-: My name is Patrick Brock, I am a science teacher
at Central Catholic High School here in Toledo.
Science education is specialized.
I have a certification in the life sciences,
so I can teach anything that has to do with living things.
I currently teach AP biology, anatomy and physiology,
advanced topics in biology, and some forensic science.
My school day starts about 6:45.
I need to get to school to prepare paperwork, make copies,
oftentimes meet with students who might have
a need for extra help or help with a project,
or even just to catch up on something they've missed.
School then starts at eight o'clock.
Our periods are about 50 minutes with four minutes between,
so there's not a lot of downtime.
You need to be able to switch on the fly,
adjust to the students coming in.
We have varied schedules for pep rallies and assemblies.
Students are getting called in and out,
so it's quite a flexible day.
The need for flexibility is pretty high.
We end at three.
I often stay to help students, or I'm a coach as well,
might do that.
And beyond that, I'm also an evening tutor
for our athletic study tables.
Using lab work in your teaching involves a couple of things.
One, preparation.
You need to have everything ready for the students
that they might possibly need in any circumstance.
Teaching AP biology, the students design their experiments,
so a wide array of equipment is needed.
Second, you need to be able to change up things on the fly.
I have experience in the lab previous to my teaching,
so I'm able to bring in some real-world skills to the kids,
and problem solving.
The lab is not really about the lab.
It's about critical thinking.
Outside of school hours, first there's research.
Read about best practices, talk to colleagues,
find out what's the best way to do something,
what's the newest way to do something?
I've been out of the industry for a while,
I might need to talk to an industry expert in genetics
to find out what I should be talking to my students about,
what should I have them research?
And then it's an organized preparation.
What should I have the students look up?
What should they know prior to coming in?
How do I find out what they know prior to coming in?
So it's a lot of mental preparation, a lot of list-making.