This week I taught a new unit to the students, which introduced them to drawing portraits. I was given the opportunity to put together the packet this time around, and I really enjoyed this part of the planning for the unit (Standard 3-Planning for Differentiated Instruction). I think the students really enjoyed learning about the placement of facial features and proportions. They are drawing a half portrait right now, and I will be teaching my own lesson this upcoming week.
It feels good to have a little more freedom and flexibility in the planning of this last lesson. It was hard finding something that the students have not done yet or will do in the next art courses, but the project I chose was approved by both of my Cooperating Teachers. The students will be creating a drawing of a long-necked animal and then adding collage newspaper over it with different shades/tints of a color.
I got done grading all of the students' manikin drawings and submitted their grades into the system. The majority of them did well, although there were a few who did not turn anything in. Day after day I ask them for any work they may have and their response is either "No" or "Tomorrow." My Cooperating Teachers handled those student's grades. Mrs. B told me to give them a deadline, which is tomorrow.
One of the students is actually failing the class, which is surprising to me given that their parents pay so much money for him to attend this school. This particular student does not try in class, and Mrs. A has had problems with him since the beginning of the school year. I would have contacted his parents a long time ago, but I don't see that happening. From what I see and understand, Mrs. A is just going to let him fail. I have though of ways of helping him besides offering encouragement. Extra credit is not offered, but then I question if he would even do that if he does not turn in bigger projects.
On another note, on Saturday I took the APT and Spanish Language Proficiency Test 056. I feel very relieved to have completed them now. I feel good about them, and I think I passed both. Now I await my results and hope for the best.
Sunday, April 13, 2014
Saturday, April 5, 2014
Week 13
I must say that this was probably the best week I have had while student teaching at this placement. I learned so much about myself in the process. I led the students through a critique of their final drawings. Having seen the final product of each student, I realized how hard it is to grade art. Every student has different skills levels. Ms. B told me that I could start grading on Monday, and that we would have to discuss and come to an agreement with Ms. A to decide on what is "A" work, "B" work, etc. (Standard 1- Teaching Diverse Students)
I teach the first class period of the day. On Friday, I introduced a new unit. I received a lot of feedback from Ms. B, which I truly appreciate, and I made the changes that she suggested. One of the areas that I needed to improve after this lesson was my assessment of student learning. I get more nervous when it is my first time around teaching the lesson, and in this class, my pacing was a little fast. I learned that it is far more important to make sure that every student understands what you're teaching than trying to keep up with the agenda set in place. It is OK if the class ends up spending an extra day completing a handout or drawing, etc.
Next week will be my last full week teaching full-time. After that I will teach 3 more days and then slowly fade out. After this unit is complete, my Cooperating Teachers are giving me the opportunity to teach a lesson of my own, which I am really excited about. There are a few lessons I have in mind. The students responded so well to lesson on Friday, which makes me look forward to their progress and final project.
Schmidt, Chapter 10
- What’s the big deal about social justice? Why are the ideas of chapter 10 important for a Christian teacher?
A case where social justice is needed usually involves some degree of "suffering." When we see this happening, our humanness nature pushes us into doing something about it. For example, child labor is wrong and can go against our personal values. Social justice education opens the platform for us to take action. As a Christian, we are to help one another when in need and do what we can to build and better the kingdom of God. As a Christian teacher, it is important to teach the students to put themselves in the victim's shoes.
Saturday, March 29, 2014
Week 12
This week was rather good compared to how it was before Spring Break. My relationship with Ms. B has improved, and I feel like we are communicating a lot better. The students are working on the figure, and they are making a lot of progress. I am impressed with how hard they are working and trying to do a good job. Based on conversations I have had with both teachers, this is a tough unit for them because they become very self-conscious about what their drawing is supposed to look like. I receive daily feedback from the teachers about how I am doing and things I could possibly change and so forth.
