George Carlin (1997), Brain Droppings

Student teaching will be very demanding of your time. Beginning in early February and ending in June, you will follow the Board of Education's academic calendar in your cooperating school (i.e., holidays and test schedules). Some schools will require that you attend orientations during January and help out with Regents Exams in June. In any case, the minimum time spent on site in your cooperating school is 2-3 hours a day, five days a week; some schools require longer hours. The single most challenging factor in student teaching, and the issue that has led to the most dismissals in the past, is unrealistic time management and planning. You should realistically plan to spend many, many more hours in student teaching than what is implied by the number of credit hours for the course. Depending upon the site at which you are placed, along with your prior preparation, it is in many cases like a full time job, and you ought to treat it as such and plan your schedule accordingly.

By and large, most New York City Public High Schools tend to be fairly conservative places. You should think of yourself as a professional; more a teacher, less a student. This means looking and acting the part. Dress like you would for a job interview, since you'll probably be looked over from day one as a prospective employee. No hats, sneakers, shorts, T-tops, or bluejeans. Your hair should be neat and clean. Men should either shave daily or keep facial hair neatly trimmed. Be polite and courteous in your dealings with principals, teachers, and parents. Don't slouch and don't use street slang. Look folks in the eye when you speak to them. Be prompt. If you are going to be late or absent, it is your responsibility to call ahead, and to perhaps arrange for a substitute; the worst thing you could probably ever do is to simply not show up. Never, ever fraternize inappropriately with students. Don't gossip in the teacher's lounge, or anywhere else. Avoid screaming and too much coffee.

Your academic major probably only nominally prepared you for the kinds of things you will be called upon to teach in the public schools. Public school teachers are generalists, academic departments train specialists. As a Social Studies teacher in New York City, you may at any given time be called upon to teach the entire scope of American History (pre-Columbus to post-Clinton), the full sway of World History (pre-historic to post-modern), Civics (participation in government), and/or Economics (micro, macro, and all variations thereof). On occasion, you may get assigned to a Humanities, Law, or Sociology class. Since student teaching happens in the Spring, you may find yourself observing and teaching the latter half of a full-year course. This means, for instance, that History courses may be focusing on the modern eras; some may even be preparing students for the June Regents exams. The best thing to do now is get a jump on preparation with some serious reading, especially in those areas for which you are least prepared; otherwise, you'll be overwhelmed in February. Borrow textbooks from a local high school, and buy the Regents preparation books. Take a look at the Social Studies Curriculum Guides online from the NYS Education Department (www.nysed.gov).

A usual student teaching experience involves some teaching, some observing, some planning, and some clerical work. In addition, you will on occasion be asked to participate in meetings, parent-teacher conferences, and other extracurricular activities; some schools require more extracurricular participation than others. Be flexible and accept as many offers as you can. Teaching involves many hours of planning and grading, most of which is done at night, on weekends, or during vacations; you can reasonably expect at least 2-3 hours of such preparatory work each and every day. Some cooperating teachers require that you write detailed daily lesson plans. Save yourself headaches and grief; begin preparing some advance lesson plans now.

You will receive and must keep a time log for the hours you spend in your cooperating school. This needs to be signed by your cooperating teacher, assistant principal, and supervising professor. It is necessary for your certification portfolio. In general, communication with teachers and supervisors is essential. It's not like college, where you can blow off a class when you're tired or too busy, and then weasel out at the end. If you don't show up even once in a while, or if you disappear without warning, you'll be labeled "unreliable" or "not a team player," and may have difficulty getting a decent job referral. Speaking of which, make sure to get letters of recommendation from your teacher and assistant principal at the end of the term. The job market for Social Studies is generally very tight, and officials will pick and choose among the best candidates. Student teaching is often the key to a job, and the impressions you make now will likely follow you, especially if you decide to stay in New York City.

You are preparing to enter into a Kafkaesque bureaucracy of certification and professional development that could last up to five years before you are really settled into a steady and relatively secure teaching position. To keep your sanity through all this, the best thing to do is to remain calm, be systematic, and keep abreast of all the City and State requirements and deadlines. Make friends with the folks in the Office of Student Advisement, 2105 James, since they track most of the requirements and deadlines. If you have not yet gotten fingerprinted by the NYC Board of Education, DO IT NOW. If you can't do it today, do it tomorrow, if not tomorrow, the next day (you get the point). It will cost you about 80 bucks (postal money order only, in the EXACT amount currently specified by the Board of Education) and takes at least 10 weeks to process (but usually more). You can't get a teaching license without fingerprints, and the FBI is gonna run 'em for felonies and other offenses.

