Things I wish I learned at the faculty of education

This will probably be part 1 of a multi part post; as I figure out what I don't know I'll let you know! As a first year teacher I am quickly realizing that there are many things I wish I would have learned at the faculty of education. On the flip side, there are also things I have never used or even thought of since leaving. This time, let's focus on the things I wish I would have been taught during my (long) year at the faculty of ed....

1) How to write report card comments
As a recent graduate, I must compare report card season to exam time. During this time I run on coffee, salt and vinegar chips and a steady schedule of procrastination (case in point, this blog post!). It's not enjoyable, but it must be done! This being said, I wish I would have been trained to do this much earlier than the week before. I thank God everyday that I was offered this training and given the support to succeed from my school. So, dear teacher's college, please teach them how to write report card comments! Provide them with real life examples in their fields of study, and challenge them to write their own with assessments collected from practicum.

2) How to plan an entire semester 

Woah, first semester is done already? That was fast. It went by fast, and I can admit that I had a really hard time organizing my time in the classroom to hit all of my curriculum expectations. I'm still confident that my students have learned something (I hope) that will help them in their future English classes but I know that I could have done more. I blame my lack of long term planning. I planned units in teacher's college, but never a whole semester. This is so important! A class isn't just a lesson or a unit, it's the combination of everything you do in a semester. Dear teacher's college, please teach them how to plan and organize a semester that will hit all (if not, most) of the curriculum expectations. 

If you're in the faculty of education and aren't learning these things, ask! I'm sure a good teacher would be more than happy to help you.

I should also mention that I truly did like my experience with my school, but there's always room for improvement.