"Model" First-Year Educator

In my last post, I mentioned that my girlfriend, Emmi, is a music teacher at an elementary school here in Maryland.  She bravely moved across the country with me when I decided to enter the School Counseling Fellows at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.  When we moved, she had few professional contacts or job prospects, but she threw caution to the wind, networked her "bass clef" off, and basically landed the teaching job of her dreams a week before the school year started.  Before the first day of school, I asked Emmi if we could take a picture of her EVERYDAY before she leaves for work to document her first year as a full-time teacher with the intention of making a video at the end.  Well, we are well over 100 days into the school year and still going strong.

Emmi approved all photos.

Emmi is a tremendous "model"... both in the pictures and as a first-year educator.  Her love for introducing young children to the wonders of music grows everyday and I hear her exude excitement and growing confidence everyday at 5:00pm when she gets home.  Since I am still a student, I feel that watching Emmi both succeed and fail in her first year as an educator is something of a "test run" for me.  No day is the same for her, much like a school counselor.  So, today I asked her what her three most important lessons as a first-year education professional were.  Here they are:

1.  "The first year is all about failing and THE WAY you learn from your failure."

To Emmi, you have two options 1) you can let your failure freeze you and prevent you from growing or 2) you can pick yourself up, look at what you did critically and let it prepare you for next time.  For counselors and teachers alike, there is no prescription for how to complete an objective and sometimes we make the wrong decisions.  We can wallow in our failures or we can use them as motivation to try something different and serve our students  best.

2.  "A lesson plan is only a plan.  You can think through and write up the most elaborate lesson with great introductions and transitions-but you have to factor your audience."

As a counseling intern, I already have some experience with this piece of advice.  Emmi said, "you may have a great plan for the day, but you cannot prepare for what Susie or Tommy are bringing with them."  She makes a great point.  Unlike accountants or factory workers, our "products," (the students) are dynamic, carrying their homes, neighborhoods, and communities to school with them.  We need to remain flexible and understand that everyday is new and every child is fluid.  She clearly plans and maps out her objectives, but she has learned to be "okay" when things go off-track... a skill and attitude I am still developing.

3.  "An effective lesson is one that gives students the chance to use their voice."

Emmi teaches children between the ages of 3-7.  She loves to offer her students the opportunity to share music and express their own, unique points of view.  I watched Emmi develop an after school "bucket band," in which the older children played rhythmic music on empty paint pails.  I agree with Emmi.  Giving students the chance to voice their opinions, concerns, and views is a powerful exercise.  Personally, I like to pull students into my counseling lesson planning, which changes the focus from the product to the process.  When counseling, I always remind myself that students are the experts on their own lives.  Lessons in goal setting and self-efficacy can help them take control and teach others.   

Bottom Right=Pajama Day at school.

Watching Emmi this past year certainly makes me proud... and a bit anxious to start my own educational career.  As I move forward, I will reflect on the anecdotes and lessons she shares.  Ultimately, I am left in awe realizing how fast a year goes.

Attendance Issues and School-Wide Approaches

I have a lot of friends who work in education.  This fact is probably pretty typical for someone that works in the education field.  Several high school friends work as teachers around the country, many college friends joined Teach for America or entered the profession via their undergraduate programs.  Heck, even my long-term girlfriend, Emmi, is a pre-k through 2 music teacher down in Silver Spring, Maryland.  I love having connections to so many other educators because when we get together, we get to trade stories and find that many of us deal with the same issues despite differences in geography or age-level.  

I have connected with teacher friends on the issue of attendance several times.  Every once in awhile, Emmi will mention that a student has missed her music class several times- which makes it difficult for her to catch them up- which makes it difficult for her to fairly assess their understanding of key musical concepts... frustration for everyone.  According to this recent attendance and student performance report for New York City by The Campaign for Fiscal Equity, Inc. in 2011, attendance and achievement are inextricably linked with chronic absences (missing 10% of the school year) signaling students at-risk of being academically off-track.  So as counselors, how do we promote student buy-in when facing attendance issues?

One of my friends from high school, Mr. Kayser, is now a music teacher in Racine, Wisconsin.  Administrators in his district created a "truancy competition" where teachers, counselors, administrators and students were encouraged to make public service announcements about the dangers of truancy.  As a music teacher, Mr. Kayser took the opportunity to incorporate the creative talents of the students to create and share the message.  Here is how he explained the project in the description of the video:

"This video was created for a video competition held by the Racine Unified School district to promote the dangers of truancy.  

All lyrics, choreography, and video was created by the students at S.C. Johnson Elementary (Racine, WI) during a multiple week "Music Video" unit!  

During the first week each student had the opportunity to write his or her own lyrics. Students learned about rhyming, using descriptive words, and making the words fit with the music. 

During the second week we explored the world of recording. The students learned about the various techniques and equipment involved with recording. (We used Garageband to record the song) 

During the last week we explored the different types of music videos, how they are made, brainstormed ideas, and spent time filming throughout the school! 