The School of Education will save you some time and money by submitting your application for certification to the State, and there will be information sessions in the Spring to help you prepare your application. However, it is your responsibility to obtain and fill out the requisite paperwork, and submit it all on time. While there are several exams required to become a teacher, for now worry about the Liberal Arts & Sciences Test (LAST), and the Assessment of Teaching Skills-Writing test (ATS-W). Take the LAST as soon as possible (e.g., in October or January); if you paid reasonable attention in your core courses you should be able to pass it (some people get tripped up by the Math, so bone up on your algebra). Take the ATS-W after or near the end of student teaching (e.g., in April or July), since you'll be able to draw upon your classroom experiences. However, if you qualify for "accelerated certification," take the ATS-W as soon as possible. If you are unsure whether you can pass the tests, there are several review guides available (e.g., from the National Learning Corp., 212 Michael Drive, Syosset, NY, 516-921-8888, whose ATS-W and LAST review guides are 30 bucks apiece), but some are alarmist and unreliable. The best thing to do is talk to people who have already taken these tests. The School of Education will also offer test preparation workshops. If you haven't done so already, get a current NYSTCE Registration Bulletin and start planning now.

Your professional responsibilities also entail joining and participating in various educational organizations, and occasionally attending conferences. The Greater Metropolitan New York Social Studies Conference is a good place to start. It'll be attended by all the movers and shakers in Tri-State Area Social Studies circles, and will connect you to most other organizations, publishers, and institutions (not to mention prospective employers). There'll be plenty of book venders on hand, and you might be able to come away with some free stuff (bring a bag and some mailing labels). The GMNYSS Conference is usually on the last Saturday in January at the New York Hilton (6th Ave. and 53rd in Manhattan) from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. There are special student registration rates for about 15-20 bucks, but more if you want to attend the fancy luncheon (call 718-631-7514 or 212-598-9259 for current information). Speaking of free stuff, immediately obtain the publication "Nuts and Bolts," a guide to teacher certification prepared by the United Federation of Teachers Effective Teaching Office in Manhattan (48 East 21st St., 10th floor, 212-598-9513). Although it may need to be revised as the requirements change, this handy and comprehensive guidebook spells out many of the things you need to know to become a teacher. Get it now. Get the BOE's Directory of High Schools, too.

Finally, bookmark these websites and check them as often as you can: NYS Education Department (if you haven't done so yet, download the New York State learning standards and curriculum guides for Social Studies); NYC Board of Education (check out the calendar and information on getting a City license); United Federation of Teachers (keep abreast of the latest news from your influential local teachers' union); New York State Council for Social Studies (find conferences, publications, and links for teachers of Social Studies); and at least one of several general Social Studies sites (general resources).

In addition to working at a cooperating school, all student teachers take a weekly seminar, Teaching Methods for Social Studies. The seminar follows the Brooklyn College academic calendar, and usually meets for 3-4 hours on Thursdays, late afternoon and early evening. However, the methods seminar is not where you learn how to teach (neither is student teaching, for that matter). Most people really learn how to teach in their first two years on the job. Student teaching and methods courses can certainly survey the landscape, and they will help you get some basic skills and maybe even your foot in a door or two. But the rest is up to you, and it takes time. In short, don't expect any "magic teaching pills" in the seminar. Do, however, expect hard work, long hours, continuous frustration, and occasional exhilaration. Plan your schedule accordingly.

The methods seminar will involve reading and writing, like any other course, but a large part of our time will be dedicated to planning, discussing, and evaluating various components and processes of Secondary Social Studies teaching. This means that consistent attendance and participation are of the utmost importance. A general reading list follows, with titles that students in the past have found useful. Actual coursebooks for the seminar will vary each semester, and will be announced in the first session.

While most schools and colleges enforce the odd and barbarous practice of strictly prohibiting eating while meeting to discuss important stuff like teaching (let's face it folks, even arch-enemies in the United Nations chow down and drink up when they have meetings), in our seminar meetings we'll try to assign a "refreshments committee" each week to make sure there'll be plenty of snacks and beverages on hand. This is for two main reasons: 1) we're all gonna be hungry and thirsty after a long day of teaching, 2) what we'll be talking about is real important and therefore warrants eating and drinking. Everyone can "chip" in and lend a hand for this endeavor (though pretzels and pop do get boring after a while, so be creative), and it may contribute to a sense of collective responsibility. By the way, be prepared to share in the seminar, whether it be food and drink, or thoughts and words, or lessons, ideas, and resources. For more specific information about the Methods Seminar, see the description in the Courses papers.

Catherine Cornbleth & Dexter Waugh (1995), The Great Speckled Bird: Multicultural Politics & Education Policymaking.

Marshall Hodgson (1991), Rethinking World History: Essays on Europe, Islam & World History. check out a review

Serge Latouche (1996), The Westernization of the World.

Linda Levstik & Keith Barton (1997), Doing History with Children.

James Loewen (1995), Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong.

Gary Nash, et al (1997), History on Trial: Culture Wars & the Teaching of the Past.

Heidi Roupp (ed.) (1997), Teaching World History: A Resource Book.

Alan Singer (1997), Social Studies for Secondary Schools: Teaching to Learn, Learning to Teach.

Huston Smith (1991), The World's Religions.

Shirley Steinberg & Joe Kincheloe (1998), Students as Researchers: Creating Classrooms that Matter.