I continue to build on the relationships that I have with the students. I fortunately do not have many issues relating to misbehaving, but there have been instances where some students show an "attitude" towards the classroom teacher or me. The way that I decided to deal with that is by talking to them individually. There have also been times where the students call each other out and say things like, "Be quiet we are starting prayer" or "Stop talking, let's pay attention." I feel like the students have grown to really respect me, and I really appreciate that from them.
One of my teachers told me to use a little bit more positive feedback while talking to the class. This is something that she does all of the time. She will complement them on their work or how hard they are working. Therefore, when I introduced gesture drawing to them, which can be a very hard skill to practice, I told them about my struggles when first learning it. I think that put their minds at ease a little bit since I saw how frustrated they were getting. After class, Ms. A told me that she thought that it was great for me to share with them as a way for them to relate to me and what they were doing.
My College Supervisor observed me this past week as well, and it went well. The students were good and worked fine. I plan on telling them on Monday how thankful I am for their good behavior and hard work, and that is not to say that they were horrible before the observation. During the observation I got to use a device called the Hover Cam for the first time, which is also very similar to the Elmo. This device projects onto the screen anything that you are doing right under its lens. I used it to demonstrate how the pencil marks should build up the shading of their mannequin drawing.(Standard 2-Content Area and Pedagogical Knowledge)
Next week I really hope that the students continue to do a fabulous job at listening and working on their final drawings. I look forward to discussing with my 2 Cooperating Teachers how to put together the packet for the following unit, which concentrates on portraits.
I continue to build on the relationships that I have with the students. I fortunately do not have many issues relating to misbehaving, but there have been instances where some students show an "attitude" towards the classroom teacher or me. The way that I decided to deal with that is by talking to them individually. There have also been times where the students call each other out and say things like, "Be quiet we are starting prayer" or "Stop talking, let's pay attention." I feel like the students have grown to really respect me, and I really appreciate that from them.
One of my teachers told me to use a little bit more positive feedback while talking to the class. This is something that she does all of the time. She will complement them on their work or how hard they are working. Therefore, when I introduced gesture drawing to them, which can be a very hard skill to practice, I told them about my struggles when first learning it. I think that put their minds at ease a little bit since I saw how frustrated they were getting. After class, Ms. A told me that she thought that it was great for me to share with them as a way for them to relate to me and what they were doing.
My College Supervisor observed me this past week as well, and it went well. The students were good and worked fine. I plan on telling them on Monday how thankful I am for their good behavior and hard work, and that is not to say that they were horrible before the observation. During the observation I got to use a device called the Hover Cam for the first time, which is also very similar to the Elmo. This device projects onto the screen anything that you are doing right under its lens. I used it to demonstrate how the pencil marks should build up the shading of their mannequin drawing.(Standard 2-Content Area and Pedagogical Knowledge)
Next week I really hope that the students continue to do a fabulous job at listening and working on their final drawings. I look forward to discussing with my 2 Cooperating Teachers how to put together the packet for the following unit, which concentrates on portraits.
Sunday, March 16, 2014
Week 10
As I have mentioned before, I am working with 2 Cooperating Teachers. This past Thursday, I was scheduled to teach two lessons in Mrs.
B's class. I created a Prezi to go along with it and both of them
viewed it and had approved it ahead of time. Mrs. B asked me to do
some changes on Tuesday and I did. I found Mrs. B working on a PowerPoint when I walked in that
morning. She taught the students the same lesson I would later teach
that day and she had told me that she would use my Prezi presentation.
It turns out that the Powerpoint presentation she was hurriedly working
on was for that class, so she did not end up using my Prezi
presentation. I felt that I had done all of that work for nothing even
after making the changes she had asked me to do. (Standard 3: Planning for Differentiated Instruction).
Later that day, one of my College Supervisors came in to observe me during Mrs. B's class. It was a critique day and I had led a different class through the same critique two days before, so I had a pretty good idea of what to do. Several students were still completing their self-evaluations, so I could not move on and start the critique. I told the rest of the class to continue working on their drawing if they were already finished with their self-evaluation, so they did. One student approached me and said that he was already done with the drawing, so I said to the class that if they were already done with the drawing then they could work on outside homework. In the meantime as they all worked, two girls approached me and needed their painting framed, so I helped them in a matter of 5 minutes. I gave those students a few more minutes to finish their self-evaluation and then started the critique.
