New Teacher Advice: Lessons from Harry Potter's Hagrid on Surviving Your First Years

Hagrid from Harry Potter. Drawn by Mademoiselle Ortie / Elodie Tihange

To become an experienced teacher, we all have to do one thing: be a new teacher. I'll look back on my first years as a teacher fondly, which is surprising because I did not have an official teacher preparation program. Instead, I used an alternative program to become a teacher. What's amazing about these alternative programs, which you can find in probably every state, is that they put you into the classroom with a couple dozen young people and say, "Good luck!" Most candidates in this type of program feel woefully unprepared.

However, as an instructional coach, I see that most new teachers feel unprepared and indeed are, even though they obtained a college degree. And perhaps we can do a much better job of preparing untraditional or traditional first-year teachers, but today I want to talk about the knowledge and experience that only come from being in the classroom. There is no teacher like experience.

This blog post is another in my series about lessons we can learn from the professors at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. And today, we are going to examine the once gamekeeper turned teacher, Hagrid, professor of Care of Magical Creatures. He, too, was thrust into a teacher role and seemed to have very little guidance or training in pedagogy. So, what did Hagrid learn that we can all learn as new, newish, or experienced teachers?

5 Tips for New and Newish Teachers to Survive

1. Get help. It's free.

I don't remember a time in the books when Hagrid consulted with a more experienced teacher in the planning or execution of his lessons. I also never remember a time when he asked how to manage hard-to-manage students like Draco Malfoy. As teachers, especially when we are inexperienced, there are many things that we can learn from those who have been there and done that. If you are struggling with a student or set of students, the earlier you ask for help with their behavior management, the better your class's student learning and your mental health will be. If it gets out of hand for too long, it can be hard to reel back in. If you don't have an assigned mentor, ask for one. If you have one, use them as a strong resource. Imagine the advice that Professor McGonagall could have given Hagrid to bring the rowdy students back in line, or the suggestions that Professor Sprout could have given about safety during lessons. Reach out to other teachers; they are your most valuable resource!

2. Students need lots of guidance and monitoring.

Remember Hagrid's first lesson? While he did teach students how to approach a hippogriff respectfully, a student was still harmed fairly dramatically. Perhaps this injury could have been prevented with a few more lessons before the experience or more monitoring from the teacher during the lesson. Never underestimate the lack of knowledge or poor choices that students can make during a lesson. If you're in a science lab, outside, online, or really doing anything, students can and will find a way to get into trouble. The more clear instructions we give and the more we monitor, the safer we keep students physically and otherwise. You don't want the weight of a student getting hurt on your watch, even though if you teach for 30 years, it is bound to happen at some point. We at least want the peace of mind to be able to say we did all we could to keep students safe.

Hippogriff nesting. Flight of the Hippogriff at Islands of Adventure, Orlando, Florida. New teacher lesson on guidance

3. Don't allow yourself to be disrespected. 

You're new, and everyone knows it—including the kids. Something in their brains tells them, "This is where we can act our worst." Don't allow yourself, like Hagrid, to be disrespected by students. Too many times, students in Slytherin house criticized his lessons, criticized him as a teacher, and showed disdain for him as a person. We are teachers. We are adults. We shall respect, and we should get respect. Follow the behavior protocols and make sure students receive consequences for disrespect. Don't let this go. It's not good for you, the learning environment, or other students. Let's look at a specific example from Hagrid's class. Malfoy says in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, "Honestly, this place is going to the dogs. That oaf Hagrid shouldn't be allowed to teach." These types of comments are completely out of line, along with the sneers and complaints that were made constantly. We must remember that this type of behavior detracts from the positive learning environment that is essential to student learning.

4. Stay calm in observations. 

There are all types of administrators. Some you want to be one day, and some you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy. The short, squat, toady witch, Dolores Umbridge, observed Hagrid's class and was nothing short of despicable. While this was unprofessional and worthy of disciplinary action, Hagrid did not make the situation any better by being nervous. Remember that you are a great teacher, you teach daily, and your observation is only 20 minutes out of one day. Prepare for it, execute it, take the feedback, and move on with your life. We all need constructive criticism to get better, and these observations provide that. You aren't supposed to ace them; you're supposed to grow from them. If you are a new teacher, you likely have many areas in which you can grow. As an instructional coach, I can't tell you how refreshing it is to give feedback to a teacher who is receptive. If you have an Umbridge who's rude and obnoxious, stay cool and deal with it after the observation. But during the observation, make the best out of the situation.

5. Take calculated risk.

One great thing about new teachers is the new ideas they bring. If schools didn't have new hires, growth would be limited. Hagrid took risks to teach the Hogwarts students things that others would not have, like how to care for Blast-Ended Skrewts. As educators, we must understand that novelty in our lessons increases student engagement. However, we can't think so far outside the box that we take dangerous risks. Let's always make sure to think through our plans, get advice and permission when needed, and then implement those great innovative ideas that only new teachers can bring!

If you're looking to bring novelty in your classroom, try one of my gallery walks. Get students up and moving, discussing and analyzing. We may feel like it's a risk to classroom management when kids aren't sitting in their desk, listening to us talk, but trust me, it's a risk worth taking. Student engagement is key to knowledge retention, and students are always engaged during these gallery walks.

Summary

I love new teachers.  The fresh perspectives, enthusiasm, and adaptability that new teachers bring is unique. You are in a profession that needs more of you. Use these tips to not have that "I'm drowning and no one cares" feeling. There is always help, here on TeachThisTeacher, in your building and in your family and friend communities, reach out and ask. You can do this!

Please, leave questions or suggestions you have in the comments for new teachers. Our motto is, "teachers need teaching" and there's no one better for that than you, a teacher.