Blimey... too much for my head to hold

You may have guessed by the silence on the blogging front that I have been extremely busy. I have one day left of my 2 week induction at school, and it has been good, but really overwhelming. Information overload. I have done some of the following things since I was last in touch:

• found my way around the building
• observed 21 English classes
• followed an S5 for a day (including double chemistry, physics, and double geography!)
• followed a group of S1's for a day (including standing by the side of a rugby pitch for an hour and managing not to get hit by the ball)
• spent a day in Primary school (with P2/3, P4 and P7)
• sorted out my timetable (I will be teaching two S1 classes, one S2, one S3 and one S5 class - with solo teaching for 5 weeks in 2 of the groups and an additional 3 weeks with another group)
• found out about the school's context, reported on the catchment area and demographics of the school
• had 2 department meetings, 2 mentor meetings, 3 meetings with the regent, meetings with Support for learning and a meeting about restorative justice
• met some lovely teachers and heard a lot of gossip in the staff room!

Its been interesting noticing the divide between teachers who seem to embrace Curriculum for Excellence, and the methods that seem to go along with them, and then the teachers who think its all a 'trendy' waste of time and not very well thought out - far from excellent. in fact its even been suggested that some teachers just use the active learning to curry favour with the senior staff, and that their lessons are all 'showy methods' with less substance than the traditional style

They haven't dissuaded me from my newbie idealism yet, and the most impressive teaching I've seen is the interactive kind. I am convinced that the pupils have deeper learning through this method (usually because at the end of the lesson they can actually articulate what it is they have learned). Dialogue and open questions, not using questions that the teacher knows the answer to always seem to engage pupils more. And those are the kind of methods I'd be most comfortable using.

Its so easy being 'backseat' teacher! I wonder if I'll be able to do what the best teachers manage to? I'll of course keep you updated about my feedback and let you know.