AmandaOT

Warning! Long ass blog.

So Monday our class found out that all of us enrolled in a grad directed study class that we weren't supposed to be in. Now I must say that I thought that it was really premature for us to take this class, but what do I know right? This class was to prepare us to take the comp exams (the exam I have to pass to get my Master's). The comp exams this class was talking about was in November (I take mine in June), but all of us figured it was on our list classes for this semester so we need to sign up. This class's assignments include answering weekly discussion questions, filling out study guides for 7 conditions that make you eligible for special education services, and answering a timed question that is similar to a question you might see on the comp exam. Sounds not too bad right? Last week the discussion question was about IDEA and we don't learn about that until week 3 of this quarter. So all of us looked dumb there. Then each study guide took me an hour to complete. Then the timed question was on a condition that was barely touched on in the book. All of us were beyond stressed out because the class was a ton of work and we hadn't even learned the info for the class yet. It was the first time I thought that this is not worth it and I could just drop out of this program and continue OT. It's not worth this (and it turns out everyone else was thinking of quitting too.) So Monday on my way to class, I get a phone call from Kristina. She's all excited. All of us signed up for the wrong section and we spent hours (7 hours filling out study guides, 2 hours at a study group trying to answer the practice question, and who knows how long participating on the discussion) for nothing. We were pretty much idiots and signed up for something that we don't have to take in June if we don't want to, let alone now. Huge relief!

Then Tuesday I had my first distance learning chat for my class that coincides with my student teaching. It was very cold feeling. I am disturbed that someone that lives in Pismo is grading my lesson plans when she's never seen me or any of my students.

Then Wednesday morning I was supposed to meet my master teacher at Marshall HS at 11:00. She called me and left me a message at 10. I didn't get the message of course, so when I arrived at 10:45, she was in the nurses office. She tripped and fell on campus and sprained her ankle severely and was filling out an incidence report and workman's comp paperwork. She was leaving to go to the hospital for xrays. I was on my own that day. She had me cancel one of my students because the lesson that we were going to do I didn't know how to do by myself, but my other student I had to teach alone. So I walked down the street to get her car and parked it in front of the school because she couldn't walk well. So then I was on my own teaching a student 2 weeks ago I had never met and I had only taught twice before. It went alright I think. But what do I know? I've only been doing this 2 weeks.

Wednesday night was another distance chat for my intro to vision class. It's and hour long chat and people spent the first half hour wasting time by having their own conversations instead of chatting about the class. My O&M class were texting and calling each other and I was talking to my master teacher on the phone and calling the program director while chatting and texting classmates. Complete waste of my time. Especially since I developed a cold during the day on Wednesday and I felt like shit.

So it was decided that my master teacher is off work until at least Monday. The xray she had done was inconclusive. She may have a fracture. So for now I am on my own for the rest of the week. Today I taught 3 kids and tomorrow I teach someone I have never really taught (yippee!) and I think 2 other girls (I think). I'm not allowed to take anyone off campus so that is going to be a long boring day. Hopefully she doesn't have a fracture because then I'm ultimately screwed and be out a master teacher. You can't teach O&M on crutches, and following me around while I teach 1/2 of her caseload is going to be impossible. She's calling me on Sunday so I will keep the blog updated as I have time for developments in my adventures in student teaching.

posted by amanda @ 10:27 PM