EDUC 435 Last Blog

      Hello everyone!  Welcome to my last blog of the semester!!  How are we already at the end of our fall semester before student teaching?  This semester has flown by for me.  I am excited and nervous for student teaching.  I have been using my time in the classroom very wisely.  Since, halloween I have been able to teach almost every Wednesday for the whole day.  I want to get the feel for how it will be when I am teaching all day in the spring.  The students have seemed to enjoy me teaching and are very engaged.  I have learned how teachers have to be able to change plans or activities in a short amount of time.  For example, some activities planned for the students they either finished early or was too difficult for them.  This is when I find an additional task or alternative task for the student or students to do.  One of my main goals in the spring semester is to have plenty of activities planned for the whole day so the students are not bored.  When the students become bored their brains are not absorbing material and they tend to have more behavioral problems.  I really enjoyed completing the clinical checklist for this class.  I feel like I was able to gain more knowledge on aspects I may have never even thought about asking my clinical instructor about.
      In my clinical placement we have had the students participating in more and more group work activities.  I have noticed how some students seem to work together in the groups and how others stay to themselves and sometimes do not even try to work on or take part with the activity at hand.  I remember this being an issue when I was in school.  I was a very shy person and would end up not being able to take part in the activity or doing the activity by myself because I was not included.  I decided to do my research on this specific dilemma.  I found a video on edutopia that discusses a way to make sure every student is involved during group work.  This teacher gives his students roles/jobs in each group.  For example, each group has a speaker, manager, scribe, and an inquirer.  The students know their jobs and they all work together to complete the task at hand.  This strategy helps all of the students to have a part in the task at hand and everyone is able to work together.  I feel like I will need to simplify the terms for my kindergarteners, but I do feel like I could implement this strategy into my placement for group work.  I look forward to seeing how this strategy will impact and change group work.  Please check the video out when you have a chance! < https://www.edutopia.org/video/60-second-strategy-cooperative-learning-roles>
      I have been able to demonstrate standard 1-5 of the NCTCS standards during my clinical time in the classroom.  I am a leader to the students by leading them through the content and learning task in the classroom.  I have been able to follow standard two, "Teachers establish a respectful environment for a diverse population of students," by creating a relationship with each student, making sure they feel welcomed when they come in every morning, and giving each student a chance to share.  I have portrayed standard three, "Teachers know the content they teach," by being prepared and educated on the content before coming to school to teach.  This helps me to be knowledgable of the content so I can answer any additional questions from students.  I have followed standard four, "Teacher facilitate learning for their students," by using different instructional methods, using technology, having students work together in groups, etc.  Lastly, I have been able to demonstrate standard five, "Teachers reflect on their practice," by reviewing over students work, their understandings expressed orally, and assessments.  This helps me to see what standards I need to revisit/ reteach to help the class understand the content better.  
       In my future classroom I will continue to follow the NCTCS standards for my students.  I feel like the best and most successful teacher is able to follow all six of the NCTCS standards.  I will strive to follow these every single day.  I also want to use the strategy for group work form my outside research in my future classroom.  I want all of my students to feel included and to be engaged in their group work.  I feel like by assigning jobs the students will all be able to take part in the group work assignment.  In my future classroom I will also make sure to have plenty of other task and work for students to do when they finish early.  I do not want my students to be bored or to become frustrated if a task is too hard.  I want to be prepared and have a solution for either one of these dilemmas.  I have observed a teacher in the past who had educational games created for students.  I feel like this would be a great aspect to add into this classroom.  What kindergarten student doesn't love to play games?  I think students would enjoy this incentive, leading them to finish their work early and prevent behavior issues.  I can't wait to have my own classroom and can see this dream coming true very soon!
Resources:
Person. (2018, November 2). 60 Second-Strategy: Cooperative Learning Roles. Retrieved November, 2018, from https://www.edutopia.org/video/60-second-strategy-cooperative-learning-roles 
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/effectiveness-model/ncees/standards/prof-teach-standards.pdf