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I’ve just finished the first 10-week semester of the MAT, and my head is spinning – in a good way. If you’re in the next cohort and about to start the “Urban Schools” (517A) and “Learning Theories” (518) courses, you are in for a roller coaster ride. You are about to learn some things about how we treat kids in our inner-city schools that will make you angry. You are about to have your notions of race and racism questioned, examined and turned around in circles. You are also about to get a crash course in the major theories of learning — but not just from a theoretical perspective. You will come out of the course with a head full of practical knowledge and advice on the different ways you can teach a child.
As I have advised before in this space, “get organized” (you can read my post about this and the Framing Experience here). You are going to have a lot of reading to do, and except for two weeks, you will be doing at least one paper per week (and there will be several weeks where you will be passing in two papers). You may also be studying for and taking Praxis or other state teaching credential exams in preparation for guided practice later in the program. When you find yourself with three 30 page papers to read for one course, a 60 page book chapter and another 30 page paper to read for the other class, two videos to watch and four forum posts to make, along with a 3-5 page paper due for each course and your Praxis II exam all in the same week, you will need to be organized. Several times over the semester I made a list of all the work required that week and wrote out a formal schedule, just to be sure I was working on the item that needed my attention first.
Unfortunately, life does not go on hold just because we’re in grad school, so added to all of your MAT assignments, you will likely have work, family and other obligations to work into your schedule. (The week I described above was actually one of my weeks, but I had to add in a meeting with my son’s teacher, my daughter’s ballet camp performance and a trip to the dentist for a root canal!) I cannot stress enough the importance of time management.
For those of you who are going through the orientation process, or those just beginning the Framing Experience, good luck, and make sure you do a good job on your videos. You will be re-visiting them soon.
Fight On!
