Tim Goldstein's Interview with a Third Grade Teacher

Well aware of having to conduct an interview with a teacher at my school, I kept my eyes open and my ears peeled for a teacher that would fit the requirements during the first week. Fortunately for me, my master teacher went on vacation the second week, which put me into a different teacher’s classroom. This teacher happened to be “Frank” a seasoned vet with over ten years experience, a distinct teaching philosophy and extra motivation to educate his third grade students.

The setting of this interview takes place at a school situated in the heart of a small agricultural city in California. Surrounded by bountiful farmlands, the population is predominantly of Mexican heritage. That being said, the student body is also predominantly of Mexican heritage. When driving to the school you pass through a development comprised of stucco homes with clean landscaped yards and concrete driveways. One might think of it as a more upscale development, but it turns out that multiple families, many of which attend the school, occupy most of these homes.

The interview with third grade teacher Frank, (not his real name), took place outside on a picnic table during lunch hour on a warm and sunny afternoon. I had informed Frank of the questions I would be asking, per his request, days prior to the interview so he had an understanding of what to expect. Frank is a relaxed, soft spoken teacher of about 45 years of age. It turns out that he is also very timid and wished not to discuss much about either his personal life or professional career.

Prior to teaching professionally, Frank attended Fresno State where he studied History, Math and Computer Science. Since then he has been professionally teaching for 19 years. Eight of those years have been at here and the rest took place at three other schools in grades ranging from Junior High down to third grade. He chose not to share which schools he taught at but each was located in the state of California. Of all the grades Frank has taught, third grade seems to be the best fit for him due to the maturity level of the students and their will and eagerness to learn.

When asked to describe his teaching philosophy, he kept it very short and sweet by saying, “To develop productive citizens, teach respect and encourage the love of learning with specific goals in mind.” Although not too much detail was included with his philosophy, I was able to witness it firsthand in the classroom. Because of this philosophy and because of it being the first month of school, developing productive and respectful citizens seemed to be the most important thing. Third grade students need to be taught procedures and respect for their environment at the beginning of the year. His classroom is like a well-oiled machine. Rarely does he have to raise his voice since the students know that nonsense will not be tolerated. He has a cool and calm demeanor that the children respect and rarely does he exude anger or frustration.

Having a classroom of 36 students, the most in the school, is difficult enough to begin with. But when asked how he goes about organizing his classroom, Frank calmly responded, “Just surviving now.” Throughout the first several weeks he puts the students into long rows. When they have developed a better sense of procedures, respect and being productive, he will separate them into 5 or 6 groups. This will prevent classroom management problems and seems to work in his favor each year. But for now, the three rows of desks take up most of the classroom. There are several computers along the side and back walls. Typical third grade classroom posters, memorization charts, graphs and other motivational signs decorate the walls from top to bottom.

I admired Frank’s teaching strategies when I sat through his lessons. He seems to have a solid grasp on classroom management. One of his best methods is the “silent wait,” as he calls it. When students are chatting and find that he is waiting silently, they suddenly become attentive and respect his silence. To me, this seems much easier and less stressful than raising your voice and having to talk over the noise. For his delivery of the lesson, he uses an abundance of visuals and displays to help the students relate to the subject matter. During reading lessons, he practices peer tutoring as well as whole class practice. The language lesson I witnessed was a read aloud lesson where he read a paragraph aloud and the kids followed along once he finished. For math he stresses the importance of computer programs in helping the students learn. His approach begins with foundational basics then moves towards concepts and includes a lot of cumulative review to help reinforce the lessons.

As far as finding ways to meet the needs of the diverse population of students in the standardized teaching climate, Frank informed me that he tries multiple approaches that he finds beneficial. Sometimes he will teach the same lesson twice making it more simplified for the limited English proficient students. He will also pair English learning students with those who are more proficient in the language to help better assist them. As he mentioned in his math lessons, he even stresses using computer programs for English learners. “There is a lot of technology available nowadays that didn’t exist before. Some of these programs like AR [Accelerated Reader] and Imagine Learning are technologically designed for English learners and are really helpful.”

While the other third grade classes run and do stretches during early morning PE, he has other plans for his class. He believes that, “Coordination, strength and agility are developed through games. The kids don’t think they’re exercising when they’re playing games because they’re focused on the objective instead.” His students line up on the playground and wait until they correctly answer math or geography questions before they can run across to the other side. The other classes await a whistle. I noticed this strategy early on in the year and find it to be very creative and successful. This way the students are exercising their minds as well as their bodies.

In order to be a successful teacher, especially at this grade level, one must stay motivated in order to keep the students engaged. “I love kids and like being able to accomplish goals,” says Frank. “The maturity level they’re at and their eagerness to learn is something that keeps me motivated.” And he continued to explain how watching them learn and being able to interact with them as they do is the most rewarding aspect of the teaching profession. If it were not for these things mentioned above it would be hard to maintain the enthusiasm he does on a daily basis. Every job has a tendency to become monotonous at times which can lead to lack of motivation. But when the future of 36 students lies in your hands, it is important to stay motivated, enthusiastic and focused throughout the entire year.

Witnessing the differences in strategy, technique and approach in the classroom was what helped me learn the most throughout this interview process. Each teacher has their own personality, which reflects on their teaching style. Frank brings his calmness to the table when instructing his class and it seems to work wonders. As a student teacher, simple setbacks can lead to frustration and can be discouraging. But the right amount of motivation, a positive attitude and a several years of experience can lead to an outstanding career. It is also very beneficial for a student teacher like myself to observe as many different teaching strategies as possible to help mold one of my own.