Methods of Teaching English
Final Reflection
Dr. Hartman,
In the beginning, I struggled with every piece of the unit mainly because I did not know what I was doing, which is understandable considering I had never written a unit before. I did not know where to start and I made the mistake to focus on the texts. I have always thought that 12 Angry Men would be an amazing text to study and it fit with my topic, but this text became the focus for my unit plan and lesson demos. I did get a few good lesson ideas and support for my rationale, but overall, I spent too much time thinking about this text. I realized I was not moving forward with my unit and I needed to change my focus. This also happened when we started thinking about goals and assessment. I think at that point, I was feeling stronger about those pieces of the unit because I met with you to discuss my ideas. Talking to you about my expectations for the different assessment helped find the language for the rubrics. I remember how difficult it was to create a rubric in Teaching of Writing and it was still difficult this time. I am seeing how complicated assessment can be when I think about what I value and what others (coworkers, parents, students, federal/state standards, etc) value.
In my most recent draft, I still feel weak about the rubrics but they are better than what I had in earlier drafts. I am confident about the rationale and the weekly lessons, but I know I can improve weeks 2-6 that are outlined in my unit. I think it was difficult outlining each week because I was not sure until the last week of classes which text would be the major text for my unit. I considered not having a major literature text for my unit and instead use excerpts from multiple sources. Many of the sources I thought about were included in the draft work I submitted to you but I ended up cutting half of them. I thought I could use them as example texts for students who choose to focus on a particular issue not discussed in class. For example, if a student was interested in environmental issues as a social injustice, I could mention one text as an example called Silent Spring. As I always say, I know there is room for improvement in my unit.
The lesson demos were great learning experiences because I have not had many opportunities to create a lesson and then teach it in a class. The first lesson demo was rough because I know I was nervous. When I’m nervous, I stumble over my words, repeat myself, and I am very forgetful. In the second lesson demo, however, I did not feel as nervous. I felt like I was in more control of myself and the lesson, but without making myself the major focus during the lesson. I can definitely see how the write-discuss-write-discuss can get boring and I tried to think about this as I was revising the unit. I can honestly say I felt more confidant during this demo than I have ever felt standing in front of a class and I think that is a major improvement. But, I think I lost this as I went into the third lesson demo because it was my first experience teaching a class in a high school. There were 30 students that day and I definitely felt overwhelmed. I was not as confidant standing in front of this class as I was in front of our Methods class during the second demo, and I think the lesson suffered as a result. I know this will be something I will have to work on for student teaching and I know I can do it.
The lesson demos helped me realize I can get up in front of a class and teach, and I’ve questioned that over the last three years. I wasn’t sure if I could do it but I do feel more confident than I have ever felt. I’ve been thinking about the teacher identity discussion we had in the last two class meetings. The realization that I can do this helped me see one piece of my teacher identity; I am a learner. I will always be gaining new knowledge on my own or collaboratively with my colleagues, students, friends, family, etc. I’ve learned over the past three years and this semester in Methods that I can do anything I set my mind to (excuse the cliché) especially when it comes to something I want out of life. I want to be a teacher and help students grow as individuals who have their own thoughts, beliefs, opinions, values. I want to give them opportunities to express this in an environment that does not criticize, but thinks critically about what they are faced with on a day-to-day basis. I don’t know if that communicated my thoughts on teacher identity clearly, or at all, but this is what I have been thinking about over the last week.
Julianne
(P.S. I know you usually skip over anything not related to the class, but I just wanted to let you know that I really appreciated your response to the excerpt I talked about in class. Knowing that you are not worried about me standing up in front of a class as the teacher means the world to me! It’s exactly what I needed to hear before I begin student teaching. Thank you Dr. Hartman!!!)
In the beginning, I struggled with every piece of the unit mainly because I did not know what I was doing, which is understandable considering I had never written a unit before. I did not know where to start and I made the mistake to focus on the texts. I have always thought that 12 Angry Men would be an amazing text to study and it fit with my topic, but this text became the focus for my unit plan and lesson demos. I did get a few good lesson ideas and support for my rationale, but overall, I spent too much time thinking about this text. I realized I was not moving forward with my unit and I needed to change my focus. This also happened when we started thinking about goals and assessment. I think at that point, I was feeling stronger about those pieces of the unit because I met with you to discuss my ideas. Talking to you about my expectations for the different assessment helped find the language for the rubrics. I remember how difficult it was to create a rubric in Teaching of Writing and it was still difficult this time. I am seeing how complicated assessment can be when I think about what I value and what others (coworkers, parents, students, federal/state standards, etc) value.
In my most recent draft, I still feel weak about the rubrics but they are better than what I had in earlier drafts. I am confident about the rationale and the weekly lessons, but I know I can improve weeks 2-6 that are outlined in my unit. I think it was difficult outlining each week because I was not sure until the last week of classes which text would be the major text for my unit. I considered not having a major literature text for my unit and instead use excerpts from multiple sources. Many of the sources I thought about were included in the draft work I submitted to you but I ended up cutting half of them. I thought I could use them as example texts for students who choose to focus on a particular issue not discussed in class. For example, if a student was interested in environmental issues as a social injustice, I could mention one text as an example called Silent Spring. As I always say, I know there is room for improvement in my unit.
The lesson demos were great learning experiences because I have not had many opportunities to create a lesson and then teach it in a class. The first lesson demo was rough because I know I was nervous. When I’m nervous, I stumble over my words, repeat myself, and I am very forgetful. In the second lesson demo, however, I did not feel as nervous. I felt like I was in more control of myself and the lesson, but without making myself the major focus during the lesson. I can definitely see how the write-discuss-write-discuss can get boring and I tried to think about this as I was revising the unit. I can honestly say I felt more confidant during this demo than I have ever felt standing in front of a class and I think that is a major improvement. But, I think I lost this as I went into the third lesson demo because it was my first experience teaching a class in a high school. There were 30 students that day and I definitely felt overwhelmed. I was not as confidant standing in front of this class as I was in front of our Methods class during the second demo, and I think the lesson suffered as a result. I know this will be something I will have to work on for student teaching and I know I can do it.
The lesson demos helped me realize I can get up in front of a class and teach, and I’ve questioned that over the last three years. I wasn’t sure if I could do it but I do feel more confident than I have ever felt. I’ve been thinking about the teacher identity discussion we had in the last two class meetings. The realization that I can do this helped me see one piece of my teacher identity; I am a learner. I will always be gaining new knowledge on my own or collaboratively with my colleagues, students, friends, family, etc. I’ve learned over the past three years and this semester in Methods that I can do anything I set my mind to (excuse the cliché) especially when it comes to something I want out of life. I want to be a teacher and help students grow as individuals who have their own thoughts, beliefs, opinions, values. I want to give them opportunities to express this in an environment that does not criticize, but thinks critically about what they are faced with on a day-to-day basis. I don’t know if that communicated my thoughts on teacher identity clearly, or at all, but this is what I have been thinking about over the last week.
Julianne
(P.S. I know you usually skip over anything not related to the class, but I just wanted to let you know that I really appreciated your response to the excerpt I talked about in class. Knowing that you are not worried about me standing up in front of a class as the teacher means the world to me! It’s exactly what I needed to hear before I begin student teaching. Thank you Dr. Hartman!!!)