Final Reflection

What have I learned about teachers during this quarter?

           
            I have had a lot of great experiences this past quarter with a lot of different teachers.  From the parents of the kids I coach, the teacher-candidates in our program, the teachers in my placement school, and my cooperating teacher – each one of them has been able to add a bit more to my excitement about teaching. 

            As many know, I coach a couple competitive soccer teams in the Spokane area and a number of the parents this last year were teachers and principals at local schools.  As we struggled earlier this year to find placements, I communicated with many of them and found them all to be extremely helpful.  They were not just parents on the sidelines anymore, but were genuinely willing to help me accomplish my goals of becoming a teacher.  It was great to get to know them on a bit of a personal and professional level and see how they were able to help me.  That’s one trait I think a lot of great teachers share, their willingness to help others succeed.

            The other teacher-candidates have really kept me motivated about teaching.  The enthusiasm they showed on a weekly basis about teaching was able to help lift my spirits when I was feeling overwhelmed.  I hope I was able to do the same to a few of them as well.  The group we have been going through school with is a fantastic group of young people and those with a bit more ‘experience’ and I think that adds a lot to our discussions. 

            The teachers and administrators in my placement school have been fantastic as well.  Because I am in such a small school, and I eat lunch with them every time I’m out there, I get to know them.  The school’s principal has been great in helping me feel welcomed – outside of the first interview when he tried to scare me – by showing me around the school and introducing me to all the teachers, he even gave me a good face-to-face interview amidst his busy schedule.  The other teachers have been fantastic to see too; obviously I do not get a lot of time to see them in front of their classes, but I do learn a lot about the inner-workings of the school.  From scheduling the MSP tests, the way they cooperate and work with each other to try and reach some of the more ‘difficult’ students, and how they interact with one another on a personal basis is awesome to see.  The school I’m in has a great ‘team’ atmosphere where the group are generally friendly with one another – getting invites to bbq’s and children’s graduation – it really shows in how the students interact with each other as well.

            My cooperating teacher has really taught me a lot this quarter.  Although I do not see myself teaching in the same manner as he does, he has FANTASTIC classroom management skills.  The way he interacts with students is incredible.  He has a great sense of humor, and that helps a lot with what he chooses to do when problems arise.  He is quick with a joke but knows which students need a stern talking to in the hall or an arm on the shoulder in order to motivate them. 

            His style of teaching history is generally just reading out of the book, but sometimes that is important as well.  There is a reason for the textbooks in the classroom and he makes use of them and the resources those textbooks provide.  I have gained an appreciation from that.  The breadth of information to be covered in 8^th grade U.S. History is staggering and would be too difficult to cover in depth.  The student’s reading is improved by it, and they gain an appreciation for listening to their classmates.

What have I learned about myself?

            This quarter has been difficult for me; 17 credits, coaching as a part-time job, school placements, and trying to be a husband and a social life have definitely taken their toll on me.  I have come through it though, and I believe I am going to be a better teacher for it.  I have learned that my teaching style is very much dependent upon the material we are covering.  Jigsaw learning, direct instruction, and collaborative assignments have all been part of my lesson plans this quarter and each of them has been (in my opinion) successful. 

            I have found that I am much better in front of the classroom and working with my students than I am in putting together my TPA lesson plans on paper.  I think there is a bit of a disconnect between what I do, or plan to do, in the class compared to what I am able to convey on the paper.  My lessons work well with the students and they grasp the learning objectives and comprehend what is given, but when I turn in my TPA’s and get my grades back, I don’t see my grade reflecting the efficacy of my lesson.  That is one thing I will need to improve upon before I really take on Pearson. 

What have I learned about schools during this placement?

            The school in which I am placed is a fun school to be in.  The students and staff all really get along because they are cognizant of the fact they all share the same community.  They go home and see their teachers in the neighborhood and the students of the classroom play sports with the children of the teachers.  It is a great atmosphere to walk into. 

The school is still a complicated place though.  This quarter has been dealing with a lot of MSP tests and working to get the 8^th graders in a position where they can go on and graduate to the high school.  The people inside are working together to finish of the year on a high note.  It is almost as if the school is alive, with so many moving parts, individually operating but still part of a greater whole.  If one part does not perform its function, the students suffer and so does the community.  Each portion of the whole does its job, working with the other pieces around it.

What is one lesson-learned to share with another student just beginning their 341 placement period?

            This is a difficult question, as I said above, my quarter has been difficult on me.  One thing I might suggest is to be wary of time management.  Although the requisite hours in a classroom is only 9, it generally takes up more time than that because you are helping to grade papers, create assignments, and be part of the school community as well.  I loved being in the classroom, and would be there much more than needed, usually in excess of 14-15 hours per week, and I found I was loosing focus on my Eastern Washington University work because I would much rather work on stuff for the middle school.

Weekly Blog #8

This last week at school was interesting.  My cooperating teacher was called in to be part of an interview panel all day so I was with a substitute.  Basically, my coop teacher gave me the run-down of the day and it was my job to take over the entire class schedule.  It was a lot of fun to be in front of the classes and instruct them on their final assignments.

The 7th graders were to create a powerpoint presentation on bridges.  History, definitions, materials, etc, and then they got to choose a famous bridge from around the world and give its details on construction, height, width, span, etc.
8th graders had a similar project, but they get to do it on roller coasters.
Each grade level was put into a group the last week and each individual discipline in the school was to contribute to part of the project.  History and English classes had them do research and powerpoint, science and math had them study the structural parts.  The 8th graders even got to build their own roller-coasters using marbles!  It was a pretty fun week.

I liked seeing the entire school come together for the students and help them finish with a fun project.  That really made me see the school year differently.