Blog #9- The End is Just the Beginning

    Since the beginning of this course I have felt like the odd student because I was doing everything backwards.  Most students, I think, first decide they want to be teachers and then get the opportunity to experience a classroom through a course like this one.  I had already spent a year in a classroom which caused me to want to return to school and become a teacher.  This course has only strengthened my resolve to become a teacher and has opened my eyes to teaching opportunities in the classroom I have been overlooking for the last year.  I have been extremely grateful for the chance to step away from my everyday job as a classroom aide and do observations for my Service Learning.  I never ceased to be amazed how something that happened in the classroom on any given week, linked up so perfectly with the module that week.  It helped me to better analyze situations and to use some of the techniques we were learning.
    This semester along with this course, I was also taking English 2010.  I took this opportunity to do my research paper on education, particularly the high attrition and burnout rate of special education teachers.  I chose this subject because I am planning on going into special education with an autism minor.  Conducting research for my paper at the same time I was being introduced to the basics of elementary education was a real eye opener for me.  As I learned more, and watched the special education teachers I work with struggle with so many issue I was often asked, "Are you really sure you want to do THIS?"  My answer was and is a resounding Yes!  The more I have learned, both good and bad, has only increased my desire to be a teacher.  There is such a need for dedicated teachers nationwide, but I hope to stay in Utah and help fill the teacher shortage we are currently experiencing.  With a little luck I will get to return to the school I am working at currently.  I would love to give back to them after all the support and encouragement I have received there from the staff and teachers.
    During my research for English I came across several quantitative studies which concluded that older females are more likely to stay longer in the teaching profession, particularly special education, than younger teachers.  I intend to use this information to full advantage since I definitely fall into that category.  I believe this might be because we have experienced a lot more of life with all the ups and downs and find it a lot harder to let bureaucracy, upset parents, and sassy students rattle us.  I have seen this with my teaching lead.  She was an older female when she started teaching and I watch her roll with the punches every day a lot easier then her younger counterparts.  This is the belief I am moving forward with, and I hope it helps me become the teacher I am so excited and hopeful I will be.
    In conclusion, has this class and the service learning helped me in my decision to be a teacher?  Definitely!  It has increased my excitement and started my teaching foundation.  Every time I would sit down to study a module I regretted that I couldn't go in the next day and BE the teacher using some of the lessons.  I am ready to move forward and wish the next few semesters could fly by. I am ready to apply for and start the Special Education Program, NOW.  Thank you for everything, and look for me in the graduating class of 2025!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Blog #6 - Differentiating Instruction

 As in any classroom, we have a diverse group of students with many different individual needs.  The two biggest that stand out to me are our multiple ESL students, and our group of special needs learners.  This makes for an interesting day, where no single lesson plan is going to support or help our general ed students, or ESL students, and our students with special needs.  Instead I am pretty sure that my cooperating teacher makes no less than four separate learning plans for each day.  Before I discuss these differences though, I do love that she always starts the day with commonality (which in usually music based).  I think this is so important to find teaching moments that appeal to ALL the students so that "groups" are not formed and that they continue to feel like a classroom community. We are lucky in our class that we have three aides as well as the teacher.  I know that this is not normal and most classes are lucky to have one aide, but three...
Read more

Blog #8- Assessment

 I have thoroughly enjoyed my opportunity to blog my Service Learning journey.  Looking back over the blogs now, I remember concepts and experiences that had slipped my mind, and I appreciate the reminder of things I need to know and remember.  I believe I will continue to journal in this blog as I continue my education journey, just so I can look back on topics I want to remember and use in my future classroom.   I believe that with each module I have been able to make connections between my course work and what I am seeing on a daily basis in the classroom.  In fact it has been my favorite part of this course.  I am fortunate to have a very responsive cooperative teacher, because I often barrage her with questions on why she has done things a certain way, or if she is trying to acheive a specific outcome?  These questions have always stemmed from my coursework and something new I have learned.  She has also been patient with me and allowed ...
Read more

Blog #4 - ENGAGED LEARNING!

       This has been the perfect week to study this subject!  I have had the opportunity to see so many examples of engaged learning, and it is exciting!  I love that moment when you see all the students completely transfixed, and thoroughly invested in what is being presented/taught.  It's those moments, when everyone is happy and engaged that you know EXACTLY why you want to become a teacher.     This week my teacher introduced "word wall."  Since trying to get the students to work on writing, and their spelling words was becoming a challenge, (mainly because they were bored to death, you could tell) she made it a fun interactive game.  She gave each student several pieces of paper, with multiple pictures on them, only they weren't complete pictures they were blown up sections of other pictures.  All these pictures related to their spelling words, but you honestly couldn't tell by just looking at the blown up fragment.  ...
Read more