by CHRYSTAL STASICKY Staff Writer
Teaching Mentorship is a senior option program for students to experience what it is like to be a teacher.
The program gives students the opportunity to experience and prepare themselves for the future.
Teaching Mentorship is a great benefit for a students’ future as it puts them through the life of a teacher, preparing them for the time when they really become teachers.
“It is like a test to figure out whether or not you really want to spend your life on this career,” said senior Emily Puc, a Mentorship student that teaches at Mill Lake Elementary school.
When first entering mentorship, students can choose what school and grade they want to teach. Mrs. Susan Krawczyk, the Mentorship coordinator, will then put students in the chosen place. That is, if there is student teaching available there. If not, Mrs. Krawczyk will place the students in the next available class or school.
If the school the student selected does not want students at their school, then they will be placed in a school closest to where they live.
Students are given a four-inch binder where they collect student work, letters that are sent home, or any other paperwork/worksheets that are used in the classroom.
Every marking period has its own section. In each section their are different categories. For instance, one section is labeled Documentary, where the high school student takes pictures of the students (if allowed), bulletin boards, or the classroom environment. Other sections are used for Reflection that the high school students have to write each week, or just a section of photocopies of student work to reference.
Mentorship has its own schedule. After third block on A-days, and on B-days after second block, students go to their designated school and take part in the class activities. If it is a B-day and it is a Wednesday, then the students do not have a fourth block, but they do have a third block. Third block is a Mentorship class in which students keep track of their binders, read articles, and watch videos on different teaching styles.
In class, the students observe the teachers, also learning different teaching methods. At some point, the high school students will have to teach their own lesson. They will then create their own lesson plan. When teaching, students will be under the guidance of a Working with Children Instructor who will observe and grade the students.
Just recently, senior Mickaela Fabbricatore taught her own lesson: “I was a little nervous because you, not only have all the students watching you, but also the teachers that are observing you, so you don’t want to mess up. In the end, though, it’s very rewarding because the students learned something, and I usually get good feedback from my teachers, with some commentary on what I could work on for the next time. So I think that this is a great program for people looking to become a teacher, because it gives you the experience you will need for the real world. I personally love it.”
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