See Me After Class: Advice for Teachers by Teachers

by Roxanna Elden

The Most Dog-Eared "Teacher's Edition" You'll Have in Your Classroom

Teaching is tough. And teachers, like the rest of the population, aren't perfect. Yet good teaching happens, and great teachers continue to inspire and educate generations of students. See Me After Class helps those great teachers of the future to survive the classroom long enough to become great.

Fueled by hundreds of hilarious--and sometimes shocking--tales from the teachers who lived them, Elden provides tips and strategies that deal head-on with the challenges that aren't covered in new-teacher training. Lessons can go wrong. Parents may yell at you. Sunday evenings will sometimes be accompanied by the dreaded countdown to Monday morning. As a veteran teacher, Elden offers funny, practical, and honest advice, to help teachers walk through the doors of their classrooms day after day with clarity, confidence...and sanity!

"You know how you've always thought that if you were a teacher you'd go insane? Well, this very funny book proves that you definitely would. But in a good way."--Dave Barry, Pulitzer Prize winning humor writer

"A useful, empathetic guide to weathering the first-year lumps...a frothy, satisfying Guinness for the teacher's soul."--Dan Brown, NBCT, Director of the Future Educators Association, and author of The Great Expectations School

"See Me After Class is a must-have book for any teacher's bookshelf. On second thought, you'll probably want to keep it on your classroom desk since you'll use it so much!"--Larry Ferlazzo, teacher and author of Helping Students Motivate Themselves

"This is the kind of no-nonsense straight talk that teachers are starved for, but too rarely get...Roxanna Elden tells it like it is, with a heavy dose of practicality, a dash of cynicism, a raft of constructive suggestions, and plenty of wry humor."--Rick Hess, Director of Education Policy Studies at AEI, author of Education Week blog, "Rich Hess Straight Up"

Genres: Education, Teaching, Nonfiction, Professional Development, Teachers, School, Psychology

208 pages, Paperback

First published June 2, 2009

About the author

Author and course creator who helps teachers maintain, stay sane, and up their game. Learn more and get a free Classroom Management Troubleshooting Guide at: www.roxannaelden.com

Reviews

[Mars R · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh god, this book. I got it from the library after a horrible experience subbing in an elementary school, and it was like a balm to my tired, bruised, slightly chewed-on (don't ask) soul.

One of the things that has always bothered me about teaching books is that they never mention when things go wrong. Somehow when the people writing these books arranged their students' desks in circles, they didn't have the kids start throwing pencils at each other. Their discussions never fell flat. The world in teaching-advice books (or in a lot of college classes, let's be honest) is full of magical, fluffy rainbow-puking Communist unicorns and one simple thing (I'm fixated on the desks-in-a-circle because that was what my college was fixated on) will solve all your classroom management issues, as well as student motivation and ability issues.

Roxanna Elden is not about that life. She readily admits that teaching is hard, that magic solutions don't work in every classroom or every context, and that after a particularly bad day, reading about "by a teacher who taught kids to play violin during lunch or took busloads of perfectly behaved fifth- graders on a tour of college campuses makes you want to beat your head against the wall until pieces of scalp and hair are all over the place." It's a book designed to help (new) teachers get through the rough times that are most certainly a-coming.

She doesn't try to sugar-coat anything, or make it seem like it should be easy. In her "classroom management" section, (20 pages of glory) every classic classroom management line (Make lessons interesting! Be consistent! Etc) is broken down into three sections: Why it works, Why it's easier said than done, and How to make it easier. She also doesn't believe in lost causes. "See Me After Class" features a myriad of (mostly horror) stories from real teachers, who are still teaching (as of publication) after the stomach-punching events that they describe.

And that's what I really appreciated about this book. Roxanna talks about the six-hour-till-Monday panic, the terrors of hitting rock bottom while teaching. "The worst part about hitting rock bottom is you don’t know you’ve hit rock bottom. You hate the sound of your alarm clock. You hate the fact that you didn’t just die in your sleep, and now you have to go in and face these kids." (pg 75) And then she talks about what to do to get back from that feeling. Reading that passage was so comforting for me, because I REMEMBER feeling that way. And embracing both that feeling, and the fact that teaching was still the only thing that I wanted to do with my life, was an impossible contradiction. Reading this book and experiencing the mirror of my feelings has been so helpful.

Basically, I love this book. I start my first long-call sub assignment in a few weeks, and I'm buying myself a copy of this book so that I can keep myself sane.

