“I have no idea what I am going to do! What am I going to teach, I don’t even do a lecture today!” It was the busy time early in the morning with everyone getting ready to leave, and for the class she was teaching at noon a senior colleague was going to visit the class and observe her teaching. Maybe she had been nervous in the last few days and there was more binge watching and there were all kinds of other activities that did not appear to me to be related to any preparation, although this time there would not have been much chance to do anything as she was teaching two courses and doing two other jobs. “You’ll think of something, you always do, and it will be good”, I said as we left the house, trying to sound supportive even as it sounded very stressful to me. Just over two hours later she sent me her work, asking for a quick check. She had come up with an idea for a collaborative writing exercise, the students in the class had been working on a writing assignment and had been in need of some more help. The paper with the assignment was clear and organized, it explained what the idea was and why and how it was all going to take place. She organized the students into groups, with different roles for each individual student. It felt inviting and inclusive and fun, and motivating even as writing and sharing your writing in the class can be daunting for anyone. I thought it was brilliant, and let her know that it was perfect as it was and she didn’t need to change a thing.
Later she received the feedback from her colleague. It said that Jana appeared to be a total natural in the classroom, in the way she moved around and interacted with everyone like she never had done anything else. The colleague, with many years of experience, added that he had started to incorporate some of her teaching methods into his own classes!
And she had pulled it out of thin air, without a minute left to spare!
She always made it seem like it was nothing or maybe she got lucky, but it happened so many times. It was amazing to watch every time.
P.
Moments with Jana 