the Day - Still doing the internship. Still taking the easy way out.
Still pissed about 40 degree weather at the end of April. Hot skinny
chai latte from some drive-thru-I-don’t-know-the-name-of and
can-never-remember and a complementary raspberry walnut muffin. Still loving America and its easy-ways-to-stuff-my-face.
Part of this internship experience is to reflect (we use that word a lot in education: "Did you reflect on how that lesson went?" and "What did you learn from your reflection?")
on leadership skills I observe and my own leadership skills. I’m
finding that I don’t always recognize them as leadership when they’re
happening so much as the experience is embedded with times when you
must lead others and your decisions/reactions/actions are a part of
that.
Each cooperating principal that my district puts us with has agreed to
hosting us for a week and are to be commended for their own leadership
skills. I’ve been lucky thus far and have had two wonderful women from
whom I’m learning. Both have allowed me to "run things" as much as I am
able (and comfortable - what? me? bossing everyone around? OK!) and in
my evening reflection just now I pondered some whoppers.
During their Morning Meeting all students sit with their class in the
gymnasium while announcements are read, birthdays are acknowledged, and
prizes are awarded for good behavior. By the time we got there the
microphone and speakers were set up and the system was ready to go.
Later, I asked her about getting responsible students to do this and
she said that it’s an odd phenomenon: 4th and 5th graders run this on a
volunteer basis and the ones who do it on a regular basis tend to be
the roughest boys in school who act tough everywhere else. She also
noted (and I observed) that they were all African-American boys.
We discussed a few theories about it and before I finish my reflection I just knew I could get you to help me with my homework.
What are your theories about this?
I promise. I’ll share my grade with you.
April 27, 2006 @ 12:12 am | Filed under Education | Permalink |
