Online Reflection #3: Knowing When Students Are Learning

As the semester begins to wrap up, I am feeling the pressure to make sure that my students learn as much information as possible. Being in a Language! class, I am able to see their progress and mastery of concepts more easily than if I were in another English class. One concept that I continue struggling with is: how do I get my students more engaged in the lessons and not just read the information to them?

During my lessons, my CT has been helpful in showing me how to get the students more engaged in the lessons. I have developed a tendency to take total control of the activities, and my CT has been helpful in keeping the lessons student focused. 

While I plan my lessons, I think about what information is going to be most beneficial to the students, and how I will know they are understanding the concepts. Since the lessons come pre-made through the Language! Program, my job has become manipulating the slides to fit the needs of the students and to maximize the amount learned. This is more difficult than I had realized, trying to redesign the lessons to promote maximum learning in the students (250). Using the SmartBoard, I have been able to bring students to the front of the class and manipulate the slides, thus increasing retention by ensuring that each student is following along in their text and getting the most out of the day’s lesson.

This semester has been one of the most difficult in my career as a student. I have not mastered how to get concepts across to students, or how to tell when students understand concepts. I have learned that while I am leading a class, I can come across as monotone or unsure of myself. My CT this semester has been great about trying to help me break out of my shell and explore new strategies while I plan my lessons. I am learning when students need the physical act of writing things in their workbooks, versus the interaction of being at the Smartboard and manipulating activities as a group rather than individually. This is beneficial when I review concepts, as well as introduce new ones to students. By knowing when students understand, I can tell when they are ready to move forward as a class.

Bomer, Randy. "Teaching Toward Participation in Digital Culture." Building Adolescent Literacy in Today's English Classrooms. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2011. Print.

KATE Conference: Learning from Professionals & Finding New Techniques

The first day of the KATE Conference went better than I had anticipated. When I first learned about the conference, I was somewhat turned-off about walking around to tables and listening to people reflect on their experiences as teachers. However, after the first few sessions, I became excited to implement things into a practice of my own.

In the session The Power of Discourse: Engaging Students by Activating Their Voices, I received several suggestions for how to implement student voices into class lessons. One suggestion that I found interesting was how to help students move to critical analysis of a text in class. The presenter suggested to have students discuss opinions of their interpretation of the text and move towards a more critical understanding. By allowing students to discuss their ideas, they gain valuable insights into others perspectives and learn how to hold discussions about differentiating view points.

Another session I attended was called Making It Stick: Communication. During this session, I learned different strategies that help students recall information from class. The presenters said that presentations/ lessons had to be memorable so that they stick with students after class, and they also stated that statistics turn students off to the lesson. These are not memorable, and students see these as boring and often forget them quickly. Another key concept is remembering teachers Curse of Knowledge. As a teacher, although we may find concepts simple, we must remember that students are only just being introduced to these concepts. This makes it difficult for teachers to simplify information, since we are "removed from the state of ignorance".

On Friday, I attended a session called "Control & Conquer Your Classroom". During this session, the presenters emphasized being proactive in the classroom- nobody's perfect and we will get 2nd chances. They stated that "kid's don't care how much you know until they know how much you care". Teachers should not be feared, but seen as allies. When students know that they are valued, they "will walk through fire" for teachers. I also learned that without student/teacher relationships, the classroom will rebel. As teachers, we can no longer assume students know how to behave at school- they must be taught the proper behaviors. When we teach students behaviors in at the beginning of the year, we must also show students the wrong behaviors- this prevents students having any grey areas. 

Overall, this experience was a great chance for me to learn some new techniques and teaching styles. I am excited to implement the new techniques in the classroom and see them put to work!