Introduction To The Teaching

Profession

Olivia Arce

Professor: Dr. Yasmeen Quadri

CRN 33796

Artifact #1

• This is displayed in the classrooms as a daily reminder of the expectation from everyone involved in the student’s education. Some displayed them on a bulletin board or on the white board in the front of the classroom.

2012-2013

KMS S tu d en t-P a re n t-T ea ch er -S ch o o l COMPACT

Student responsibilities:

attend school regularly, prepared with my completed homework and supplies always try to be on my best behavior and abide by the mandatory dress code work cooperatively with adults and classmates show respect for myself, my parents, my school, my teacher, my classmates and other school personnel obey the school and the bus rules take pride in my school help keep my school safe take home notices and information received from school read 15 to 30 minutes daily outside of school believe that I can learn, will learn and will welcome future challenges abide by the KMS pillars of success: academics, responsibility and self control

Parent responsibilities:

see that my child attends school regularly , on time, and in dress code daily. provide a home environment that encourages my child to learn and accept new challenges see that all homework assignments are completed and turned in on time communicate regularly with my child’s teachers support the school in developing positive behaviors by reinforcing the Code of Conduct talk with my child everyday about what they learned at school and upcoming events see that my child reads at home and makes positive use of extracurricular time monitor all forms of media usage (i.e. TV, DVDs, CDs, internet, video games etc…) volunteer time at my child’s school when possible show respect and support for my child, the teacher and the school read notices and information my child brings home from school

Teacher responsibilities:

believe that each student can learn and challenge each daily show respect for each student and the student’s family provide an environment conducive to learning and risk-taking help each student grow to their fullest potential provide meaningful and appropriate homework activities enforce school and classroom rules fairly and consistently maintain open lines of communication with the student’s family seek ways to involve parents in the school program demonstrate professional behavior and a positive attitude follow the Positive Behavior Support Program

School staff responsibilities:

provide a safe school environment that encourages positive student behavior show respect for students, parents and all school personnel provide an environment that allows for positive and professional communication between the teacher,

parent and student provide opportunities for all school staff to participate with parents and students at school functions provide a challenging learning environment which encourages risk-taking

The School District of Osceola County, Florida

Artifact #2

This is the classroom expectations from Mrs. Nieves’ classroom . She has them posted near the white board at the front of the room visible for all her students. She states, “Students know what the expectations are for my class and they understand that when the follow them ,it provides for a better learning environment.”

Mrs. Nieves’ 6th Grade Science Class

Class Expectation

Come prepared and on time for class Respect other people and their property Follow directions Ensure that your work is just that, your work NO Gum Follow dress code at all times

Artifact #3

This is the school newsletter named the JAGROAR. This informs students and parents of upcoming important dates and events regarding school and title 1 news.

Lesson Plan

This is the lesson plan format that Kissimmee Middle School teachers are to use . This is one that was used by the teacher I observed. (Mrs. Nieves)The teachers are to submit these lesson plans weekly.

Lesson Plan cont.

Students At Work

The picture on the left represents students working in their centers for reading. They work on an online program called TEENBIZ where they are scored on their reading comprehension based on the articles that they read.

Students pictured on the right are working on the end of year project for science. They are to create a power point on their experience on dissecting frogs.

Bulletin boards

The bulletin board on the top is displayed in the Library of the school encouraging students to be active readers. The bulletin board on the bottom is displayed in one of the classrooms as a reminder to students on the JAGUARS expectations (acronym for school mascot)Jaguars Achieve Greatness Using Academics Responsibility and Self-control.

Purpose: To assist future teachers with gaining greater understanding and insight into teaching at public schools.What is your philosophy of teaching? As a science teacher of 16 years it is to get students to think about science as a process & individualize students’ learning experiences.

What effective classroom management strategies do you utilize with your students?When I have new students I make sure that I have setup clear classroom guidelines /expectations. I do work with them for the first/ second month of the school year. I also strongly believe that it is important to have good communication with the parent or guardian in order to let the student know that if the expectations are not followed that there will be consequences given for not abiding by these rules.

What forms of accommodations do you make to respect cultural/faith diversity, exceptionalities, and language differences in your students?When I am made aware of certain accommodations I make sure that I provide the student with what they need. For example, If I have an ESOL student I make sure they have a native language dictionary for those who are ESE I make sure I’m aware of the extended time for test and assignments as stated in their IEP. I also use positive reinforcement, proximity control and peer support.