[Lydia Gahafer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book made me feel like a very very normal teacher—one who is exhausted at the end of the day, has piles of ungraded work, and questions her effectiveness as an educator on a weekly basis. I’m not the only one!! Along with a sense of encouragement and reassurance, this book also offered tangible, concrete advice on common teaching practices (grading, lesson-planning, communicating with parents, etc.). I will say some of the advice was a bit too specific and prescriptive to be helpful. However, there were several tips that ended up in a Note on my phone to save for next year. I feel encouraged, slightly stressed, and hopeful that I will improve (also can someone please write a book on how to teach during a pandemic??)

[Donna · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a teacher of 3 decades who works with behaviorally disturbed kids, I found the majority of this book to be about a teacher trying desperately to stay one step ahead by manipulating and outwitting, rather than forming a real philosophy of education. It shows little respect for students and tends to be about control rather than teaching them to manage themselves. I found a number of the "tips" to be a chess game based upon winning, rather than what helps children grow and learn. I found the whole thing to be transparent that this person doesn't really understand child development or psychology, or for that matter what makes for real motivation.

It is not completely without merit, as occasionally there is an idea that makes good sense, i.e. the giving of rubrics to the children so they can predict their own grade based upon a checklist. This is why I gave it 2 stars rather than one.

This book appears to be written for beginning teachers, but to tell the truth, I would want it kept out of the hands of beginning teachers less they pick up this philosophy that is about the teacher winning the game and making sure the kids know who has the upper hand.

[Dale · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although I am going into my 25th year of teaching, I enjoyed the advice that was intended for new teachers offered in See Me After Class. It is always good to go back to the basics and make sure that you remind yourself of the fundamentals.

The strength of the book is just that - it deals in fundamentals. Tricks to get you through the first day with its ever-changing class lists, reminders that we do indeed learn from our mistakes, warning of the danger of falling behind in grading papers (including giving yourself enough time to grade big things before the report card grades are due), the danger of sending too many kids out of class, remembering that all kids do not respond to incentives or consequences the same way, advice to get those project assignments turned in, and a part that I particularly liked: an overview of some basic different types of students you are going to run into ("Low Performing Kids", "Unmotivated Kids", "Shy Kids", etc.). Each type has a little profile and little sections like "What They Need from You" and "Why Giving Them your Attention Is Still Worth It".

Elden recognizes that we all have...

Read more at: http://dwdsreviews.blogspot.com/2014/...

[Becca Akins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was really great. It is definitely something I will refer back too!

[Tyler McCubbin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall this book was nice to have as a device for some emotional consultation about what it means to be a teacher. From the struggles of lesson planning and fulfilling all of the “red-tape” requirements as a teacher, to the difficulties of grading and trying to find a balance of how to effectively grade so that a teacher’s life isn’t sucked into much more of the vortex of giving comments on every little detail in student work, this book does a good job of putting little reminders in veteran teachers’ minds of what they can do to relinquish some of the stressors that comes with the job. This would be a nice give to a new teacher as a sort of reminders for them to consider as they continue their pursuit of being a meaningful, reflective teacher.

[sabisteb aka callisto · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ich bin zwiegespalten, was das Buch angeht. Einerseits haben mich die aufmunternden E-Mails zu diesem Buch im Praxissemester über Wasser gehalten, andererseits werden hier dieselben nicht funktionierenden Methoden propagiert, was Disziplin angeht, wie von anderen altgedienten Lehrern, die einfach aufgegeben haben und die Kinder nur noch als ihren Job angehen. Vielleicht bin ich zu idealistisch, aber es gibt andere Methoden als „Don’t smile before Christmas“ wie das „Raise responsibility system“ von Marvin Marshall. Dieser Teil des Buches hat mich also dementsprechend sehr geärgert, denn es empfiehlt die autoritäre Haudraufmethode, die 1/3 der Lehrer dazu bewegt, den Job hinzuwerfen, weil sie Lehrer und nicht Polizist sein wollen.
Andere Themenbereiche sind durchaus hilfreich, wie zu wissen, dass auch erfahrene Lehrer kein wirklich perfektes Ordnungssystem haben. Andererseits ist es eine Binsenweisheit, dass man zeitnah korrigieren sollte, zumal es laut Schulgesetz in BW sogar verboten ist eine neue Klassenarbeit zu schreiben, wenn die davor nicht korrigiert zurückgegeben ist. Einige der beschriebenen Probleme sind typisch amerikanisch und unterhaltsam zu lesen, weil sie einen nie betreffen werden.
Teilweise sind die Anfangsprobleme aber durchaus übertragbar und es ist „ermutigend“ zu lesen, was einige Lehrer erlebt haben, die aber dennoch den Job weitergemacht haben.
Wenn man das Buch kritisch liest, sich die Infos herausnimmt, die zeigen, dass andere auch nicht perfekt sind und akzeptiert, dass das erste Jahr für alle neuen Lehrer ein Höllenritt ist, ist das Buch durchaus unterhaltsam zu lesen und amüsant. Man sollte aber wohl nicht alle Ratschläge wirklich beherzigen.

