Although I don't plan on teaching in Michigan, the Professional Standards for Michigan Teachers are good goals to aspire to and are most likely very similar to any first-world state or country I could ever teach in.
The seven main categories of standards are as follows: subject matter knowledge-base in general and liberal education; instructional design and assessment; curricular and pedagogical content knowledge aligned with state resources; effective learning environments; responsibilities and relationships to the school, classroom, and student; responsibilities and relationships to the greater community; and technology operations and concepts.
Right now, I am not very competent in any of these categories. However, I feel that I will be able to meet certain standards better with experience, and some more with study. For example, knowledge about how to have productive relationships with my students, the school, and the community, will not come by taking any particular class. I will learn to do this by experience as a teacher in the unique school and classroom I am in.
Right now, my weakness is the curricular and pedagogical content knowledge aligned with state resources. I am learning more about this in other classes right now, especially focusing on physical education curriculum requirements.
To become proficient in all of these categories will require a combination of experience, trial-and-error methods, and memorization.
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Sunday, February 12, 2012
My learning styles and multiple intelligences
According to a Learning Style survey and a Multiple Intelligence survey I took recently, I am a sensing and intuitive learner and are kinaesthetically intelligent. As a sensing learner, I tend to like learning facts, and as an intuitive learner, I prefer discovering possibilities and relationships. I like solving problems by well-established methods and dislike complications and repetition. I am patient with details and good at memorizing facts and doing hands-on work. I can grasp new concepts and am very careful. I like learning things that connect to the real world and are applicable to every day life.
As someone who is "body-smart," I like moving around and can think best when I'm active. I am able to control my body movements and handle objects skillfully.
These tests reflected mostly true results. I was already aware that I am body-smart; I value my body as something more than a means by which to transport my head from classroom to classroom. Some parts of the results of my Learning Style survey I thought were incorrect. For example, the survey said that I am comfortable with abstractions and mathematical formulation. These are two of my least favorite things in the world.
In my classroom, I plan on letting children move around a lot. This will match up with my body-smart learning style, as well as the classes I will be teaching - special ed and physical education. My dislike of complications and repetition will also be of great use in these fields. I can keep an open mind when it comes to new ideas, but I am just as comfortable with well-established methods.
Although my learning style and intelligence will benefit my teaching in many ways, there are also some things that I must keep counteract if I want to be a good teacher. For example, I might really like moving around and being active, but not all children are like that; every child has different ways to learn. I can memorize facts; but some students just can't. If I teach this way, then my teaching won't be effective for those children.
I need to be sensitive to all of my student's learning needs by incorporating all intelligences into my lesson; using both numbers and nature, group and individual work, and pictures and words. This is, of course, easier said than done. It will need to be a constant conscious effort every day as I prepare my lesson plan.
As someone who is "body-smart," I like moving around and can think best when I'm active. I am able to control my body movements and handle objects skillfully.
These tests reflected mostly true results. I was already aware that I am body-smart; I value my body as something more than a means by which to transport my head from classroom to classroom. Some parts of the results of my Learning Style survey I thought were incorrect. For example, the survey said that I am comfortable with abstractions and mathematical formulation. These are two of my least favorite things in the world.
In my classroom, I plan on letting children move around a lot. This will match up with my body-smart learning style, as well as the classes I will be teaching - special ed and physical education. My dislike of complications and repetition will also be of great use in these fields. I can keep an open mind when it comes to new ideas, but I am just as comfortable with well-established methods.
Although my learning style and intelligence will benefit my teaching in many ways, there are also some things that I must keep counteract if I want to be a good teacher. For example, I might really like moving around and being active, but not all children are like that; every child has different ways to learn. I can memorize facts; but some students just can't. If I teach this way, then my teaching won't be effective for those children.
I need to be sensitive to all of my student's learning needs by incorporating all intelligences into my lesson; using both numbers and nature, group and individual work, and pictures and words. This is, of course, easier said than done. It will need to be a constant conscious effort every day as I prepare my lesson plan.
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