Since I began teaching at EnCompass Academy in East Oakland three and a half months ago, I have been warned many times not to stay too late at school, to be sure to go with a colleague if I wanted to work at school on the weekend, not to hang around the neighborhood past dark.

I was even told by one person who had just moved from the Bay Area from out of state that his parents warned him not to drive through Oakland at all, with the surge of violence the city has been experiencing. These warnings have come from many different people, from family members, to fellow teachers, to people who have never been to Oakland, to staff members at my school.

I never feel like my safety is at risk when I am on the campus of our beautiful new school site that we share with Acorn Woodland Elementary on 81st Ave. near International Blvd. We have bright stucco buildings, garden-lined walkways, walls adorned with student work, an outgoing and positive staff, and a bright and exuberant student body.

When I am within the four walls of my classroom, my first thoughts are not about my safety, but about raising my students’ reading levels, seeing evidence that they are learning concepts in my math lessons, teaching students to be compassionate towards one another.

Nevertheless, violence reaches into the harmonic bubble of EnCompass just as it does to many other, if not all, schools in Oakland. Even in the first weeks of school, the families of several students and two colleagues experienced the death of a loved one as a result of violent crime. Last night three students were shot after a McClymonds High School basketball game. Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve noticed many of the new teachers highlighted here are not writing regularly or not writing at all (including me!). I know I’m really busy figuring out all the new curricula, not to mention the ins and outs of this bureaucracy.

But recently I’ve spoken with many colleagues and friends who are shocked that I’m participating in this blog as a new teacher, which leads me to wonder if we’re avoiding this task because of the concern about our professional status. I will not be tenured until I step into a classroom on the first day of my third year teaching. Until then I’m considered probationary.

Any number of things could happen to me during the next two years: I could make a bad joke, my students could fail all their tests, I could write a blog online and offend someone … I know that job security is an antiquated notion, but I also know that public schooling is a difficult and rewarding career that I want to pursue for a very long time.

For me, this blog has been an amazing opportunity to hear from veteran teachers as well as parents and citizens who are interested in public education.  I have taken solace in the feedback from those who have left comments here and their ideas and support lead me to believe I am doing the right thing.

So what do you think? Am I risking my job by writing this blog? How much freedom do new teachers have? How much freedom should new teachers have? What are the ethical and professional considerations of publishing this journal? What are my rights to free speech as a probationary employee?