The Expectations of a Teacher

Once upon a time, I thought most people were like me.  I thought everyone felt guilty when they did something wrong.  I thought everyone felt driven to do everything to the best of their ability.  I thought everyone knew how to have reasonable expectations.

As a teacher, I've learned that everyone is not like me.

Don't get me wrong, uniqueness is what makes the world go 'round (among other things).  But when I do not achieve or meet the expectations placed on me, I feel an immense amount of stress.

Which leads me to the topic of this post: To outline for you the expectations placed upon me as a 6th grade teacher.  We do have a 1 hr 20 min planning period each day, but 3 of these days each week are dedicated to required meetings.

So here we go.

EXPECTATIONS FOR THE MODERN TEACHER

1. To teach content/standards of my subject
2. To create a positive atmosphere in which children can learn
3. To plan lessons for each day of the school year
4. To create meaningful assessments for my students weekly
5. To grade those meaningful assessments weekly (132 students = 132 papers to grade per assessment)
6. To contact parents on a regular basis
7. To update my school website which parents/students visit weekly
8. To take my students to lunch and make sure all 32 of them eat in a timely manner-they only get 20 minutes.
9. To stand in the hallway during class change to monitor behavior
10. To question whether or not children really need to use the restroom or if they are just trying to get out of class.
11. To teach curriculum with outdated textbooks that are not standards based
12. To please parents whenever possible
13. To teach 32 children at one time, in which it is almost necessary to try and fit children into a "box" to teach the necessary content (sad)
14. To collaborate with counselors and keep our eyes open for at-risk children
15. To help my fellow teachers who do not understand how to use technology (because they are being left behind)
16. To fill-out paperwork during each meeting to prove that we are doing our job (paperwork goes to our administrators and then to the county)
17. To work "car-duty" in the afternoon for 20 minutes and direct traffic for our students who are car-riders
18. To collaborate with elementary and high school teachers in vertical planning to discuss gaps and parallels
19. To attend faculty meetings
20. To attend meetings for special ed children in our classes to confirm we are following accommodations (following the law)
21. To make copies of handouts/content related information/tests
22. To create rigorous questions and activities in order to promote higher level thinking
23. To become experts in our content areas
24. To meet with any parent who requests a parent/teacher conference
25. To spend a meaningful amount of time with each student within our classes so they grow to trust and respect us
26. To organize the paperwork given to us by colleagues and administration
27. To come up with our own ideas on how to increase morale (of teachers and students)
28. To mold the character of our students
29. To assist those children who do not speak English as their first language (or at all, for that matter)
30. To explore the resources and technology we do have
31. To defend our professional decisions to parents, administrators, and board members whenever necessary

 This is a flexible list.  Feel free to add your thoughts and expectations.