Here we go...

We'll be asking the 1st Years to start keeping a blog so Ann and I felt that it was only fair to keep them as well. Ann is the instructor for EDSE 500 which is the first class our incoming teachers take. I am the Program Manager of the Mississippi Teacher Corps, a two-year program based at the University of Mississippi (www.mtcorps.net).

It is both a busy and exciting time for the Teacher Corps. Currently we have 30 people coming into the program this summer. Our start date is Tuesday, May 31st but we will have several people showing up a few days later for various reasons. There is also a chance that we may add one more person to the group which would give us 31. I believe previously the largest group we ever had was 25.

Ann and I and the other instructors have been meeting and planning for this upcoming summer. The first summer is an intense period because we have eight weeks to train people with no education background to be effective teachers. Ann and I have basically stripped the training down to two essential parts: planning lessons and classroom management. As a beginning teacher these are the two most important tools.

The 2nd Years will also be here taking classes in June and I know they are looking forward to meeting the incoming group. One of the best things about Teacher Corps is the group camaraderie and support.

One more interesting note: I just spell checked this entry and blogger's spell check does not recognize the word "blog."