[Lili Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved how Roxanna Elden called out BS on learning logs, pre-reading activities, inspiring movies where no one grades anything, collaborative learning that really very rarely happens, etc. She also had good tips, such as how to deal with difficult teachers and students, but also how to not be that type of person (e.g., you really shouldn’t share anything you wouldn’t want the PA to blast, and you shouldn’t be complaining so much ).

Notable lines:

“This book is not Chicken Soup for the Teacher’s Soul. It’s more like Hard Liquor for the Teacher’s Soul-new teachers need something stronger than chicken soup.”

“Being harder on yourself is not the answer to every problem. In fact, sacrificing your own happiness, sleep, and general will to live probably won’t benefit your students as much as being a mentally healthy teacher who wants to be in the room with them.”

PS-Absolutely loved her "Adequate Yearly Progress" book!

[Mfly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is THE BEST book I have read for new teachers. The direct how-to books, which can be helpful, are missing the heart. Elden writes in a voice that is so earnest and downright real that it draws the reader in. The selections of teachers' experiences add veracity to advice. They offer a soft space to land for nervous newbies too. As an experienced teacher, there is not one piece of advice I disagree with or one corner of a new teacher's experience that feels unexplored. As opposed to other books that would be shelved in the same section, Elden's even covers multiple grade levels. Every new teacher should read it and every mentor, too.

[Rita · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish I would have read it before I started my first class. It is very down to earth honest and funny with lots of great tips!

[Dee/ bookworm · Rating 4 out of 5]

fun, but not what I was looking for. didn't answer my questions

[Nicole Means · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great advice for seasoned and brand new educators. Some of the anecdotes were a bit questionable but the advice they offered were real. I appreciated the real talk aspect of the book because it didn’t sugarcoat the real aspects that teachers face. This book would spark necessary and important conversation among faculty. Teachers could use the space to connect with one another and realize we are all in this together!

[Macy Galante · Rating 4 out of 5]

Desperately wish I read this book before I started teaching, although I’m not sure I would have appreciated it as much. It’s funny, relatable, and helpful in ways a lot of teaching books aren’t.

[Brandon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book I borrowed from McB that I finished shortly before the school's Friday morning meeting.

Roxanna Elden has taught all over the place in all different disciplines, from elementary to college level courses. This book takes her experiences, and the experiences of many other teachers from all different experience levels, and attempts to give the real lowdown that other teacher books fail to dole out in lieu of idealized versions of what all teachers hope to be.

The problem with books aimed at first year teachers is that they don't look at the actual nuts and bolts of what it takes to survive that initial foray into education. All of them assume that theirs is the be-all and end-all and assume that teachers are the altruistic, happy, fun-time, sunshine folks who get dressed with the help of cartoon birds from old racist Disney movies. Following what those books offer doesn't work because the reality of the teaching profession doesn't match what first year teachers are capable of doing. If, for instance, BetterBookTitles.com were to do their version of The First Days of School, it'd be called Feel Terrible About Your Job Performance. Elden's book takes that into account.

Elden compiles practical advice for the times when the grading period has snuck up on a new teacher or how to deal with the number of bad days that will make a new teacher feel like they are the worst person to ever walk the Earth without any of the sugarcoating that makes advice like that seem backhanded. Any first year teacher will find this book invaluable thanks to the advice and entertaining anecdotes provided by other teachers.

Seven years ago, I would have really dug this book. I wouldn't have had time to read it, but I really would have liked the idea behind it. Some of the advice would have been awesome, but who knows if I would have had the wherewithal to implement any of it. New teachers feel like they are drowning during those initial two years, and one of the points Elden makes is that new teachers have to figure out how to get better at their job by making their own slew of mistakes and modifying their approach accordingly, no matter what colleagues or mentors or witty, well-written books have to say. That's the only way they figure out how to improve.

And...I'm not a first year teacher. So while I was glad to read this because I get to check another book off my list for the year and there was a neat series of questions that I feel like I could implement as an exit survey for my students at the end of second semester, this isn't a book that really benefits me besides the nostalgia reminiscing about those hectic first years it provides.

