Autobiography
I have worked with children since high school and waited several years before becoming a teacher because I didn’t feel I fit the teacher mold. I believe children should have choices, be highly engaged and learn through inquiry. My personal childhood education was based on starting and finishing seatwork assignments. Later in life my son’s fourth grade teacher inspired me to earn my degree in Elementary Education. She helped me see that I could teach within my belief system with others who had the same passion.
My career is in its seventh year and my teaching philosophy has grown, changed and simplified. I have taught 2nd grade for 6 of these years, in this time I have learned more than I ever thought possible. I have teetered …show more content…
As an elementary building we have adopted Professional Learning Communities actively for over 3 years and we have found it enforces formative assessment, in turn drives instruction in a thorough and accountable manner. According to Wiggins and McTighe (2005), the work is structured; as a movement back and forth from content to performance and back again from discrete skill to strategy and back again. I think of this as spiraling or reviewing a learned skill and understanding it more deeply or in a new application. A great shift requires us to be aggressive in assessing as we teach, uncovering the learners’ understandings and misunderstandings along the way (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005). PLC’s for me as an educator is a safe place to share the results of the students’ learning. This holds me accountable for the learning of my students within a team of professionals that support me with resources, constructive criticism, and celebrations. Two coursework assignments helped to refine and clarify the work within a PLC, one was my personal reflection of PLC’s (Moving Forward in Our PLC, artifact 5) and the other was a power point used as a 4-month professional development to guide a neighboring school through PLC implementation( PLC ppt. artifact 9). Before my master studies I was confident enough to share my work but not in supporting others. Within our master courses I read textbooks and many articles about data analysis until it began to feel comfortable. One assignment titled, “Analyzing Data, Yes I Can” was a turning point for me, I found myself enjoying analyzing data and comfortable with asking questions and recommending interventions for other teachers (Analyzing Data Collection, artifact 6). This knowledgeable practice helped me grow and to confidently support
I have worked with children since high school and waited several years before becoming a teacher because I didn’t feel I fit the teacher mold. I believe children should have choices, be highly engaged and learn through inquiry. My personal childhood education was based on starting and finishing seatwork assignments. Later in life my son’s fourth grade teacher inspired me to earn my degree in Elementary Education. She helped me see that I could teach within my belief system with others who had the same passion.
My career is in its seventh year and my teaching philosophy has grown, changed and simplified. I have taught 2nd grade for 6 of these years, in this time I have learned more than I ever thought possible. I have teetered …show more content…
As an elementary building we have adopted Professional Learning Communities actively for over 3 years and we have found it enforces formative assessment, in turn drives instruction in a thorough and accountable manner. According to Wiggins and McTighe (2005), the work is structured; as a movement back and forth from content to performance and back again from discrete skill to strategy and back again. I think of this as spiraling or reviewing a learned skill and understanding it more deeply or in a new application. A great shift requires us to be aggressive in assessing as we teach, uncovering the learners’ understandings and misunderstandings along the way (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005). PLC’s for me as an educator is a safe place to share the results of the students’ learning. This holds me accountable for the learning of my students within a team of professionals that support me with resources, constructive criticism, and celebrations. Two coursework assignments helped to refine and clarify the work within a PLC, one was my personal reflection of PLC’s (Moving Forward in Our PLC, artifact 5) and the other was a power point used as a 4-month professional development to guide a neighboring school through PLC implementation( PLC ppt. artifact 9). Before my master studies I was confident enough to share my work but not in supporting others. Within our master courses I read textbooks and many articles about data analysis until it began to feel comfortable. One assignment titled, “Analyzing Data, Yes I Can” was a turning point for me, I found myself enjoying analyzing data and comfortable with asking questions and recommending interventions for other teachers (Analyzing Data Collection, artifact 6). This knowledgeable practice helped me grow and to confidently support