L.A.U.S.D. Training

I have been in training for the past two days. I had heard that it was boring, but that has not been the case with me. I am having a ball. We have a very small and intimate group and it’s a blast. I am learning a lot of good information. I feel so blessed. I have been in such great situations where I have had the opportunity to be in the right place at the right time. One of the things that I re-learned about was Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences. I’d heard of it before, but was happy to have a refresher on it. I will write about it tomorrow  when I can!

Until next time, hasta la bye-bye!

Leadership Is A Serious Business!

I was just talking to one of my friends about the atmosphere of any given place. Most of it is dependent on the leader. The leader, for the most part, takes their organization in the direction that they want to go; whether it’s good or bad; positive or negative. The leader sets the tone for the environment.

This reminds me of Babylon 5, one of my favoritest (that’s right, I said favoritest) shows of all times that almost wasn’t. In the beginning, for the first season, the show sucked. The sets’ design was uninspired and the acting was just aiiiiight. However, the killer was that the overall tone of the show was too dark. I didn’t like it, but I decided to give it a chance since I love, love, love sci-fi.

Michael O’Hare, as Captain Jeffrey Sinclair, was the original star of the show. He was alright, but he didn’t have what it took to lead the show in the direction that it needed to go. Needless to say, he was cut from the starring role. Fast forward a little to  Bruce Boxleitner as the new leader, Captain John Sheridan.

A new star, redesigned sets and voilá, a whole new show – a whole new direction.

Michael O’Hare, the first captain didn’t have what it took to lead that series. So out he went! Once he was gone, the show was able to achieve its purpose – a successful sci-fi show. The same principles can and do apply in any setting- especially a school.I was at a school recently where the Principal set the (negative) tone for the entire school. It was an unfriendly environment with a lot of backstabbing going on; most of it sanctioned by the Principal.

In the classroom, the same thing applies. The teacher sets the tone of the class. If he/she is a good teacher and cares about the students, it will be reflected in all aspects of the classroom, from the way that the classroom is run, how he/she interacts with the students, how smooth transitions are, etc…

I am so happy that I am learning effective classroom management at B.N.U. I was really worried about classroom management; how I was going to handle problems involving discipline. I’m not so scared of that anymore now that I am finally in the position to be able to do that.

Teaching is a serious business. I take it very seriously. I do not take it lightly. It is very serious business. I know I have to be a strong leader to take my class room in the direction I want to take it.

So I will boldly go where so few strong men/women have gone before. (Different sci-fi show and I changed it a little, but you get the picture!)