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Courtney Krueger

Professor Aria
Behavior Observation in Education
April 29 2019
Observation Questions

Okeefe
1. How many years have you been teaching?
I’ve been teaching for 11 years
2. Where did you go to school?
Fairfield University
3. What was your major?
Marketing
4. Do you have a masters degree?
Yes, I got it 3 years ago at TCNJ and MTES helped pay for it
5. What grades have you taught?
4th, 3rd, 2nd
6. Did you get to pick the grade you teach?
No.I wanted to be a high school or middle school teacher, but 4th grade was the
only opening. And I didn’t really want to go any lower but I got offered the 2nd
grade job
7. What is the hardest part about this grade when you started?
Worrying that I wouldn’t teach them right. But I had a really supportive principal
that assured me that all that matters is how much I love the kids and the rest will
fall into place
8. How did you get in this district?
I was asking everyone I knew, I found a 4th grade job in Franklin Lakes but it was
maternity leave, I was then at Wycoff for a year, Maplewood for 6 months and
Morristown for 1 and a half years, all temporary jobs. I was going to give up when
I got a call back from MTES responding to one of the many applications I filled
out. I went in for my interview and was hired
9. How do you like it compared to other districts?
I love it here, it is very different in some aspects. The kids here all come from
wealthy families, so they have a big advantage there. A lot of them are well
educated already and because of that I expect a lot from them. These kids have
so much resources and are really capable of a lot. Compared to other places
where kids are still learning to read and write in second grade.
10. How long did it take you to get a job?
4 years before I found a permanent one
11. Have you ever subbed?
Yes, that is actually what got me started. My son was in high school and they
were asking all of the parents if they could sub, so I subbed a history class. I was
unhappy at my job and thought that hey maybe I could actually do this for the
rest of my life
12. Did you do anything before teaching?
Yes I was an insurance salesman for 20 years
13. How do you deal with parents?
So I have actually never had any major issues with parents in all of my 11 years
of teaching. What I do it, before the school year even starts I find the contact
information and call every parent and introduce myself. I tell them how excited I
am to teach their kid and they’re all so surprised that I’m reaching out when it’s
still summer vacation. And then I say that I am going to call back in 2 to 3 weeks
when I get to know the child better, and we can talk about them and come up
with a plan and goals for the school year that we’ll work on. The parents love to
know that you are on their side, and that you want to see their kid succeed as
much as they do. It’s a lot of work to call them all in the beginning, but then the
rest of the school year I never get calls from parents. I call them every once in
awhile to tell them good things about their child, it’s refreshing for parents
because they’re used to getting a call from the teacher meaning that the kid is in
trouble, but often I call to say good things. And every single time I see a nice
moment in class, whether it’s something kind they did or some amazing work
they did, I email it to the parents. This lets them know how involved I am in the
child and it’s nice for them to see so many positive things about their children. I
have had parents write back to me saying they’re in tears because of the stories I
tell them. And when I do have to bring home back news, I always start it out with
good news, I tell them that I need their help and we can work on the issue
together. I never make assumptions, I simply tell them what I observe and
discuss how it can be changed.
14. Have you ever had difficult parents?
Even with my method, there are always going to be difficult parents, especially
working in such a wealthy district where parents are so demanding. 2 years ago I
had this one mother that I was actually warned about from the student’s previous
teacher, and the student’s 4th grade teacher is currently struggling a lot with her.
She was very dominating and demanding and would often call me telling me “I
did this” or “I should be doing that” and it took a lot of work with her. I spent so
much of that year on the phone with her talking like that. This isn’t the case for all
of them, but often when parents lash out like that it’s because they are struggling
and want someone to blame. And sometimes at the end of the phone call she
would be asking for help because she didn’t know how to deal with him. When
parents are like that you just have to keep communicating and constantly find
ways to remind them that you’re on their side and are trying to work with you to
do what’s best for that child.
15. Have you ever had bilingual students?
Yes, I had one when I taught in Maplewood
16. What did you do with them?
It was extremely hard, because they are learning a different language at home
and have to juggle that with english at school. When the students were really
fluent in the other language they would have an aid that would help them or they
would leave class to work with someone to learn or improve their english.
17. Are you involved in any committees?
Yes, I help run the St Jude mathathon, I also am part of the Character Education
Committee. I have ran a before school exercise class and I also have a summer
book club for the students that one of the parents host.
18. What is your favorite part of teaching?
This is a hard question because I love so many aspects of teaching. But number
one would definitely be spending time with the kids and just being with them. And
secondly, I love watching them grow academically. I love constantly reading
things they write and seeing they use things I’ve taught them.
19. Are there any students you’ve seen particularly improve?
Yes. He showed me the work this one girl did last may in 1st grade and read me
something she wrote in their activity on monday. The different was crazy, he had
me do that activity on monday too and what she wrote what even better than
what I did.
20. How often do you submit lesson plans?
I submit them online once a week
21. How far advanced are they submitted?
They are submitted sunday night, and are used for the following monday (so a
week advanced)
22. How long does it take you to make lesson plans?
As a 11 year teacher, it takes me about 30 minutes for each lesson plan, which
can vary depending on how complex it is or if I’ve done something similar. and I
spend about 2 hours working on the lessons for each day
23. Do you spend a ton of time preparing and working on things at home?
Yes but definitely not as much as I did when I first started teaching. Those first 5
years I feel like that’s all I did. Now it is a lot less, although I am always working
on previous lessons and finding ways to improve.
24. Do you get a budget?
Yes, $200 a year
25. Do you have to put extra money into materials?
I don’t have to, but I usually end up spending an extra $200 a year from my own
pocket
26. How often do you go on field trips
Twice a year
27. How is it like to work with your colleagues?
I love it, I work with some great people and it’s one of the many parts of this job I
love. It is crazy to see how different my colleagues are than the ones I worked
with when I was in the business world. I have found that teachers in general are
just kinder and happier people. And in the business world, my coworkers may
have been nice, but how friendly can you be with someone who you are
competing with for sales? In teaching, I work with my fellow grade teachers which
is something I love.
28. How early do you come in in the morning?
The school day starts at 8:45 and I come in at 7
29. How late do you stay after school?
School ends at around 3:30, I usually stay around 20 minutes after
30. Do you work over the summer?
Yes, I run a summer camp here at the elementary school
31. Do you have tenure?
Yes
32. How long does it take to get tenure here?
When I got it, it took 3 but it now takes 4
33. What are ways you like to keep the kids motivated and having fun?
I love these kids, and I started this thing where I make a different handshake with
each student. I love getting them pumped up and excited so I often play music in
between activities for the kids to sing along to. Enthusiasm also goes a long way,
when they see you excited, they get excited too.
34. Do you have a reward system?
Yes, when students are behaving, I write an “OK” (his initials) on a paper taped
to the front of their desk, and if they get a certain amount they get prizes.
35. What are your thoughts on homework?
For homework, especially math homework, it shouldn’t be something they
struggle with if you taught the lesson right. It should be more of a review and no
one should be super confused. A lot of teachers grade homework but I don’t
because who knows if they did it or their parents. I have them in the beginning of
class work with a partner and compare answers. If they have the same answer
they put a check, if they have different answers they circle it. Then at the end
they discuss all of the ones they circled. If they are still confused then afterwards
I ask if anyone needs me to go over any problems. With this method, they are
keeping each other accountable
36. What is the lockdown procedure?