Schmidt, Chapter 6
Discuss some ways that you could use the strategies from Chapter 6 in your own teaching, even if you don't teach writing.
Positive feedback and encouragement are both strategies that any teacher can use to help his or her students grow. In the art room, students could also benefit from reading their writing out loud, like their artists statement describing their work. Having the students journal would also be a great way for them to express their thoughts, art criticism of other works, and reflections.
Later that day, one of my College Supervisors came in to observe me during Mrs. B's class. It was a critique day and I had led a different class through the same critique two days before, so I had a pretty good idea of what to do. Several students were still completing their self-evaluations, so I could not move on and start the critique. I told the rest of the class to continue working on their drawing if they were already finished with their self-evaluation, so they did. One student approached me and said that he was already done with the drawing, so I said to the class that if they were already done with the drawing then they could work on outside homework. In the meantime as they all worked, two girls approached me and needed their painting framed, so I helped them in a matter of 5 minutes. I gave those students a few more minutes to finish their self-evaluation and then started the critique.
I felt the lesson had gone fine. After the class was
over, my College Supervisor asked if he could speak to me and I told Mrs. B that
I would be right back. He seemed to agree that I had done a good job
and that I should just slow down when speaking a little bit and make sure
that all of the students have a clear understanding of what to do. I
walked my College Supervisor to the exit doors because he was not sure of where to
go.
When I got back to the classroom, Mrs. B had already started the lesson that I was scheduled to teach. She said, "Hey how's everything, I ended up teaching the lesson for you." I said I was sorry and that my College Supervisor was going over the evaluation with me. She asked what he had said and I told her that he thought I had done fine and to just slow down and make sure my directions are clear. She said, "Well I disagree, I thought that the entire beginning was lost learning time, and never again do that in my classroom." I was shocked and asked her what she meant, and she said, "Never have my students do other teachers' work in my classroom. I do not approve of that. OK? You did not have to say that nor help the girls with their frames. They could have completed the self-evaluations for homework. I don't know if your other Cooperating Teacher does it in her class, but not in mine. OK?" I honestly did not see that coming, and what was worst was that she did it right in front of the students. There were several girls standing right next to us and a table with students just quiet and listening. I felt so embarrassed. My response to her was that I was sorry and that I supposed it was OK. I felt terrible, but I kept it together, and I was not disrespectful at all. The class period ended soon after and the school day was over.
When I got back to the classroom, Mrs. B had already started the lesson that I was scheduled to teach. She said, "Hey how's everything, I ended up teaching the lesson for you." I said I was sorry and that my College Supervisor was going over the evaluation with me. She asked what he had said and I told her that he thought I had done fine and to just slow down and make sure my directions are clear. She said, "Well I disagree, I thought that the entire beginning was lost learning time, and never again do that in my classroom." I was shocked and asked her what she meant, and she said, "Never have my students do other teachers' work in my classroom. I do not approve of that. OK? You did not have to say that nor help the girls with their frames. They could have completed the self-evaluations for homework. I don't know if your other Cooperating Teacher does it in her class, but not in mine. OK?" I honestly did not see that coming, and what was worst was that she did it right in front of the students. There were several girls standing right next to us and a table with students just quiet and listening. I felt so embarrassed. My response to her was that I was sorry and that I supposed it was OK. I felt terrible, but I kept it together, and I was not disrespectful at all. The class period ended soon after and the school day was over.
When I got home, I just broke down into tears, and I
called my College Supervisor and told him everything that had happened. He suggested that
I talk to both of them and to ask them to clarify anything about their
classroom management policies or other things that they would like for me to
know, so I did. Her reply was, "It's not that I need
to clarify, I just think it is logical, common sense that any teacher
would not allow their students to do other homework but theirs. Don't
you agree? Later I realized that you had seen me do it with two other
students in another class, but that was after I had already given them
EXTRA work. They don't have to do it in class. You control the pacing of
the classroom and not the students. You don't have to wait for them. I
made the PowerPoint because I just felt more comfortable using
information I had already done." I told her that I had made the changes
she had requested and she ignored me. I asked her then what was her
reasoning behind not allowing them to do outside work and whether she
felt that if she did then they would rush through her assigned work to
just do other homework. She seemed very bothered by my questions and said
that she would just not allow that to happen period.
