Noticing-Week 3

         This certainly has been a rollercoaster of a week; as overwhelming and tumultuous as it has been at times, being in Chicago during such a historic strike has been a blessing. I am constantly reading the Sun Times and Tribune to stay up-to-date and have learned a great deal about the politics and inner-workings of our nation’s third largest public school system. Although the contract that the union is negotiating for does not affect me at the present, I do hope to obtain employment in CPS. These teachers are not only striking in efforts to fight for fair contracts for themselves, but also for all future employees. The major issues of this contract, such as teacher evaluations and a rehiring pool are likely to be my reality in the near future, so I have an immense amount of respect and appreciation for all of the teachers who are outside their schools in the early hours of the morning and withstanding the heat of the afternoon rallies downtown. I find it incredibly inspiring that this body of teachers has organized a successful strike; the entire nation has been watching as this group of 27,000 strong has stood in solidarity and fought for their rights as professionals and the rights of their students to have a quality public education. 

         My MT and I have had limited contact during the past week, but I do know that she has been picketing and rallying with the other teachers and said that it was exhausting. She, personally, is not the biggest supporter of the strike because she knows how badly our students need to be in the classroom, since many of them have below-level skills. I understand and value what the union is fighting for, but I do hope that it gets resolved soon. After only two weeks, I’ve formed relationships with my students and miss teaching them! I’m nervous that we will have to re-teach a lot of procedures and review our expectations. I felt like I was starting to get a handle on classroom management and created effective strategies to deal with the behavior of some of my more rambunctious students. I'm quite curious to find out how many of my students have taken advantage of the contingency schools and library programs over the past week, as well as their 2nd grade perceptions of the strike.