goals

I am having some difficulty with my co-teacher this year. She is fresh out of Teach for America, an organization I have several issues with. Girlfriend has a lot of energy, a lot of enthusiasm, but again, has only taught "the TFA way." We are having some trouble collaborating and I thought I'd think out loud here. These are my non-negotiables.

Student skills:

• Complete a list of assignments on their own. (Managing their time.) (Hence the WTS)
• Talk thoughtfully about books they are reading. (Lit circles)
  
• Enjoy reading.
  
• Work in a group to produce a physical product.
• Work in partners or in a group to get work accomplished. (Know who to ask for help and who to avoid.)
  
• Be part of a discussion about events in literature or history. Be critical. Defend arguments.
• Be familiar with History Alive! curriculum, including previews, note taking, and processing exercises. (Use in 7th, 8th grade)
  

Teacher wants:

• Minimal and shared xeroxing (I xerox for you, you xerox for me, we both try to save paper.)
• Minimal and shared grading (I grade for you, you grade for me, we throw stuff away when it doesn't inform our teaching.)
  
• Use teacher materials whenever applicable (It is not always worth it to create a prettier/organized/comprehensive worksheet. Are students getting the practice they need?)
• Neither of us stressing out about workload.
• Our classes are run similarly enough that one teacher could sub in for the other without having the period wasted.

I can give up:

• I don't care what is on the WTS as long as it addresses the topics we decided for ltp and as long as I don't have to make worksheets.
• End of chapter history tests. (I still want to give some sort of quiz.)
• I don't care what their Lit circle projects are, as long as they address the skills above.
• Cumulative tasks for each history unit. Open to new ideas here. We just can't do them all, though. Must also consider if they are necessary. (Already listed in ltp.)