evaluation OVER

At Ripp, during the three years I was teaching, I was observed for a grand total of possibly 10 or 15 minutes. They're a little more rigorous here- for the past five weeks, I've been told that "some day soon- MAYBE TOMORROW" I would get observed for a full 50-minute class, be videotaped, be forced to watch the whole videotape, and then get marked on about 42 different things that I should be doing. Stressful? No, not a bit.

So finally, on Friday the 13th, IT HAPPENED. The CD player didn't work, a quarter of my students skipped class, and about half of the ones that were there looked hung over. I just met my supervisor to talk about the class and she thought it was very good.

Maybe for lazy people the idea of being evaluated motivates them, but since I care in the first place, it just freaks me out. And maybe for crappy people the evaluation could alert the powers that be that something is wrong, but since I don't think I'm crappy, it's just a hoop to jump through.

So really- what is the point? Could I have been told something in this, the 9th week of class, that would cause me to change my teaching substantially (especially considering that every activity is already planned out for me)? Is a bad teacher even capable of turning into a good teacher?

Being in charge of one's own little universe is the coolest part about being a teacher. And frankly, I just want to be left alone.