Classroom Reflection Paper

The amount and usage of technology around the world is constantly growing. Because of technological advances, more and more schools are opting into technology-based learning, even with students as young as preschoolers. Many teachers (and parents as well) trust that the increasing exposure to and implementation of this technology is helping children’s learning abilities when used responsibly (Sharkins et al., 2016, p. 437).

There are many different types of attachments that I have observed in the Magnolia classroom. Some are attachments to the children’s personal belongings and others are attachments to people, such as the teachers. Growing out of these attachments is good for the children’s social-emotional development.

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.

Since our group was the only physical education group in the class, I feel like our strength was the ability to bring energy to the classroom. We all did a great job at being energetic and keeping the students engaged in the lesson. We also did a nice job on our delivery and giving multiple medias for learning the material. I thought a strength of our planning and delivery was the activity in our lesson to apply the knowledge learned. As a group we did a good job at going through the rules and applying them to the classroom.

An affluent stable community in the middle of southwest Minneapolis surrounds the students at Southwest High school. The school promotes community and cultural reflection across all classes. In observing a teacher in this school I found they are very passionate for the multicultural curriculum as well as offering many opportunities for students to use critical thinking across all subjects.

Everyday teachers make decisions that influences student’s opportunities to enhance their learning through different content areas. Thus, it is essential as a teacher to draw upon the content knowledge you want your students to take away from your class but it is also equally important to equip your students with skills that will help them outside of the academic realm as well.

To begin the Faculty assignment I first started by trying to email professors using the faculty information document provided. Of all the specialties available under the Business degree, management and marketing most interested me. This is due to the fact that I have an ample amount of experience working in restaurants. Often while performing tasks such as endlessly sweeping floors, scraping gum off tables, talking down agitated customers and so on, I found my mind wondering. Aside from thinking about how much I was utterly and wholly adoring my tasks, I thought about what it would be like to run the establishment. I wondered what it would be like to manage others and plotted ways in which I could improve upon my manager’s skills in the area of management. Because of my curiosity for management I really wanted to speak with someone who is knowledgeable in the area. After sending a few emails to multiple instructors and not receiving any reply I decided it was time for a face to face interview.

1. Since I was in a middle school setting, I was given the opportunity to observe multiple classrooms which a variety of different students. In my first class, I noticed that most, if not all students were African American. The ratio was 22:1, where about 18 of them were boys. The second class I went to, had a ratio of 19:1. The ethnicity in this class was again, mostly African American, with a few Hispanics and Caucasian. The third class represented a ratio of 20:1. The ethnicity was made up of mostly Hispanics, Caucasian, with 1 African American child. My final class ratio was 18:1, where most students were Hispanic and African American.

In our classroom my mentor and I have tried and are still making adjustments to create a learning environment where our students feel safe and are able to speak their minds. I think over all we have done a good job in creating a safe environment where our students can speak freely without judgment or teasing from other students. What I have learned when working with students with English Language Learners on IEP’s is that small groups really benefit their learning, giving them the opportunity they need to express their ideas. Having smaller groups allows each student to have a voice, and gives a chance for others to find theirs. It’s hard for some students to speak out in class especially when learning a new language so having a more intimate setting allows them this opportunity. Being able to work with groups of two to five students at a time allows us to really listen to what students have to share and letting them get their entire thoughts out, not cutting them off or manipulating their words into what the teacher thinks is the right answer. This is not what I want to happen, I want all of our students to share their ideas and help one another build upon them. As their teacher we will have to facilitate more and make accommodations for our student learning a new language so they understand the content of the lesson and are able to take this knowledge with them into their future.

I have learned a lot for the short period of time that I have been in school in Guadalajara. Thanks to the ten teaching practices I have had lots of hours to practice my teaching. I went from knowing absolutely nothing about teaching, to feeling like I can teach any subject in English at ease. I understand what to do, and what not to do in a classroom setting. My observers helped me improve my teaching from adequate to a professional standard.

With all of this in mind, you as the educator are able to understand your classroom and structure it in a way that it is beneficial to all students. Most of the time in my clinical setting the students are arranged in a strict manor. They must face towards the front of the classroom at all times. Even when it is time to partner up for activities they are extremely limited on how they can form groups. When structuring my classroom, I want to create an environment that is open to discussion. To keep students from feeling left out and to keep students from simply not wanting to participate, I plan on structuring the classroom in a circle instead of rows. This gives everyone an equal chance to voice their opinion and start a discussion.

When the students are learning about science in my field placement, the teacher has a set routine or schedule that they would follow. As I am observing my classroom, I have notice that the students would go to the science lab to be introduced to the science topic that we are learning. While the students are in the science lab, they are doing experiments that are very hands on. The science lab’s teacher would also introduce the students by connecting to their prior knowledge and have them explain their thinking. Since the students are very engaging in science lab, they enjoy attending the class because they get to learn something new every week.

I observed Ms. Bannon’s third-grade classroom that consists of twenty-three students in the Lower East Side Manhattan. Her classroom was very well organized with colorful labels, completed classwork a along the windowsill and the students’ desks were arranged in groups. The lesson I will be referring to is Mrs. Bannon’s lesson on finding the main idea in English Language Arts. The Common Core Standard Ms. Bannon used was ELA.RL.3.2, ELA.SL.3.2. Her lesson objective is to, “Identify and write the main idea of a story in one sentence. ”

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

I have had the privilege to tutor in an intensive math classroom this semester. I have learned a lot from this experience, and will be able to implement what I have learned in my own classroom one day. I have learned some of the challenges that teachers face and the rewards they experience, learned many important factors when working with children, and been influenced by this experience greatly.