Student Teaching Week 7: Maybe I Can Do This Whole Teaching Thing

http://www.aeseducation.com/blog/2012/10/self-directed-learning

As we approach the halfway point of the student teaching experience, I am finally starting to feel that I am catching my stride. Planning for class is becoming much easier, my rapport with my freshmen has drastically improved, and I am getting to see agricultural education beyond the school walls. Teaching is much more work than I had ever imagined, but it is so rewarding. (Especially Ag Ed) We get to see our students develop throughout their whole high school career. Other teachers do not get to see the great projects these students have outside school and therefore do not truly get to know them.

This past week, I not only got to teach livestock judging but I was able to help tag my students fair steers. Visiting my students, meeting their families, and seeing the passion for their projects is the coolest experience I have had yet. It is the best part of agricultural education in my opinion. I see SAE as being the cadillac of self driven learning. Students pursue projects that align with their interests and passions. As educators it is our job to steer them in the right direction and provide advice when necessary. Students seeing adults take interest in their projects is the ultimate motivator.

https://www.pinterest.com/motivationalv/motivation/

As I look into the upcoming week I need to find new ways to push my more advanced welders. I am toying around with the idea of a small project for students who complete all the welds earlier than expected. I have several ideas for small projects they could complete. Is it better to move onto a project or spend more time mastering the basics? I guess it depends on your definition of mastery. I believe incorporating a small project would help with student motivation and rapport. However, which better prepares them for a career in welding? I'm not sure how I feel about this yet, but I have time. Teaching is not easy by any means but I am already seeing the rewards through my students.

Student Teaching Week 6: Putting Your Foot Down

https://imgflip.com/memegenerator/18724297/Drill-Sergeant

Six weeks in already? This experience has been flying! This week I have been thinking about how lenient I should be as an educator. Where do we draw the line for our students? How do we pick our battles? Great teachers can see through all the bs that is thrown their way and divert students attention back to the day's objective. However this is easier said than done. We need to keep our students on task to help them reach their full potential, but we don't need to seem like a drill sergeant. We need to push students without pushing them over the edge, and every student has a different edge. Teachers gain respect from students only when the student feels respected. If respect is not mutual you will have problems.

I feel that I am very laid back as a teacher, as long as my students are being respectful. Students appreciate it when you work with them on due dates. This makes me think, are the due dates really that important? Students learn at different speeds so why shouldn't we be flexible. I understand that we must use due dates as checkpoints to keep our students on track, but isn't it more important that the students learn the first concept well before moving to the next? We need to be able to read our students, determine if they are truly struggling, and work with them individually.

http://www.researchhistory.org/2012/06/16/maslows-hierarchy-of-needs/

We can be extremely obsessed with getting through all the material at times, thinking the students have to know it all. The top 2/3 (academically) of the class will be successful no matter what. It is the bottom 1/3 of the class that we need to worry about. Life skills are much more important than the actual content for these students. We need to be mindful that we are already doing more for these students than anyone else by developing these life skills. The content will come later, if we make learning neverending. Our students need to develop in character before we can expect them to reach the higher levels of Maslow's hierarchy.

Student Teaching Week 5: Finding Your Stride

https://www.theodysseyonline.com/glimpse-identity-disability

As week five comes to an end, I finally feel like I am starting to find myself as a teacher. When I began this experience I was not sure what my identity would be in the classroom. I have little experience actually teaching. The challenges and obstacles are continually shaping me. I have heard many teachers talk about how important flexibility is but never realized just how big it is. We need to be able to make the change to plan B, C, or D at any given moment, especially now with snow days. These changes happen within the class period as well. What if the internet does not work? What if the supplies for the next unit have not come in yet? What if half of the class does not show up?

It is important that we have that "side shooter" in our pocket and can teach the subject matter in several different ways. This all goes back to being prepared and forward thinking as an educator. For example, I have several different games planned to review cattle anatomy in my livestock judging unit.

Through this experience so far, I am finding that students will respect you if you respect them. Don't talk down to them. If they need an intervention, do it separately. Don't embarrass them in front of the class. Be supportive. When they need chewed out do it, but let them know you're doing it because you care. When they fix the problem give them a pat on the back.

http://www.lrqconsulting.com/2015/02/13/grow-with-flexibility/

As you know from reading previous blogs, I have had my fair share of struggles managing my freshman class. I feel that I have made huge gains so far by simply respecting my students, making learning fun, and showing that I care about their future. The way you react to the struggles shows just who you are as a teacher and an individual. Change is slow but it is so worth it!

Student Teaching Week 4: The "Speak Week" Experience

https://www.pinterest.com/explore/motivational-memes/

If you read my blog from last week, you would know that I have been challenged this semester with motivating my freshman class. Over the past two weeks, I have spent a lot of time trying to determine what I can do to create a productive environment. Last weekend, I designed and decided to implement what I call "Speak Week", not quite the same as "Greek Week." Students were split from their talkative buddies and placed into teams. These teams were given the chance to compete at the beginning of class each day for 10 minutes. Scores were tallied and the winning teams were allowed to have a pizza party in friday's study period.

This competition drastically helped classroom management because teams would loose points for misbehavior. I feel that this has helped a lot with the class rapport. The students really enjoyed the competition and activities in general. But were do I go from here? I know for a fact that I need to keep providing activities that allows students to get up and moving. I also need to wean them off of the pizza prize. They will finish presenting their prepared speeches this week and begin a livestock judging unit.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/365495325982765197/

Looking into this next week, I need to keep it fun and engaging while being stern with those students who haven't put the work in on their speech. I have kids with tons of potential that put forth little effort and kids with less potential that work their hearts out. As an educator, I want all my students to reach their full potential. I have to continue learning through experimentation on how to motivate my students best.