North+Carolina+Teaching+Fellows+Program



//**"I live for those who love me, for those who know me true, for the heaven so blue above me, and the good that I can do." -George Linnaeus Banks **// The following is an excerpt taken off of the NC Teaching Fellows Program's website: =Teaching Fellows History =

"Acknowledging that the quality of education in our public schools is determined by the quality of our educators, an ambitious teacher recruitment program, the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program, was enacted by the General Assembly in 1986. The mission of the program was, and continues to be, to recruit talented high school graduates into the teaching profession and to help them develop leadership qualities such as visionary thinking and risk-taking; qualities that have not, in the past, been valued in teachers. The Teaching Fellows Program challenges students to see beyond the classroom and to think about the connections of education to the quality of life and the economic survival of our state. The program has quickly become one of the most prestigious awards in North Carolina.

The Teaching Fellows Program was one of the components in a ten-point teacher recruitment proposal called "Who Will Teach Our Children." The proposal was developed by the Public School Forum of North Carolina, a nonprofit partnership of business, educational and political leaders from throughout North Carolina. The Forum staff administers the program while a Commission, appointed by the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, President Pro Tem of the Senate, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, develops the policies and regulations governing the program."




 * __Reflection of Principals Forum __**

I always enjoy our Teaching Fellows forums whenever we are given a ton of advice, and I extremely enjoyed the forum focusing on resumes and cover letters. I have always thought that my resumes for jobs were professional and said a lot about my past, but with the help of our speaker, I learned a lot of mistakes that people normally make. It has always been a concern of mine about whether or not to have more than a one page resume, but I learned that one page is just enough to get a person interested and impressed. There is no need to list things that are not important, and it is incredibly important to include appropriate and professional information. I guess that my resumes in the past have been a little “immature” because I thought that it was necessary to list everything great that I have ever done. It makes sense for an employer to only be interested in the “best of the best” and those things are what show up on one-page resumes. As a future educator, I want to have a lot of things and experiences to list, and I think that TF has really prepared me for that and has gotten me interested in all kinds of different aspects of teaching.

The other aspect of the forum focused on three principals, all from different grade levels and schools. Their main purpose of being there was to let us know exactly what we can do in interviews to make sure we are hired for positions as teachers. My favorite part about the principals being there was that they were “real” with us. There was no sugarcoating because they wanted to let us know just what is to be expected. I think that the most important thing they said that specifically concerns me is talking about past criminal records and things that seem to bring down my chances of becoming hired. One thing that all of the principals said was to make sure that people are honest who have something bad on their records. It is important to make sure the people hiring me know that I have made a mistake but also that I have learned a lot from it.




 * __Reflection from Teaching Fellows Portfolio about the Blood Drive in Fall 2010 __**

This blood drive was a huge success, and I was really proud to be there for a few hours. I am lucky I didn’t see anyone passing out or getting sick, but I know that people a few areas down from me had to. Although I am no longer allowed to give blood since I was sick last year after doing so, I still enjoy the atmosphere and energy of blood drives. I think that the people working at the blood drives and the people giving are all so happy to be doing what they’re doing, and this just creates a positive environment. Yes, there are accidents and sometimes things do not always go as planned, but the giving of blood is so necessary and appropriate if a person is able. This makes me think about helpful situations in the classroom and how important cooperative learning is.

I think that in order for a classroom to succeed, a teacher has to make sure that the students are at a mutual understanding of respect. If one person brings everyone else down because of a temper problem then the rest of the class immediately has a negative vibe. Things like the blood drive call for a lot of planning, organizing, and procedure, so if one thing goes wrong then so do a lot of other things. A classroom has to be a place for learning, so it has to be a place with order and rules. I do not plan on being a very “strict” teacher, but I do plan on letting my students know the rules and making sure they “stick to them.” A teacher has to learn to deal with things that are unexpected such as fire drills or school assemblies, so it will be necessary for me to be expecting the unexpected. The entire organization of the blood drive amazes me, and I am so glad that we got so many people to donate, especially those who are not students at State