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Personal Narrative: My Experience As An American Corps Student

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My first summer as a Teach for America Corps member went expeditiously. In my first week I familiarized myself with the dire needs of many students living in the Las Vegas Valley and the resources educators had at their disposal to provide students and families with the necessities both inside and outside the classroom. After that, for about ten weeks, I attended Institute, where I learned the cardinal aspects of crafting rigorous lesson plans, dynamic student engagement, and nurturing but assertive classroom management. Finally, I then attended Induction where I heard affirming stories of Corp members who transformationally changed the lives of their students. During this interval I received my placement as a kindergarten teacher at Jack Dailey …show more content…
As a kindergarten teacher it was my duty to eliminate this disparity before it came into existence. This sense of purpose formulated the vision for my classroom and the last two weeks of preparation before the school year. Spending nights and weekends in the classroom and in meetings with my grade level, I felt prepared to lead young scholars on an academic journey towards college. Brimming with enthusiasm on the first day of school, I greeted every student with a high five in line except for one girl who was in tears. When I held out my hand it triggered an emotional eruption that far outmatched her stature, “No me gusta la escuela! Nadie habla español!” That moment eviscerated my confidence. The vision and goals for my classroom that I thought were ambitious seemed like hubris. None of my training and preparation provided instruction on how to teach primary school students lacking any familiarity with the English language. I consciously questioned whether I would be eliminating the achievement gap or perpetuating it with these vulnerable …show more content…
Therefore the majority of my training in academic content and student engagement was not applicable. In addition, my instructions on basic classroom procedures needed to be scaled back to a more fundamental level. I also had difficulty balancing academic rigor with developmentally appropriate tasks. But my foremost task was to create an environment where the English Language Learning populace in my classroom could thrive. Although my Institute preparation did not prepare me for these arduous tasks, the experience I gained teaching my students galvanized me as I struggled through the first few months of school. Teaching insightful, energetic young people capable of being our future leaders but who struggled to read primary school sight words was a forewarning for the fate my current scholars if I allowed my teaching to continue to be so

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