Reflect, Collaborate, Have Goals!
As I continue on my path as an educator I will work hard to constantly reflect upon my pedagogical practices. I believe that it was my process of reflection during my practicum that helped me grow as a teacher and become a better facilitator to my students over the 10weeks I spent in the classroom. Being able to reflect upon lessons that went well, needed alterations or outright failed made the process of facilitating much more effective. While reflection can seem tedious at times (especially during the BEd program), it is no doubt an effective way of seeing where you have come from and where you may be going in lessons, units and the school year as a whole. Perhaps what I found the most useful with reflections of my days and weeks was how I handled situations that arose with individual students. Being able to take yourself away from the situation and look at it from a distance is extremely beneficial. I learned early in my practicum that youth will test the limits imposed on them, how you as the teacher react is important to the classroom dynamics and the one-on-one relationships that are built with students throughout the school year. Having a written account of what transpired in the classroom becomes a very good tool to re-evaluate how you handled the situation when it originally occurred. Was the reaction justified? Did the punishment fit the offense? Should I have been more firm with my expectations? Was this issue as big of a deal as I made it out to be at the time? Was it clear to the student why I was frustrated or reacted in the manner I did? These questions and many more are answerable during the reflective process.
Being a part of the school community and collaborating with fellow educators will be another tactic I use to continue growing as a professional. Collaborating with my colleagues can be one of the most beneficial tools I use to create exciting lessons and meaningful units for my students. The expertise and creativity of fellow educators is remarkable.
Moving through my professional career it will be important that I continue to find new goals for myself. Accomplishing goals set out for myself has always been a priority for me. I am driven to succeed, do well and find new ways to improve. Creating both short and long term goals, year in and year out, will only help me grow as an educator. Achievable goals will also set in motion a purpose for my pedagogical practice as I navigate the world of a high school teacher. Setting goals and working hard to achieve them is a process I will work hard to actively accomplish as I move throughout my career.