(Hey everyone! I told Valand I'd write the initial post for this week since she was SO nice to make the blog!)
My goal as a future teacher is to teach in a diverse community,
unlike the type of community I grew up in. While reading the learning goals I
connected to one in particular, the developing standard based learning. I am a
social studies major so my main concern is being able to gain the confidence I
will need as an educator of Language Arts. After my TE 401 course, I realized
that my ability to produce lesson plans based on the GLCE’s was much more
difficult than I thought. However, over the course of the semester I was able
to develop and learn constructive strategies through course work and
observations in my placement. I believe in this course, TE 402, I want to not
only be able to develop teaching strategies but also gain a deeper
understanding of the content in the Language Arts subject matter.
Through
this course my goal is to be able to not only learn more strategies but also to
gain a greater understanding of how to incorporate and integrate the standards
that are in place for the school community I am teaching in. Due to the fact
that I am a social studies major my goal this semester to be able to feel more
confident in my language arts teaching ability through our course and also
through observations in my MT’s classroom. This learning goal also relates to
the other learning goal, being able to develop a pedagogy. Through this course
I want to develop the ability to plan, and integrate a constructive lesson plan
that enables all students to contribute and learn about Language Arts in a way
that accommodates all learning styles. I believe being able to practice
creating lesson plans, communicate with colleagues and our instructor, along
with continuing my observations in the classroom, I can establish a stronger
confidence in my Language Arts pedagogy.
I feel that, as future educators, diversity is a term that we often associate with positive teaching and learning environments. After growing up in urbanized, inner-city magnet schools, I am very familiar with the several student teachers that come in for internships and never stay or come back. The majority of the ones I came in contact with came from Suburban areas, and wanted to "make a difference" or "try something different". The truth is, it felt like they all gave up. I think it's normal for teachers to say they want to teach in these areas, but to REALLY have a calling to do it is much different. Urban, low-income districts need passionate teachers that are there to teach, not individuals who are only there for the paycheck, or for the ability to look like they are "making a difference". In our class discussions, groups, etc., however, I have been made aware that you, and other individuals in our class, are truly passionate about teaching and motivating students to the best of your abilities. Although we are all in more of a learning stage than a teaching stage right now, I am confident that we will go forth with the knowledge and confidence we need to teach our students.
ReplyDeleteIn this course, I hope to gain a greater understanding of language arts content, as well. Although it is my endorsement, I know that there is much for me to learn pedagogically about the subject--especially when most of our required classes are more about themed readings. Nevertheless, I am really looking forward to our field-based lesson plans, because I am looking forward to applying the content and methodology I learn from this class to my placement experience.
I feel as though I attended school in an environment that's in-between both of yours; my school's population was extremely diverse but we were located in a suburban area. Some students in my school had transferred from their previous urban area schools due to the lack of passionate teachers that Valand was referring to, which had the potential to lead to poor teaching and a poor education. Being that I will be interning in a Chicago Public School in the fall, Valand's comment about interns giving up really hit home for me. I've talked on and on with family members and friends about how excited I am to work in an urban school and most of them do not seem to understand why. One of my instructors in a CEP class, Kristin Biehl, is one of the main reasons I think I feel so determined to stay in an urban school setting long after my internship year by sharing all of her stories about her years working in urban schools. Feeling strong in terms of standard based learning and developing pedagogy are ways in which I can build the confidence that's needed to feel successful in teaching in an urban setting as well as other schools. By having this as a foundation, it will make it easier to build all the other skills it takes to succeed in teaching in a setting where students do not feel as though their teachers have the confidence in them to meet/exceed high expectations.
ReplyDeleteIn this course, I also hope to gain a greater understanding of language arts content and feel more confident in lesson planning. As Kate said, with more experience that we gain throughout our class time and attending our field placements, we will become more knowledgeable about how to teach language arts in a way that benefits all students. In all of the special education classes at MSU, one of the main focuses is how teachers can help every student in the classroom learn. In order to do this, it is imperative that we become familiar with various means of presenting information to students and providing multiple ways for students to complete their work as well. Throughout the course of the class, I am sure we will discuss many ways in which this can be done to promote success in language arts and I'm looking forward to it!
