Analysis of Field Placement Experience and Philosophy
Part I: Pertinent Contextual Information
Part II: Teacher’s Perspective and Approach to the Social Curriculum and Social Studies
Part III: Reflection on My Field Placement Experience
Part I: Pertinent Contextual Information:
The small town of L is located in central New York. In 2010, the population of L was 4,952 people. This town is considered suburban and rural. It is suburban because it is located about 15 miles from a major city. It is rural because majority of L town is composed of farm land. There are three major US highways that run through L town. The class status of L town ranges from middle to working class families. From what I observed in the school, the middle class residents of this town are either farm owners, work in the agricultural industry, or commute to the neighboring city for work. Some of the working class families are from the Native American tribe from the area. In L town school district, there are three schools: G Elementary School, the Junior/Senior High School and the Native American Culture School. During the 2011-12 school year, the L town school district served a total of 858 students. During the same school year, 35% of the students were eligible for free and reduced lunch. In addition, 67% of the students were White and 30 % of the students were Native American. Furthermore, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian/Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islanders students were 1% each.
The G. Elementary School educates students in grades K-6. During the 2011-12 school year, the school had a total enrollment of 366 students. 30% of the 366 students were eligible for free and reduced lunch. Furthermore, 81% of the students wer...
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...he future. This will ultimately develop students who have self-control and are empathetic citizens. Through my experience, I have learned that teaching is a profession that takes passion, courage, love, and an enjoyment of learning, if the teacher emulates these qualities, he/she can change the world one student at a time.
References:
Butchart, R. & McEwan, B. (Eds.). (1998). Classroom discipline in American schools: Problems and possibilities for democratic education. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
Charney, R. S. (2002). Teaching children to care: Classroom management for ethical and academic growth, k-8. Massachusetts, Northeast Foundation for Children.
New York State Report Cards. (n.d.). New York State Department of Education. Retrieved December 4, 2013, from https://reportcards.nysed.gov/schools.php?district=800000040996&year=2012
I had the privilege of doing my middle school observation at Corkscrew Middle School. While I was there I observed a seventh grade language arts class. This school has a total student population of 726. Of those students 320 are White, 55 are Black, 325 are Hispanic, 3 are Asian, 15 are Multiracial, and 8 are Indian. Approximately 52% of the school’s student population are economically needy.
Hollins and Guzman (2005) noted that among the most critical challenges facing the nation is providing high-quality schooling for all students, especially those presently underserved by the educational system, including students of color, low-income students, English-language learners, and students in rural and urban settings. Hollins and Guzman (2005) discussed the recent report from the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES, 2003a), the report indicated that the 100 largest public school districts in the nation enroll 23% of all public school students. Sixty-nine percent of those were minority students, and 54%were eligibles for free and reduced-price lunches. This is especially relevant in consideration of the expectations of
They say it takes a village to raise a child, if that is the case, the same village must share accountability when facing the challenges of educational inequity. In New York City, the nation’s largest school system, student outcomes and their opportunity to learn are more determined by the neighborhood where a child lives, rather than his or her abilities – this issue stretches farther than New York City, it is nationwide.
Ray Wilber once stated, "The potential possibilities of any child are the most intriguing and stimulating in all creation." This simple quote is incredibly motivating to any educator, especially myself. To me, children bring a certain smile to my face whenever they enter a room and so to be a teacher is to know the greatest happiness. Beyond love, education is the greatest gift you can offer a child and teaching allows you to bring that incalculable knowledge to their growing minds.
My school is Salk Elementary which is in Mesa Arizona. I am in Mrs. Sechez’s classroom which is a 5th grade classroom. I am a former student of the school and I attended 3rd to 6th grade at the school. I am familiar with the community because I am a former student and because I live in the area. Salk is a Title 1 school and fosters a community of diverse learners. There is a significant Hispanic population of students at the school which is about 44 percent. 80 percent of students get free or reduced lunch. As a former student, I was one of those who got lunch for free due to my economic situation. Economic wise, Salk is in an interesting position geographically. Salk serves some of the lower income areas that are to the south and southeast
When I think about becoming a teacher, I think about how I can make the world a better place. I know I can’t do everything to change the world, but I can do something, I can teach.
