Beginning of the Semester Reflection

 

 Personal Learning Goals

 

Professional Responsibility (PR 5):

 

Step out of my comfort zone a little more and collaborate with teachers, parents, learners, and community members whenever possible. I've always been pretty good about discussing things with my mentor teacher; however, this time I would love to hear from other teachers in the school, the principal, and the students. There are also many behavioral specialists and councilors at my placement so this will be a great opportunity for me to hear their perspectives and gain new knowledge on different learners.

Planning for Learning (P7):

 

 Create lessons that clearing connect to the program of studies and student learning goals. I want to ensure that my students are not only engaged but are having to think deeply and creatively. This will also include having to plan for differentiation as not all students learn in the same way or are at the same starting point.

Facilitating Learning (F3):

 

Incorporating technologies into the class whenever appropriate. Although my particular placement does not have a lot of technology to use, I am hoping to be able to utilize what they do have and create fun, engaging, and meaningful lessons. I have yet to really use technology with a lesson so I am excited to push myself and see what I can come up with.

Assessment (A5):

 

Specific constructive feedback is a vital part of students being able to understand where they are at and what they need to do to reach their learning goals. I want to ensure that I am giving students this sort of feedback and to make sure I know where each of my students are at. Doing regular check-ins and anecdotal note taking will help to keep me on track and be able to provide extra support to students that need it.

Environment (C4):

 

Respect is a prominent theme in my placement school; therefore, I would love to be able to provide an environment where everyone is respectful of their peers and feels they are in a space that they can learn and grow. I want to be able to encourage students to be risk takers and build confidence in themselves are learners and as individuals.

Previous Educational Technology Experience 

 

As a pre-service teacher I haven’t had the opportunity to really utilize technology as of yet. During my field experience time I either wasn’t teaching a whole lot or the school I was placed in didn’t have a lot of access to technology. I’m hoping to step out of my comfort zone and experiment this upcoming fall to utilize whatever technology is available and find unique ways of incorporating it into my lessons. 

As for my student experience with technology, my high school was one of the first to do the one-to-one program with laptops. We also had smartboards that many schools did not have yet; however, I don’t recall really using them as a part of our learning. They were more so just used as a way of writing notes but nothing more. As for the laptops, it was an interesting way to learn but I do believe it helped in research for many of my classes and I do remember using them for learning games and connecting with my peers.

"Burning" Question About Technology in the Classroom

 

Technology is a rising ever-growing and ever-evolving tool that can be highly beneficial in the classroom when used effectively. However, with its growing popularity, I often wonder if students are receiving perhaps too much screen time and not enough hands on time. The advances with VR and AR are tremendous, especially when considering the endless possibilities that can be used in the classroom, but I wonder if these technologies are taking away from physically going on field trips or creating projects with raw materials and their own two hands.

Why is This Important to Me?

 

This question is so important to me because I remember doing some projects in my own school experience where we had to physically create biospheres and Rube Goldburg Machines, whereas now students are still doing these projects but they are through an app and a screen. I just wonder if the virtual experiences will be as impactful and engaging when compared to the physical creations that I had growing up.