I grew up in an urban environment where most of the students looked like me, however we all had different educational experiences. As a future Language Arts teacher i also would like to be in a diverse environment. I agree with Valand when she speaks of teachers in urban districts not being passionate about their jobs, this lack of interest has cause many students to turn away from education. Therefore i would like to teach in an urban area seeing as though this is the environment in which i grew up in so I understand how difficult it is to come across a GREAT teacher. When we were asked in class about a teacher who has impacted our live in a positive way I could not think of one teacher who had effected my educational success. This may be because of the teachers i have encountered and their lack of passion. for these reason i plan to also have high expectations for all students to show that i care about the personal outcomes in life.
ReplyDeleteIn this course I hope to gain a better understanding of how a classroom should look, feel, and sound like. Many students struggle with language arts, therefore i am looking to gain knowledge that will enhance my teaching ability to fit the needs of all students. I look forward to learning how to create a positive learning environment so that students are encouraged to learn.
*I cannot figure out how to start a new post. Before next time I'll have to ask how to do this - I'm sorry!!
ReplyDeleteI observe a 5th grade class that has reading time everyday. Each child picks a book and fills out a worksheet each day pertaining to the book they chose. I am unaware of what is exactly on that worksheet but I do know that they have to identify the genre and turn in their worksheets at the end of this week. The students are free to choose any book they like from the class library which has books of all genres; biographies, short stories, historical fiction, etc. There does not seem to be any sort of limit or rule on how many books in one genre the students are allowed to read, which does not prevent students from choosing picture books every time. The students also have a free write which is also due at the end of each week. Mrs. C believes writing is extremely important and has the students "publish" their writing onto nice paper after a rough draft. It is imperative to her that the students receive exposure to various genres of writing such as narrative, expository, etc.
While the students are asked to read each day, Mrs. C. does take one reading group at a time to help with the decoding many students have trouble with. There are 8 special education students in our class who read at a lower reading level so Mrs. C feels it is imperative to give the students who need more help the practice they need to at least be able to read through literature. She realizes that without the basic knowledge of decoding, it is difficult for students to further develop their literature skills and form personal connections to reading and writing.
I really enjoyed how Leland focused on the importance of exposing students to critical literature at a young age. I would also implement critical literature into my classroom to open students up to social issues. From Kim's experience, it is obvious that this triggers much more involvement from students. This is a great way to help bring students out of their norm and question society. As a child, it is not surprising to have your parents' mindset, but literature is a great way to help us form our own ideas and question our beliefs.
Not only is it important to involve critical literature into the curriculum, but writing is also imperative to help students develop their skills. In elementary school, we spent a lot of time writing grammatically correct sentences, spelling words, or writing random words in cursive. This does not seem to help with the development of writing skills. By involving creative writing, this could really bring out ideas in a different way. Writing can be an indirect way of evoking one's thoughts and can be a great media for students to ask and answer questions about social issues. By providing students with various creative reading and writing activities, it enables students to see that different interpretations are expected. One great way to help students realize this is the "thought-tappers" idea from the Langer article. This term can help students recognize that answers and questions to literature are not always right on the surface and straight forward; they can involve deeper thinking.
I also love the fact the Mrs. C gives the students an opportunity to post there writing. I think that this helps promote writing and helps students to evaluate their progress for themselves. Similar to Tracy, I did not have a lot of experience with writing in elementary school. Most of our writing was spelling and short answers to readings. I believe that given the chance to explore writing at an early age help students to become better critical thinkers. Like Leland says in the article, literacy helps students to understand both themselves and the world around them better.
DeleteI observe a second grade classroom where reading is the first thing that students do when they arrive at school. Mrs. Henderson gives students a choice of what they would like to read, however, each student has a reading box with books that are fit for their reading level. The types of books that are in their boxes are mainly fictional picture books. After a student finishes a book, Mrs. Henderson puts it in the classroom library for enjoyment reading, this is implemented so that students do not continue to read the same books over and over. After reading the Langer article, I fear that students who struggle with reading are not taking everything they can from the text, seeing that Mrs. Henderson has silent reading, students who struggle with reading have their envisonment interrupted by words they cannot pronounce or other factors such as unfamiliar concepts. I would like to see more group reading or one on one reading being done in the classroom. Even though there is a lot of reading done in the classroom, I have yet to see any writing. Some of the students struggle with writing in terms of spelling, however I do not believe this should enable them. A quick write after each book would be helpful so that students can reevaluate what they have read.
Seeing that many students struggle with reading and writing, I believe that using the internet in the classroom for reading time would be very helpful to those students. Having them work on e-mailing skills, playing phonics games or reading digital books will motivate and engage students. As we become a more digital world this skill will only help students advance their literacy skills.