Classroom Reflection Paper

It is vital in my opinion that a teacher develops a strong assessment to determine what kind of prior knowledge students will be bringing to the lesson, but most importantly to evaluate the effectiveness of the unit. A pre-assessment will give us an idea of what level the student is at when covering a certain subject, while a post assessment can give us data on whether students successfully retained the content and were able to achieve the learning goals. Using a formative assessment during the unit can also give the teacher an idea of whether students are coming along in learning the content or not, which could open up some adjustments to the lesson plan. I will use these assessments to adapt to the students learning and provide a reteach

It is really amazing how excited students get with the possiblity of using the computer in the classroom to assist them with their lesson. The teacher added that she uses it as a reward system, stating how affective it is in maintaining order and control in the classroom. Students knew how to navigate, go to various websites that were related to the lesson and create a folder in which to put their assignments in.

In the classroom that I am observing my teacher teaches government and econ. On Friday September, 22nd I observed an econ class where the teacher said he was going to use his brother as an example for a credit card debt work sheet that he put up on the projector screen. The sheet used the highest possible interest rate (23%). The teacher than gave the students the formula to calculate how much interest would be paid on a sum of money. In this example the teacher said his brother was fifty five thousand dollars in debt. The teacher then asked the students to find how much interest his brother would have to pay. At this point in the class a few of the students moved quickly to remove their calculator from their backpacks and worked to figure the equation and give the teacher a correct answer. One student who we will name Jane gave the teacher an answer. The teacher then asked the class if they thought Jane had given the correct answer they all nodded their heads in agreement. The teacher then told Jane good job and moved to the next question. Before the teacher could explain the next question a student we will name Rick asked why the interest rate was so high. To which the teacher replied “well Rick in your case when you get you first credit card your interest rate will be close to this amount” to which Rick replied why is that. The teacher then explained how credit worked and that interest rates were based off of your credit and how likely you are to pay back a loan. The

Even as a native speaker, teaching something as complex as another language will always present certain challenges. During the course, and particularly during the observed teaching sessions, I learned several techniques and theories that I feel have greatly improved my ability to teach and control a classroom. More specifically I learned about the different aspects of teaching from lesson planning to classroom management. Furthermore, I gained knowledge of different teaching approaches and philosophies and was able to find out which ones worked best for me.

The information gained during this assignment was insightful, and the information will be useful in my future classroom. When conducting my teacher interviews both of the teachers spoke of how crucial it is for new teachers to understand the importance of pre-assessing students and the importance of continued assessment of students throughout the year. According to the answers from the teacher interviews, the data collected throughout the assessment process is the best way for teachers to determine how to group students. For example, Miss. Phillips states, “When analyzing data for say my kindergarten reading group I may group students based on who has one to one, comprehension, fluency, high-frequency words, and meaning when reading.” On the other hand for math Miss. Phillips states, “…I generally use my standards and then group based on abilities of one-to-one counting, number recognition, numeral writing, addition/subtraction, etc. I use assessments to analyze the data and even regroup students as I need to for both math and reading.” Furthermore, when Mrs. Haynes was asked the same question she responded with, “Having heterogeneous groups for math and literacy workstations is very beneficial. Students are able to model and demonstrate work for other students. This allows students to potentially work independently, while teachers pull small groups (for guided reading, guided math and guided writing).”

I started my practicum today in Miscellany second grade class. Mrs. Calloway used a lot of student-centered teaching. The tables are set up into small groups of about five students. Thought out the day we have multiple students that are pulled out so Mrs. Calloway told me I would be working with those students a lot to finish the project they get pulled out during. After reading a book to the class, Mrs. Calloway post a question on the board and has the students answer this. A lot of the students just copy what she posts on the board. When the student is done, she goes around and gives them a star for completing it. This is the only feedback the students get during the day.

