MY COOPERATING TEACHER 21 September 2018 - Journal Entry #6 My cooperating teacher for Araling Panlipunan 9 - Ekonomiks is Teacher Frauline C. Tadle, who’s also a graduate of the B Secondary Education (Social Studies) program from the UP College of Education. Originally from Cavite, she’s currently 23 years old, teaching grade 4 and grade 9 students in UPIS. She’s on her third-year teaching in UPIS and teaching AP 9 Ekonomiks. When asked about her decision to become a teacher, she says the main factor that led her to this decision was her personal experience. While she was still a student, she already realized there were lapses in our country’s education system that needed to be addressed – not just in the aspect of content or academics, but also in the aspects of psychological and emotional development. She also considers teaching to be one of the most “dynamic” professions, giving her reason to come into the classroom excited everyday. She also added the joy of learning something new everyday, which is something she wants to share to others. One thing I personally admire about Teacher Fraul is her being organized. I noticed how she has a system of using post-its to label important parts or write reminders on something she’s written. She also has different notebooks with different purposes: far I’ve seen her notebook for her lesson plans, her logbook for recording grade 9 students’ grades, her mini notebook for Balitaan questions. Her being organized also reflects in how neat her table is – assuming it isn’t flooded by checkables, of course. There’s a basket where students can put things they need to submit, there are also organizers under her table for materials like manila papers, graphing paper, and the like. It’s also quite easy to sift through her drawers when she tasks me to get files or documents. More than being organized with her notes and things, I find she’s also organized with how she manages time inside the classroom. I mentioned in a previous entry how I noticed that the time she allots per activity stays the same throughout the three classes she handles. Of course, this isn’t to say that Teacher Fraul manages her time and her things perfectly all the time. But I can see how she tries towards it which produces positive results (at least, I think so.)
As for the kind of supervision I expect, I’m not quite sure, honestly. I found her to a bit intimidating at first (since I’ve heard of her being “the good Econ teacher” several times during my previous semesters in Eduk). But I’m glad to have found there’s friendliness there, too. I’m also the only social studies student teacher in recent history who chose Economics for my practicum. This, in combination with Teacher Fraul being relatively young as a teacher as well, makes me think it’ll be a learning experience for both of us, in which we’re both trying to figure things out as we go, in a way. In any case, I’m honored to be mentored by her and to be part of her growth as well. ☺ ( Here’s to hoping I won’t become much of a burden. ._. )