Tiboni
1. Where did you go to school?
Fairleigh Dickinson for undergrad in psychology, then Saint Elizabeth for
teaching and Rutgers for Special Ed
2. What grades are you certified in?
K-6
3. How long have you been teaching?
7 years total
4. Have you taught in another district?
No, I started out in the middle school and then moved to the elementary school
here
5. How did you first find a job?
I started as an aid and did also a lot of subbing
6. Do you have a curriculum for lesson plans?
There is a committee that creates the curriculum for each unit and I follow those
lessons but add and change stuff to make it my own. I also communicate with my
grade teachers and share ideas and materials
7. What do you do with challenging students?
I set expectations in the beginning of the year for behavior which sets the tone for
the rest of the year. Using incentives, putting rules in place and building a strong
classroom community. I use positive praise and give them independence. Some
students cannot sit still for so long which is why we have 2 standing desks in the
classroom, they are allowed to move around the room as long as they don’t
distract other students too much. When there is a behavior issue, finding the
cause of it can help you fix it. I provide modifications for students who struggle
academically and if behavior or academic issues occur I can report it to a team
who will work to solve the issue
8. How often are parent conferences?
There are two a year (November and March), or more if needed. I also send out
a friday newsletter letting parents know what is going on for the week. And I
email parents often to keep them involved. If there are issues that cannot be
resolved over emails I will have a meeting
9. Do all parents go?
Yes
10. What is your experience with parents, and difficult conferences?
I haven’t had any major problems with parents, there are have been some issues
where I don’t see eye to eye with the parents but after a lot of communication it
has been resolved. Being on the same page with all of the parents and doing
what is best for the children is important
11. What is your main goal as a teacher?
That the students will all reach their potential and will enjoy school while doing so
12. How is technology used in the classroom?
We use a lot of technology, the students all have their own chromebooks which
we use for activities. They do presentations and games like this one math game
they play a lot. They’re also all educated on how to use the smartboard and are
super familiar with how to use chromebooks. There is also homework online, I
have a class blog where students respond to posts and other classmates and are
graded on that.

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