She later shared some "positive feedback" and said that I was doing a good job talking to the students because she has had other student teachers who are afraid of talking to them and wonders why they would want to be teachers then anyway.
She later shared some "positive feedback" and said that I was doing a good job talking to the students because she has had other student teachers who are afraid of talking to them and wonders why they would want to be teachers then anyway.
During our conversation she asked whether I knew my College Supervisor, and I said yes. She said she felt uncomfortable when he greeted
her and that he had tried to hug her. I said that he was a special education
professor at my university and that he was very kind and friendly. I did not see
anything odd with the way he greeted her. She then said that he was wrong in his
evaluation of me.
I later asked my other Cooperating Teacher the same thing, which was if
there was anything that she wanted me to know or clarify regarding my
teaching. She said that she would like for me to increase my presence in
the room, which would come with practice, and that she would step back
more.
I know that in life you can't always run away from
problems that you confront, and I truly feel that I cannot go on
student teaching with Mrs. B. What stops me is that I know that I
represent my university, but I still cannot get over the way in which she
spoke to me and embarrassed me in front of the students. She literally treated
me like a kid and not an adult. It was very unprofessional of her to
conduct herself that way, and now I feel like the students won't respect
me as a teacher. Schmidt, Chapter 6
Discuss some ways that you could use the strategies from Chapter 6 in your own teaching, even if you don't teach writing.
Positive feedback and encouragement are both strategies that any teacher can use to help his or her students grow. In the art room, students could also benefit from reading their writing out loud, like their artists statement describing their work. Having the students journal would also be a great way for them to express their thoughts, art criticism of other works, and reflections.
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Week 9
At the conclusion of this week, I have realized quite a few things about myself and who I want to be as a teacher. Last week, I observed the class and conversed with some of the students. This week I led the beginning of class in prayer and had more conversations with the students. They are in the process of meeting with their counselors to pick their classes for next year. The students are required to take an art course for one year. When I have asked them if they are taking art again, most of the time they have said no because it does not fit in their schedule.
I find myself struggling to make the mental shift from elementary students to high school students. High school students are obviously more independent, and I am still trying to figure out how to approach the way I "speak" to them in terms of firmness and establishing my presence in the classroom while teaching. I will be introducing a new unit this upcoming week, so it will be a great opportunity for me to practice.
As far as the classroom environments each of my Cooperating Teachers have established, they are totally different. As I had mentioned in my previous post, one of them is laid back and the other is not and is very sarcastic with the students. One thing that makes me feel a little uneasy is the language I have heard them use sometimes. Both of them have used the word "stupid" when talking directly to a student. They have not called the students "stupid," but it is still a terrible word choice. For example, while I was leading prayer on Friday, I asked the students for any intentions to the prayer. One student raised his hand and he said "diablo." I asked him to repeat himself and he said it again. I asked him who that was, and he said it was one of his friends. I paused and decided to continue with the prayer.
After the prayer, I approached him and asked him who was this friend of his named "diablo." He said that that was his nickname. I then asked him if he knew what that word meant in Spanish, and he said no. I told him the meaning of it, which translates to the "devil." His classmates in his table heard the conversation and gasped in surprise. My Cooperating Teacher heard them and I told her what happened and that the student was not aware of the meaning. She became very upset with him and embarrassed him in front of everyone. I felt terrible because I did not foresee her reacting that way. She said, "I can't believe something so dumb could come out of your mouth. That is so stupid of you to say for prayer. This is something we do seriously as a Catholic school. How stupid, I can't believe it. I am so disappointed and sad." I honestly think that he did not know what it meant because he did not lash out or act out even after being yelled at by her. He was quiet for the remainder of the class period.
