Stephanie Gibson - The Together Teacher

Book:

Heyck-Merlin, M. (2012). The Together Teacher: Plan Ahead, Get Organized, and Save Time. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Summary:

The Together Teacher by Maia Heyck-Merlin is a “how-to” guide that shows how any teacher, with the proper organization and planning skills, can effectively balance life both in and outside the classroom. The organizational strategies mentioned in the text are aimed primarily at current teachers, but can easily be adapted for future teachers wishing to start their career with a structured plan in place. This text looks at gaining an understanding of the importance of organization, effective time management, how to recognize, be prepared for, and solve problems that may arise, and how to find joy in teaching without being overwhelmed by the stress of planning.

A relatively short read, The Together Teacher consists of five sections organized to help you build a “Together Teacher System” as you read. Each section is then divided into short chapters that focus on one particular area of organization, such as managing time, juggling emails, and dealing with the paper towers that threaten to takeover your desk. Each chapter begins with a set of learning objectives meant to focus your attention, and ends with a brief summation on the importance of the chapter and tips on getting started and taking the next steps. Throughout the text there are “Day in the Life” segments that follow a variety of teachers - some in their first few years of teaching to those who have been in the profession for decades - "from the moment [they] wake up to when [their] head hits the pillow” (Heyck-Merlin, 2012, p. 9). While each section contains many interesting and useful strategies, the sections I found most useful as a future teacher include chapters one and eight, the conclusion, and the recommended resources. 

Resources and Strategies:

Chapter One: Rules Over Tools: Create Your Ideal Week

This chapter focuses on laying the foundations of an organized system; the rules and tools required to make teaching - and life - easier. Through a step-by-step approach, each of the text’s ten rules to organization are looked at and explained. Of the ten, those that I found most appropriate for new teachers include writing everything down to avoid forgetting anything important and allow you to focus on the lesson, making to-dos “bite-size” so the task does not seem so daunting - individual lesson plans are much less intimidating than one large unit plan - and you are less likely to procrastinate, minding your energy levels so that you are not making copies when at your most energetic or creating lesson plans while half asleep, and pausing to plan which means taking the time to sit down and figure out what needs to be done in the upcoming weeks thus allowing you to be in control of your time instead of at its mercy. As for tools, the text emphasizes that everybody is different, and therefore what works for one person may not work for another. Finally, this chapter looks at building your ideal week, making sure to include both when you are working (teaching and preparation blocks, lesson planning, grading), when you are not (relaxing at home, exercising, unscheduled time) and emergency buffers for the unavoidable situations that arise. 

By following these rules and building a system that works for you, you are able to have a clear view of all your work and a system for managing it without becoming overscheduled and overwhelmed. As important as it is to allocate time to designing lesson plans, communicating with parents, and attending or leading professional development sessions, it is just as important to take time for yourself. Spending too much time focussed on work will lead to increased stress, loss of enjoyment, and burn-out; by carefully organizing your time, you can ensure an equal balance of work and life. 

Chapter Eight: Ward Off the Demons: Keep Those Organizational Muscles Strong

By this point, the text has gone over how to create and implement a “Together Teacher System” and now it looks at what might get in the way of its efficiency. The most common obstacles preventing its usefulness include forgetting to look at it and not looking beyond today. A well-organized system is hardly effective if you fail to look at throughout the day. This does not mean you have to have it insight at all times, but instead you should get in the habit of reviewing your plan at least once at the start of the day, when there is a major shift in schedules, and at the end of the day. This ties in to not looking beyond today as it is difficult to plan ahead if you do not know what you need to get done today. By reviewing your weekly and/or monthly plans frequently, you are more likely to remember and complete little assignments rather than taking on one large task under short notice; realizing that progress reports are due next week lets you set aside time to complete a few every night rather than trying to complete them all during your limited preparation period the day they are due. 

To combat these obstacles, the text suggest three simple tricks: keep it simple, be consistent, and remember the purpose. By simplifying your system, you have less to keep track of, and more time to spend on what really matters. Building new habits can be hard, but through consistent use and maintenance, they will pay off in the long-run. Being organized for the sake of it is useless; remembering that an organized teacher means better student outcomes and more free time is key to efficiency. 

Conclusion: Become a Together Teacher

An organized schedule may seem simple on paper, but the text does not refrain from expressing how difficult it can be to get started. With practice, taking it one step at a time, and knowing when to ask for help, making a plan and sticking to it will help you become the teacher that knows what you need to accomplish each day, have the ability to react to unexpected events, and still have time to yourself. 

At the start of the book, it was suggested that readers begin to develop their “Together Teacher Systems” as they read so that once finished, they have a system that is ready to be put to work. However, not everyone is able to adapt to such a change so quickly. The text instead suggests an alternative, month-by-month implementation guide that allows for continual change and more realistic goals. Finally, the book states that “being organized is not the ultimate goal in teaching, but being ‘together’ plays a huge role in ensuring that we can impact kids’ lives for a long time while doing work we love” (Heyck-Merlin, 2012, p. 280). 

Recommended Resources 

Various resources are provided at the back of the book. To build a “Together Teacher System,” different binders, planners, and calendars are suggested. For general classroom use, a list of materials is provided that includes everything from clipboards and pencils, to student mailboxes and file folders. A list of books for general productivity as well as classroom setup and instruction, blogs, applications, websites, and electronic tools is included as well. Finally, a CD is included with the text that provides a Professional Development Guide, a Reader’s Guide, customizable templates, and links to the related website (The TogetherTeacher.com). 

Critique: 

Overall, The Together Teacher does an excellent job outlining how to get organized and not waste your valuable time on unimportant matters. It is a fairly quick and easy read that flows nicely, but is not entirely dependant on its surrounding chapters; it can be read as a whole or skimmed to use as reference for a specific topic. Unfortunately, some of the organization tips did seem very rigid and unlikely to suit the needs of many teachers, and did not offer many alternative options. Although it would have been nice to have multiple options to consider, the text’s emphasis on process over product and taking what you find works for you over using everything listed was appreciated. As a future teacher, I enjoyed this book not just for its focus on classroom organization, but also for showing me that it incredibly important to set aside time to not work, and that teaching is not as time-consuming as I once thought. I will likely be returning to this book in the future and recommend it to anyone who wishes to refrain from feeling overwhelmed or to those already overwhelmed by their workload.