MCTE October Board Meeting

 

Good morning, everyone! I decided to publish my "report" (such as it is) representing the Northwest Region of the Minnesota Council of Teachers of English. I believe this is my first report, so I ought to introduce myself.

My name is Andrew Hanson (he/him). I am an English teacher, theatre director, newspaper advisor, and a webmaster at Win-E-Mac Public Schools in Erskine. I have my Google Educator Level 2 Certification, and I just started classes this past week as I pursue my Masters of Education with a concentration in Instructional Technology. My wife Becky is the school counselor in Fosston (she teaches with Sierra Gilbertson), and together we have an eighteen-month-old bundle-of-energy named Elanor (Ellie).

Enough about me. I approached Sierra and Katie in November of last year about filling the empty position of NW Rep. However, at the time, I was just starting rehearsals for the One-Act Play Contest; this was my first time directing this play after taking over from the former director. Win-E-Mac hosted OAP Contest in January, and after that contest, I dove directly into auditions, rehearsals, and performances for the Junior High Play season, which ended in March, which is, of course, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit us.

Prior to this, I had every intention of presenting at the MCTE Spring Conference, but that was, of course, canceled. Distance learning through May went as well as can be expected. During the summer, I spent a fair amount of time with others on Win-E-Mac's Leadership Team planning for reopening this fall. Long story short, I haven't had a lot of time to devote to MCTE since committing to it last November. However, even as I say this, I know that many of you have families and are busy teachers as well, so I shouldn't use "lack of time" or "too busy with extracurriculars" as an excuse.

Last June, after the school year and distance learning finally ended, there was a stretch of time when my confidence was shaken. I didn't believe that I was a good English teacher, much less a good representative of English teachers. However, working with my district's Leadership team helped me to regain confidence, and so far, teaching in a hybrid model has gone really well for me and (for the most part) my students.

At this time, I would like to renew my commitment to the MCTE and help out where I can. If there is anything I should be or could be doing to promote the MCTE, I will gladly do that.

For now, my goal is to continue blogging about teaching English, and I also hope to start a podcast about teaching very soon. With this podcast, I want to interview other teachers in my district and in area districts (especially English teachers) about, well, teaching. Here are some questions I'd ask:

  • Who is your teaching inspiration (or muse)?
  • What was your journey to becoming a teacher?
  • What is one resource that you can't live without?
  • What is your favorite unit or lesson to teach?
  • What is one project that you're proudest of?
Another goal that I have would be to start a “book club” through this blog. It's not very often that I personally read for pleasure anymore, and it's even less often that I read "professionally". I would like to get book suggestions about teaching English from area English teachers, vote on one, then read it together, using blog comments to get input from everyone.

Whether through my blog or my podcast, I plan to promote MCTE membership and involvement as much as possible. I would happily accept input as far as how to best do that: what to say, how to say it, etc. Please help me help you!

I wish that I could join you today, but unfortunately, I cannot. Thank you for your time!

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