A student teacher in the classroom can give students exciting lessons and cutting edge educational strategies. They may be green, but they are fun!
Hosting a student teacher can be beneficial to the teacher and the students. Consider sharing expertise and hosting a student teacher this year. Student teachers come with excitement and usually a high amount of motivation. The students think they are “cool,” and they can give a harried teacher a break.
When some seasoned teachers are asked to take a student teacher, they think about it and turn it down. Student teachers do take some extra effort and work, but once they get going in the right direction, they are a great help to the teacher.
Student Teachers Can Start Helping Right Away
First, get student teachers helping with grading, making bulletin boards and working with struggling students. After a student teacher has been in the classroom a couple weeks or several days, he or she can start teaching individual lessons.
Within one to three weeks, most student teachers are ready to completely take over. This leaves the teacher time to work with struggling students, catch up on grading and critique the student teacher.
Don't Refuse a Student Teacher, Embrace The Opportunity to Help
The main reasons that most teachers refuse to take a student teacher are that they need total control of their classroom or that they have had a “bad” student teacher in the past.
I, personally, have had a couple of “bad” student teachers in the past 10 years, but I have had so many wonderful ones. So, next time a principal asks you to take a student teacher, give it a try. Your students will thank you for it, and you may learn something from the student teacher. I always do.
