Reflection on Video, Week #3
For this
week, we had to portray a classroom that was supportive and learning focused,
and I would like to think that kind of classroom is what is developed within
the first few moments of the students walking through the doors on the first
day of school. As teachers we are to make certain our classrooms are places
where mistakes can be learned from and messing up is okay as long as it is
fixed. We have to allow for that kind of mindset because perfection isn’t
always going to be a possibility. We also have to make certain that we advocate
imperfection because how else are we going to learn? Even as teachers, we were
once students, and we have to keep that in mind. There was once a time when I
didn’t know “everything”, and I had to have someone instruct me, and you know
what, that is fine! Without that instruction, I wouldn’t have learned what I
did, and I wouldn’t have known that it is good to make mistakes because it
means I was working my way towards fixing them. Support is so important, and as
a teacher, I try to maintain that attitude in my classroom, even on the hardest
of days. It’s good to always have the answer, but the better part is watching
the students figure out the answer on their own.
From
watching my video, I would say that I try to be supportive when my students
have a wrong or right answer. Taking the risk to even volunteer is good, even
if all the information isn’t present. Some correct information is better than
no information. Taking a guess is fine because it indicates that the student is
involved and wants to participate, even if he or she may not know the exact
material. For example, when one of my girls is talking near the end of video
about Moses’ sister having leprosy, the student didn’t know the sister’s name,
but she did know crucial material for the question being asked. It was the
exact correct information; it just wasn’t all the way complete. I’d rather have
an educated guess or incomplete answers as opposed to no answers or no
participation at all. She still put her wisdom out there, and it was all good
and useful stuff!
From my
video, I would also say that we are a learning based classroom with a touch of
sass. It’s an all female environment; therefore, certain parts of the class are
going to be received in certain ways that might differ were it a coed school.
For example, when we talk about the Israelites being lost in the desert and
eating the same food, we call it leftovers and talk about that for a hot minute
more than necessary, but it is still imperative to my students. They want to
know this information even if it is just a little detail. I want to allow them
that freedom to pay attention to the details or other aspects that they find
amusing and can bend to seem more relevant to modern times. I’m sure Moses
wasn’t calling day old food “leftovers”, but it helps them to understand the
concept a little more. School is meant for learning, but it can also be fun if
you have a good rapport with your class and your material.
On the
other hand, I do believe that I could do better with academic language and less
modernization of the material. While it is always a grand old time to make
school and learning fun, it is also imperative to remember that students are
here for an education. Not everything can be a game or can be a quick fix. I
have to keep in mind that there is a level of achievement that I want my
students to reach, and I need to be constantly pushing them to that level in
improving their vocabulary and use of proper English in and out of the
classroom. In a classroom, it is difficult to find that balance between hard
core academia and hard core partying. It is still a delicate medium that I am
searching for, and while I realize that I am an educator and not an
entertainer, I also want my students to be invested in what we are discussing
in class. The way I have figured out how to do this is via modernizing the
language and making the material more accessible and relative to the students.
How do I meet in the middle of the scale? This is something that I am still
working on…
No comments:
Post a Comment