Advice for new student teachers

My advice to new student teachers would be to take every day as it comes. There will be great days, there will be good days, and there will be bad days. When each day is finished, think upon it and reflect why it went really well, just okay, poor etc. and remember that for the next day.

Also, my best memories of student teaching were having fun with the students. I have found the students don't have to have their heads pounded into the books all day to learn information. Just make sure you are having fun, and the students will soon follow.

Last bit of advice: I am one of the world's biggest procrastinators. I never had my lesson plans in 48 hours in advance because I always put it off; this made my life miserable.

After I started having my lesson plans in 48 hours in advance, it completely made my life easier. Instead of sitting in the library for hours upon hours trying to get five lessons around for the next day, I would only have to prepare for five lessons that were in the future so the pressure was less and I had more time to develop the lessons.

Week 15

Wow! Finally made it. I would have to say not having any Clinical Studies work to be the most beneficial part of my week. It is a nice feeling knowing that the semester is coming to an end.



Also, the most beneficial part of my week was having an Act 80 day last Monday. I got to meet the other business teachers from the middle and high schools, which was nice to collaborate and discuss what everyone is teaching. A department Wiki page was created so everyone can keep in touch, which I am finding beneficial.



If there was an aspect I would have changed in the past week, it would be being more tough with my 6th period computer class. I gave them an inch, and they took a foot. With the weather becoming warm, the students getting tired of Microsoft Access, and the year coming to an end, discipline has had to become a factor during the period. By Friday, the class is under control and everything is fine.

Glad we all made it to the end! Congrats everyone!

Week 14

The most beneficial part of my week was laying a strong foundation of rules in the previous week's class. I am really pleased with how the students are behaving in my classes. There are some minor interruptions which you would have in any class, but for the most part, the students are really well behaved.

It is amazing how different it is when you have your co-op to rely on when you are student teaching. If there is any problem/questions with a class I always had someone to turn to for advice. When you are teaching on your own, its all you! It is almost bittersweet because you can have the freedom to run your class how you like, but when a problem arises, you have to figure it out completely on your own (which isn't bad, just different from student teaching.) Tomorrow I have an Act 80 day, I am looking forward to that new experience.

Again, this week is similar to the past; I am completely satisfied with how the transition has gone with teaching at a new school. Considering how difficult it is picking up six classes at the end of the year, everything has gone rather well. The students, faculty, and administration have been really great throughout this learning experience and I look forward to the upcoming week.

Wiki Space Podcast

Week 13

The most beneficial aspect of my past week was having my own classroom. It was a great feeling to finally have a set of keys and enter "my" classroom. Monday was an interesting day because the substitute teacher stuck around to help the transition go more smoothly. The students were very unruly and their behavior was completely unacceptable. Tuesday was a whole different story. I went over my rules with each class and explained how respect is the number one rule in my classroom; the students must respect themselves, their classmates, and the teacher. I saw a completely different group of students and the rest of the week went great. It was also nice that Easter break fell when it did. It gave me adequate time to to get used to Stroudsburg without overwhelming at the same time.

To my delight, there isn't one thing I would like to change with the past week. When I observed the students' behavior on Monday I thought, "boy, what did I get into". After introducing myself and getting to know the students, the rest of the week went better than ever expected. Numerous teachers stop in my room periodically to see if I need anything and have any questions, which I have many of. I have a great group of teachers always willing to help which has aided me in my first week at Stroudsburg. I really look forward to the future when all of our classmates will soon have their own classroom. I know that everyone is completely prepared and all will be awesome teachers.

Week 12

I found attending FBLA to be the most beneficial part of my week. I never imagined how big of an ordeal FBLA really was. I was also amazed with all the planning that was devoted to get 3,900 people together and have it run smoothly. Although my assistance wasn't entirely needed at FBLA, it was nice to see fellow classmates and spend time with them on a personal level, outside of the classroom. It was a benefit being surrounded by my classmates for 3 days; whenever I had a question about homework or creative ideas for my lesson plans, I always had a resource (a classmate) to help get me going in the right direction. I wish I could have shared an apartment with someone in the BCIT program for it would have been great to always have someone there to collaborate with!

It was really nice coming back to the classroom and teaching on Thursday. The students were excited to see me and and many said they were happy to have me back. That was nice to return to. Also, Friday was my last day at Crestwood. Many students came up to me and said really kind words, some even made cards on Microsoft Publisher. I never imagined the impact I had on these students' lives until they explained how much they were going to miss me and how much they learned. It was quite touching.

If I could change an aspect of my week it would definitely by my stress level. With the FBLA conference, having to move to Stroudsburg, and beginning my own classroom the same day the training presentation is due, I just wish there was more time in a day. Thank goodness the semester is winding down! Hope everyone has a great week!

I found the past 11 weeks to be the most beneficial part of my week. Everything that has happened for the better or worse has allowed me to be who I am now in the classroom; its all coming together now. This week I prepared some tests and activities for the students and all went really well. I've had a full schedule of teaching six classes for two weeks and it and it almost feels that the classroom and classes are mine. My week went well and I am looking foward to FBLA the next couple days.

