26 episodes
Life Behind the Desk Jonathon Miller
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- Education
In Life Behind the Desk, Jonathon Miller takes you into the classroom so he can give teachers an opportunity to answer the questions they wish they were asked. Discover the challenges that teachers face on a day to day basis and the added challenges they are facing due to school closures as a result of COVID-19 from a personal perspective. Dive deeper than the stories featured in the mass media so you can gain a greater understanding of what it's like to be trusted with the care and education of the nation's children from the people who do the job. Jonathon will talk to teachers from around the country to learn how they deal with under-funded classrooms, challenging parents, the administration, work life balance, and more in a public school setting. We'll also delve into what it was like the day they got sent home and told to teach from there, how they are coping with it today, and what they see in their future. If you've ever wondered what it was like to be a teacher: the struggle, the balance, and just what do they do over summer vacation we’ve got you covered. Hit Subscribe and get ready to step behind the desk.
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Navigating Teaching, Technology, and Side Hustles with Tennille Martinez of The Book Advantage
Join our insightful conversation with Tennille Martinez, a South Florida middle school teacher with over 20 years of experience, as she shares the daily struggles of grading papers, attending to her personal life, and managing her side hustles. We dig deep into the challenges she faced when transitioning from teaching high schoolers to middle schoolers, and the unique alternative charter school she worked at that offered students the opportunity to get a high school diploma.In this episode, w...
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Garden of English_Timm Freitas
S02E02 In this episode, we talk to Timm Freitas. Timm has taught in different settings throughout his career. Outside of the classroom, he does a great deal of work with the AP program and even partners with one of our very first guests Beth Hall. Timm and I discuss not just how Covid-19 affected him, or didn't, but how the educational landscape has changed. Especially with the escalation of school shootings and school violence. We touch on the teacher exodus out of the profession that w...
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Announcing Season 2 - Jonathon Miller
S02E01We're back for more! This season brings new guests and new ways to support this project. We may even ask some previous guests to make another appearance.If you would like to contact Life Behind the Desk for appearance or sponsorship opportunities, email us at:lifebehindthedesk@gmail.comPlease visit the website and check out the shopping section:http://www.lifebehindthedesk.comAnd of course, don't forget to listen to the first real episode of this season at:https://lifebehindthedesk.com/...
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What you do the least of my brothers . . . - Melanie D'anna
#023 - This week we talk to Mealnie D'anna from Mesa, Arizona. In some ways going behind the desk with Melanie didn't yield huge surprises, because she is just as dedicated to her craft as the other teachers I have had the honor of speaking with. Unlike most teachers, however, Melanie came to it a little later than most. She spent the first part of her working life as a newspaper photographer before making the switch to public education. She got a quick baptism in the profession by teaching i...
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Specialist & Side Gigs - Tess Kraft
#022 - This week we talk to Tess Kraft from Kansas City, Missouri. Tess has taught most of the lower elementary grades and at the end of last year she was working as a reading specialist. When the pandemic hit she had to scramble to figure out how to continue supporting an entire school worth of teachers. Like any good teacher, Tess thought on her feet. She started recording herself reading children's books and brought in authors to speak to her students virtually. Fast forward to this school...
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Music & Fitness - Erin Ross
#021 - This week we talk to Erin Ross. Erin teaches orchestra in Springfield, Missouri. When the pandemic hit, all teachers had it rough. I think music teachers had it particularly rough. Not only is it just not possible to be as effective as you were in person, Erin had no way to provide the group environment that is so much a part of being a musician. She has struggled this year with the loss of being able to instill in her students what it means to be a part of something bigger than themse...