Kelsey Olson

EDUC 5385/5373
May 6, 2015
Summative Reflective Essay
One of the things that drew me to the teaching profession was that I love being a
learner myself. I see education as an important lifelong process. I think my role in the
classroom is to be the lead learner, there to plan, guide, and inspire my students to see
the world of education in an interesting light. By continuing in education as a teacher, I
will need to continue learning about content, better teaching practices, and new
research developments.
My first experience working with elementary age students in a classroom setting
was as a volunteer tutor for an evening English language learner program while I was in
high school. Once a week, as their parents were taking English classes, I would assist
the teacher as she led a short lesson and activity. After the class lesson I would work
with the children individually on their school homework. The class ranged in age from 37 so there were a few who were not in school yet, but each week there were usually
three or four children who had homework. This experience helped me better understand
the challenges faced by students who do not have parents able to help them with their
homework. This knowledge helped me in my future volunteer experiences for my
Educational Studies minor at UC San Diego. I worked in three classrooms at three
separate underserved schools in the San Diego area. The first classroom was a
second grade classroom at Fay Elementary. I spent about three hours twice a week
helping students who were struggling as well as observing the teacher. Every morning
the class had independent reading. During this time I would read with different students.
At the time one of the things that surprised me the most about the classroom and
teaching in general was the wide range of levels of educational skills. There were some

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students who could barely read at all and other students who were quickly going
through chapter books. While working with this classroom I also regularly helped during
writing time, P.E. and math activities. My second classroom was a third grade
classroom at Porter Elementary, which was below state standards and thus placed a
large incentive on increasing test scores. A lot of time was spent working in small
groups based on test scores as well as helping students learn from their practice tests.
I did have the opportunity to plan and lead a science lesson for this class. This helped
me take on more of a teacher role in the classroom instead of just a classroom tutor. In
my third classroom I served as a mentor to two girls in a 4th and 5th grade combination
class. The focus of this class was on developing relationships with the two girls and
being a positive role model so they would strive towards furthering their education, not
as much on the classroom work. This included taking the girls on trips to my university
as well as hanging out during lunch and being the person they could share their
thoughts when things were bothering them. My volunteer experience at Lynwood
Elementary involved two different roles. I worked in two 2nd grade classrooms helping
out during small group activities such as reading and writing workshops and math
games. I also read individually with 1st and 2nd graders. All of these experiences greatly
impacted my knowledge about the current education system in California and helped
me focus my learning and understandings as I worked through Dominican Universitys
teaching credential program.
When I first started the teaching credential program at Dominican University, I
was enrolled as an accelerated multiple subject student. That first semester I did my
observations at Hamilton Elementary in Novato spending the majority of my time in 5th

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grade and 1st grade classrooms. During my time at Hamilton I worked closely with
students who were receiving special education services or were in the process of being
assessed. My favorite moments were always when I was providing additional support to
the students who were struggling the most to keep up in the general education
environment. After observing in the school's resource room I finally realized that working
in special education was exactly what I was interested in doing. I switched to the dual
credential program and started taking classes towards a mild/moderate education
specialist credential. One year later I was placed at Vallecitio Elementary in Terra Linda
to begin preparing for my student teaching. I am so happy to be at this school and have
learned so much from my experiences here and the amazing teachers, staff, and
students.
Reflecting on my experience in different classrooms, I have determined that I
would like to create a classroom environment where learning is interesting by doing
active projects that engage the students as learners. I believe it is much easier to
understand new concepts and ideas if you can relate them to something you have
experienced. I want to incorporate plenty of school experience through experiments
during science, games during math, and other hands on projects throughout the
curriculum. Since I have always been interested in reading I am also especially
interested in giving students the opportunity to experience the same enjoyment I had
from books at their age. Too many students treat reading like a chore, but I believe that
there is a type of book out there for everyone no matter what his or her opinion towards
reading is. Students need to be taught how to select books that are interesting to them
and at the appropriate reading level. By supporting students through this process, I

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believe that reading is less intimidating and more entertaining. For students who
struggle to read at any age, supports such as explicit phonic instruction, explicit reading
comprehension strategies, post-it notes, graphic organizers, books on tape to follow
along with, reading trackers so only one line is highlighted at a time, and time to read
individually with a teachers support are all ways to help improve their reading skills and
confidence.
If students see themselves as being successful then they will have the drive to
keep reaching for success throughout their lives, which paves the way for a bright
educational future. Success can be seen through the students' levels of motivation to
accomplish classroom tasks as well as, more importantly, their ability to understand
what they are being taught. I would like my classroom to be an environment that
promotes students desire to learn and supports them when they struggle. I like a
classroom where students see themselves as active learners and are able to talk and
share their thinking and ideas. I believe that all students have different educational
needs and would like to be conscious of and take into account these differences
everyday in the classroom. If a student does not understand what is being taught than I
need to change my teaching method.
My objective is to not only teach the curriculum so that each student has the
ability to understand what is being taught, but to also instill the students with the
understanding that they are capable of creating achievable goals for their future.
Whether this includes continuing onto higher education or something else entirely, I
believe that there is a noticeable difference in the motivation of students who connect
their school experience to their future goals and those who do not. From my

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experiences in classroom settings, students who have specific goals for their future are
more motivated and confident in their learning than those who do not have those same
influences. I would like to provide this support in my classroom to all of my students and
teach them how their learning connects to their future as much as possible. In order to
do so it will be important to discover each students interests, which I believe can be
done through classroom community discussions, writing prompts, and individual
communication with each student. Creating a positive relationship with your students
and learning about them as individuals is an important step in forming an effective
learning environment.
I would like my classroom to be an environment that promotes students desire to
learn and supports them when they struggle, a place where students see themselves as
active learners in the community and are able to talk and share their thinking and ideas.
All students have different educational needs and as a teacher, it is important to be
conscious of and take into account these differences everyday in the classroom. If a
student does not understand what is being taught than I need to change my teaching
method. During my time in elementary classrooms, I have seen what a difference
individualized attention makes in relation to childrens academic abilities and attitude.
Providing individualized and small group support as much as possible can go a long
way in increasing student comprehension as well as learning more information about
how each student is understanding a concept. Differentiating instruction in the planning
aspect of a lesson, as well as throughout the implementation of a lesson, is vital for
ensuring that all students are involved in the classroom environment.

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It is my professional responsibility to adapt the learning environment to fit the
students needs in order for them to successfully develop and grasp the diverse
elementary curriculum, skills, and expectations. Implementing engaging lesson plans
that address students various learning styles as well as creating an accepting
classroom community are important ways to lead so that each individual in a classroom
can reach their personal best level of success. In order to do this, I will need to learn
about my students learning styles, interests, and goals so that their time in my
classroom will be the most meaningful, individualized, learning experience possible. I
believe in celebrating the successes in education and learning from the mistakes.
School should be a place where students feel safe and supported in taking learning
risks because they know that education is a lifelong process.