After reflecting on my past week, there isn't anything that I would like to change. By all means, I know that my week was not perfect, but nothing happened that I would want to change. All the ups and downs help me become a better teacher and I am enjoying the ride. Hope everyone's week went well, see you all at FBLA.

Week 10

I found the most beneficial part of my week to be my Computer Applications classes. I created an activity where the students had to use Excel and think for themselves, instead of just typing from the book. The student's job was to gather information from their classmates and display it in Excel. The tough part was that the students had to form groups and figure out a logical way to gather the classmate's data. Each group then explained their idea to the class and we had a discussion about it. Each class came up with really great ideas and utilized technology (Class Central) to upload data. In the beginning, as expected, I heard a lot of, "This is stupid", "this is dumb" etc etc but by the end the students really put their heads together to problem solve this activity.

I feel I had a productive week and was well prepared with all of my lessons. If there were an aspect I would have wanted to change, it would have been not to have PSSA's. The PSSA's really disrupted my Period 4 Accounting class. The material was really complicated and each lesson was shortened by over 10 minutes. The shortened time period made the lessons not be able to be completed in a period, like usual. This disrupted homework assignments and the activities that we could cover. Other than that, great week. Hope everyone has a great weekend -- Jonny

9th week

If I were to reflect back on the previous week, I would think the most beneficial part was having my mid-term grades being decided by our supervisor and my co-op. It gave me strong reinforcement of what aspects I need to apply more time to and develop more as I become closer to being on my own. I also felt that picking up another course (five classes total) to be a true eye opener and a benefit to my overall planning and preparation. I am on an accelerated process in order to get me prepared for Stroudsburg and it is really tough keeping up with our detailed lesson plans with five classes, but I am adapting and keeping up.

If I were to change one aspect of the previous week, it would be not dedicating so much time to our clinical studies homework and spending more time on my lesson plans. My chief concern the past weekend and week prior to that was handing in quality work in last Monday's class and then handing in quality lesson plans. The equation should have been reversed- lesson plans then Clinical Studies work. I wish I used this updated equation because this past week I because I took a HUGE step back in my teaching and preparation; I feel the students lost out. My Word Processing class went so bad that I re-taught it the day after I had to take a sick day; this turned out to be a huge benefit for the students because they really seemed to grasp the material after I had time to prepare a quality lesson. I am fully prepared for next week and I know it will go much smoother. Hope everyone's week went better then mine!

Week 8

Wow. Week 8 was a stressful one. Between coordinating a class to be video taped, creating a survey, going to Stroudsburg for job interviews, trying to get everything done for Monday night, getting sick and to top it off, the University library has been closed all week because of Spring Break! AHH. When I look back, I find just making it through the week beneficial! It was my most challenging week of student teaching so far, and I am happy that it is over and am almost done with my assignments for Clinical Studies.

One thing I found valuable was finally having a chapter that I could related to the students in Accounting. I was able to find many ways to relate the material to the students because it was about payroll. I could see how the students understood the material so much more because they could compare it to them working and receiving paychecks. I made a Jeopardy review game for them to play the day before the exam. Last time I ever do that. No one cared, and it seemed like torture for the students to participate in the game even though the winning team got two bonus points on their exam.

Looking back on the week, there is a lot that I wish I could have changed about the past week but it was all out of my hands. The number one thing I wish I could have changed would have been Spring Break falling on a different week. I don't have Internet nor a printer at my house, and I do everything for Crestwood and Clinical Studies at the library. I found myself going to random friends' houses asking to use their computer or even going to Panera Bread to use their WiFi. Man oh man I cant wait to have money some day and have Internet at my house.

Week 7

I found senior skip day to be most valuable about my previous week. Seniors are the majority of students in my classes and it was nice to have a free day to catch up. I completely forgot about senior skip day and it was a nice surprise that I would be able to use my lesson that I prepared the next day. I feel it was nice to have a free day to grade papers, make exams, etc. during the day because I was falling a little behind. On Tuesday, I gave a really hard Accounting exam and a student came during their study hall to review with me. I handed the test results back yesterday and he came to me and said how happy he was with his grade and said it was because we reviewed before the test. That was a nice aspect of my week.

If I were to change an aspect of my previous week it would be to have more thoroughly investigated the on-line classroom I developed for my Computer Applications courses. I thought I had everything figured out with it but as soon as my fifth period students logged on, they immediately began chatting with each other on the QuickPost feature. Soon after, I heard a female student exclaim, "I AM NOT A LESBIAN!" (after she was reading what other students typed about her on QuickPost) Boy oh boy, to top it off, I was getting observed! So needlessly to say, I disabled the QuickPost feature and class was back to normal. Also, something else I would have changed would have been with the on-line classroom. I have the students upload their activities to the online classroom but there isn't a way to re-save what the students uploaded so they can see what they did right/wrong and the comments I inserted into the Excel file.

