A Year In Review

As the final few days of the school come to a close and the chaos wanes, I can finally take a moment to reflect on the entire course of this year.  And as I look back, I see that I am a far better, more effective teacher than I was on day one of this school year.  The evidence of this is clear, as I think through the triumphs of my students and grade their final exams.  This has been a year of growth and rigorous learning for all of us.  I am thankful for their graciousness as I tried new techniques, tried new lessons, attempted new assessment methods, and planned more discourse.  There were growing pains during much of the "change," but in the end, when I look at the joy on their faces, hear the beautiful music they perform, watch them sight-read a new piece of music in minutes, and listen to their intelligent and academic discussions, I'm in awe of the amazing things these students have accomplished.  So here are the three things, I'd say are the biggest changes in my development as a teacher that led to this beautiful result.

1. It is worth the extra time to slow down and empower students by giving them opportunities to tell and show what they know or are learning. 
2. Music literacy skills are only maintained if they are worked on daily. 
3. Simplify, simplify, simplify! Seriously, you don't need to do it all today!

So there is it folks.  This list is obviously not the complete index of what I've learned this year (I'd need a least another 50 pages to list all of the learning and growth), but it is important to note that these particular elements really made an impact on student engagement and learning.  So I will count that as a win, and continue to strive to be a better educator each day.  

Professional Development

Effective professional development is vital to improving teaching practice and the quality of our schools (Desimone, 2011).  School districts that are intentional about providing formal and informal professional development opportunities promote success in their schools.  Seminars, workshops, conferences, and local or national professional organizations provide access to knowledge, skills, and best practices of educators and experts across the country (Professional Organizations Webquest). 

Additionally, cultivating a collaborative school culture allows teachers the chance to learn from one another and provide support for new (and returning) educators.  This year, my school implemented a bi-monthly requirement for teachers to spend at least 45 minutes collaborating with other teachers in the school.  Though this is something I already do often, it is a great reminder to collaborate more intentionally.  Teachers prepare a brief report of what is discussed during their collaboration meetings and submit it to our administrators by the end of the week.  This report provides accountability and is a useful tool for summarizing the ideas, problems, and/or solutions discussed while collaborating.  

Administrators have also changed our district's in-service formats to include workshops and seminars that give teachers opportunities to learn from the expertise and experience of educators in our district. These changes demonstrate a new era professional development in our school district.  I look forward to seeing the results of these new formats on our professional practice. 

Intro to Teaching Reflection

As stated in Internship Performance Criteria 8.2, teachers grow and develop professionally when they participate in a collaborative educational community where feedback is given by colleagues to improve instruction and advance knowledge of teaching practices and methods.  Through collaborative learning in this course, I gained an understanding of how culturally relevant teaching practices can positively impact students in my classroom.

The purpose of culturally relevant teaching is to enhance learning by connecting academic concepts to students’ cultural knowledge, prior experiences and performance styles (see Figure 1). 

Figure 1

For every human being, previous experiences and cultural contexts determine the lens through which he or she learns.  It is vital that educators validate students’ identities and backgrounds by incorporating curriculum that includes their life experiences in their learning. As students and teachers become more familiar with the cultures represented in their community, they learn to value diversity, self-assess their own biases, and understand dynamics of difference within their school (Cross, 1989).

As I’ve participated in the course over the last eight weeks, one of my students has been on my mind. This particular high school student’s incredible work ethic is admired by all of the teachers at my school and he regularly receives good grades.  However, last year he started falling behind on assignments, often fell asleep in class, and missed several days of school. Eventually I pulled him aside to express my concern and ask what was causing these changes.  He explained that his father, a Mexican immigrant, had broken his ankle and was unable to work.  So he was working two jobs in order to help the family pay their bills, taking care of his father and younger siblings while his mother worked, and desperately trying to stay on top of the ever-mounting pile of homework so he could get good enough grades to go to college.  I was shocked! No wonder he had trouble learning at school. 

If teachers don’t understand the cultural factors and experiences that affect their students’ learning at school, they cannot provide the support and resources these students need to succeed.  This year, I hope to develop better knowledge of my students’ previous cultural experiences, plan curriculum that is relatable to students’ everyday lives, and facilitate discussion that opens students’ eyes to the diverse perspectives present in our classroom (Kozleski, 2010).   By accomplishing these goals, I can provide learning opportunities that help my students develop cultural competence and connect what they know to what they learn.

* Cross, T.L. (1989). Towards A Culturally Competent System of Care. Retrieved from http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED330171

* Kozleski, E.B. (2010). Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters!. Retrieved from http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED520957

Characteristics of an Effective Educator

Maria Montessori once said, “The greatest sign of success for a teacher is to be able to say, ‘The children are now working as if I did not exist.” Effective educators are identified by their ability to nurture students’ natural curiosity and passion for learning, by equipping them with skills to become independent learners.  These educators are well-prepared, organized, and clear in their expectations.  They are masters in their respective fields and radiate confidence, enthusiasm, and passion as they teach.  Effective teachers know and care about their students’ academic strengths and weaknesses, personal interests, and unique personalities. They create engaging lessons that spur on independent thought, active learning, and in-depth discussion.  Their humor and wit provide the perfect amount of comic relief.  Students would say that these effective educators are fair, approachable, and wise.  They are a source of support for their students academically and personally.  But most important of all, effective educators inspire their students to become life-long learners by making learning a source of joy.