Customer Reviews

My First Year as a Teacher (First Year Career)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

It's easy to forget what it is that makes you want to be a teacher. This is a book that reminds you. It is a collection of 25 stories, chosen from over 400 entries, told by real teachers about their first year. No two are alike - some are about particular memorable students, others about some of the hardships that are encountered as a novice teacher. I particularly liked one story about a first-year elementary school teacher whose problem was not his students, but his fellow teachers who were resentful of his success.

The sampling of stories in this book give a good idea of what kind of problems one might encounter as a teacher, yet they also describe how rewarding the profession can be. I am a student of education, and reading this book only reinforced my decision to become a teacher. For anyone who is thinking about teaching, or for veteran teachers who need a reminder of the importance of their profession, for anyone with an interest in education, I would recommend this book.

I am currently enrolled in the business college at the school I attend but have recently grown tired of worrying about "maximizing the bottom line". Recently, I have seriously contemplated teaching in order to "maximize peoples' lives," which I find much more rewarding and important. With that in mind, I have bought a few books about teaching experiences so I can know what it is actually like.

This book has a collection of 25 stories related from first-year teaching experiences. The stories cover a spectrum of wealth, class and racial circumstances which was nice because it gives you a feel for the slightly different struggles each circumstance gives. This book gave me more hope that perhaps teaching is the road I want to go down. Through all of the trials, there is joy in the end for these teachers. I would be naive to think that the case for all teachers but if one is to teach, it should be to get a certain level of joy from it (I think).

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who wants a taste of first year teacher jitters and how it IS possible to deal with them. I only I hope that the teachers-to-be, in school today, deal as well in their circumstances as the teachers in this book did...it's a great book.

Being a first year teacher myself, this book reminds me of the reasons for which I chose this profession. With the contributors each offering a different view point into teaching, this book provides readers with a more complete view of the excitement and frustration of teaching, than books written by one person. A must read for people considering the profession, and a great handbook for those already part of the profession. I'm keeping it handy, in case my students try to make me forget why I'm teaching.

After finishing my first year teaching, I can relate to many of the stories submitted in this book. Each story is unique and reminds us why we have chosen to teach. It helps us first year teachers to understand that we go through during our first year is unique and the stuggle will help us be stonger and better teachers!

I knew teaching was rewarding when I told one of my favorite students in a rowdy class that I enjoyed having him in there because he was a "hard worker". He eagerly sat down and I noticed he wrote in his journal, "I was told by teacher that Im a good student."

Quaint? Yes. Earth-shaking? No. But he might remember it. He might remember discussing Frederick William's strange habits. He might remember Mansa Musa or Shaka Zulu. I was the first person to tell him the definition of the word "genocide."

But these are my stories about a single student in a single class. Twenty five other talented teachers reflect on their first year in this compilation. Their stories are moving and anything but routine- if you've ever been a student you'll appreciate seeing it from the other side.

This book makes for a great evening of reading.

I am considering teaching as a career change and found this book effectively expresses the impact that a person(teacher) can have on the lives of so many others.

I recently retired from the US Army after serving 20 years and have experienced several of these situations during my years of service.

This book is a must read for any trainer, teacher, mentor, or anyone who TRULY cares about being a postive role-model for the people that they are responsible for training.

Many children today have lots of "baggage" which they can't help but bring with them to school. This book will provide some insight to some of the experiences of your students. Hopefully this will help many trainers in dealing with student issues.

I will keep this book as a motivational tool to remind myself and my future peers as to some of the reasons we chose teaching as a career.

My First Year as a Teacher was an inspiring book of essays from beginning to end. Each of the 25 stories discussed different situations and the meaning behind these teachers' first years. I highly recommend it for anyone interested in becoming a teacher, anyone who is in their first year, or anyone already teaching wanting to reminisce. It was wonderful!

Awesome book! When I first got the book I was a little hesitant into reading it like it was just some other book by some know it all. I read it and inspired me to become an elementary school teacher and know that yeah, teachers do not get enough respect, not enough money, and more headaches than trying to solve a calculus equation. It is the heart we must put in these kids for them to succeed and to grow up to become an astronaut, president or a firefighter. What I am saying is that for whatever reason you want to become a teacher, just clear your mind, get into bed, warm up and just read this book, you will thank me later. Thanks!

The book arrived in time. Now all I have to do is read it but it otherwise is in excellent condition as expected

I always wonder how it came to pass that teachers today feel bound to be inspired. In my day, it was the kids who had to be inspired, while the teachers were asked to be merely inspiring. I was educated in the days when teachers, 90% of whom were female, were battle axes, pure and simple. It is doubtful that any of them felt inspired. Instead, they did their jobs, every day, week after week, year after year. I never remember any of my teachers being absent. They were troopers. They were scary. They knew their stuff. They stuck together. They called us stupid. Today, in LAUSD, for example, on any given Friday, 10% to 25% of the so-called teachers take the day off and call in sick. No doubt, the numbers vary, but the phenomenon is widespread. Evidently they do so because they don't feel sufficiently inspired. It is hard, I grant you, to feel inspired 365 days of the year, or even for the lousy 180 days teachers are paid to come to school. The point is that teachers today somehow see this profession at once as somewhat comparable to other professions, but continue to insist that the job be something they "enjoy," as though it were not a job at all but a hobby. This line of thinking clearly contributes to the high percentage of career changers. First-year teachers have cult-status in the media because they are full of giddy exuberance, but what schools really need are not new teachers but seasoned pros. I am looking for the book that collects the thoughts and ideas of teachers with 25 years of experience. Let them tell us what went wrong.