“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” - Nelson Mandela
Description/Overview:
Freeze right there! Yes you! There's a question that I want to ask ... Do you remember the time when you first learned something exciting? Something new and refreshing? It could have been in 3rd grade or in college? Do you remember what is was? I'm sure you do. Knowledge as significant as that will always carry with you. That is why lesson plans and lesson studies are so important to both teachers and students. As teachers, we must be aware of how our students learn. What they should learn and whether or not it was learned. This can be difficult, no? Well of course! Catering to students' learning abilities and work ethics is a key contributor to your classroom environment. Teachers must be able to plan their lessons, analyze them through evidence of assessments, and eventually refine them to make them better. This is what we have learned and are perfecting in Education 376-380.
Skills Gained
Throughout this course this semester, I have participated in the creation of several learning segments that are based off Tasks I-III in the edTPA. These segments are based off our field experiences in the middle school and high school environments. We have performed our middle school and high school lessons in-class, where are own peers take the roles of our "students." The development of our own learning segments, gave us the tools and skills to learn and perfect lesson planning. To plan, to revise, to integrate ideas and personal experiences, key learning assessments, all while leading up to the learning segments outcomes and whether or not students retained the information to your standards and those of the curriculum. Some of my decisions and actions that went along with the work within this class were a bit inconclusive. When it comes to the decisions towards lesson planning, I could have taken a more stimulating route. I learned this towards the end of the semester (I mean, better late then never. Right?). Seeing the changes I should have made in my lesson plans, has taught me a great deal about creating a certain flow within the lessons. The flow of a lesson plan is also a key factor, in which it concerns the learning abilities of my students.
Lessons Learned
This course (376-380) was definitely a roller coaster of a ride! I have to say, that it was a challenge that I will never forget. As a first time learner of lesson plan constructing, it was very intimidating. Though I am no perfectionist when it comes to lesson planning, even after this course, I have most certainly learned a great deal from the class itself and the field experience that was recommended for this course. Applying the knowledge, insights and skills that I have learned throughout this course will help in the construction of future lesson plans. Key focus on the outcomes of my students and whether or not this will be useful to them in the future. It is through my field experience that I have learned how teachers in the field are teaching their students. It is them, that we look to in order to find different learning styles and skills to apply to our future classroom lessons. Observing at Dewitt Clinton and In-Tech Academy are two very different learning scenarios. Both being at odd ends of the spectrum, but that is where we learn how different a learning environment can be. To be prepared for even the most well-claimed schools to those schools who are struggling to even keep up with students attending class. It is there that we learn the true meaning of teaching.
Impact/Importance
In a small way, my work has benefited our Education 376-380 class, but it has impacted me on such a larger scale, that I feel the most affected by the goals and values that I have connected to this learning experience. In my field experience work, I related to some of the students at Dewitt Clinton, but I focused my energies at In-Tech Academy. The students there have impacted me on such a basic level, that I feel as though I had the same affect on them.
Freeze right there! Yes you! There's a question that I want to ask ... Do you remember the time when you first learned something exciting? Something new and refreshing? It could have been in 3rd grade or in college? Do you remember what is was? I'm sure you do. Knowledge as significant as that will always carry with you. That is why lesson plans and lesson studies are so important to both teachers and students. As teachers, we must be aware of how our students learn. What they should learn and whether or not it was learned. This can be difficult, no? Well of course! Catering to students' learning abilities and work ethics is a key contributor to your classroom environment. Teachers must be able to plan their lessons, analyze them through evidence of assessments, and eventually refine them to make them better. This is what we have learned and are perfecting in Education 376-380.
Skills Gained
Throughout this course this semester, I have participated in the creation of several learning segments that are based off Tasks I-III in the edTPA. These segments are based off our field experiences in the middle school and high school environments. We have performed our middle school and high school lessons in-class, where are own peers take the roles of our "students." The development of our own learning segments, gave us the tools and skills to learn and perfect lesson planning. To plan, to revise, to integrate ideas and personal experiences, key learning assessments, all while leading up to the learning segments outcomes and whether or not students retained the information to your standards and those of the curriculum. Some of my decisions and actions that went along with the work within this class were a bit inconclusive. When it comes to the decisions towards lesson planning, I could have taken a more stimulating route. I learned this towards the end of the semester (I mean, better late then never. Right?). Seeing the changes I should have made in my lesson plans, has taught me a great deal about creating a certain flow within the lessons. The flow of a lesson plan is also a key factor, in which it concerns the learning abilities of my students.
Lessons Learned
This course (376-380) was definitely a roller coaster of a ride! I have to say, that it was a challenge that I will never forget. As a first time learner of lesson plan constructing, it was very intimidating. Though I am no perfectionist when it comes to lesson planning, even after this course, I have most certainly learned a great deal from the class itself and the field experience that was recommended for this course. Applying the knowledge, insights and skills that I have learned throughout this course will help in the construction of future lesson plans. Key focus on the outcomes of my students and whether or not this will be useful to them in the future. It is through my field experience that I have learned how teachers in the field are teaching their students. It is them, that we look to in order to find different learning styles and skills to apply to our future classroom lessons. Observing at Dewitt Clinton and In-Tech Academy are two very different learning scenarios. Both being at odd ends of the spectrum, but that is where we learn how different a learning environment can be. To be prepared for even the most well-claimed schools to those schools who are struggling to even keep up with students attending class. It is there that we learn the true meaning of teaching.
Impact/Importance
In a small way, my work has benefited our Education 376-380 class, but it has impacted me on such a larger scale, that I feel the most affected by the goals and values that I have connected to this learning experience. In my field experience work, I related to some of the students at Dewitt Clinton, but I focused my energies at In-Tech Academy. The students there have impacted me on such a basic level, that I feel as though I had the same affect on them.
- Developing an understanding of your student's abilities and learning levels. Each are unique in every way. Just as not every blade of grass is the same. They have the same color and smell, but when you look closer they are all different. Just as your students are, they may all be human and have a brain, but they do not all think and act the same way when you take a closer look.
- Teachers and students must learn the importance of personal experiences in the classroom. This is one of the only relations in which students can learn new information in your classroom. This correlation of key learning ideas and skills is an essential learning component.
- The importance of group development is that students need to make connections not only independently, but with their peers. This is the key to a supportive learning experience.