By The Bay

Turns out my worry over the CBEST writing was unwarranted; I passed with flying colors. Now, my CBEST and CSET are all done, so I have no more standardized tests until the Teaching Foundations Exam at the end of institute!

OH! I also got my tentative district placement last week too. I’ll be teaching in Silicon Valley with San Jose Unified! I was a little disappointed to not get placed in San Francisco. A lot of the incoming TFA’ers I met in January got placed there, and I sort of had my heart set on working and living in the city. But I can see why they put me there…Silicon Valley was probably the last on most everyone’s list (since everyone seems to prefer SF and Oakland). It was second on my list, and I had mentioned in January that my boyfriend would be working in Silicon Valley (fingers crossed!). The commute from SF to San Jose would be a little too long for me (2 hours of driving a day is just 2 hours I can never get back), so now I’m looking forward to moving to San Jose! I’ve found out some nice things about the area; for one, it’s about 10 degrees warmer than San Francisco. After this bizarre winter in VA, I’m loving the sound of that. I’m going out there again in April hopefully, so I’ll have a look around then.

So…now that testing is all settled, I’ve had a lot more free time. I should receive my institute pack of reading tomorrow, so that will be something to keep me busy. But, I have to say, I really am missing the boyfriend! In a lot of ways, a long distance relationship is easier than I thought it would be, but also, it can be a lot harder than I ever imagined. I was on the phone with him yesterday, complaining that I wouldn’t be able to see him until April. Then I thought, “Hey, I have nothing to do specifically in Charlottesville, why not go to London?!” Seemed like a simple enough idea…don’t know why I didn’t think of it before. Anyway, I’m on my way across the pond in a week, and I’m so excited to get to see him! I haven’t been to the UK since November (and haven’t been to Edinburgh since I graduated), so I’m glad to get a whole month over there.

And once I get back it will only be about 2.5 months until institute!

WHOOOOOOOOO!  I passed the math CSETs!

The month leading up to the test was super hectic (finals, Christmas, etc.), but I really buckled down the last week before the exam.  I was still pretty freaked out once I actually got to California, but meeting some current corps members and some of the other incoming corps members helped calm me down a lot.  I tend to stress less when I can at least be assured that everyone else is stressed too.  The test was two sections: one on abstract algebra, precalculus, and number theory, and the other was on geometry and probability.  You had to take the geometry one first (since you were allowed a calculator on it).  The multiple choice seemed ok, and I rocked out 3 out of the 4 free response.  The other subtest was supposed to be the “big” one, so I spent most of my studying on that.  The multiple choice seemed relatively easy, but the free response was a little ridculous.  I knew the first two, but the last two, I’m pretty sure I just wrote down whatever I knew that was remotely related to the topic.  I left that day being completely clueless; I thought I could have failed both, passed one and not the other, or passed both.  It felt completely up in the air.

After an excrutiating month long wait, I’m so excited it all worked out in my favor!  CBEST scores also come out this Wednesday.  I already know I passed the math and reading portions (it’s a computer-based test so you get your scores straight after), but I’m waiting on the writing.  As easy as the CBEST is (especially when compared to the CSET), I’m actually a little worried.  I ran out of time on my second essay (didn’t get a chance to write a conclusion) due to just poor timing on my part.  However, if I don’t pass that one, I can retake just the writing part (in which case, I have the whole 4 hours to do just writing) and it’s just another excuse for a DC trip.

All in all, I’m so excited today worked out.  Treated myself to a little afternoon shopping trip to celebrate.  Now that the majority of the testing is done, I feel like I can finally start planning for life in the Bay!

This week was my last week teaching at UVA. I only had one class to teach, too. They were my best class all year, and I was excited for it. But wow…things didn’t turn out how I planned.

When I walked into the room, a student immediately started arguing with me about his grade in the class. He mentioned my grading policy was completely unfair (he missed a quiz, I don’t do make-ups) and that I should give him extra points. Hmm…week 17 of the semester, and now you think my policy is unfair? Seems to me like this kid (who is usually one of my favorites) didn’t think it was unfair until he found himself on the losing side of things. He started disrespecting me as the whole class watched, and to say the least, I was not happy. I think I handled it well, generally, and I told him to speak with me in private.

But I think that sort of destroyed the tone for the day. One student asked me if there would be 4 or 5 options or more for each question on the upcoming multiple choice test. I said either 4 or 5. A student in the front row (again, usually one of the better ones) scoffed at me like I was an idiot. Hmm, I’m sorry I don’t have super-exclusive access to the final exam (I don’t get to see it). Didn’t seem necessary to treat me like that…but I just ignored it.

Then today I find out my boss pretty much agreed with the student complaining about his grade and is making me give him 5 points back (out of 400…how does this even make a difference?) Oh well, I think for the most part, my boss realized this kid wasn’t going to back down unless we just gave it to him. Still, doesn’t feel too great to not be able to stand my ground.

