In the previous semester, a major part of our UBC BED program consisted of unit and lesson planning for the long practicum. I used this time to create a pair of unit plans (for IB Biology and Biology 12), in the hope of using these for my practicum. However, as we near our start dates for the long practicum, we have been given a lot of new information and pedagogical techniques to implement during our practicum. The interesting note is that I never considered using these ideas, such as backwards implementation of subject matter (which looks to be particularly useful in planning our units and lesson), and have been noticing countless ways to improve my unit plans from last semester. This is noteworthy because I feel these techniques will help us all out in the long run, so I wish to readjust my original plans to incorporate the new ideologies that I’ve learnt this month. I almost wish that these classes had been included before the winter holidays, as it would have been more streamlined and efficient for the BED program to know this information before formally writing our unit plans. That being said, I am glad these classes were included before our long practica, as it gives us some time to adjust our previous documents and make any necessary changes. For me, it is really noteworthy because the first unit I am about to teach in Biology 12 (focusing on respiration and circulation) has changed a small amount. I have been making a lot of changes to this original unit of mine, and this had made it much easier to incorporate the new knowledge I have gained this month (namely on assessment, social emotional learning, and backwards implementation). I look forward to prepping more for my long practicum, and cannot wait to get into my classes, interact with the kids, and really start to get my feet wet. After all, that’s what we’re all here for!
Adventures in Teaching and Life