Starting my path to becoming an educator this fall at St. Norbert College I was unbelievably stressed out about what the Village Project was. Before we even got onto campus I was nervous about what this entire assignment entalled. I had no prior knowledge of what the Village Project was. Receiving emails from them about having to do Google Form questions of what placement we preferred, and having to attend a zoom call with the “Sturzl Center team” (actually I missed it because I was in the mountains of Montana, which made me even more stressed…) made it seem impossible. It all felt like life and responsibility was coming at me at an uncontrollable speed. I felt unprepared and unsure if I had made the right decision going into the education field. However, I learned very quickly that I was exactly where I needed to be.
The Village Project was an amazing getaway with insight into what being an educator is. I do not think I would have been able to learn and take away the ideas from the Village Project in a classroom. They can be enhanced in a classroom, but actually getting the real life experience is not something one can learn from a class session. So I am immensely grateful that I am able to confidently produce a constructed list of what I hope to take with me going into my educational career from this amazing time.
My Ten Big Ideas from Village Project:
- Teaching is not a linear process
Everyone’s (teachers) process is going to look specific to them. There is no set straight line of how to approach a lesson plan, teach a lesson or assess students. Obviously there are going to be guidelines and structure around certain things such as state testing and protocols- but within what you can control it can be up to you. There is room for personalization and creativity. What might take one teacher 2 hours on one day to execute- could be stretched along a week for 15 minutes a day for someone else. I learned not to be too much of a judge for what other tutors were doing based on what worked for me.
- Adaptation will happen… and it is fine
Change! Change! Change! It is all around us, especially when you are with and working with other people. Being open to altering what you thought was going to work perfectly, is not anything that you (I) did wrong. It is difficult to anticipate what might go smoothly, so being prepared for a switch up is extremely important. Having a lesson prepared back to back for a tutor session, to then get to school and your kid isn’t there happens! When this does and will happen, there is no use in staying put down- because most likely you are going to have to fill someone’s shoes in regard to this change. Learn to see the opportunity of a challenge and growth!
- You have to show up for them
You are a tutor, therefore you have a tutee. There is another person involved in this process. Choosing to show up every session is not just for your benefit of learning how to be an educator. While we are learning as students, we are actively trying to help another person learn. Their growth is in your hands. Just because you are tired and maybe want to skip out on one day, you are forcing a kid who wants to get better to sit out as well. There is also a difference in showing up physically, and not showing up mentally. Being present and aware every lesson is crucial. You do not want to cheat your tutee out of an opportunity of learning. They deserve someone who wants to be there and is present.
- Use the resources you have around you
We were surrounded by an amazingly supportive group of student mentors and coaches who all had a range of experience. They took the time out of their days to help us- just as we are helping our tutees. In many ways we were the tutees as well. When there is such a great amount of knowledge, support and skill around you that’s there for you to use it! Hitting roadblocks and questions will happen, and the majority of the time the answer is right there! Asking for help does not mean you are not capable or doing something incorrectly. We get our best solutions off of eachother. When there are support beams grab onto them.
- Understand the material!!
This is a little more strategic to the Village Project reflection but actually reading and knowing what you’re going into is unbelievably helpful. I found myself sometimes assuming that I knew what certain contexts, sentences and ideas meant- but I was wrong! If you do not understand or know what you are trying to project, you cannot expect your tutee to understand it either. You owe it to them (again) to have a grasp of what they are learning. When teaching something to a kid, the first time they hear an idea or concept is what sticks with them most. Shaking an idea is difficult! So it is vital that you get it right the first time- or you have to backtrack and make up for lost time- all while that could diminish a tutees confidence in themselves based off of a mistake you made. While mistakes also are not our fault- but there is a slight pressure to getting things correct the first time around.
- Routine is key
Setting expectations for your tutee is one of the best first steps to make. When they understand where you’re coming from there is a level of trust and respect made. Building a foundation that they can depend on and expect makes the learning process go smoothly. This does not mean there can’t be a twist of a new activity or a silly game- but finding a balance to it and connecting it with consistency is important. There really shouldn’t be any surprises to the tutee- the environment should be something they can find comfort in.
- Learn how your student learns
Along with having each tutor being different/teacher- each tutee is also different. Recognizing what works for them will make their learning experience unbelievably easier and better. If they work better with active movement- like a jumping game, sorting, “scavenger hunt” then there is no reason to prevent them from doing that. You want to be able to facilitate their best learning. My tutee was able to be comfortable enough with me to give me feedback on our lessons, and he consistently asked for more challenging words than what was provided in our lesson. He wanted to be pushed in that aspect. Therefore I changed each lesson by thinking of harder worlds that still applied to what we were doing.
- There is room for fun
We are working with kids. They need to have something that makes them giggle, smile, laugh. The best learning comes out of a place of fun. Trying to fit them into a box of straight and narrow lecturing without letting some light shine through is not helping them understand themselves. You find yourself as a kid in the classroom- letting them be themselves is crucial. Also letting go of what you thought a classroom or lesson had to look like is a step in the process of welcoming learning fun.
- Growth is achievable
Your tutee will make gains. It is possible. Starting out with a big pile of lessons and a certain criteria to meet is extremely intimidating. Getting from point A to B seems like it will never happen. But if you dedicate the time and energy into your tutee and trust what you are given it will happen. The lessons are designed for growth- they would not be designed for losing knowledge to stay stagnant. Even if you have an off-day of a lesson going slower than anticipated, or you tutee being a little behind from grasping a concept, you got to trust the process. They will catch up, and they will learn it. If you do not have trust in them, they will not believe in themselves that they can do it.
- There is a reason for why we are doing this
The year gets extremely long. Having a consistent schedule of meetings is a blessing, but also repetitive at times. But what was helpful for me to learn was that they would not be having us do this if it wasn’t for a reason. We came into the Village Project not understanding how to do anything (at least I did…) yet we came out of it having a vast knowledge and grasp of why we want to teach. Knowing what a lesson plan might look like, understanding how kids function in a school, trusting ourselves that we can do it and so many more things. The Village Project was the best preparation for becoming a future educator I have ever experienced. Having the opportunity to actually go in and teach a real student something that they need to know was an honor. Being a part of my tutees educational journey is something I will never shake off even if he does forget about me one day, he will not forget what I was able to teach him.
