This is the part that is hugely important for me. The letter should be typed in Microsoft Word and shared with me.
Monday's class will be devoted to taking notes and preparing, while Wednesday we will be writing our letters.
Please write me a letter!! This has been a tradition of mine ever since I started teaching, and it super important to me.
Historically, I take the time to read these letters of the summer as a way for me to reflect on my practice as a teacher, help me figure out what I need to work on, and how I can revise my course to make it better and more engaging. Your feedback is massively important, especially as this year is my second year of my career as a high school teacher. 10 years in middle school I had things pretty much down pat, but these past two years have been all new. New students, new content, new grade level.
Here are my ideas / prompts / list of things you might want to write about!!!
- Specific things about content that you found especially interesting or engaging (and why!)
- Specific things about content that you found boring or dull (and why!)
- Types of classroom activities and assessments that you like or disliked and why
- Suggestions or ideas that you have for making the course better for next year's students
- administrative / organizational things that you thought were strong or that could be improved (grading, due dates, student support, work turnaround, etc.
- Did you think that I was able to stay a neutral party well enough? Did I gave a balanced view of things? do you think my own personal opinions were clear in my teachings? Did you like/dislike that?
- Do you think you're a better / more well rounded citizen from this class? what do you think might have been missing?
- How did you feel / what did you think about our conversations & focus around race & gender? Too much? Too little? Helpful? Obnoxious?
- Did you feel like I got to know you? Did you think our rapport / personal connections help make the class better? Do you feel like I was respectful / thoughtful about you and your identity?
- How much do you think personal identities and connections to your life should or did play in this course?
- What ideas do you have in terms of potential topics for future expedition work?
- You thoughts / feelings about the lack of an 11th grade expedition?
- Do you think I supported you, personally, in the classroom in an adequate way?
- Did I explain things in ways that you were able to understand?
- Were you comfortable talking to me / asking me questions?
- What did you think about the lectures?
- What did you think about the videos we used in the course?
- The texts?
- The homework assignments?
- The exams?
- The writing assignments?
- The way we did peer editing?
- The organization and structure of the class?
- Seating arrangement?
- Fairness?
- Discipline / classroom management style? Did you find me to be stern? Relaxed? Calm? A pushover? Consistent? inconsistent? Fair?
- did you like how we used technology including this blog and google folder?
- Do you have a sense that this course prepared you for next year? For college?
- If this course were in elective, would you take it? Would you recommend it to others?
- Do you think that I was kind and fair to your classmates? Were there any students you think I was biased against or unfair to?
- How would you describe me as a teacher?
- How would you describe the 11th grade history course?
- Compare / contrast this course with Sossa's, MaGrath-Smith's, Pirog's -- in what ways was this course better, in what ways were other courses stronger?
- What hopes do you have for the future of this course / for the future of my career / for my future students?
- What are your hopes and plans for this summer, for next year, for college and beyond?
- How have your own worldviews grown, changed, or stayed the same in this course?
- Or other things that you think should have been on this list but weren't