If I was in her position, I would have talked to him about how prayer should be taken seriously, and I would not have used some of the language she did, like the word "stupid." I would have said something like, "I think that we should use "real" names and not nicknames if we want to pray for someone. Prayer is a special time and should be taken seriously." Later in the class period, I talked to him about his work and progress.
In regards to future planning, I have been given a copy of the scope and sequence and UBD (Universal Backward Design) of the art curriculum. It is clear to me that I do not have as much flexibility in lesson choices because of their set curriculum and also because they do not want me to change it. I do not have a problem following their curriculum. Although, I find myself trying to please both of them given their differences as teachers. They both have made comments to me about each others teaching style, which can be a little uncomfortable. Both of their presentations are usually done in PowerPoint, and I am pretty much transferring everything onto Prezi. Neither of them have had much experience working with Prezi, but they have been meaning to. I find it cool to be able to incorporate something I know well as part of technology and be able to teach them as well.
I find myself struggling to make the mental shift from elementary students to high school students. High school students are obviously more independent, and I am still trying to figure out how to approach the way I "speak" to them in terms of firmness and establishing my presence in the classroom while teaching. I will be introducing a new unit this upcoming week, so it will be a great opportunity for me to practice.
As far as the classroom environments each of my Cooperating Teachers have established, they are totally different. As I had mentioned in my previous post, one of them is laid back and the other is not and is very sarcastic with the students. One thing that makes me feel a little uneasy is the language I have heard them use sometimes. Both of them have used the word "stupid" when talking directly to a student. They have not called the students "stupid," but it is still a terrible word choice. For example, while I was leading prayer on Friday, I asked the students for any intentions to the prayer. One student raised his hand and he said "diablo." I asked him to repeat himself and he said it again. I asked him who that was, and he said it was one of his friends. I paused and decided to continue with the prayer.
After the prayer, I approached him and asked him who was this friend of his named "diablo." He said that that was his nickname. I then asked him if he knew what that word meant in Spanish, and he said no. I told him the meaning of it, which translates to the "devil." His classmates in his table heard the conversation and gasped in surprise. My Cooperating Teacher heard them and I told her what happened and that the student was not aware of the meaning. She became very upset with him and embarrassed him in front of everyone. I felt terrible because I did not foresee her reacting that way. She said, "I can't believe something so dumb could come out of your mouth. That is so stupid of you to say for prayer. This is something we do seriously as a Catholic school. How stupid, I can't believe it. I am so disappointed and sad." I honestly think that he did not know what it meant because he did not lash out or act out even after being yelled at by her. He was quiet for the remainder of the class period.
If I was in her position, I would have talked to him about how prayer should be taken seriously, and I would not have used some of the language she did, like the word "stupid." I would have said something like, "I think that we should use "real" names and not nicknames if we want to pray for someone. Prayer is a special time and should be taken seriously." Later in the class period, I talked to him about his work and progress.
In regards to future planning, I have been given a copy of the scope and sequence and UBD (Universal Backward Design) of the art curriculum. It is clear to me that I do not have as much flexibility in lesson choices because of their set curriculum and also because they do not want me to change it. I do not have a problem following their curriculum. Although, I find myself trying to please both of them given their differences as teachers. They both have made comments to me about each others teaching style, which can be a little uncomfortable. Both of their presentations are usually done in PowerPoint, and I am pretty much transferring everything onto Prezi. Neither of them have had much experience working with Prezi, but they have been meaning to. I find it cool to be able to incorporate something I know well as part of technology and be able to teach them as well.
(Standard 3: Planning for Differentiated Instruction–The competent teacher plans and designs instruction based on content area knowledge, diverse student characteristics, student performance data, curriculum goals, and the community context. The teacher plans for ongoing student growth and achievement)
Sunday, March 2, 2014
Week 8
This was my first week at my second placement, which is a private, Catholic, co-ed high school. I have the privilege to work with 2 art teachers from the department. They are both nice and have different approaches to teaching. Mrs. B has been there for about 13 years, and Mrs. A has worked there for 10 years. Mrs. A was actually Mrs. B's student teacher. In this placement I will have the chance to collaborate and learn from both of them. I look forward to the teaching experiences that are to come.
