10 Mistakes New Teachers Make (And How To Avoid Them) New Teachers by Joel Wagner - August 8, 2016February 6, 202025 If you're anything like me, you gained a great deal of academic knowledge about your content area in college and very little actual knowledge about getting students to stay quiet long enough to learn from your abundant knowledge base. Over the years, I have observed young teachers enter the profession and make many of the same mistakes. I have compiled a list of 10 mistakes new teachers make. Nobody makes all of the mistakes, but invariably we all go through a few of them within our first few years of teaching. Mistake 1: Many new teachers try to be "the cool teacher" and end up being "the pushover" I get it. We all want to be liked by our students. The mistake many teachers make is that they
Failing Forward: Turning Setbacks Into Triumphs Inspiration by Joel Wagner - June 25, 2016July 10, 20160 Another school year has come and gone. For many of us, it was a year of a few huge successes, a few colossal failures, and a whole lot of in-betweens. This article discusses how those colossal failures can propel you toward being a much better version of yourself. Every failure is an opportunity I love failure...at least after it's all over. I don't love failing. In fact, failing at stuff is one of my least favorite things. But I love what failure does to a person. It means I did something. It means I tried. It also means, I have a new opportunity to learn a great lesson. Often, the bigger the failure, the more valuable the potential lesson. The tough part about being
Should I Keep My EduBlog Anonymous? Blogging & Technology by Joel Wagner - April 10, 2011April 10, 20111 A reader writes: I'm currently student teaching. I'm very passionate about music and music education. A couple of years ago I felt a sudden terror when I recognized I was nowhere close to ready to be a successful teacher, and I started delving into as much material as I could and doing whatever else I could (camps, etc) to get ready. Your blog was one of the first good, free resources I found, and I've been reading ever since. So first, thank you for your contributions. This past summer I had a friend start a music blog, and I thought, "Wow, that's a great idea." I love to write, especially in reflection and with the goal of learning from my experiences. I
Life Lesson 2: Don’t Miss An Opportunity, Don’t Spoil An Opportunity Personal by Joel Wagner - August 19, 2008July 6, 20166 So many hours can get wasted with regret. I hear people say all the time that they don't regret anything they have done. Now I think there may be some validity in that statement, but at the same time, I think they're just missing the point. Every experience we have gives us the opportunity to become a better person. Our response determines what we learn from it. At the same time, there is great wisdom in realizing that we made a mistake somewhere along the way and regretting our decision -- or indecision -- at that moment. Only in admitting we are wrong and gaining insight into how we could better respond in the future, will we be able to most optimally