Teacher = Coach

I want to tell you about my coach at Floyd Central High School, Rebecca Cambron. She is the vice president in charge of softball for the Highlander Youth Recreation League and she teaches math at Floyd Central. Mrs. Cambron coaches as she teaches, with careful planning and patience, and her students benefit from her preparation and experience. Mrs. Cambron has been a different kind of coach to me: She has been my student teaching coach. To receive a college degree in the field of education, a senior teaching candidate must complete what is referred to as the "student teaching semester." Candidates are placed first to observe, and then to assume the full responsibilities of a full-fledged teacher. Student teaching is one of those unique life experiences where no matter how well prepared you think you are, you find yourself grasping for straws at times. Each time that happened with me, Mrs. Cambron was able to provide me with just enough support so that I was able to complete the task on my own. Becky draws a lot of similarities between coaching and teaching. She shared her coaching philosophy with me one afternoon after class. Q: How long have you been a softball coach? A: I have coached many sports teams--girls and boys, soccer, volleyball and softball--for over 10 years. I have been the vice president in charge of softball at the Highlander Youth Recreation League for the past 2 years. Q: How do you get your team prepared for the softball season? A: Similarly to teaching, you need to learn the strengths and weaknesses of your team. Once you do that, you do drills and practice the skills that you need to improve. The game is just like a test in the classroom. Q: What is your strategy for maximizing a student's or an athlete's potential? A: Every player and student is unique. You must find different ways to get the most out of them. Some need subtle encouragement and others need to be pushed harder. Q: How is your team shaping up for this season? A: This year I am in charge of softball at HYRL so I am not coaching a team. However the league is looking great this year. We have added several teams this year, and we have several highly skilled pitchers, and all of the athletes seem to be learning and having a good time. Q: How long have you been teaching, and how many student teachers have you supervised over the years? A: I have been teaching for 15 years. The past eight years at Floyd Central, and the first seven at Providence High School. During this time I have had three student teachers Q: How is coaching like teaching a student teacher? A: You share your knowledge with them, assess the student teacher's skills, and allow them to display those skills while they teach. Their teaching experience is just like a game. After the game, I would reassess and help the student teacher work on the skills that need improvement. Q: What is your strategy for maximizing the potential of a student teaching candidate? A: The best strategy is to share as much knowledge and as many experiences as you can with the student teacher. Once you do that, you must allow them to experience teaching for themselves. Hopefully, you can then work together to answer questions and deal with situations that might occur. Just like an athlete, a student teacher should go out on the playing field with several different strategies to be successful. Walt Dries is a student teacher at Floyd Central High School and will be a full-time math teacher beginning in the fall of '08. Walt is also a certified cycling coach and two-time Ironman finisher.