Student Teaching - Looking Back and Looking Forward

by Rogelia Pena - Cooper Dual Language Academy

Student teaching in Chicago has been one of the best choices I have made while pursuing an education in the United States. I wanted the challenge of teaching English Language Learners with low socioeconomics and surrounded by urban issues, and that is exactly what I got! Even though it was hard to keep up with lesson planning, grading, monitoring struggling learners, working on my literacy performance-assessment, etc., it was all worth it! I was very blessed to work with my cooperating teacher, who took on the job of a facilitator, mentor, and friend. I will miss her and the students very much! I also met other wonderful teachers at Cooper Dual Language Academy. It is because of their hard work that the school is now considered a number one school in Chicago despite the many challenges that these students face in their communities.

I have not just learned from these teachers, but also from my Chicago Semester supervisor. Her feedback has been helpful during this time of professional development. It was so rewarding to read her last piece of advice, “Find a teaching job!” Along with the other Chicago Semester staff, my supervisor has been approachable and caring. In class, the other student teachers and I learned about meaningful ways of engaging with diverse students in an urban setting. My favorite topic was definitely about social justice and its relation to education. In fact, I was encouraged by my supervisor to attend the annual Curriculum Fair hosted by the Teachers for Social Justice (TSJ) in Chicago.

TSJ is an organization of teachers, administrators, pre-service teachers, and other educators working in all sorts of environments in the Chicago area. These educators believe that their role involves confronting the social, political, and educational inequities within U.S. school settings. Like me, they see children and youth as critical change agents essential to the struggle for social justice. When I see my students struggling to thrive academically, when I see their brokenness, and when I see their needs, my heart breaks. When I see other students being confined to their neighborhoods in the most segregated city in America, and when I hear about the significant number of students who are experiencing homelessness in Chicago, my heart also breaks. But then I see the work of wonderful teachers who are breaking students’ paradigms and fostering counter-cultural mindsets I get hopeful. I believe education can facilitate social change.

I also get hopeful when I see the church actively involved in the lives of the youth. I have been particularly blessed by the members of Little Village’s New Life Community Church. Their work in my neighboring community is amazing and the way they invest in people is genuine. Honestly, I would not have made it through this semester if it was not for the church that has welcomed me with open arms. I am also thankful for my housemates, especially my roommate, with whom I have shared professional and personal struggles and joys every day. As an international student I am somewhat used to goodbyes, but I still dislike them! I am truly going to miss all these wonderful communities I have been a part of while living in Chicago, especially my students. It is my hope to find a job in the city once I graduate in May. I believe cities have the potential to be catalysts for change.