As the end of the school year approaches, student teachers nationwide are attempting to create an engaging learning environment for their students while gaining the necessary learning experience for themselves before they take the full leap into the a career in education.
Many student teachers are young and fresh out of college. While this can be an advantage, as they can relate more easily to students, it can also present challenges.
“I’m learning how to present information, which is difficult,” said student teacher Timothy Arko, who assists the AP Economics and AP U.S. History classes. “I may have stumbled through some parts of my undergrad, and now I’ve got to turn around and teach people; I can’t have any gaps. Sometimes, I feel like I’m only a day ahead of the students.”
Student teaching is a major step in the journey to becoming an educator. In most student teaching programs, college students are required to take a series of classes on education before spending one or two semesters serving as an actual instructor for a class, under the supervision of a certified teacher.
The student teaching program at Georgia State University assigns student teachers to a school where they must teach 20 hours a week for the first semester and 40 hours a week for the second semester. Many must also take additional GSU pedagogy classes on teaching methods to complete their program.
Chang Guo Zhan, a student teacher who works alongside physics teacher Luke Esposito, has enjoyed his experience at Grady so far.
“It’s been a great experience,” Zhan said. “Mr. Esposito has prepared me a lot for how to handle certain situations in the classroom, with the parent, and in setting up the gradebook.”
Zhan said that one of the main contributions a student teacher can provide is teaching in a way that is relevant to the students’ lives and thought processes.
“Mr. Esposito has been teaching for almost 20 years, but I just graduated from high school about five years ago,” Zhan said. “So for me, I still have a very fresh experience of what high school was like, and that’s what I think the student teachers bring to the classroom — that new perspective.”
Caleb Beaver, another student teacher who works with Esposito, finds his position enjoyable, yet difficult.
“Student teaching adds a spice, a different blend, to the classroom,” Beaver said. “But it’s challenging to balance my mentor teacher’s style of teaching and my idealized style of teaching.”
Zhan said the success of a student teacher has a lot to do with the overall connection that the teacher makes with the students.
“If students like you and your personality, they are more amicable and willing to understand you and pay more attention,” Zhan said.
AP Statistics and AP Economics teacher John Rives, who works with Arko, said that if the student teacher seems to have a good grasp of the content, he likes to let them handle most of the teaching.
“I try to tell [the student teachers] what concepts the students will find difficult because they wouldn’t know that,” Rives said. “But I also encourage them to take the initiative.”
While the student teachers agree that establishing a strong personal connection with the students is important, Rives believes that this easy relatability should be used to get the students more interested in the subject.
“I’ve had student teachers that the students really relate to because they’re so much younger, so there’s a lot more interaction,” Rives said. “Whenever you have students interacting with the instructor, there’s much more learning taking place.”
Students have expressed varying opinions on the presence of student teachers in the classroom.
“People tend to take the student teachers less seriously since they are so young and inexperienced,” junior Anna White said.
Other students find student teachers have improved their experience in the classroom.
“It’s kind of interesting because [the student teachers] are learning at the same time we are,” junior Caroline Bray said. “They also all have a different way of explaining things, and if you don’t understand something, at least one of the student teachers will be able to explain it in a way that clicks with you.”
Looking back on his experience with student teachers during high school, there are some things Arko would have done differently.
“I would’ve been a lot more generous with my student teachers,” Arko said. “As a student, there’s a lot of fun you can have messing with the student teacher. Now that I know what it’s like to get up in front of class of people and have to present something you’re not familiar with while you’re nervous, I would’ve been a lot nicer.”
Beaver said he has enjoyed his experience at Grady overall.
“It’s been a lot of fun getting to know [the students],” Beaver said. “Sometimes, I’ll just finish my lessons early so I can hang out with them.”
Arko said he is similarly fond of the time he spends with students.
“Being in AP and seeing how phenomenally intelligent the AP students are is amazing,” Arko said. “Students get the comprehension, and then they want to know even more. It’s what has impressed me the most about being here.”