So felt pretty down about my teaching this week. Tensions are high since it’s near the finals, but I feel like everyone was really rude this past week. I got some very complimentary e-mails over the weekend, which makes me feel a little better. My boyfriend says I need to get a thicker skin for TFA, and I’m pretty sure he’s right!

Then, on the brighter side of things, I just found out my transitional funding package from TFA. They gave me way more than expected (though I guess, since I’m living off a paltry grad school salary, I shouldn’t be surprised), and I think I’ll be just fine in making the move to the Bay.

CSET Math studying is also underway. I’m finding starting a bit difficult. The first chapters of my review book are very basic (polynomials, exponents, etc.) I find myself even making silly mistakes because it’s hard to concentrate on studying stuff I should fundamentally have down. Having looked at the sample test, the CSET math looks pretty hardcore. So I really need to buckle down and push through these basics so I can get to the nitty gritty bit. Only one month to go!

So this week has been very up and down, and I’ll be taking deep breaths until it’s done!

Wow, I’m exhausted…and I’m not even in the corps yet! I’ve been a TA for two years now. When I was at Edinburgh, I TA’ed for an Econometrics course, which was very much hands on (using computers, helping students write out pages and pages of code). This year, at UVA, I’ve been given much more responsibility. I run 3 weekly discussion sections, and it’s pretty much up to me as to how to run them. So far, I’ve been doing them mostly lecture-style, with times where I ask the students questions. I find that way it’s a bit easier for me to demonstrate the graphs and the mathematics, and to emphasize what they really need to know. It’s been going pretty well. Anyone who’s ever been to UVA knows Mr. Elzinga is an amazing professor, and he’s instilled a lot of confidence in me with my teaching style. So generally, I feel pretty good about my job at UVA.

Today, however…not so good! I woke up extremely groggy at 6:30, reviewed my lesson plan, and got onto the bus to go to grounds. I printed off some stuff for the students, then went to my classroom. I walked in, and it was empty. Checking my watch, it was 7:57. Class starts at 8, and I was completely perplexed as to why no one was there. A minute or two later, three students walked in. When the clock chimed 8, I had to get going, even with just the three. I even checked outside the door twice to see if more were coming. About 5 minutes late, two more walk in. But that was it for the rest of the day! Out of the 22 students for my 8 am session, I taught to a class of five! I was disappointed, since the test scores from the midterm weren’t so hot, and they knew they needed to be there. I’m hoping one of two things happened: 1) Many people have already left for Thanksgiving, or 2) they’re planning on coming to my other sessions (they’ve figured out that since I don’t take attendance, they can come to my other sessions to “make it up”). Still, as a teacher, when that happens to you, you can’t help but be a little discouraged!

Can’t be too down though…Thanksgiving is right around the corner! Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, and I’ll be going over to London for the holiday. I know…Thanksgiving..in the UK…yes, it sounds weird. I think I’ve just gotten so used to spending Thanksgiving over there the past 4 years, that I can’t just have a boring dinner with my parents anymore. That, and I am extremely excited to see my boyfriend! It’s been nearly 2.5 months!

I’ve got a class to teach this afternoon, and another one on Monday, but after that…LONDON HERE I COME!!!

I feel like this week has been an absolute whirlwind. I had such anxiety waiting for the results of my TFA final interview; I barely slept for about 3 or 4 days leading up to the grand reveal! I screamed so loud when I got my acceptance, my neighbor knocked to make sure I was ok. OK?! I was elated! Not only did my hard work for the interview pay off, but I managed to land myself in the Bay Area! That was extremely high on my list, and I’m more than lucky to be placed there. I’ll be teaching mathematics for grades 6-12. That part of the placement was a bit more surprising…

I had listed elementary school as my top preference. As an Economics PhD student, mathematics education is something I feel strongly about, and I really wanted to instill a desire to learn math in children from an early age. It wasn’t entirely unexpected when I got 6-12 math, though. Being in the 1st year of an Economics PhD definitely feels more like a math degree than anything else! I have to admit, I’m a little scared for the CSET Math tests I have to take. I have to take two tests: one in algebra and number theory, and one in geometry and probability. Sounds pretty harmless on the surface, but then I discovered the algebra component is much more abstract than I initially thought, and I’ve never really done much number theory. And I’m definitely going to have to review that pre-calc! The test is on January 9th, so this coming week, I’m really going to start powering through.

The support I’ve received from my friends has been amazing (and overwhelming)! Everyone’s been so great about my decision to join the corps. My mother, on the other hand, was not to pleased to hear I’d be moving from Virginia (already a 7 hour drive from our home in upstate NY) all the way out to California. She’ll get used to the idea of it, I’m sure. After all, she did let me go all the way to Scotland for my undergrad!

So there’s tons of tests to be done and paperwork to be filled out, but I really can’t remember the last time I was this happy