***Standard 8-Collaborative Relationships– The competent teacher builds and maintains collaborative relationships to foster cognitive, linguistic, physical, and social and emotional development. This teacher works as a team member with professional colleagues, students, parents or guardians, and community members.
I have been given 5 Modules of Drawing and Painting I, which is another name for "period." I have a nice break in between each Mod, except for the last two. Classes start with Mod A and go to Mod H (total of 8 class periods). The Art Department has their curriculum designed using UBD (Universal Backwards Design) and also a scope and sequence. I will be teaching two units (Figure and Portraits). It is pretty neat that I am familiar with this curriculum design (UBD) since I created a unit using this design during one of my college courses. I am expected to follow their set curriculum, which is not a problem. I am responsible for the presentation and teaching of the lesson of course (creation of powerpoint slides). They have shared with me what they have previously done when teaching the units. Mrs. A is more laid back in her teaching and does not mind how I teach it as long as the main ideas are taught. Mrs. B has a more stricter-style of teaching and would like for us 3 to sit down and discuss how we could combine both of their lessons and handouts.
Given that it is a Catholic high school, they have scheduled masses several times a month. On Tuesday, there was a mass devoted to celebrating the work of first responders. It was amazing, and I was happy to have witnessed it. Surprisingly many students were absent or had an early dismissal before the mass. I also attended an iPad Meeting with Mrs. A. Starting the next school year, the Freshmen and Sophomores will be given an iPad to use for classroom learning. My teachers think that this will be problematic and I have heard other teachers say that it is pointless since not all classrooms will have the necessary equipment to be able to teach with them, like AppleTV.
The students are generally good, well-behaved, and respectful. There are still some that are a little sassy, but that is normal for this age group. A few differences between this school and all of my other placements is that there are no paraprofessionals. Instead of having IEPs they have Accommodation Reports for individual students, which may include supports like extra work time.
Starting next week I will be leading two Mods. I look forward to getting to know the students more.
***Standard 8-Collaborative Relationships– The competent teacher builds and maintains collaborative relationships to foster cognitive, linguistic, physical, and social and emotional development. This teacher works as a team member with professional colleagues, students, parents or guardians, and community members.
I have been given 5 Modules of Drawing and Painting I, which is another name for "period." I have a nice break in between each Mod, except for the last two. Classes start with Mod A and go to Mod H (total of 8 class periods). The Art Department has their curriculum designed using UBD (Universal Backwards Design) and also a scope and sequence. I will be teaching two units (Figure and Portraits). It is pretty neat that I am familiar with this curriculum design (UBD) since I created a unit using this design during one of my college courses. I am expected to follow their set curriculum, which is not a problem. I am responsible for the presentation and teaching of the lesson of course (creation of powerpoint slides). They have shared with me what they have previously done when teaching the units. Mrs. A is more laid back in her teaching and does not mind how I teach it as long as the main ideas are taught. Mrs. B has a more stricter-style of teaching and would like for us 3 to sit down and discuss how we could combine both of their lessons and handouts.
Given that it is a Catholic high school, they have scheduled masses several times a month. On Tuesday, there was a mass devoted to celebrating the work of first responders. It was amazing, and I was happy to have witnessed it. Surprisingly many students were absent or had an early dismissal before the mass. I also attended an iPad Meeting with Mrs. A. Starting the next school year, the Freshmen and Sophomores will be given an iPad to use for classroom learning. My teachers think that this will be problematic and I have heard other teachers say that it is pointless since not all classrooms will have the necessary equipment to be able to teach with them, like AppleTV.
The students are generally good, well-behaved, and respectful. There are still some that are a little sassy, but that is normal for this age group. A few differences between this school and all of my other placements is that there are no paraprofessionals. Instead of having IEPs they have Accommodation Reports for individual students, which may include supports like extra work time.
Starting next week I will be leading two Mods. I look forward to getting to know the students more.
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