Seeds of Summer: UFT Center Readies Rookies; Offers Practical Orientation

While school is out and Teachers are on vacation, the United Federation of Teachers has been running professional development programs out of its Teacher Center to maintain a strong support system for its members, particularly aiming to equip new Teachers with practical skills.

AMINDA GENTILE: 'Need to apply what you know.'

Aminda Gentile, vice president for education at the UFT and Director of the Teacher Center, is in charge of free service sessions for new Teachers, particularly those who came through programs like NYC Teaching Fellows. She says that the programs are designed "specifically for the purpose of orienting them to New York City public schools, and helping them understand how the UFT can support them in their early years in New York."

Filling in the Gaps

Possible concerns are addressed from all sides, with the new Teachers being given contact persons to call at the UFT about salary issues or other complaints but also taking part in intensive training sessions that give them a tutorial in literacy programs, class management, and other practical skills. "Many of them have a strong knowledge base in math and literacy, so we try to weave in how to develop routines, how to organize lessons and classrooms, and how to minimize situations," said Ms. Gentile.

The programs do not end with the summer, either. Networks in every borough continue to run the sessions throughout the school year on every day except Monday and Tuesday, with classes running from 4:30 to 7 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on weekends. "It's one thing to learn something during the summer or in college," said Ms. Gentile. "You really don't know what you know until you apply it. As [new Teachers] try out their new skills, they come back at least once a month, and we try to customize classes to meet their specific needs."

Broadening Math Skills

The Teacher Center has been running in one form or another since 1978, with real focus on long-term professional development beginning about 10 years ago. Over the last four to five years, the center has been collaborating with Hunter College on a course that emphasizes mathematical knowledge, focusing on improving the Teachers' understanding of math rather than their understanding of how to teach math. Another 18-month program with Cornell University focuses on science, featuring Professors coming to the city to provide Science Teachers with hands-on understanding of the subject.

The Teacher Center also provides support for Teachers with innovative new ideas about how to approach teaching, providing grants totaling about $150,000 to Teachers "who want to try something new and exciting in the classroom," says Ms. Gentile.

The center works in tandem with the Department of Education on many of its programs, which she calls "a pleasurable collaboration" that is "about the work ... not for show, but about rolling up your sleeves and doing the work."