Discipline plays a key role in the learning environment of the child. A teacher must have an effective discipline method to keep order in the classroom. The view of behaviorists seems to work in most situations. If positive reinforcement is utilized in the classroom, students will want to do well academically. Punishment often times causes students to rebel against authority. If the teacher rewards students for good behavior, then they will want to be consistent in their behavior they will see that this will benefit them.
Teachers have one of the most important jobs and help shape the next generation of students. While teachers have an impact on their student’s lives, students impact the teacher’s lives as well. Education is more than just going to school eight hours a day, and learning information, but it helps shape students into what they will be like in the forthcoming. I believe that teachers should be a model to their students, encourage them, and teach them through experience.
Hearing their personal opinions on what is most valuable in education helped me to consider what I find most valuable in becoming the teacher I want to become. I realized that I value the students the most. They are the factor that changes every lesson plan and they are the ones that alter my classroom demands. Thus, it is how I interact with the students that becomes the factor in determining what kind of teacher I am to become. I was speaking with a friend the other day and he was telling me about his experience when he rode a horse for the first time. He recalled that it was when he was on the horse, weaving through neighbors’ yards and all across the streets (they were uncostly transporting the horse to its pasture 5 miles away) that he realized that there was no way for him to be prepared to ride that horse until he actually saddled it up and took the chance. Life is like this in many ways as plans change and people walk in and out of your life. We cannot ever be fully prepared for the kind of experiences that we are to face in the future, but we can have an agenda of who we want to aspire to be. We are given agency so that we can act rather than be acted upon. We can accomplish excellence and furthermore help others, including students, to also accomplish
Teacher’s inspired students to do great things during their school years. Teachers love to see the improvement of their students and are a connection to a development of learning. The teacher wants the best for their students and at the same time, they are rewards on seen it their students to success. A success future is what students have and teachers teach for guarantee the wish. Two different teacher give me their opinion why they love teaching and it was a great honor to interview them.
After examining various philosophies of education, different roles of all individuals in the education process and deeply reflecting on my personal reasons for wanting to become an educator, I have seen the type of teacher I hope to one day become. Through hard work, extensive planning and time, I know that I can become an educator that not only meets the standards expected of them by others, but that can live up to my own personal expectations. As I continue on my journey to become an educator, I will continue to grow and learn more information that will help me once I have a classroom of my own, and I will become the better breed of teachers that electrifies and inspires.
Qualities That I Bring to the Teaching Profession Being a teacher is said to be just a job, but to me teaching is “an instrumental or practical art” (Arends, 4) to create a more diverse way of learning. When I become a teacher, I want it to be more than just a job, I want it to be my life and something I’m proud of doing. Creating life and laughter in a classroom is going to be a part of my everyday teaching style. So many teachers have lost what it means to teach because they have lost the love for educating our youth. A learning environment full of curriculum but fun is something I will accomplish when I become part of the teaching profession because just like a beautiful work of art, my teaching style will be a type of art in itself.
Being a teacher is not an easy task as many people could think. To be a teacher does not only imply to know the subject to be taught, it also includes being willing to constantly improve oneself integrally, as much as updating the resources and materials one uses in teaching. Reflecting and analyzing over and over again the best way to teach to learn and how to make students to extend what has been learned. The many hours spend in the classroom will never be enough to plan lessons, prepare materials, review pupils tasks and exams, as well, all the administrative requirements one has to cover for whatever institution we work. Besides all this a good teacher, a professional one, will have to find the time to keep preparing to improve oneself.
Teaching is not a job for everyone, but I strongly believe that teaching is my calling. What many people do not understand is that as early childhood educators, we begin to shape the minds of these young children. We are one of the primary building blocks to their education. What we teach them will stay with them forever, and it may not be just things within the curriculum. Although teaching may seem like an easy career, it is one of the most important roles in a child 's life. Many children spend more time at school with their teachers than at home with their parents. We are their role models, they follow what we do which is why we must be the best we can be. Teachers are the ones who prepare students for the future, we are the creators of future lawyers, engineers, musicians, etc. Schools are the place where it all begins, schools are the foundation and we teachers build on that foundation. I am a teacher because I want to change someone’s life by sharing what I know with them.
Teachers should provide students with the skills to be successful and happy in life by being a good role model. Teachers should do this by being a good role model and teach because they love what they do. Students can tell when a teacher has a passion for what they do because they are dedicated and care about each and every