What forms of technology do you use with your students in the classroom to enhance your teaching and your students learning?I use different types of technology such as the Senteo for answering responses to quizzes. I also use Safari Montage, Smart Exchange, Kids Health and Study Jams through the SMART board.

What advice do you have for future teachers?This is my advice: To always enjoy teaching and always put more than a 100% effort on what you are doing with your students. Teaching is definitely not for everyone, but for me it is the only way to sustain a purposeful life.

Teacher InterviewMrs. Nieves- 6th grade science

Kissimmee Middle School

Field Observation Verification Form

The field observation that I conducted was a great experience for me it really gave me more insight on the teaching

profession and some of the things that are involved in teaching. I was able to observe at Kissimmee Middle School and I

did observe several teachers in different grade levels ranging from grades sixth through eighth. I was very lucky to have

encountered a tremendous staff that was very helpful through the whole process. I was able to observe and ask questions

and I felt very “at home”. Several teachers ranging from 25 years of teaching experience to those in their first year gave

me great advice on my future teaching career.

(https://www.teachingchannel.org/)

I had the opportunity and pleasure of observing Mrs. Carmen Nieves. She has a well-run classroom which I would think

has the criteria of Richard Curwin as referenced on pg. 362. Her beliefs for positive reinforcement are similar in that she

agrees it will raise student’s success. And keep them on track. The lesson for the week involved learning about human

organs and part. They are encouraged to use graphic organizers which I believe to be a factor of Bloom’s taxonomy. The

graphic organizers are very creative and help students to illustrate certain things write notes covered in the lesson. This

particular week they were working on organs and getting ready to prepare for frog dissection! Students were also taken to

the library to come up with ideas on a PowerPoint project on their experience on the upcoming frog dissection.

Field Observation Essay

This experience as I stated above, was a wonderful experience. There are so many ideas that just by observing came to my

attention. I observed which teaching style I prefer and the ideas on how the lessons were thought out or how the

curriculum is set out but also in the classroom management approaches. Mrs. Nieves shared that discipline on some days

can affect the day’s lesson and though she has the day pretty much planned out, there is always the unexpected.

 Some of the multiple intelligences strategies that I observed as those stated on page 39 in the text were again the graphic

organizers for the kinesthetic learner which would give the students the opportunity to draw. She also presented a video

from Fun Brain (http://www.funbrain.com/) on different parts of the body and their organs for the spatial learners to be

able to form a “mental model”. She would eventually reach the naturalist whenever they dissect the frogs

The deficit theory comes into play at KMS (pg. 67). Mrs. Nieves stated that many of the students who attend here come

from low socioeconomic environment. They are a school with low ratings, many of these children are ESE and they have

many students who are ELL or ESOL. They come from homes where on parent is the picture or those that in the custody

of another individual. There is a great disadvantage of the amount of children who do not read fluently, or that have a

language barrier. She does speak Spanish to those who speak only Spanish and tries really hard to encourage them to

follow along as best they can.

Her teaching philosophy would be similar to direct teaching. ( one of the characteristics of direct teaching as stated on

page 376) She has a very structured class and she has her day planned with an agenda. She explains to students what they

will be working on for that day and she follows step by step. Students work on notes reflective of the notes that she

provides for them to copy from, she lectures using the Smart board and presents certain slide and elaborates on each slide.

I have a friend who is a second year teacher and she is the schools speech pathologist. She is now attending graduate

school and she encourages me every day to keep pushing forward. She always tells me that is my heart is in I have to love

what I do. She told me that her mentor gives her advice on different strategies and since she deals with ESE students she

explains that there is a lot of work and laws that one working in special education has to do. I believe it is important for

teachers to have a mentor. There is always something to be learned in the field of education and having a mentor no matter

how long that person has been teaching there is always someone who can give ideas.

Mrs. Nieves was a great example of how I would like to run my classroom. I believe that she is an effective teacher as she

tries to incorporate different strategies and she seems to always change up the activities that they do from day to day to

keep the students engaged in the lesson,

I would place Mrs. Nieves at the maturity level. She has been teaching for over 16 years and though she has been in

teaching for those years she seems to adjust to new things that happens within science. She stated that she constantly has

to attend workshops and conferences to be aware of the things that change. She appears to be confident in the way she

manages her class and has everything well thought out and planned. (http://www.goedonline.com/elementary )

I have a better understanding of what teachers go through day to day and all the work that is involved and I am convinced

now more than ever that teaching is my calling.