Educating Esme: Diary of a Teacher’s First Year

MetaComment Paper Assignment

 

 

 

Reading Assignment:  Chapters 1-3 (Parts I – III) and Epilogue

 

This assignment consists the MetaComment Paper  and the web research.  In order to prepare for this assignment, you must complete the reading assignments listed above.  Educating Esme provides readers with an account of a first year teacher’s experiences during the critical initial year of teaching.  During her first year, Esme encounters many problems and is exposed to a variety of educational trends, which are typical of public school teaching.  This assignment requires you to isolate one of Esme’s problem areas (or specific trend in education mentioned) to explore.  Among the problems/trends encountered are:

 

Lack of funding             Inadequate facilities                   School theft

Diversity                                   Student achievement                 Reading methods

General methods                       Scheduling                                Ineffective administration

Lack of a mentor                      Student discipline                      Classroom management

Student motivation                    ESL student populations           Parental involvement

Teacher “burn out”                   Integrated curriculum                Community involvement

Journal writing              Family structures                       At-risk kids

 

 

 

 

 

Writing the Meta Comment Paper

 

Assignment Description:

Using Esme’s experiences, select one of the problems/issues described in the book.  Then, follow these steps:

 

  1. Conduct an Internet search on the selected problem/issue

 

  1. Locate at least five sources – these may be selected from Education Week, ERIC, NEA, AFT, or any other notable web site.   

 

http://www.ed.gov/pubs/FirstYear/index.html

What to Expect Your First Year of Teaching

                                                                                   

 

http://www.ed.gov/pubs/survivalguide/                    

Survival Guide for New Teachers

 

 

 

  1. Read through the information you have located in order to put together a clear picture of what teachers face in terms of the selected problem or issue.  Once you have enough sources, put together an informative MetaComment (commentary paper) regarding the life of a first year teacher.  Be sure the paper focuses on the problem/issue you selected.


  2. Components of the MetaComment paper include:
    a.  Introduction to the problem/issue selected (be sure to cite sources)
    b.  Commentary based on your research as well as Esme’s description
    c.  Conclusion – what can be done about this problem
    d.  Paper must include at least five sources in addition to references/citations from
         Educating Esme
    e.  The entire paper must be no more than 3-5 pages (plus the reference/
         bibliography page)