[Christina Becker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I ordered this book as a special education teacher in my 7th year. There are plenty of things that aren’t relevant to me as either a “veteran” (I put that in quotes because I’m definitely not) or a sped teacher, but there was enough to remind me that I’m doing okay, it’s okay to feel like I’m definitely not doing okay, and again, I’m doing okay. I would have loved this book 7 years ago, but still a good read for any teacher

[Susie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Other than a couple of instances, I found this to be a very practical, grounded (and funny) book. I have read very few that were so authentic and realistic. I knew this book was different right from the dedication page.

So much of it is devoted to first-year teachers, who may need to cut some corners in able to survive. Elden, in a way, tells which corners are important. There are many great quotes, such as:

"teachers who are willing to admit their mistakes are much more helpful to rookies than those who say, "Well, they would know better than to do that in my class."
Other great advice:
*Don't try to copy someone else's personality
*Good kids want to see you know who's causing the problem
*Keep pushing for better behavior. It's a process.

I took many, many notes, and even photos of some pages that I found to have some excellent lists/checklists.

My main quibbles with the book dealt with essentially making up grades if in a pinch, and frequent use of bribing, rewards, extra credit, threatening to punish an entire class for the transgressions of a few. Also, in my district, we are not allowed to use participation grades; the academic grade must be wholly due to academic work: no points for bringing a pencil, having materials, etc. Participation can be included if it is something like participating in a class discussion.

This looks at teaching from just about all angles: considering a mentor teacher, the administration, parents. There's a great, sobering section about standardized tests. I don't know if I completely agree with the statement, "One purpose of standardized tests is to light a fire under lazy teachers."

I got some additional great ideas, and would recommend this to others with just a couple of slight reservations.

[Keesa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book didn't have a lot of life-changing revelations in it. It doesn't give much new advice. It's not a step-by-step manual on How to Be a Better Teacher.

So what is it? A collection of stories and tips that make you feel better about yourself as a teacher. So maybe it doesn't have life-changing, earth-shattering revelations that will make you see your life and your job and your students from a different point of view. But sometimes, it's so nice to know that you're not the only one....that other people go through this, too...that you're not the only one who has bad days or who wonders what in the world they're doing or who has a stack of ungraded papers so high that you know you'll never get through them.

It's more precious than you think. This book is, above all, *encouraging*....even while looking unpleasant truths squarely in the face, it still somehow makes you glad to be a teacher, and even - maybe, just maybe - a little bit excited about getting back to teaching. After a good thorough break, of course.

If it weren't that I teach in Peru and most of my fellow teachers only speak Spanish, I would buy a copy of this for every teacher in my school (or at least the ones I like!).

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read a few of those 'apple on the cover' books for teachers and was thoroughly disappointed each time. The tone was always rather condescending, and little if any of the content could directly relate to my classroom. This book did the complete opposite!

Though aimed more towards the beginning teacher, it was an enjoyable read even for the slightly more experienced teacher than I am. I laughed aloud a number of times, and identified with many of the issues and difficulties identified by the author. I enjoyed the honest and sometimes slightly scary way things were described, because let's face it... it's how things REALLY are in our classrooms. It's good (and reassuring) to see that it's normal to feel overwhelmed by your classes sometimes, and that everybody (even those who boast that their classes are wonderful) have hard moments.

This book is full of helpful advice and anecdotes, and I'll probably give my copy to the next student teacher I have... it'll probably be more helpful than some of the pre-service classes offered. Definitely well worth it, especially for new teachers!

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was an entertaining book for the most part that allowed me to refelect on the teaching I have done so far in my career.

Many of the quotes from actual teachers were good and funny as they made you feel like you were not alone in the attitudes, situations, people,and circumstances that go hand in hand with the teaching profession.

I don't think there was anything particularly new or earthshattering in this book but it was a good reflective tool and reminded me of strategies I hadn't thought about in a while. Again as my beef with many "teaching" books it was hard to find useful tips and strategies for classroom situations adaptable for secondary school students but many ideas and checklists for various situations I felt were a good reminder and starting point for looking at my own teaching. There are sections of this book I am sure that I will refer back to at various points of the school year for refocus and reflection.

[Thk · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author has made in clear from the start that this book is not Chicken Soup for Teachers or a Professional Development/Pegagogy manual, but rather, in a humorous fashion, a realistic insight into the trials and tribulations of being a teacher. It seeks to unmask the fact that teachers, as in other jobs, can face bad days, and commonly too. This is evident from the many stories shared by other teachers which should strike a familiar chord to both budding and veteran teachers alike. The outcome is to provide much needed relief and encouragement to teachers who may need a pat on the back - you are not alone!

