Luposello
Dr. Sarah Christian-Lynch
EED 361
October 21st, 2011
Reflection of My Learning (So Far)
To start, I just want to admit that this field placements is by far the most effective class
Ive ever taken. That is not to say that the strategies I learn during Maras class are insignificant,
or the classroom management techniques I learn in Jills class are meaninglessbut, its one
thing to learn and listen about these strategies and techniques, and entirely different to implement
them, and figure out what works in a classroom, what works for a certain age and what does not.
That being said, I thought kindergarten would be easy. Its not. I am completely surprised
at how much the students came in knowing in my class, and to be honest, shocked at how much
some of them didnt know. For example, about 5 of the 20 students in the class can already read
on a 1st through 2nd grade level. Conversely, I would be lying if I said I wasnt concerned with
how little a few of the students know, especially in terms of the alphabet. In fact, 2 out of the 20
students came in to kindergarten without being able to recognize a single letter of the alphabet,
yet they could write and say their name.
Given the large spectrum of phonetic knowledge, I am completely shocked at how much
a teacher must alter a specific lesson on an individual bases in order to challenge those who are
already reading, yet help the students who are still learning their alphabet song. I am surprised by
this simply because I had a preconceived notion that there were so many state standards that the
students must have some benchmark for what is developmentally appropriate for students to
enter kindergarten. However, I was quickly reminded that pre-k is not mandatory, and therefore
some of the students did not attend and might be lagging a little bit where other students are
succeeding. If a student is doing an activity that is not intellectually stimulating, than he/she is
likely to finish it quickly, and either serve as a distraction to other students learning, and/or be
bored, and not forced to critically think. Conversely, if an activity is too difficult for a student,
theyre likely to feel slow, dumb, and like an outsider in the community, because they feel as
though they cant do what everyone else can do. Feeling this way consistently can cause a child
to consistent feel stupid and thus, not motivate them to better their learning, and harm their
confidence.
Another thing that really surprised me about teaching is how important specificity in
directions is. I know that sounds pretty self explanatory, but I am shocked that every day, the
students have a morning meeting routine they know, but they have to be reminded every day to
keep their toes on the line of the morning meeting square. If the teacher does not specify literally
where the children need to place their feet, the students will go anywhere they want, and will in
turn be distracted the whole time.
I also am surprised at how much a teacher must be in constant contact with parents and
guardians of the students in order to try to get the adults at home to reinforce (at home) what the
child is learning in school. For example, my tutee is one of the students who came into school
knowing 0 letters of the alphabet, but my teacher performs weekly assessments with the student
where she holds up flash cards of letters, and asks him to name them if he can. At the end, she
sends a report home with the student to show his parents the progress he may or may not be
making. My tutee is an ELL student, and English is not spoken or reinforced at home. Perhaps
this can be correlated to the reason why he has only learned three letters since the start of
Kindergarten. I say this because another student in the class entered Kindergarten initially
knowing only 3 letters of the alphabet, and has currently learned 10 more since the start of
school. I also know that he practices with his parents at home, because he brings in the work he
does at home to show the host teacher almost daily. Thus, I feel as though being in constant
contact with whoever is at home with the child is a technique to reinforce student learning all the
time, so that it does not just occur for the 6 hours a day the student is in the classroom. Even
though the teacher is not at home, she still feels a responsibility to make sure the student is
always learning.
While Ive learned a lot about teaching, and being a teacher, Ive also learned a lot about
myself. Probably first and foremost, Ive learned that there is 100% no doubt in my mind that
this is what I want to do with my life. I think I might be the only college student who actually
enjoys waking up every morning at 6:45 AM, and its because I love what Im doing. And, I love
what Im doing because I love watching students. I am quickly realizing that I thoroughly enjoy
helping students achieve that Aha! moment when they really understand something, and I love
watching the slow but steady progress my tutee is making day by day. There is literally nothing
else I could possibly want to do with my life.
Ive also learned that I need to be incredibly organized. Mess just does not work for me.
Everything needs to be color coded, and I need clear, open work space in order to be calm
enough to learn. I cannot work in an area that feels cluttered, and I cannot think when theres
mess and utter chaos around me, and that has helped me mold an idea in my head of what my
classroom is going to look and function like. My placement classroom right now is currently a
dream organizationally and that is in large part due to the procedures my host teacher has
implemented, such as mailboxes and take home folders, as well as demanding the students clean
their work stations off from one activity to the next. Because the classroom runs so smoothly,
and is so organized every day, Im able to learn effectively in there, as well.