When I look back on my online Masters program through Michigan State, I can’t help but revisit all of what I have learned and what that really means to me and my future. The first thing that comes to mind is how all of this has changed me as a learner. With each educational stage in my life, I feel as though have gained not only new ideas but experiences as well. Through the teacher education program, it was always instilled in us to practice what we have learned. I have been fortunate enough that I am in a profession that allows me to gain experience in the classroom and gives me opportunities for child studies and hands on practice. It is really only then that you can see what works for you and what doesn’t. For this masters program, I was able to learn through research, documents, and data and then go back into my classroom and see how this was going to work for me. What I realized about myself as a learner is that the more you learn, the easier it is to find solutions to your problems. There are many different strategies to be an effective teacher; however, just using one of them is never going to work. I have learned that each strand tends to overlap each other and knowing that you may have to try a few is the key to success.
When I think about myself as a teacher, I am forced to rethink of myself as a learner. What I have realized very quickly in my building is that being a young teacher means a lot of things. It means that you are automatically considered less experienced than your veteran colleagues which isn’t always a bad thing. Having a mentor to guide me and being forced to complete 90 professional development hours has given me a chance to learn things outside of what my district mandates we do. But most importantly, I think that my master’s education has made me realize that in order to keep current, I always have to consider myself a learner. I know that it is very easy to keep going back to doing what you have always done, year after year. However, what I have gained through this program is that without trying something new, you are never going grow as a teacher and educator.
Although all of the courses in this program were beneficial, I found that there were a few that stood out to me as exceptional. The teacher education preparation program was a five year commitment through Michigan State University. The first four years were completed in East Lansing and then I decided to come home for my fifth year which was our internship year. In addition to full time student teaching for a year, we also had to complete four master’s classes. I knew that year was going to be overwhelming and I was even more hesitant knowing that I had to attend classes. My first class was TE 801 Reflection and Inquiry of Teaching Practice 1: Literacy. My instructor was Judy Thompson. Judy was what made this class as beneficial as it was. She was the type of professor that everyone knew was hard and she expected nothing but the best from you. I began thinking that I was “unlucky” because I was going to have to do more work than my peers who had the same course but a different professor. Throughout the weeks though, I started to look forward to this course the most. It was the first time I had to analyze at a group of students, pre-assess them, create a curriculum, teach it, and post-assess them. In addition, I had three students who were a part of my case study that I looked at specifically. I created rubrics and data based on results and synthesized how and what I could have done better. I was fully immersed in every aspect of the assignment and was really excited about my results. Also, at the end of the course, we were asked to give a professional presentation to our colleagues that gave an overview of what we taught and how our process went. What I think I learned most about this course was how to be a professional. It was the first time I really had to research something and gain results by actually teaching in the classroom. I also understood that this would really be how teaching was meant to be. Most importantly, I learned about what Literacy really is, what goes into it, who knows most about it and what ways is it most effectively taught.
Another course that I found to be beneficial in this program was CEP 818 Creativity in Teaching and Learning. Having chosen Literacy for my concentration, many of the courses I took in this program centered on reading and writing. With that being said, it was refreshing to take a course that was of a different tone and focused on something that could apply to all subjects that I taught. When an educator thinks about what makes a great teacher, you may end up with a variety of responses. However, almost everyone can agree that creative instruction deserves to be on that list. The problem is not that creativity doesn’t work, it’s that individuals may find it overwhelming to undertake all together. Understanding the seven cognitive tools of creativity not only helped me to better understand what that means, but, more importantly showed me how I can implement the ideas in my classroom. So often we forget that we are teaching to the minds of young people and understanding how their minds work to synthesize and make connections will promote creativity among them. Before taking this class I had no idea how to go about developing creativity for my students. I knew that I was given a pacing guide in the beginning of the year, a set curriculum, and told I had to teach everything on that sheet. I felt like most teachers feel, trapped to deadlines, set standards and district expectations. But, after learning about the seven cognitive tools, including perceiving, patterning, abstracting, embodied thinking, modeling, playing and synthesizing, I began to see the big picture. I cannot say that I have a complete hold on creativity in my classroom; however, I have been able to see how seven ideas can take the conformities of teaching and transform them into creative and useful ways of learning. I choose to use the disciple of science in the elementary classroom as my featured context. For the most part, I find science for children to be a hard concept to understand and I was looking forward to investigating which approaches/activities would help students understand and learn what I was teaching in more a more powerful way. In the end, I am left with successful tools to help foster creativity.