6th Week

I found teaching my third class this week to be the most valuable asset of my week. I never realized how much planning acutally goes into teaching classes and I never expected so much extra time to be dedicated to each class. The third class I started teaching is Computer Appications which is not a new prep class but the class is on different material compared to the other Computer Applications class. It is really consfusing keeping the two classes seperated pertaining to what each class has done and needs to do for the following days. My lesson plans have proved valuable for me because it always is a nice resource to get me back on track with what each class is doing. It is also difficult to prepare for each class because my fifth period Comp. App. class is very proficient at typing and picking up the new material in Excel yet my eighth period class is much slower. I have to keep that in mind when creating my lesson plans.

The past week was a shorter one for me. I didn't have school Monday and Tuesday was a half day for the students. Looking back on the past week, I would have changed the way students hand in material in the Computer Applications course. I am finding myself to be overwhelmed with papers the students submit. After grading each paper, I then have to find the time to return the papers the next class period. This has led me to create an online classroom which I will implement this week for the students so they can upload their class activities directly towards me, doing away with the paper print-outs which will also save ink and trees.

4th Week of Class

I found teaching Computer Applications for two weeks and Accounting for a week to be the most beneficial part of my week. The students are all responsive to my teaching style and are treating me fully as the teacher instead of sharing it with their original teacher as they did in beginning. I am also happy with getting through Accounting for the first week. I was never good at Accounting and now I find myself teaching it! It took a lot of time in the library to get caught up on the material but now I'm good to go.

If there was something I could change about the previous week it would have been to find a way to present Accounting to the students in a more captivating way. When I am teaching the material, I look at the students' faces and know they are completely bored and are thinking "why do we have to learn this", so I explained to the students again why the material was important to learn. Once I get more comfortable teaching the Accounting material, I will then find ways to make the class more exciting which will hopefully spark the students' interest in learning the material.

Third Week

I feel them most valuable part of my week was seeing the flexibility needed to be a teacher; I had two snow days (Weds. and Thurs) and then had a "lock-down" drill that lasted the first four periods when we returned to school on Friday--no one was allowed out of the classroom for the entire drill. On top of the two days off, the lock down drill threw any chances of having a normal back-to-school-day. It showed me that plans change, days change, and you need to keep on your toes and roll with the punches.

I also learned the most valuable part of my week was to stay positive. Weeks won't go as smooth as some previous ones, but I'm reminding myself to keep my head up no matter what obstacles I come across.

If I were to change an aspect of the past week I would have filled my Weekly Teaching Schedule out correctly. I didn't follow directions properly by writing that it was a working day on the day I got observed; it was the last day students were allowed to finish up existing PowerPoint projects in the class before we went onto Excel -- some students were working on PowerPoint and others were finished with the projects and were browsing the Internet, playing games etc -- needlessly to say it didn't look so good for me to be a day to be observed on. I learned many great points that day and plan to use them throughout the rest of the semester.

Second week of class

I found that teaching was the most valuable part of my week. I feel all of our previous classes' material made my first week's lessons go smoothly and effortlessly; I was completely prepared. Throughout the past two years I would often ask always questions like, "why am I taking classes that teach me about how corporations train their employees...when am I going to learn how to teach?" This past week everything fell into place and somewhere throughout my two year journey of grad school I learned how to teach. I noticed I was more nervous teaching in last semester's prof. dev. class then I was throughout the past week...everything went smooth.

Another aspect that I feel was valuable to my week was being pared with such a wonderful co-op. My co-op goes out of her way to make sure that I am comfortable and has helped me tremendously.


Pertaining to being in the classroom, everything went great this second week but if there was something I would change it would be asking for student's understanding. I taught my lessons and asked the students a lot of questions but failed to ask if everyone understood the material.

Another aspect I would have liked to change and found it the most stressful part of my week would be my wardrobe. All of my ties have stripes and flashy colors and my shirts have lines on them so it's really hard to get an outfit that doesn't look like a clown laid it out for me at six in the morning. I went shopping and got some solid colored shirts and solved the problem. Great week!

Jonny

First Week of Class (Jan 12-16)

1. What aspects of your week did you find most valuable?

I found it very valuable finally being in a school district. When I was doing my field experience I knew I would only be there for 30 hours so it didn't seem as much as a real experience. Now being at Crestwood, it feels nice knowing that this is the real deal.

I also found seeing alot of the the ins an outs beneficial. It was also cool that I am being treated as a real teacher and have real teacher responsibilities.


2. As you reflect on the past week, would you have modified or changed an aspect(s) if you had the chance to start the week over.

No. Everything went smooth. My co-op is really nice and made my first week completely stress free and we work well together. I am really happy with the layout of the first week of not having to teach a class; it gave me ample time to feel relaxed in the classroom and begin to meet the students. I am quite doubtful, but I hope the rest of my student teaching goes as well as the previous week.