What does it mean to be a math teacher? NOTICE!!!

Katie Egan Cunningham

As a teacher, I notice students who enter the classroom with their heads held down. I notice the ones who remain silent as they take their seats. I notice who is chatting and about what.  I notice which students open their books with zeal, eager to get to the next chapter. I notice who comes to the rug leaning in to the story I’m going to share.  I notice who takes to paper right away, scribbling away, believing his story is worth sharing.  I equally notice who wrestles with books, who asks to go to the bathroom everyday during reading, and whose pencil remains parked until I come to her side.

I love this quote because it highlights the equity that the teacher needs to have in their observation and noticing of students and their learning. One thing that I have noticed, especially in a virtual setting, is which students are answering all parts of the questions we are asking and which students scroll through to find a multiple choice question. I notice the students that are deeply engaged during a lesson and those that are deeply engaged during a test. Being virtual, these signs are so different than if they were in person, but they are still there.

Guiding Principle #3: My belief in my students that they can perform academically will never waiver, especially for my students who have experienced microaggressions and  suffered from deficit mindsets held by other educators, and I will constantly work for each of them to have a growth mindset in mathematics.

I think this quote fits into my guiding principle because students who are eager to learn and students who wrestle with the subject matter all deserve  my belief in them to perform academically, and my commitment for them to have a growth mindset. Noticing the little things about students and about how they respond to material, instruction, and certain environments is what helps you know how to believe in them and how to push them forward.