Although the book seems to focus on junior education in a US setting, the advice given on administration and management are general enough to be applicable to most scholastic environments. A useful and light-hearted read which is easy to finish in a day or two.

[Austin Garilli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Look, I’m not a new teacher. I’m here in this book review space because 1) I loooooooooooved Adequate Yearly Progress and 2) I also taught in MDCPS, like Elden. And since AYP was soclose to my experiences, I wanted to see if this book also would have helped me survive back then...well, I was already 17 years in when See Me After Class came out. I think I would have recommended this to any of my colleagues 3 years in or so.

First-year teachers are already overwhelmed, there’s no need to shove more advice down their throats. But it’s easier to reflect when you have something with which to compare....a collection of what you tried that worked alright in the moment, felt great at the time, was a complete flop.

Mostly, I just like Elden’s take on school - not too pretentious, not too jaded.

[Monique · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best teaching book I've ever read. I rarely make notes or bookmarks for books, but I read this on my kindle and used the bookmark feature a lot. I wanted to use it for the whole book because the advice was so good. I've been teaching for 12 years, but am about to teach high school for the first time, and I have no idea how to manage high school kids. I've been reading a couple of books and the advice is sugar-coated and impractical. Also, even though some of these books have great ideas, the implementation may be controversial in a high school. This book takes all the theory out of it, and just gives you real, down-to-earth, been-there advice. I'd give it 10 stars if I could and will definitely be reading it a second time before I start my new job.

[Ellie · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is intended for the new teacher audience, and I think that is one reason I can't get behind it enough to finish it. (Not that I know it all, but I have a plethora of other resources and people to turn to when I need support or guidance.)

The stories included do a good job of accurately portraying how miserable teaching can be sometimes, and sometimes reading such instances is a nice reminder that a) you're not alone or b) it could be worse. The stories aren't why I quit reading. The idea that a teacher would publish so many generic "tips" and be so condescending toward students is what turned me off completely.

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

Update: after being in the classroom a few weeks now I have used a lot of this advice without realizing it. Updated to 4 stars because of this.
This isn't the book I thought it would be. I was expecting more applicable advice and while there are some wonderful ideas in here I'm going to try I still feel as though the author is holding back some information just as I have felt veteran teachers have - - sort of like they are keeping all the "tricks of the trade" to themselves. That said, I still recommend this book for new teachers as some of the anecdotes are relatable and some of the truths will have you nodding while you read (like how to handle stacks of ungraded assignments)

[Erin McDonnell-Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very easy to read book written with a sarcastic but realistic tone. Her humor made it much more enjoyable and a fast read. I think this would be really beneficial to first-year teachers and pre-service teachers who are struggling with the reality of teaching. There's a lot of great advice offered in the text, from how to handle observations, tips for grading, dealing with negative teachers, and interacting with principals. I really liked the classroom management section and think I might use that in my own Classroom Management class.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a soon to be first year teacher, I am SO grateful for this book. I feel much more equipped and I LOVE how practical this book is. There are so many books out there full of educational theory and while I enjoy reading those, I was missing a book full of tough love and honesty about teaching. The stories and comments from veteran teachers were encouraging. After reading this book, I’m reminded that while my first year will be difficult, it’s full of learning experiences and I will become a better teacher.

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

This a cute and entertaining little read and even as a somewhat experienced teacher, I found myself putting sticky notes on a few chpters to refer to when I'm having "a moment" this coming year.

I especially loved the chapters on the different types of students and on dealing with difficult parents. The checklist of tips for how and when to approach your administrator is great advice for everyone but should be taped to every new teacher's desk.

Good buy!

[Nat Medlen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this as part of professional development for school. I found it interesting to read the anecdotes about how life worked for teachers in other places. My main problem, only a small one, is that it did not consider the fact that so much is becoming computerized in the present classroom. I think this book does a good job of letting teachers know that they are not the only ones having the problems they are having, and we are all in this together.

[Shanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a first year teacher, I got some great advice from this book. Some of the advice echoes what I have heard from my mentor and colleagues; other advice was fresh information for me. I don't think I can incorporate all of the ideas mentioned in the book, but it's something I can put in my "Ideas for Later" box. This is a wonderful read for rookie teachers and veteran teachers alike.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Last school year was a rough one for me, and this book did as promised: "This is the book that will save [teachers’] souls when they lose the strength to save their classrooms." Highly recommended to all teacher's rookie or not.