Standard #9: Professional Learning and Ethical Practice
The teacher engages in ongoing professional learning and uses evidence to continually evaluate his/her practice, particularly the effects of his/her choices and actions on others (learners, families, other professionals, and the community), and adapts practice to meet the needs of each learner.
Artifacts:
Reflective Statement:
Teachers have to constantly evaluate their teaching to make sure that they are meeting the needs of their students. This is done through personal reflection, learning new strategies, and making continual changes to one's teaching.
The artifacts that I included above are from my spring 2014 clinical placement in a third grade classroom at St. Columbkille Elementary School. These artifacts are journal entries that we were required to complete after each lesson plan. In these journal entries, I was to give a classroom activity summary of the day and a personal reflection. For this class, I had to write a total of ten journal entries. It was interesting to go back and read my thoughts from my first day at the school, to my last. By reading these, I am able to see my progression has a teacher and how my confidence has grown. These journal entries were very valuable in my development as a teacher. When teaching, it is important to continually reflect and change one's instruction. Reflection is something that comes naturally to me after teaching a lesson, but by writing it down, I was able to take even more time to think critically about what aspects went well in a particular lesson, and what could be improved. Through these reflections, I thought about what changes I could make to my teaching to better meet my students needs; whether it was a concept they did not quite grasp, or having better classroom management skills. After reflecting, it is important to seek out information to improve one's teaching. The way that I did this was by talking with my cooperating teacher, classmates, and professors. In my personal reflections, I have also come to realize that not everything will go perfectly in a lesson. I am learning to accept that not everything will go as I planned, but I can learn from it and it will make me a better teacher.
Through continually reflecting, I have been able to improve as a teacher. Though it is hard to admit when things do not go well, it is an important step when striving to be a better teacher. By writing these journal entries, I am able to see how my teaching has progressed. In the future, it will be important for me to continue to reflect on my teaching, even if it is not in formal writing. By doing this, I will continue to improve as a teacher, and my students' learning will be enhanced.
The artifacts that I included above are from my spring 2014 clinical placement in a third grade classroom at St. Columbkille Elementary School. These artifacts are journal entries that we were required to complete after each lesson plan. In these journal entries, I was to give a classroom activity summary of the day and a personal reflection. For this class, I had to write a total of ten journal entries. It was interesting to go back and read my thoughts from my first day at the school, to my last. By reading these, I am able to see my progression has a teacher and how my confidence has grown. These journal entries were very valuable in my development as a teacher. When teaching, it is important to continually reflect and change one's instruction. Reflection is something that comes naturally to me after teaching a lesson, but by writing it down, I was able to take even more time to think critically about what aspects went well in a particular lesson, and what could be improved. Through these reflections, I thought about what changes I could make to my teaching to better meet my students needs; whether it was a concept they did not quite grasp, or having better classroom management skills. After reflecting, it is important to seek out information to improve one's teaching. The way that I did this was by talking with my cooperating teacher, classmates, and professors. In my personal reflections, I have also come to realize that not everything will go perfectly in a lesson. I am learning to accept that not everything will go as I planned, but I can learn from it and it will make me a better teacher.
Through continually reflecting, I have been able to improve as a teacher. Though it is hard to admit when things do not go well, it is an important step when striving to be a better teacher. By writing these journal entries, I am able to see how my teaching has progressed. In the future, it will be important for me to continue to reflect on my teaching, even if it is not in formal writing. By doing this, I will continue to improve as a teacher, and my students' learning will be enhanced.