The Alternative Beginning

I am a teacher.

This is a teacher's blog.

But this is not a typical teacher's blog. This blog is being written by a teacher who gave up on teaching for a few years, and missed it so much that she came back. However, I have not come back in a usual capacity, and my first teaching experience was not a normal one either, so now I will elaborate on the true purposes of this blog.

The short history of the Alternative Solution is as follows:

I graduated from college with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics in 2006. I joined an alternate route teaching program in the deep South that same year. I was placed by this program in a high needs school district of the Mississippi Delta where I taught high school Algebra I and Geometry after a crash course in education the summer between my graduation and my teaching placement.

I loved teaching. I loved my students, and if I may say so myself, I was pretty good at it. The alternate route program that I joined gave its new teachers excellent classroom management skills and practices that I took to heart and implemented in my classroom. Because of that, I believe that my first year of teaching was a success, despite all the special needs of my students.

A little background on my former students is necessary here. The high needs district where I taught in Mississippi was extremely poor. Every single student was on free lunch - not reduced lunch, but free lunch. The high level of poverty and racism that these students in Mississippi live with was almost unbelievable at times. It was inconceivable to me that people in America lived under such conditions until I saw it myself. So, to say the least, even though I only taught for a little over a year, I have a great deal of experience with the successful teaching of what we might call "At Risk" students.

During my first year of teaching, I raised my students' state test passing rate by 12%. I must have done something right. Perhaps the best thing I did for my students and myself was love them. I love them all dearly and will always be grateful for the things that they taught me each and every day.

So why did I leave this situation? Granted, teaching in a high poverty district might not be most teachers' idea of a good time, but I did love my students. Unfortunately, the administration did not like some of my ideas, and looking back at the events leading up to my hasty retreat, I probably was not as flexible as I should have been about some things. But without hashing out the details, I left because of disagreements with the administration and some personal health issues as well.

I have tried several other avenues of employment since leaving Mississippi two years ago. I tried the banking and finance industry. I tried computer programming. I even thought about simply going back to school and getting a Master's degree in engineering, but nothing really satisfied me. I do have some more advanced educational goals for my future, but in my present financial situation, those goals will have to wait. So I started fighting to get my Mississippi teaching license transferred to Illinois and teach again.

So here I am, present day, getting ready to start a brand new school year with a brand new group of students. But my new beginning is really an alternative beginning.

The district where I am going to be teaching is starting a new project. This district has a steadily rising drop out rate and has been looking for a way to curb this problem. This year they are opening a small alternative high school for just that purpose. I was intrigued by this project because of my previous teaching experience and decided to apply for the math instructor position. I got the job and will be one of the two certified teachers in the building. I will be teaching potential high school drop outs in the hopes that I can turn things around for them and get them back on track.

A daunting task, to say the least, but I am looking forward to it. This school is not what most people think of when you say "Alternative School." It is not a school for bad kids. It is not a school for behavior disorder students. It is not a school for learning disability students or special education students, although I know we will have several that fit in all of those categories. This is a school for students who have lost their way, and we are going to try to bring them back - to get them back on track and get them to graduate!

But this isn't just a second chance for these students - it is a second chance for me. I am starting over in teaching. I like to write about my experiences. Writing helps me focus and I am also hoping that any other teachers, parents, or administrators who happen upon this blog will have useful suggestions and insights that I can use in my special new classroom.

Please feel free to comment and help in any way. One thing I learned with my previous experience in teaching is to never turn down advice. I can always learn from someone else's opinion, even if I disagree with it.

I am looking for help. I am looking for advice. I am looking for ideas. I am looking for anything to inspire my students and help them get back on the path.

My students and I are in this journey together. This new school is giving both my students and me a new beginning - an alternative solution.