Throughout the course of
our English 493 teaching literature to adolescent’s class, I believe I have
grown as a teacher candidate. Throughout the quarter we have presented our book
talks, cooperative mini-lessons, and our unit plans. In addition, we also
discussed several teaching strategies and theories discussed in several pieces
of text. After everything I feel more aware of what it means to take control of
a classroom and instruct the students in an effective manner.
The book talks that we
presented to one another helped me think critically about bringing outside
sources into a classroom. The sources must have a perfect fit so to speak. The
text must be something that you feel could be approved by administrators,
parents, and the students. You also want the text to be engaging. Each student
should feel some kind of a connection to the text. There should not be a text
that only suits males or females, jocks or book worms. Finally, you need to make
sure the students can actually do something with the book. There should be a plethora
of assignments that you can assign to help the class understand what they are
reading (or have read).
The cooperative
mini-lessons showed me what it means to split up your class room and share the
control with another individual. This experience was nice because as a teacher
candidate there are going to be times when the teacher shares some of their
control with you. The experience also allowed me to see just how much you can
do with twenty minutes of class time. There are always going to be shortened
class periods due to assemblies but that doesn’t mean that you should just pop
in a movie!
The final project that we
did for the course was our unit plans. The unit plan was difficult and required
tremendous amounts of time management. The effort I was able to put in, but I
sure learned a lot about the importance of time management. Breaking down one
subject into three weeks took thought and plenty of notes. However, once all is
said and done, I am grateful for the experience. Before I had enrolled in the
class I had many people tell me of what was awaiting me – all I could think was
“no way! How am I supposed to do that?” However now I see that I can make a unit plan.
The other part of class
focused on several readings and blog posts that discussed in class. One of the
first discussions that we had in class (one of my favorites) was what it means
to have a democratic discussion in a classroom. I enjoyed this because in a way
it laid out how we should teach the idea to a classroom. The discussion also
showed us that not many classes have this talk, thus resulting in an awkward
silence when the topic is brought up. Another topic that was brought up was
reading. This was examined in Kelly Gallagher’s “Readicide.” I enjoyed the
opportunity to read this book because it showed the struggle that students are
facing. However, it also showed teachers (and teacher candidates) how we can overcome
this battle with reading. During the class discussions it was clear to see that
everyone loved that they were able to be introduced to this book. One of the
final topics that we went over in class that was a favorite of mine was social
justice in the classroom. This tied into the democratic dissuasions that should
be facilitated in a class. I believe so because both focus on having a safe environment
for students to grow, learn and share their ideas.
Overall, I am thankful to
have taken this class. I feel so much stronger and confident when I walk into a
classroom. I am grateful for the knowledge that I have acquired because I now
have sources to back up my thinking and choices in the classroom. I feel as if
I still have a long ways to go to become a great teacher, but I now feel like I
am on the right path to reaching that goal. I know now that it is so, so important
to keep studying and reading on how to improve. I see that classrooms are
always going to be changing and it is vital that teachers change right alongside
them.
