Classroom Reflection Paper

As a teacher, I will establish trust with parents of children in my class by initiating a relationship with them. Treating each parent as an individual and draw them into their child’s educations process. Showing the parents that I’m concerned about their child’s education by sharing information about their child’s progress and how as teacher and parents can work together to better the child education. Asking them question s such as what do they expect for their child to learn from my class? What are their goals concerned their child’s education? What do they want their child to accomplish during this school year? Most important having them aware of how I operate as teacher to support their child’s education. Also, that my role as a teacher

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).

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.

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.

This reflection focuses on ELCC Standard 4.1, due to the fact that I had to collaborate with administration, teachers (regular and special education), board members, facilities, parents, and students in order to develop a topic, plan, and carry out a Parent University. After discussing topics with my mentor, we decided that the topic for this Parent University should be the new PowerSchool Unified Classroom Program. The purpose of getting this new PowerSchool program was to improving the overall educational experience for students and parents by having one program that parents, students, and teachers can use to access grades, attendance, discipline, and teacher websites/homework information. The district transitioned to PowerSchool Unified Classroom as a result of parents and students complaining about having to go to five different sites just to get homework (Moodle, Schoology, etc.). Parents and students can not only view all of these components, but this program also streamlines communication between the school and home. In order for the use of Unified Classroom to actually improve the educational experience, parents need to know how to use the program.

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.

Becoming a primary school teacher is something I want to pursue. I am inspired to bring my knowledge to the classroom and make a difference in children lives. Over the course of three months I’ve had the opportunity to sit and see a third grade classroom. Observing this class, opened my eyes to the Common Core Curriculum and the different techniques teachers use to engage their students.

The most important resource is children. In order to fully tap that resource and allow children to gain the knowledge needed to perform to the best of their ability, and thus become effective, contributing members of society, competent teachers are needed in classrooms across the world. I hope to become a teacher, specifically for elementary-aged children, once I finish school; however, with all of the varying teaching methods educators across the world employ, I am curious to see which approaches to expanding young minds have been the most successful. Additionally, as a teacher, I would like to provide a creative environment for students that makes learning something students want to participate in, as opposed to a chore. Furthermore, because children all interpret information in different ways, I am interested in finding teaching methods that work for a majority of children.

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.

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.

In the classroom where I am doing student teaching I have observed students utilizing a science notebook only three times in the school year so far. Some schools have clusters, while other schools integrate science into their curriculum through other subject such as reading and writing. According to one teacher, the students receive science instruction through STEM, which creates more of a focus for her teaching in social studies instead of science. At my assigned school, the students receive instruction in their native language in science one day and social studies the next. Most teachers put a lot of planning into ELA and math, but not a lot of planning into the science lessons that are part of the curriculum. Part of my belief that science isn’t taught at the same level as other subjects is that teachers don’t feel confident enough when it comes to different science topics.

Before I began this observation assignment for my SPED class I was nervous and a bit skeptical about how everything was going to be, because I have never observed an inclusion class. After my first day of observation I felt more confident about my career choice. In this reflection paper I will talk about the assignment and all the things I found interesting, important, and challenging. I will also talk about how I overcame the challenges, my misconceptions prior to observing, and how this field experience will affect my education environment. The last things I will talk about is how my future behavior will now be affected by what I learned and how this experience helped me better understand my personal and professional goals.

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

Meet Joe. Joe is bored in class. Joe feels the need to grab the classes attention when he's bored in class. Joe chooses to drum his pencils on his desk when he wants to grab attention. The class begins to drum along disregarding what the teacher is saying when they hear Joe. The teacher begins to get frustrated and loses focus of what she is saying because the whole class is drumming. The teacher yells for the students to be quiet due to her frustration. A girl in the back begins to cry because her teacher yelled. The class laughs at the girl because she is crying. The classmates start to run around their seats because they are laughing. They run into each other and get bloody noses because they are running around. The

This semester of co-teaching has been very eventful and eye opening. I not only learned about what I might find challenging about teaching, but also what I love about is as well. During my last lesson, while visiting with students, I was content as my role as a teacher for the first time in a while. I was more confident and comfortable and cared less about what the other teacher and students thought of me while I was working with students. During this lesson, I was also able to interact with most students one-on-one and explore their drawing and creativity with them, which was amazing. Working with this particular group of students really showed me how different students can be within one classroom setting as well, the good and the bad differences. Working with this particular teacher, I also learned about who I want to be as a teacher to my students and how your approach to teaching can either increase students’ educational success or it can hinder it.