Wow!

I found out today that I will be the head of my department next year! yay! Although I had really hoped this would happen (I had submitted an application letter last week detailing my visions for my role as the HoD, and I had to shrink the margins in order to make everything fit on one page), this result still came as a real shock. I am probably the youngest and definitely one of the least experienced teachers in my 9-people department, and besides the new part-time math teacher who will be joining us in the fall, I will be the only non-tenured staffer in my department. (Many of my colleagues have had years of teaching experience.) When I think about the challenge of leading a senior department such as ours, I am truly humbled. I have NO illusion that it will be easy, but I am prepared to do my absolute best.

You know what this means: I'll be looking for pedagogical resources to share with my colleagues, because it will take a lot more than enthusiasm to do a good job. My goal is to help my colleagues to appreciate each other's expertise and to encourage them to incorporate new teaching methods into their own classrooms based on educational research and their students' feedback. I would love your help and pointers as the year progresses.

I know it's too early to celebrate (until I am able to make a positive difference), but... yay!! for this truly fantastic opportunity.

PS. Just to clarify, this still means I'll be teaching a full load. Either 5 grades (grades 7, 8, 10, 11, and 12) or 4 grades with middle-school homeroom. I may even get a student teacher in there somewhere. So, there is small likelihood of me sitting around...