Ten Questions Every New Teacher Should Consider 

Every day, teachers make a lot of decisions and need to answer lots of questions quickly, often with little information. As Christian Wilkens, Ed.M.’05, Ed.D.’09, writes in his new book, Foundations of American Education, how teachers make decisions and approach questions ultimately shapes their success in the classroom.

That’s why those just starting out need a solid base for what it means to be a teacher. Without that base, writes Wilkens, an associate professor at SUNY Brockport and a former high school biology and special education teacher, “teaching is technical work probably best left to robots.” 

To help new teachers build that base, Wilkens frames his book the way teachers think — in questions. “Teachers are made of questions,” he says. “’What should I do? How do others approach this? What will happen if…?’ I love that about us.” He also loves when his SUNY students ask him questions, especially ones like, “’Maximus hasn’t been in school all week. How can I catch him up?’ Questions like that are ones we want all teachers everywhere asking,” he says, with the end goal being, “how can we make things better?”

For Wilkens, deciding which 10 questions to use in the book was tough, he says, “because teachers have dozens of questions about just today. About that one student. I tried to pick questions all teachers need to answer in their own work, that are important, and/but don’t have definitive answers.”

The 10 questions range from the practical, like how to manage a class, to the factual, like an in-depth chapter explaining the ways a teacher can get fired. Every chapter includes a long answer to the question posed plus a brief answer (see below), a major court case connected to the topic, and additional questions and readings to explore.

Here are Wilken’s 10 questions and their brief answers.

1. What is it like to be a teacher?

Teaching means working with people who aren’t you, and who probably aren’t like you. Teaching means working with kids who are diverse on multiple measures, and who are on the whole struggling. Good news: You’re necessary. Related news: The one way to find out what it’s like to be a teacher is to go do it. 

2. What’s the history of public schools in the United States?

Schools didn’t invent education. Education has always happened among people where you’ll teach. Formal schools in the United States began with land theft and intended cultural erasure in 1513. The most important history of public schools for you isn’t national — it’s local. How have local control and segregation sharped your school and your community? How can you do better?

3. Why does it matter that public schools have local control?

It matters because it means U.S. public schools vary massively in quality, climate, and resources. The federal government’s main role in U.S. public schools is to monitor and promote the equal protection of laws and regulations. States and school districts, in turn, are responsible for most decisions about funding, hiring, supervision, calendars, curriculum, and the many details of your teaching life. School districts vary in wealth and spend most of their money on salaries. School choice can expand options for families, while potentially reducing enrollment in or support for traditional public schools. The good news about local control? Teacher can quickly have positive impacts on their local schools. Teach well, get involved, make a difference.

4. What should I learn about my students, their families, and their communities?

Relationships are at the core of our work. If you know who likes Starburst and whose grandmother plays pickleball, you’re getting there. All of your students will identify with multiple communities. Anyone you don’t get to know, you will fail. Listen, support, stay.

5. How will I know what to teach?

Your school district will tell you. You won’t decide standards, nor pick curriculum (usually). You’ll design or adapt lessons and activities base on how well you know your students, which takes time. And while you’ll have some freedom in pedagogy — how you teach — that freedom will not be absolute, nor will the boundaries on your instruction be clear or universal. 

6. What should I do in class my first year?

Plan your physical space. Decide classroom rules and routines. Clarify goals — what you want students to know or be able to do — before you plan lessons. Challenge your students with engaging work (not necessarily fun-all-the-time work). And be willing to reflect, so you can do better next week, next month, next year. 

7. How should I manage my classroom?

Good classroom management makes classes safe, joyful, and focused on learning. You’ll need to get to know your students well, you’ll need good relationships with them, and you’ll need good lesson plans. Some days will be rough anyway. Be patient. Forgive yourself and your students. And keep trying to get better tomorrow.

8. How will I know if students are learning what they should?

You’ll stay curious. You’ll regularly give students tasks where they show you what they can do. You’ll assess because you need to know what students know so you can teach better. You’ll assess in lots of ways, including (gasp!) quizzes and tests. A worthy goal: Assess every student on every standard every year. And please: Avoid test prep.

9. How can I get fired?

Wow, lots of ways. No one’s actively trying to fire you. Your principal and school want things to work. You can avoid getting fired by prioritizing student safety and supervision. Always be in class and at assigned duties. Follow district policies and directives. Read and follow your contract. Protect your students’ civil and constitutional rights. And when you make mistakes, own them, apologize, and learn.

10. How can I make things better for students?

You can make things better for students by being there for them, day by day. By showing up. You can make things better by being decent and understanding and caring, and by growing as a teacher over time (it will take years!). You can become more inclusive. You can support students our schools don’t yet serve well. And you can keep teaching over the years ahead, so that the better-and-better versions of you are there for the students you have yet to meet.