In 1973, Clark received an award as an Outstanding Elementary Teacher of America. She used the money to buy new software for her classroom, hire a mime to work for the sixth to eighth graders and a stage combat specialist to work with the eighth graders. Finally, in 1992, Clark received the Award for Excellence in the teaching of reading from the Central New Jersey Council of the International Reading Association. She has to teach core information, following checklists and rubrics along the way. The testing is becoming very opressive, she says.
Teachers also feel threatened when standardized testing begins because of the comparison of scores.
Clark's biggest advice is to learn from your colleagues and develope an early realationship with them. Visit other classrooms to see what strategies do and do not work for them. Also, join professional organizations for your age group and subject matter such as the PTA . Ask questions and keep the administarion informed of what is happening as well as parents. In dealing with parents, keep records of all contacts and report card informaion as well as the child's progress.