I can not believe it has already been one month since the beginning of this program. I have a feeling that the rest of the duration of this program will fly by as quickly as this month has and that makes me feel excited and overwhelmed all at the same time. The biggest thing I have learned thus far in the program is that the connection to your students is a large part of your teaching. You can make beautiful thought-out lesson plans but if you do not begin to form a relationship with your students all your preparations may fall flat. You have to create something the students connect with so that they buy-in. Teaching requires a delicate balance between planning, organization and spontaneity. There are times where you must stick to the plan but others where your students may lead you down a different path that may turn out to be better than your planned destination. For the expected learning so far what has been presented to us definitely did not match my expectations. I mean this in the best way possible. I expected to be presented with the day to day procedures of teaching, which are important and I am sure we will get to, but starting with a top-down approach and creating a theoretical and ideological base for teaching really helps to put things in perspective. So, coming from where we are now getting into the more practical side of things I think it will connect nicely together. Also, as much as online learning is a less alluring option when it comes to education I think that our teachers as well as my fellow peers have made the most of it and are adapting as we go further into the program. I think that a big thing that I have learned about myself through this process is that I can adapt quickly and I am more outgoing once I get comfortable than I thought. I always thought of myself as more introverted and not overly confident but stepping into the role of “teacher in training” I feel like I am becoming more comfortable with who I am and how my personality fits into my teaching ideologies. Overall I think my expectations have been exceeded thus far in the program and I am very excited to see what’s around the corner.
14 October 2020 at 12:04 pm
1. I like that you’re acknowledging your starting point and creating connections to your own identity of who you are and who you are becoming
2. It is nice to see the connections you’re making between our current courses and your future teacher ideologies. Super awesome that you are making inferences from our course work and how they are going to intermingle in our future learnings/ ideologies and pedagogies as you continue your education journey
3. I’d love to know more of your story of how you wanted to become a teacher (dealing with humans all day) when you recognized that you are naturally introverted. What is it about the profession that made you overcome your “not overly confident” self and pursue this career? With that asked, it is so awesome that you took a leap of faith and are here with us and glad you’re growing in the “I.” 🙂
15 October 2020 at 3:08 pm
Hey Sidney!
I thoroughly enjoyed reading through this! You really have a way with words. 🙂
I like how you are very honest in your writing, yet still remain polite! That’s an extremely delicate line I know. I also giggled at your “teacher in training” remark, I’ve heard it quite a bit in the past little while from my family!
One critique I can give is to provide further personal connections in your writing (if you’re comfortable in doing so, of course). It would help the reader (moi) understand your perspective just a pinch better. 🙂 But honestly, outstanding work!
Allison G