Hope you enjoy the creative product of the talented students at SCJ!"

I was so impressed by Mr. Kayer's efforts (and have probably watched the video ten times)!  Not only did the students create a fun and educational product, they had to discuss and learn about the dangers of truancy- the product is great, but I am most excited about the process!  Alex didn't write the song or the choreography or force the kids to perform.  Instead, he asked them to create the message.  With nearly 3,000 views, I sure hope this group of creative students won that competition.

My internship site is a high school with an attendance rate around 75-80%.  Right away when I began my internship in January, I was pulled onto an attendance team with administrators, social workers, a few teachers and several students.  First, I was charged with gathering data from our freshman cohort.  Using Naviance, which is basically the coolest counseling tool invented since the Post-It, I met with all students who had below an 85% attendance rate and asked them to complete a survey.  We sought information about both the barriers to their attendance (health issues, parental issues, work requirements, etc) and incentives for coming to school.

After I collected the data, our attendance team created an "Attendance Competition" with the ultimate prize of a free carnival at school.  Basically, the grade level with the greatest increase in their attendance between the beginning of February and the end of April wins.  I made classroom announcements and Twitter declarations.  Another intern made a display for the hallway where we mark the weekly percentage changes.  I am also charged with creating a weekly classroom notice that each teacher posts on the inside of their classroom door to help hold students and teachers accountable. Several weeks in and I am happy to report that all of the grade levels have increased their attendance percentages.  I am excited for that free carnival, gotta get that cotton candy.

Ultimately, I believe that attendance interventions need to be created (at least in part) BY students and not always simply FOR them.  When students participate in the intervention process, they learn about accountability and leadership.  The students who are involved with my high school's attendance competition are charged with getting the word out and acting as leaders with their peers.  They learn, first-hand, how important attendance is for school achievement.

I Wish I Were Spiderman.

For some reason, on multiple occasions, various students at the high school where I am completing my internship tell me that I look like Spiderman.  It happened first a couple of weeks ago.  As I walked past a group of students in the hallway who were speaking with the school's principle on my way to speak with a teacher, a student yelled out, "Hey, look! It's Spiderman."  I took another step as I realized they were talking about me.  And BAM!, I crouched down and posed with a "web-slinging" hand gesture that I learned through my various viewings of the "Spiderman" films.  Without a word, I stood up and kept walking to my original destination.  On my way back to the school counseling office, the group of students apologized for calling me Spiderman.  I used this opportunity to introduce myself as the new counseling intern and ensured them that I was not offended; rather, I was just playing.

No "Spidey-Senses" here.

Again, today as I walked a student back to their class after we had a short meeting, an entirely new group of students passed me in the hallway.  This time, a young female student said out loud as I passed, "There goes that guy that looks like Spiderman."  I thought I would spare them my impression since we had already passed each other.  For some reason, I feel like I should be flattered by the suggestion that I could be a superhero, but the fact is that sometimes I really wish I was a superhero.  Those special powers could really come in handy when advocating for students!

My counseling SUPERviser told me two weeks ago that stuff in the counseling office was about to get crazy.  I scoffed off the warning...If I only knew then what I know now.

Many scholarships are due during our students' spring break holiday.  When making a scholarship headquarters in our counseling office (including a binder full of local scholarship opportunities as well as direct scholarships from local political delegates) I failed to realize how much work it takes to ensure that I send off scholarships correctly.

Scholarship Headquarters: complete with a binder full of scholarship opportunities for all students.

My supervisor was not kidding, today was off the chain.  We had students applying for SATs, registering for classes, applying for scholarships, and stopping in to talk about other issues all at the same time all day.  While I cannot sling webs or climb up walls, I realized that I can keep kids organized... a very important skill!  I may not have "Spidey-Sense" but I do believe I possess the coveted "scholar-senses" which allow me to believe that each student has the opportunity to succeed.  Wrapping this up:  it was an overwhelming day but I am learning and realize that school counselors ARE superheros!

Photovoice Project

I am in an accelerated school counseling program.  So, my school counseling program is not only CACREP and focused on working in inner city schools, it is also 48 credits in thirteen months...  I think this is great because I am never allowed to forget anything from class to class, I never see my learning in a vacuum and as students, we bring our knowledge from one classroom to the next (which all students should do).  While the coursework can be daunting at times, I wouldn't change anything about the way my program is put together. This is exactly what I need-and I know other students who feel differently.  School Counseling programs are all about fit.

As I am completing my 600-hour internship at a Baltimore City high school, I am also in my "School Counseling Leadership and Consultation" course several hours a week.  One of our major cumulative projects in the course is something called a "Photovoice."  During the course of the semester, we, as students, are encouraged to share our cultural worldview and perspectives of leadership through a camera (or in my case an iPhone) lens.  The project is a qualitative, action research technique that allows us to photograph our perspective.  We then write short narrations about the photos to give context and periodically share what we are learning about ourselves and our leadership perspectives in class.  I attached a photo I took below...

