Week Eleven Reflection

(Referring to page 275)...

There are three areas that I feel like I would like to develop more professionally. Although I am not currently a classroom teacher, I plan to be someday and have learned a lot from the experience that I have had in the classroom. I would like to see positive growth from myself in the areas of (1) Analyzing the characteristics of existing and emerging technologies and their use in an instructional environment (2) Establish and maintain professional credibility (3) Demonstrate effective presentation skills. 

The first area, analyzing the characteristics of existing and emerging technologies, is one that is constantly changing and therefore can always use professional growth. It would be very easy as a teacher to have a curriculum that is effective and just continue to use it year after year. But, what should be happening includes the use of technology to improve and enhance the existing curriculum and lesson plans. This is something that I would like to work on. I have used lesson plans that did not include technology at all and now look back and think of how much more effective the lessons would have been if I had incorporated some of the technology tools that we have been learning about in this class. I also feel that using these technology tools and analyzing their features before selecting the best way to implement them into the lesson will allow the teacher to reach different types of learners. Truly understanding the different uses of the tools will allow me to reach the maximum number of students throughout each lesson. 

Establishing and maintaining professional credibility is something that I feel I need to improve. This sounds like an intense statement because of how it is worded-"professional credibility" here is extreme and very serious. But, the way that I look at this statement is very different because of my situation. I am a very young person to be a high school teacher and therefore is extremely hard to prove to the students that I am credible and have the right to be in front of the classroom teaching. It is so hard to be so close to the age of the high schoolers and make sure that they know that I am the professional and that I am the teacher. It is difficult to separate myself from their generation (although we are in the same one) and to become the professional in class. When I am able to relate to so much that they are going through because I was not there too long ago and some things carry over to early 20's, it is very hard to become totally separated. I have never not been professional or had any reason to make people believe that I am not credible, but to the students, because of my age and lack of experience, I may seem like I am not credible. I don't know why I worry about this, I just do and would like to work on earning the same respect and credibility that the older teachers have. 

The third area, developing my presentation skills, is something that I would like to work on as well. I feel extremely confident in front of a classroom of students and feel extremely confident in my subject area. What I feel that needs improvement is the way that I present information sometimes. I have noticed that the more I do it, the easier and more fluid it becomes. So, this area is one that I believe will improve only with experience and time under my belt. It is difficult sometimes to explain a concept that makes so much sense to me "just because that's how it is". Well, when trying to explain that to high schoolers is a different story. In particular, I had an extremely intelligent student who could finish a concept correctly but needed to know and understand why it was how it was. In language, sometimes things are the way they are just because and there is no clear explanation. Presenting this to that student and then to the rest of the class who also then inquired is hard and something that I wish I was better at. Like I stated before, I feel that this will come with experience.