Life at St. Columba's: Observations

My classroom. Everything is still in one piece Bryan.

One goal of the Fulbright Teacher Exchange Program is for teachers to spend time observing at other schools. There is no official policy about this, but the schools are encouraged by Fulbright to let their teachers take advantage of professional development and observation opportunities that may occur during the school year. It turns out that my school has been terrific about this (almost like they want me gone....hmmm), letting me work in visits to two schools so far, an educational convention, field trips, and another school visit to come in May. They have been very clear that they think this is an important part of the learning process, and they want me to see different aspects of the Scottish educational system.

Their encouragement has been much appreciated, especially because I know this has not been the case with all the exchange teachers in the UK. Others have had a difficult time getting released from work. A  big part of this is the way classes get covered. At home you would simply call, or arrange for a substitute teacher. Here the teachers are expected to cover for absent colleagues, and typically only one "supply" teacher, or substitute would be called to a given school. I think there are some variations to this according to your school, but the bulk of class coverages are done by the teachers themselves. For example, I taught four of six periods yesterday, but covered for an absent teacher during one of my two empty periods. You get used to it, but it definitely is different than at home. 

I've really enjoyed my observation days because you simply get to be a "fly on the wall" and see how things work without the responsibility of teaching classes. Like anywhere, you can find a number of differences between schools, even if they're not far away from each other. The age/condition of the building, type of facilities, energy of the faculty, enrollment or "catchment" area of the kids, and administrative leadership can all have a tremendous impact on not just performance, but behavior and general atmosphere of the school. Having been at St. Columba's for the year, I've grown accustomed to one type of school, and these observations allow me to have a greater perspective on education here. As a result of these visits I've been able to see a wider variety of teaching styles and unique programs. I'm lucky to be at a school that sees the value in these experiences and has been so encouraging during my time here.