Section VII: Student Teaching Experience Reflection

1. Many things went well for me this semester. First, lesson planning allowed

me to do a few things that helped me tremendously throughout the semester.

I was able to ensure that I was teaching literacy/numeracy and 21st century
skills objectives by building them into my lesson through my lesson plan. I

was also able to remain flexible with my lessons because I already had the

lessons and objectives planned out. Finally, lesson planning helped me stay

organized and allowed me to get ahead with my planning so I never felt like I
was in over my head.

I also wasnt sure how teaching would effect my treatment of PTSD.

What I found was that working with my students does not cause any triggers
that I struggle with. In fact, working with students was so rewarding that my
disability seems to have improved after my student teaching experience. I

have learned the value of being patient in the classroom (which carries over
outside of the classroom for me), and reflecting on what went well with my

classroom management that day, and what I could improve upon. Students
appreciated the fact that I was open with them about my disability and I

think because of this, students were more likely to be open and honest with
me.

Before student teaching, getting up in front of a classroom of thirty

seventeen year olds was intimidating. I was able to adjust to this quickly and

was able to curb my nervousness of teaching. I was able to find my groove as

a teacher and students responded well to my relaxed demeanor. I think they
felt that I was approachable and that they were indeed in a safe classroom
environment.

Finally, I was able to collaborate with my peers in a way that I have

never experienced before. I was able to learn a lot from my match-up teacher,
other teachers in the department, and from my colleagues in this cohort. This
helped me to realize that I wasnt alone and that their was a system of
support that allowed me to remain successful in the classroom.

2. I learned that I do not need to be intimidated by the workload that teachers

experience. Managing my time wisely became crucial to keeping up with unit

and lesson plans, giving students timely feedback, and fitting in the many

other tasks that teachers are faced with. I also learned that there are many
number of resources to teach social studies. My colleagues, my match-up

teacher, and other teachers within the department all had excellent ideas
about ways to engage students at high levels. I was able to take their

recommendations and mold them into my own so that they matched the
personality of the classroom.

Another thing that I learned is that students, if given the opportunity,

enjoyed taking charge of their own learning with me simply working as a

guide on the side. Students enjoyed sharing their original thoughts through
discussion with their peers, as well as enjoyed having the opportunity to
showcase their creative capabilities. I learned that differentiating my

instruction allows me to engage all students at a variety of levels, and insures

that students are receiving equal opportunities to learn the material.

I learned that finding my style of classroom management takes time

and is still something that I am settling into. Students do not respond well to
a classroom that is ran like a platoon at boot camp, but they also appreciate
structure and order when it is necessary. Remaining calm when working
with students and not letting negative emotions get in the way helps

maintain peace in the classroom and does not make the students feel
uncomfortable.

3. Something I would do differently in the classroom is establishing norms at

the beginning of the school year so students know my expectations for them
for the semester. I would like students to understand that my classroom

relies heavily on participation from everybody in the classroom and that

engaging in discussions allows them to find their voice and express their

opinions. This helps build camaraderie within the classroom, as students are
constantly engaging with people that they might not normally outside of the
classroom.

Something else I would do differently is including more authentic

assessments that allow students to creatively show what they have learned.
Traditional assessments were the norm in this classroom, and the students

relied heavily on the teacher to give them the information they should learn.
This does not allow me to accurately assess what students really took away

from the unit. I would also like to have created better relationships with my

students parents. I was only able to regularly communicate with a few of the
parents. I would like to incorporate every parent because an open line of

communication between the teachers, parents, and students creates a team

of individuals that care for the students success in the class.

4. I still believe that maintaining a safe classroom environment is one of the

most important aspects of an involved classroom. That being said, a safe

classroom environment does not just happen out of thin air. It is something

that must be instilled with the norms of the classroom at the beginning of the
school year.

I also believe that differentiating material is also crucial within the

classroom. I have learned that not all students are alike in the way that they
learn. Some students learn best when they have the opportunity to hear the

information and take notes (direct instruction), whereas other students may
become completely disengaged with this method of instruction. That is why
planning differentiated instruction directly in the lesson plan is a crucial
aspect to preparing for the next lesson.

I think the incorporation of technology in the classroom is a crucial

way to insure that students have the necessary tools to succeed outside of
the classroom in a society that relies heavily on technology. Students also

enjoy working with technology in the classroom! Knowing this, why not use
this to our advantage? I believe that in addition to technology, educational

games have the capability of engaging the normally disengaged at the highest
levels. Students enjoy being able to apply what they have learned through
simulations experienced in games like Civilization V.

My professional goals are to continue to reflect on the various aspects

of teaching that can be challenging. This will help me to find my personality

and style as a teacher, and will help me to learn from my mistakes in a
positive way. I am greatly looking forward to establishing norms and

expectations in my very own classroom. This will allow my classroom to feel

more at home, rather than as a guest in somebody elses classroom.

Personally, I would like to continue to positively move forward with

my treatment of PTSD. I believe that this will affect me positively both in my

personal and professional life. I feel that this will also allow me to reach those
students that may struggle with PTSD on a more personal level. I would also
like to volunteer my time working with at-risk youth. Working with at-risk

youth is rewarding on so many different levels and helps everybody

involved.