Still learning Blogger...sorry about the lack of correct photo orientation.

My classmates and professor were a bit confused about my photo choice, especially because I am a pretty vocal vegetarian.  Then I read my narrative:

"The picture on this page is a McDonald's sign.  The story behind it really has nothing to do with the very successful restaurant chain; rather, I prefer to focus on an eye-opening conversation I recently had with a student at my internship site.
 I am a vegetarian.  I have been for almost a year and am comfortable with my choice.  I often bring salad to my internship for lunch.  A couple of weeks ago, I was helping a student complete her FAFSA. Over the course of three days, she came to the counseling office right after her lunch period, when I would be eating my own at my desk.  On the third day, she asked why I always eat salads, to which, I explained that I don't eat any meat.  Somewhat concerned, the student asked what I order when I go to McDonalds.  "I do not eat at McDonalds," I responded.
"Why not," she questioned.
"Well, I don't like the way I feel after eating there.  I mean, how do you feel after eating that food?" I responded.
"Full."
 I have no idea if the student knows what impact that short conversation made.  As a counseling leader, I am forced to constantly evaluate the way I speak about certain subjects so I do not reveal my own biases.  She also forced me to further consider my own privilege and choices.  I live in a world where I can afford to be concerned about nutritional content of the food I consume.  As I continue my leadership journey, I hope students continue to call me out and require me to evaluate myself as I hope to push them to do the same."

Ultimately, I will be required to string together all of the photos I take for a 10 page paper about my counselor-leadership development.  This photovoice project allows participants to really tell there story and would be beneficial while working with psychodynamic groups or to gain insight about an individual student's life.  If you want to read more check out PhotoVoice.org.  There you can find examples and a "how to guide."

I used to blog.

I used to blog.  And you know what, I used to get paid for it.  Once I left my former job doing public relations for a large corporation (and by "doing public relations" I mean driving a giant vehicular hot dog) I hung up my blogging gloves thinking those days were past.  Even before driving the "big dog" I had a work study job at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities where I represented my undergraduate major via paid blog content.  Honestly, I didn't know how much I liked the darn activity until I stopped.

Former blogging alias="Dyl-icious"

Almost a year later, with nearly a whole 48-credit graduate degree under my belt, much like the mythical phoenix, I rise from the ashes of my burnt-out-blogger-self the reinvent my compositional identity with reinvigorated gusto and new perspective. 

Or...I just write about my thoughts/feelings/impressions/learning regarding my eventual ascent into professional school counselor-dom.  Can you tell I am excited?!  And did I mention that I am currently looking for a job for the 2013-2014 school year?  Because I am...

Before I get to the deep thoughts and embarrassing newbie counselor anecdotes- I want to walk you through some of my previous blogging lives...basically, I am trying to prove to you (and myself) why I should continue to blog.

Examples:

1) I can do accents...and videos.

"Big Bun Turns 1000 Miles-HotdoggerBlog.com"

2) I celebrate the little things.

"Buns in Motion-HotdoggerBlog.com"

and 3) I try to have fun with it.

"Stretching our Buns"-HotdoggerBlog.com

I don't have any of the posts from my undergraduate blog since they deleted my profile when I graduated (all of those memories gone in a simple stroke of the 'delete' key), here is a link to the blog of the person who took over for me.

Now, who and what has inspired me to come back to the blogosphere?  Well, while doing my PR job, I got pretty familiar with the world of social media.  I was constantly looking for impressions that we had made while traveling the country to report back to my bosses-basically to show that we were doing our job.  Some of those social media mining habits/rituals/obsessions have spilled over into my new work/life-dedication as a transformative school counselor and I was so happy to find the following "inspiration" sites.

1) School Counselor Blog

This school counseling blog is simply great.  The moderator, Danielle, is a young school counselor who has been sharing her insights since 2009, when she was a counseling intern.  She shares information about job searches, suggestions for working with specific situations, and basically serves as a conduit for many of the school counseling web resources out there.  Super helpful for us youngins in the field.

2) Pikesville High School Counseling Department

Kind of a weird pick since it is literally a high school counseling web site, but I use the resources on this site often in my own internship work at a Baltimore City high school.  This site is thorough and broad.  I wish every high school had counselors with the resources and know-how to create accessible content for all of their students like this.

3) The Diary of a School Counseling Intern

This is the blog that really got me going recently.  I found the blog via some Twitter connections and found myself reading post after post.  Here I am reading the content and then I stopped and said to myself, "HEY, wait a minute-YOU ARE LIVING THIS TOO!"  I have a cohort of 9 in the School Counseling Fellows at JHU (and I am the only male), but it certainly is nice to gain some perspective from another student 1000 miles away... and it is definitely nice to know that I struggle with some of the same things.

Anyway, here I am-breaking the champagne bottle on the side of this blog's figurative ship hull to christen my maiden voyage.  Any suggestions, questions or comments will not go amiss.