Dear Sean,
Out
of all the quarters that I have attended Eastern Washington University, this
was by far the busiest for me because I had a full course load and was spending
more than 11 hours a week at my placement. However, I did enjoy English 493.
The book talks were probably the best part about the class because I had the
opportunity to share two of my favorite books with my peers and provide
rationale for why they should be taught in the classroom. My first book talk
was on Harriet the
Spy by Louise Fitzhugh and it was towards the middle of the quarter.
Although I received a good score on it, I felt that I could have done better.
For example, I could have been more specific about the obstacles that students,
parents, and administrators may have with the book. Since I wrote out my book
talk the second week of the quarter, I did not look at it until I had to print
it off. In the future, I would probably revise my book talk and make sure that
I had included all the requirements before printing it off. Despite not
doing as well as I hoped on my first book talk, I took my feedback seriously
and made sure that my second book talk on Under the Feet of
Jesus by Helena Maria Viramontes was as polished as possible. I focused specifically on the teaching ideas and obstacles because those were the two areas
where people kept on missing the most points. To my delight, my improvements
paid off and I received a perfect scored on my second book talk. In
addition, the book talks also gave me an idea of the wide range of books that
are out there. I had never heard of most of these books before learning about
them from my classmates. Although I barely have any time to read for personal
enjoyment, I plan on reading as many of these books when I get the chance. I
also think that these books would be great recommendations for my students.
The unit plan was the most challenging project that I have ever worked on, but it was also the most rewarding. When I first heard about the unit plan, I panicked. I did not know how I was going to create a feasible three-week unit plan. Nevertheless, I was able to complete my unit plan on Robert Fagles’ translation of the Odyssey. I found turning in drafts multiple times throughout the quarter helpful because I was able to receive feedback that I used to improve my unit plan. I think that if I had not had deadlines to meet I would have ended up procrastinating and leaving everything for the end. If I could change anything about my unit plan or the process that I took to create it, I would probably consider choosing a book that is smaller or a graphic novel. Although I only chose selections from the Odyssey to teach and paired it with Gareth Hinds' graphic novel, I still felt that it was a lot of material to cover in three weeks. In addition, I would start working on my daily lesson plans earlier in the quarter to avoid cramming at the end. Despite turning in a lesson plan for my first draft, I did not really do anything with my lesson plans until the middle of the quarter which I regret. I think that I would slowly work on developing lesson plans throughout the quarter instead of doing them all at once. I would also make sure to create them in order rather than jumping around and completing them at random. Overall, I think the fact that I completed this unit plan is a testament to my determination of wanting to become a teacher.
The unit plan was the most challenging project that I have ever worked on, but it was also the most rewarding. When I first heard about the unit plan, I panicked. I did not know how I was going to create a feasible three-week unit plan. Nevertheless, I was able to complete my unit plan on Robert Fagles’ translation of the Odyssey. I found turning in drafts multiple times throughout the quarter helpful because I was able to receive feedback that I used to improve my unit plan. I think that if I had not had deadlines to meet I would have ended up procrastinating and leaving everything for the end. If I could change anything about my unit plan or the process that I took to create it, I would probably consider choosing a book that is smaller or a graphic novel. Although I only chose selections from the Odyssey to teach and paired it with Gareth Hinds' graphic novel, I still felt that it was a lot of material to cover in three weeks. In addition, I would start working on my daily lesson plans earlier in the quarter to avoid cramming at the end. Despite turning in a lesson plan for my first draft, I did not really do anything with my lesson plans until the middle of the quarter which I regret. I think that I would slowly work on developing lesson plans throughout the quarter instead of doing them all at once. I would also make sure to create them in order rather than jumping around and completing them at random. Overall, I think the fact that I completed this unit plan is a testament to my determination of wanting to become a teacher.
Of the theories and discussions explored in class, the ones that stuck out to
me the most were the ones on Stephen Brookfield's article "Discussion as a
Way of Teaching" and Social Justice in the Classroom. These discussions
stood out to me because two of the aspects that I want to focus on in my future
classroom are discussions and social justice. I want to create a safe
environment for my students where they can feel free to express their thoughts
without being concerned about what others may think or say. I also want my
students to have the necessary resources to succeed both inside and outside my
classroom.
Moreover, Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed was also an interesting read because it brought up many valid points such as the fact that the classroom needs to be more student-centered than teacher-centered. Even though teachers have good intentions about teaching students, they often lose sight of this when structuring their classrooms and expect students to listen attentively to them as they fill their brains with knowledge. I did not agree with this "banking concept" because I believe that students do not come to school with empty brains waiting to be filled. Instead, I believe that students come to school with some general knowledge of the world around them and teachers teach students how to process that information. After reading a section of this book, I am going to keep the "banking concept" in mind and try to avoid using it with my students. I know that I was not always the most vocal individual during discussions, but I liked sitting around in a circle and listening to what other individuals had to say about a concept and every now and then voicing my own opinion. These discussions not only helped me strengthen my ideas about theories and concepts regarding teaching, but also taught me a lot about collaborating with my colleagues. As a future teacher, I will need to know how to collaborate with other teachers during staff meetings about a variety of topics.
Moreover, Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed was also an interesting read because it brought up many valid points such as the fact that the classroom needs to be more student-centered than teacher-centered. Even though teachers have good intentions about teaching students, they often lose sight of this when structuring their classrooms and expect students to listen attentively to them as they fill their brains with knowledge. I did not agree with this "banking concept" because I believe that students do not come to school with empty brains waiting to be filled. Instead, I believe that students come to school with some general knowledge of the world around them and teachers teach students how to process that information. After reading a section of this book, I am going to keep the "banking concept" in mind and try to avoid using it with my students. I know that I was not always the most vocal individual during discussions, but I liked sitting around in a circle and listening to what other individuals had to say about a concept and every now and then voicing my own opinion. These discussions not only helped me strengthen my ideas about theories and concepts regarding teaching, but also taught me a lot about collaborating with my colleagues. As a future teacher, I will need to know how to collaborate with other teachers during staff meetings about a variety of topics.
In large part due to this course, I now feel more prepared to
become a teacher. Now that I have developed my own unit plan, I am honestly not
afraid of what lies ahead. I think that this course provided me with a glimpse
of what teachers experience on a daily basis. While creating one unit plan was
hard enough, I cannot imagine how teachers create multiple unit plans
throughout the school year. Additionally, the classroom discussions gave me an
idea of how I am going to approach parents and administrators when dealing with
difficult topics. Furthermore, I learned that I am not going to be a
perfect teacher. No matter how hard I try, there are always going to be things
that I can improve. No matter how much I plan, there is always going to be
something unexpected that comes up. The best part is that I am okay
knowing these things because that is part of the learning process. I have
to make mistakes and learn from them before I can truly experience success.
Sincerely,
Norma Ramos
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