Awards and Classics of Children’s Literature, TE 836, with Laura Apol, was definitely my most demanding course that I took in this program. I took it over the summer thinking that not having to work would make it much easier. I was wrong. I did though end up learning more about children’s literature than I had ever imagined. To me, this course was about what literature means to the individual. In module one, we looked at what awards mean to us. What do they mean and how can they fit into our lives and the lives of young people. I loved the first assignment which was asking us to name our favorite book and tell why. I appreciated the variety in selection as well as the fact that pretty much everyone had a different choice. However, after thinking about why they may have chosen these books, I started to value their stories more than the book they talked about. It was clear to see that the actual text was more than what made these books the “best”. It wasn’t until I looked back at my experiences that I learned books were more about the experience of reading them then the actual text. It was who read it with them, what was going on in their lives, and how the book made them feel. The memories that went with these strong ideas were what gave these books staying power throughout their lives. It was a great way to introduce awards because it made me realize that every book has an ability to be awarded for something, by someone, at some point in time. Thinking about awards and criteria, it is fair to say that everyone has their own opinion on how a book is selected and whether or not it is worthy. To begin with, I found myself extremely surprised by how many different types of awards a book is eligible to win. What I find even more rewarding, is that, with time, the number has increased. Which makes me appreciate the fact that in a world of technology and television, literature is growing and is continuing to be a strong influence in the lives of our young people? When trying to classify a book as the “best” in a single category, it is sure to stir up a mix of opinions. In a world with such diverse backgrounds and beliefs, it has led me to ask myself the question, can you really ever make everyone happy? Being a teacher, there is a lot that goes on above our heads. Because of the demanding state standards, we are given curriculums and pacing guides that pretty much dictate when and what we teach our students. Many of the freedoms of individuality have been taken away from the educator due to test scores and funding. Therefore, after going through this class, I wonder how much of this is really being taught in the classroom. I know that I will have to reach out to parents and staff to bring together school unity and continue making the history of literary choices important. I ultimately want the idea of choices to be taught through my students as well. Research has shown that when students can choose what they read, they are more likely to read for longer periods of time. Young adults should have the ability to learn about books and make their own decisions as adults do and have done for years. In one of my team discussions, we discussed how many children are not drawn to the award winning books. Not to say they are not outstanding selections. However, without someone influencing their selection, they are left on the shelves. This courses assignments, discussions and research have reminded me that it is ultimately my job to expose me students to these selections of literature. I need to purposely incorporate them into my curriculum whenever possible. With this intent in mind, they will be able to explore the messages and meanings of these books and better appreciate them. In the end, I have realized that everyone brings their own experiences to literature. Whether it is their past, gender, race, age or era, they have a predisposition to feel a certain way about books and what books not only mean to them, but to society. This course has made me appreciate books and the people who have made choices about them. Most importantly, this course has inspired me to continue to educate others about the importance of literature and choice.
Although I have learned different things from each course, some good, some bad, I have been able to say that they have all impacted me as a person, learner and teacher. They have made more tech savvy, research based, practice oriented and open minded. I have been able to take what I have learned back with me to my classroom. It has also made me eager to share with others the new ideas. I know that through earning my masters degree I have accomplished a lot. But, what is most crucial is that I now use that knowledge to better the students that enter into my classroom.
When I think about myself as a teacher, I am forced to rethink of myself as a learner. What I have realized very quickly in my building is that being a young teacher means a lot of things. It means that you are automatically considered less experienced than your veteran colleagues which isn’t always a bad thing. Having a mentor to guide me and being forced to complete 90 professional development hours has given me a chance to learn things outside of what my district mandates we do. But most importantly, I think that my master’s education has made me realize that in order to keep current, I always have to consider myself a learner. I know that it is very easy to keep going back to doing what you have always done, year after year. However, what I have gained through this program is that without trying something new, you are never going grow as a teacher and educator.
Although all of the courses in this program were beneficial, I found that there were a few that stood out to me as exceptional. The teacher education preparation program was a five year commitment through Michigan State University. The first four years were completed in East Lansing and then I decided to come home for my fifth year which was our internship year. In addition to full time student teaching for a year, we also had to complete four master’s classes. I knew that year was going to be overwhelming and I was even more hesitant knowing that I had to attend classes. My first class was TE 801 Reflection and Inquiry of Teaching Practice 1: Literacy. My instructor was Judy Thompson. Judy was what made this class as beneficial as it was. She was the type of professor that everyone knew was hard and she expected nothing but the best from you. I began thinking that I was “unlucky” because I was going to have to do more work than my peers who had the same course but a different professor. Throughout the weeks though, I started to look forward to this course the most. It was the first time I had to analyze at a group of students, pre-assess them, create a curriculum, teach it, and post-assess them. In addition, I had three students who were a part of my case study that I looked at specifically. I created rubrics and data based on results and synthesized how and what I could have done better. I was fully immersed in every aspect of the assignment and was really excited about my results. Also, at the end of the course, we were asked to give a professional presentation to our colleagues that gave an overview of what we taught and how our process went. What I think I learned most about this course was how to be a professional. It was the first time I really had to research something and gain results by actually teaching in the classroom. I also understood that this would really be how teaching was meant to be. Most importantly, I learned about what Literacy really is, what goes into it, who knows most about it and what ways is it most effectively taught.
