A new semester has just started or is about to start for most of you, and during this semester, a great many students will be venturing into the New Brave World of student teaching. Whether you already have your assignment, or will be plotting and planning your assignment for the fall semester, some of the tips below, seen through the eyes of an experienced teacher, can help take the fear out of this new venture.

If you are planning your assignment for next fall, some thing to take into consideration:

• The school with the top-notch band or choir is not necessarily going to have a director (your cooperating teacher) that will either work well with you or give you realistic teaching challenges. Also, these situations may be the cream of the crop, but won't give you any idea of what the "real world" is like. However, the top-notch band or choir that is directed by a teacher who took a group or program that was laguishing and built it into a strong, competitive force is something you might want to look into! This teacher has had the experience of strong public relations to build something out of nothing, and probably has the good personality to go with it.
• By the same token, if you're going with elementary, you might really die for the school that has Orff instruments and MIDI's galore, but you need experience in doing with less. Set your sites a little lower in the way of equipment and seek the teacher who has an extremely successful elementary program without the multitudes of instruments.
• Seek out recent graduates who are on the same wavelength you are academically and teaching-skill wise (in your estimation). Find out where they student-taught, and what their experiences were. You need to find out how willing your cooperative teacher was to actually teach the college student, or if they wanted a student teacher to just help them pick up the slack.
• A guideline that the head of the department at Central Missouri State University used when I was student teaching: try to fit student teachers in schools on the opposite ends of the size spectrum from where they had graduated. I came from a very small school, and student-taught in a 4-A school. This was great advice, for it exposed us to difference experiences than what we had four short years prior.

When you work with your advisor prior to your first day in the classroom, pay particular attention to what the expectations are for you and your cooperating teacher. To whom to you report when you're faced with an uncomfortable situation? How far should the cooperating teacher go before stepping in? How often (if any) should they leave you alone in the classroom? How much practical experience (i.e., you do the plans, you execute the plans) do you need? What would you like to do in the classroom, and what classes or grade levels do you want to tackle? (Again, in the high school situation, don't expect to get the top-level groups. It's a good possibility, depending on what the cooperating teacher is required to do, that you won't even get to do any work with the group getting ready for Music Festival, or at least, without the teacher being there.)

When meeting your cooperating teacher for the first time, make sure he/she outlines exact expectations and what he/she will let you do during the course of the semester. You don't want any of this to change or to pop up on your unexpectedly. What are their expectations and suggestions for discipline-handling? Be sure on this point to find a happy medium with them. You don't want to lose the discipline experience (it's going to be tough enough to earn the student's respect and trust...let's be honest about it) by running to the cooperating teacher at every little problem, but by the same token, do NOT try to tackle something that you feel is out of your league. Know where to turn and what to do if situations develop while the teacher is out of the room. Make sure the cooperating teacher lets you know of potential problem areas.

If something makes you uncomfortable or upset when working with the cooperating teacher, don't get irate or whiny. (These folks are grading you, after all!). Take your concerns first to the cooperating teacher. Explain your feelings thusly: "I had a discipline situation....(explain the situation), and was really uncomfortable with it. I tried to contact you, but couldn't find you. How should I handle a situation like this in the future?" If you feel that there is a communication gap with this method, THEN take your concerns to your college advisor. (There is a chain of command in handling grievances. How would you feel if a parent had a complaint about you and went directly to the principal or superintendent without telling you first?) Be as honest and forthright as possible,but choose your words carefully. (Don't get into the habit of downing someone..it will carry over into your teaching later and cause problems). State problems in this manner: "I had a discipline situation with a student and wasn't quite sure how to handle it. This is how the cooperating teacher handled the situation and what he/she said", then proceed to explain it verbatim. This sounds much better and more professional than "That teacher doesn't help me with anything! Do you know what he did?". It's your advisor's job to work with the school and work out solutions. You do NOT run to the principal unless your advisor suggests it, and even then, he should be there as a mediator, and the cooperating teacher should be invited for his side of the story.

Now, the common sense things (if your rapport with your cooperating teacher is satisfactory):

• No sarcasm, especially with the kids. You don't know who you might offend.
• Act on discipline problems immediately and carry out consequences. (This will covered more next month).
• Be prepared, have your lesson plans ready, and have alternative plans in case you run out of time. It happens!
• Be professional in your dress. Remember, you're getting a grade and probably a reference. A reference from a cooperating teacher is going to be strongly observed by a hiring administrator.
• Remember, teacher, all in all, is fun and rewarding. You will probably be extremely nervous, but you're going to have students who will be nervous around you and want to impress you. Think about relaxing them, and you'll relax yourself!

In future articles in this section, we would love to hear about your student teaching experiences. Please submit them here or consider writing an article!

Do you have input on this topic or other areas of surviving as a college music major, or have a suggestion for a future article? Feel free to contribute your ideas!