First day in the trenches

I helped out with the afternoon session yesterday and I have to say that it was a lot of fun. The kids are more or less how I remember them from last week (and it's still summer) but this time I had the chance to really take part in their education as well as observe them on a deeper level. Again, it's great to see how much they work together and it's great that I had the chance to encourage that along with the rest of the instructors.

At the same time, they're kids. It's actually pretty funny to me to notice one of them doing absolutely NOTHING when they've got nothing to do. When you "grow up" usually you get to a point where you can find something, anything, to do. I forgot how easy it was to shut off when I was that age. I don't mean they're talking or being distracting, I mean they're doing nothing. Sitting, staring past their monitors at the wall instead of finding something to do. And what's even better is that they snap right back into place once you ask them what they're working on. That's the kicker, that they're right back on task the moment you say something. Sort of reinforces the whole teacher/student model.

Training Day 2

The second training was a lot of fun, to put it simply. I learned a lot about the program as well as the other instructors coming in with me. It's always entertaining to hear people share their experiences with teachers/instructors and what made a specific teacher memorable as a "good teacher." It's funny that, even in a diverse group, the answer to "What makes a good teacher?" always seems to be similar, if not the same. It's always the teachers who treat students like people and actually listen to their questions, or just TALK to them, that leave the deepest impression.

Observation

Today was my first observation period. I took a seat and experienced the beginning of a lesson on Linux, of which I have only passing knowledge.

It’s definitely summertime. The kids have sparks in their brains but I’m immediately struck by how involved they all are in the lesson. Wrangling everyone at the beginning is a bit on the rough side but it doesn’t take long for everyone to start getting to work and soon they’re all asking questions about what they’re supposed to be doing. These are real questions, based on genuine curiosity about what AJ and Felipe are teaching them. They’re not the stupid things I would have asked about when I was a teenager, that’s for sure.

Even more interesting is that they’re helping each other. There’s very little ego going around. I’m definitely getting the idea that they know each other and, most importantly, enjoy working together. It’s good to see bonds like that between kids. Usually everyone’s prickly in that unique way that comes with the insecurities of youth.

If I’m concerned about anything while I’m watching the students and the teachers it’s my own lesson plans. I’m stepping into something important here and I can already see that the students are willing to work hard. They deserve the same in return.

Training

Well, I had my first training session for the ITA program. It's been an interesting experience so far, I really didn't know anything about it before my interview. Everyone's being very friendly, which is making this transition very easy. I'm looking forward to getting into the meat of the program, working out lesson plans and getting out there in front of a class. That's why we're all here, right?

Since the students run the full spectrum of high schoolers it should be interesting to see what kind of group's been assembled. The difference between a freshman and a senior is enormous and I imagine the curriculum reflects that. I'll have to look into the training classes for the different software since a good amount of it is beyond my experience but I'm looking forward to that as well. Children ain't the only ones who get to learn, after all.