Another course that I found to be beneficial in this program was CEP 818 Creativity in Teaching and Learning. Having chosen Literacy for my concentration, many of the courses I took in this program centered on reading and writing. With that being said, it was refreshing to take a course that was of a different tone and focused on something that could apply to all subjects that I taught. When an educator thinks about what makes a great teacher, you may end up with a variety of responses. However, almost everyone can agree that creative instruction deserves to be on that list. The problem is not that creativity doesn’t work, it’s that individuals may find it overwhelming to undertake all together. Understanding the seven cognitive tools of creativity not only helped me to better understand what that means, but, more importantly showed me how I can implement the ideas in my classroom. So often we forget that we are teaching to the minds of young people and understanding how their minds work to synthesize and make connections will promote creativity among them. Before taking this class I had no idea how to go about developing creativity for my students. I knew that I was given a pacing guide in the beginning of the year, a set curriculum, and told I had to teach everything on that sheet. I felt like most teachers feel, trapped to deadlines, set standards and district expectations. But, after learning about the seven cognitive tools, including perceiving, patterning, abstracting, embodied thinking, modeling, playing and synthesizing, I began to see the big picture. I cannot say that I have a complete hold on creativity in my classroom; however, I have been able to see how seven ideas can take the conformities of teaching and transform them into creative and useful ways of learning. I choose to use the disciple of science in the elementary classroom as my featured context. For the most part, I find science for children to be a hard concept to understand and I was looking forward to investigating which approaches/activities would help students understand and learn what I was teaching in more a more powerful way. In the end, I am left with successful tools to help foster creativity.
Awards and Classics of Children’s Literature, TE 836, with Laura Apol, was definitely my most demanding course that I took in this program. I took it over the summer thinking that not having to work would make it much easier. I was wrong. I did though end up learning more about children’s literature than I had ever imagined. To me, this course was about what literature means to the individual. In module one, we looked at what awards mean to us. What do they mean and how can they fit into our lives and the lives of young people. I loved the first assignment which was asking us to name our favorite book and tell why. I appreciated the variety in selection as well as the fact that pretty much everyone had a different choice. However, after thinking about why they may have chosen these books, I started to value their stories more than the book they talked about. It was clear to see that the actual text was more than what made these books the “best”. It wasn’t until I looked back at my experiences that I learned books were more about the experience of reading them then the actual text. It was who read it with them, what was going on in their lives, and how the book made them feel. The memories that went with these strong ideas were what gave these books staying power throughout their lives. It was a great way to introduce awards because it made me realize that every book has an ability to be awarded for something, by someone, at some point in time. Thinking about awards and criteria, it is fair to say that everyone has their own opinion on how a book is selected and whether or not it is worthy. To begin with, I found myself extremely surprised by how many different types of awards a book is eligible to win. What I find even more rewarding, is that, with time, the number has increased. Which makes me appreciate the fact that in a world of technology and television, literature is growing and is continuing to be a strong influence in the lives of our young people? When trying to classify a book as the “best” in a single category, it is sure to stir up a mix of opinions. In a world with such diverse backgrounds and beliefs, it has led me to ask myself the question, can you really ever make everyone happy? Being a teacher, there is a lot that goes on above our heads. Because of the demanding state standards, we are given curriculums and pacing guides that pretty much dictate when and what we teach our students. Many of the freedoms of individuality have been taken away from the educator due to test scores and funding. Therefore, after going through this class, I wonder how much of this is really being taught in the classroom. I know that I will have to reach out to parents and staff to bring together school unity and continue making the history of literary choices important. I ultimately want the idea of choices to be taught through my students as well. Research has shown that when students can choose what they read, they are more likely to read for longer periods of time. Young adults should have the ability to learn about books and make their own decisions as adults do and have done for years. In one of my team discussions, we discussed how many children are not drawn to the award winning books. Not to say they are not outstanding selections. However, without someone influencing their selection, they are left on the shelves. This courses assignments, discussions and research have reminded me that it is ultimately my job to expose me students to these selections of literature. I need to purposely incorporate them into my curriculum whenever possible. With this intent in mind, they will be able to explore the messages and meanings of these books and better appreciate them. In the end, I have realized that everyone brings their own experiences to literature. Whether it is their past, gender, race, age or era, they have a predisposition to feel a certain way about books and what books not only mean to them, but to society. This course has made me appreciate books and the people who have made choices about them. Most importantly, this course has inspired me to continue to educate others about the importance of literature and choice.
Although I have learned different things from each course, some good, some bad, I have been able to say that they have all impacted me as a person, learner and teacher. They have made more tech savvy, research based, practice oriented and open minded. I have been able to take what I have learned back with me to my classroom. It has also made me eager to share with others the new ideas. I know that through earning my masters degree I have accomplished a lot. But, what is most crucial is that I now use that knowledge to better the students that enter into my classroom.