This episode features Leticia Harshman who has been teaching high school English for 20 years in a suburban district in Western Pennsylvania. During the conversation Harshman reflects on her growth from a new, uncertain teacher to one who can see the solving of challenges as fun and who clearly enjoys her work with students. On the one-year anniversary of her school switching to remote learning, Harshman asked her students to write “Dear Diary” entries about what the experience had been like for them. A sampling of the students’ writing can be read by visiting https://scholarpractitionernexus.com/dear-diary-student-reflections-on-school-during-covid/
In addition to the students’ writing, Harshman’s piece, “Learning through the Tears,” can be accessed at:
https://scholarpractitionernexus.com/learning-through-the-tears-by-leticia-harsman/
I enjoyed this immensely. I wish I had heard it in my early years of teaching, especially the part of knowing that one bad day didn’t make a bad year, and that mistakes are an opportunity to learn and improve. Luckily I persevered and stayed in teaching (partly because a summer job in sales reinforced for me that I was in the right place in teaching despite its challenges).
Can you add a subscribe button on the page where the conversation takes place? (Easy always helps me with technology. 😁)
Pam, thanks for checking out the podcast and for your encouraging and supportive words.