Observed

Nine of these new teachers had attended the Intensive in March. I know that all of them would agree that not only would there have been no better preparation for them, but I believe that they would go as far as to say that they would not have wanted to be in the accreditation process WITHOUT the experience of the Intensive.

For those who did NOT have the advantage of either never having attended an Intensive, or of not having attended one at least more recently, the struggle was more difficult and accreditation was unsure until very late in the week.

In the end, EVERYONE rose to the occasion and did the work that they needed to do to be accredited – for some, sweat and tears (if not blood) would not be an exaggeration. All deserved accreditation, and all are congratulated warmly.

We need you, and welcome you to the TCC teaching community!

However, in this host’s opinion, I believe that it is our responsibility as a community of teachers to provide Intensive Courses, and to greatly encourage, and, if needed, help students who want to become teachers to go to an Intensive Course before going to teacher training. Thorough preparation and regular practice are not an option, obviously, but sweat and tears would hopefully not be necessary if every candidate would have the opportunity to discover in an Intensive their true readiness.