Mathematics is an important part of everyday life and as teachers in the early years, we are responsible for teaching children the fundamentals of mathematics and helping develop children’s passion for learning mathematical concepts. Knaus (2013) states that “An effective teacher of mathematics will ask questions to provoke children’s thinking and introduce the language of mathematics to help children see the connections between the world and mathematical concepts (pg.3). As I progress through my degree and complete each Math unit, I have begun to recognise mathematical understanding and concepts, I need to develop if I am going to become an excellent teacher of mathematics. Standard 1.2 of the Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers [AMMT] (2006) confirms that ‘excellent teachers of mathematics understand how mathematics is represented and communicated, and why mathematics is taught (p.1). The first section of this essay will reflect on my mathematical understandings followed by a section reflecting of my knowledge and ability to help children confidently demonstrate and develop mathematical skills and processes. Lastly a conclusion of how this will benefit me to become an excellent teacher.

From my years in elementary school, middle school, and now high school, I have had many different teachers who have an impact on my life and my educational growth. There's one teacher though, who went above and beyond any other teacher I have had and that's why she had such a great impact on my learning ability.

Form of address was another area that stood out to me as I watching my video. Within my classroom setting our students are referred to boys and girls, white sharks, friends, or by their first name. Within in my video, I address my class as "you guys" three times instead of a different form of address. There was one time where I self-corrected myself and stated boys and girls instead. I was not surprised by this because this was an area I was working on from my first lesson I taught. On a daily basis, I use the term "you guys" and unfortunately it has transferred over into teaching as well. Instead of addressing students in a formal manner, I was casually addressing them. I was using casual language instead of formal language.

The instructional setting I work within is set in a rural community, northeast of Indianapolis, IN. This community is made up of mostly farmers and factory workers, so the majority of the students are in the “free and reduced” system for tuition and lunches.

I chose to teach in a first grade class room for my self-observation because I have previously taught in first grade and thought that I would be familiar with the age group. Originally, I anticipated being able to use the curriculum with which I was also familiar. However, I ended up writing my own lesson plan outside of the given curriculum. This action would not be allowed on a normal basis at my school, but was allowed for a special occasion. I plan to organize this paper in a manner following the Emergent Literacy chapter in our text (Tompkins, 57-84) in order to provide structure. Under each heading, I will examine the successes and the failures.

Over the years, I have worked closely with children in various settings from babysitting to the actual classroom, and each time I gain new understanding of children which has allowed me to grow more patient about their behavior. Additionally, I must add that most of the children I have worked with have all come from low Socioeconomic status families which has been proven to be the cause of major behavioral issues. The way I have witnessed the behavior of these children be managed varies between each of the locations. Some teachers and caretakers are quite harsh in their discipline while others are much too passive. In essence, as learned in the Environment and Programs as well as the Discipline and Limits unit, there are several key elements that determine the behavior of children in the classroom. As it relates to Preston Taylor Ministries, behavior management is sometimes ineffective especially when dealing with certain children; however, for the most part, I believe this center handles behavior in an efficient manner.

The lessons were taught in a classroom in a New York City public school. The school is in a low-income neighborhood in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. The school’s demographics consist of a majority of Chinese students followed by Hispanic students. A majority of the parents of the students in this class do not speak English. The students were engaged throughout the lessons and it helped that they experience a positive learning environment in this class.

We generally had participation problems with the class and I have no problem taking responsibility for that. Nether Becca or I had the enthusiasm to keep a room engaged over a video call. I also liked to have the students think and reflect which was not something the students wanted to do. The students were in an alternative school and had attention problems, which I feel we could have better been addressed by us. But as the lessons went on the students did become more engaged and began to participate more. I would say that is because they became more comfortable with us and vice-versa.

Walking into the first two weeks of the EDU program I desired to experience what it would be like to be a future educator and have a grasp of how to help the molding of our youth and giving them the possibility to become future leaders. Doctor dresser was able to bring in a Concordia alumni who had just begun to experience his professional education, career and is teaching multiple different grade levels as a young teacher. When he first walked into the classroom my first impressions were that unfortunately he looked very inexperienced and unsure of what was to be expected of the lecture I thought to myself in the position of a younger student in his classroom this is a person I would not take seriously. He then proceeded to communicate