Summer School Reflections

A few short months ago, everyone in Teacher Corps was jeering Ben Guest. Teach summer school? AGAIN?! This is exactly what we were told not to do after our first year of teaching. The second years, it seemed, were getting the short end of the stick; while there was no doubt about the obvious benefits to the school the district, the first years, and the program in general, but what was in it for us besides more tedium and extra work? I personally was looking forward to taking some actual classes myself, the degree being a primary motivating factor for my move to Mississippi. Sorry, Dave, you are sans dice.
We all do a fair amount of complaining for various legitimate reasons in Teacher Corps (and that’s another blog for another time), but hindsight is 20/20, and this summer school deal is turning out to be moneybags. We’re all tired of the same old bull, but working with these students who obviously need the help and want it, mentoring the first years, and not having nearly as much work to do as it seemed originally have worked wonders on our temperaments. And let’s face it, riding a school bus is always totally sweet. So is free breakfast and lunch.
My actual classroom experience is a little different from others’ because of the ‘loose ship’ we’re running in the enrichment program. Jake and I have finally settled in with three rising seniors who simply love everything that we do, and they have the maturity to really want to be there for no other reason than to learn whatever they can soak up from us. Rio is the coolest kid in town, Lawrence is just a funny, funny dude and LaKeysta is coming around from her reticence since it’s okay to be completely nerdy in our social environment. We may not have formal lesson plans everyday, but the amount of work and projects is more than enough to keep these three busy, interested, and excited every day. Performing mediocre work for mediocre teachers in an oppressive classroom environment has really done a number on their minds, but hopefully they’re getting a glimpse of what they can become when they’re around the right people. I do all the ACT tutoring, Jake does English-y type stuff, we collaborate on projects like college applications and oral history interviews, and many of the second years have pitched in with guest lectures and science experiments. It’s really what school could and should be, so even though I can’t kick back and let the first years do all the work now (since we have none under our tutelage), I’m really pleased that I was tossed into this group and given such broad creative and formal license, because this free environment has brought out the best in all of us.