Thank you for taking the time to see my growth through the teaching profession. In this e-portfolio, one can find many artifacts that show my progress through my student teaching experience. Included are my philosophy on teaching, evaluation samples, various test scores, and papers that involved me to critically think and reflect about what I was doing in the classroom. Here, one can find how I implemented the many things that I learned from my Regent University courses into practice. To show my knowledge on the various aspects of teaching, I discussed in seven papers about differentiating instruction; planning assessments and instruction; developmentally-appropriate instruction; effective communication and collaboration; content knowledge in interdisciplinary curriculum; technology integration; and classroom and behavior management.
My experience has been very rewarding. It was probably the most stressful thing I have ever done, but it was worth it because I learned more about myself and what it means to be an effective teacher. I entered this preparation with many nerves and low self esteem and now after reaching the light at the end of the tunnel, I am very excited with a new found belief that I will be an exceptional educator. When I started student teaching, I thought I was more interested in the primary grades. However, when I did my first placement in 4th grade, I fell in love with everything different about teaching older students. I still enjoyed 1st grade, but it sure was different and very challenging! Ultimately, I learned that I would enjoy and be sufficiently prepared to teach any grade given.
Dedicating so much time into student teaching taught me a lot about the teaching profession. I learned how to prioritize as my weeks became harder. I really had to make sure that I dedicated the little time that I had to prepare for the week because not only was I depending on it, but the students and my cooperating teacher were as well. I improved on how to manage my time and occasionally include breathers throughout my week. I was pretty solid at developing lessons, but I quickly had to improve my skills and strategies on assessing students and keeping track of their data.
Another main thing that I took away from this experience was that I learned how flexible teachers must be. I quickly realized how there truly isn’t enough time in the day to accomplish everything that one hopes to accomplish. Sometimes certain circumstances occur that are not in one’s control. Sometimes teachers must spend extra time instructing or reviewing content to ensure that the students understand. Either way, I learned how to not let those things stress me out. I learned that everything will get done eventually, but one must be flexible and be willing to adapt. For example, I had an awesome addition activity planned one day that ended up being pushed into the next week because time was short and I needed to prioritize certain activities. It all worked out though because we were still able to accomplish everything that was essential.
I am very pleased how my experience turned out. I believe that everything happened for a reason and that I grew and learned from every moment. I am confident that I can help children succeed academically and help continue their growth as responsible, kind human beings. My learning and role as a student does not stop here, however! I will continue to strive to be better. I still have much to learn that will mainly be taught through experience. I look forward to these learning moments in my life so that I can benefit every student that I encounter the best way I can.
My experience has been very rewarding. It was probably the most stressful thing I have ever done, but it was worth it because I learned more about myself and what it means to be an effective teacher. I entered this preparation with many nerves and low self esteem and now after reaching the light at the end of the tunnel, I am very excited with a new found belief that I will be an exceptional educator. When I started student teaching, I thought I was more interested in the primary grades. However, when I did my first placement in 4th grade, I fell in love with everything different about teaching older students. I still enjoyed 1st grade, but it sure was different and very challenging! Ultimately, I learned that I would enjoy and be sufficiently prepared to teach any grade given.
Dedicating so much time into student teaching taught me a lot about the teaching profession. I learned how to prioritize as my weeks became harder. I really had to make sure that I dedicated the little time that I had to prepare for the week because not only was I depending on it, but the students and my cooperating teacher were as well. I improved on how to manage my time and occasionally include breathers throughout my week. I was pretty solid at developing lessons, but I quickly had to improve my skills and strategies on assessing students and keeping track of their data.
Another main thing that I took away from this experience was that I learned how flexible teachers must be. I quickly realized how there truly isn’t enough time in the day to accomplish everything that one hopes to accomplish. Sometimes certain circumstances occur that are not in one’s control. Sometimes teachers must spend extra time instructing or reviewing content to ensure that the students understand. Either way, I learned how to not let those things stress me out. I learned that everything will get done eventually, but one must be flexible and be willing to adapt. For example, I had an awesome addition activity planned one day that ended up being pushed into the next week because time was short and I needed to prioritize certain activities. It all worked out though because we were still able to accomplish everything that was essential.
I am very pleased how my experience turned out. I believe that everything happened for a reason and that I grew and learned from every moment. I am confident that I can help children succeed academically and help continue their growth as responsible, kind human beings. My learning and role as a student does not stop here, however! I will continue to strive to be better. I still have much to learn that will mainly be taught through experience. I look forward to these learning moments in my life so that I can benefit every student that I encounter the best way I can.