative as well as challenging the readers to consider programs or resources that would support our novices as they enter the field of teaching.

Of particular interest to me was the article about Sam Fisher, written by Suzie Boss ("Mr. Fisher Finds His Calling", http://www.nwrel.org/nwedu/2001w/fisher.html). Suzie had contacted me last August, requesting the names of several students who recently graduated from Lewis & Clark College and were beginning their first year of teaching. Sam agreed to work with Suzie on her project. This article highlighted the reality of the ups and downs of the first year of teaching, yet honored Sam's unique style of interacting with his students as well as sharing his emerging philosophy of teaching. Suzie did not gloss over the "tough times," but described the situation and Sam's responses to the students. Her writing invited readers into Sam's classroom and his struggles and successes in his first year of teaching.

Again, congratulations on a fine journal and the contributions you and the writers are making to the field of education.

Nancy G. Nagel
Associate Professor of Education
Graduate School of Education
Lewis & Clark College
Portland, Oregon

Irritating Design

After teaching for 40 years in 40 different classrooms, I've come to realize that design elements have an enormous impact on my teaching success (Designs for Learning, Summer 2001, http://www.nwrel.org/nwedu/summer01/index.html). My building is touted as one of the finest newly remodeled schools in the nation, yet it is very irritating.

I have no acoustic tile, no carpeting, and no acoustic wall fabric. The acoustics are terrible. I can't understand the janitor when he talks to me after school when the room is quiet. I need to ask students to repeat questions. When a student shuffles a chair on the hard floor, it adds to the noise level. When I have a guest speaker, I can't stand to listen to him for more than 15 minutes because of the acoustics. My students probably get stressed when I talk for 15 minutes. I can't show videos in the room. The audio is "blurred." My room will make teachers and students miserable for the next 100 years. No one in the district wants to find the money to fix this problem. I spent 20 hours and $100 hanging wall fabric, but it looked ugly and it was difficult to maintain sprinkler function. I didn't appreciate acoustic tile and carpeting until I got a room without it. I hear that my circumstances are becoming more common. It's a big mistake.

Arena work spaces may be fine if the workers are adults, but not if they are high school students. Not all students are willing to cooperate, and even students who are willing to cooperate are much louder than adults. It's natural. Classrooms need walls. Those administrators who advocate arena workplaces for students should be required to put their office in the middle of one.

The classroom next to mine is for students planning health-care careers. One day their teacher played a video involving careers in the field of emergency medical services. My students had to listen to ambulance sirens while they were trying to take their final exam. I was reluctant to complain to this teacher because our relations were strained. Walls need to provide acoustic isolation, and movable walls should be avoided. Movable walls do not work properly and cause extra problems.

Teachers have very little authority in the classroom. We are supposed to move a student to a new seat to reduce disruption. Because classrooms have no surplus space, we can't move one student without disturbing many others. Our hands are tied. Classrooms need to have 25 percent more area, and some surplus furniture.

The one good thing my new room has is lots of storage space. It was supposed to be an art room, but because we have so many other electives, art enrollment has declined, and I'm in the art room teaching science. I have many wonderful posters that enrich my program. I can store them by category in the art drawers. I love those drawers.

Teachers provide a better education for their students if they can keep all their resources in their classroom. Remote teacher offices are unsatisfactory. I'll say it again. Teachers provide a better education for their students if they can keep all their resources in their classroom.

Don Steinke
Veteran teacher
Fort Vancouver High School
Vancouver, Washington

Not Just For Jocks

I am currently enrolled in a course at California State University, Fullerton, that teaches us future teachers how to teach physical education to children and what a good elementary physical education program should have. I agree with Bud Turner ("Gym Class Renaissance," Fall 2000, http://www.nwrel.org/nwedu/fall_00/renaissance.html) in that he mentioned that we don't have to be great athletes to be good PE teachers. All we need is more effort on finding good activities for children to engage in that are fun and that teach them skills that are appropriate to their levels.

Child and Adolescent Studies major
Cal State Fullerton
Fullerton, California

To Our Readers

The "Letters" column is your corner of Northwest Education. We invite readers to share opinions and ideas about articles that appear in these pages. We also welcome your suggestions for topics you would like to read about in future issues. Write to us at Northwest Education, Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, 101 S.W. Main Street, Suite 500, Portland, Oregon 97204. Or submit your feedback electronically on our feedback page. Back issues of the magazine are published online: www.nwrel.org/nwedu/.