RTL Week 1 Reflection

                                        

During my first week back at PSU, I was given my first RTL to complete during the first AEE 412 lab. This exercise was to gauge where my cohort and I are currently with our teaching abilities.
Through this exercise, I was given a random topic to teach a 15 minute lesson. My topic was leadership visions. I found the process of planning the lessen a little stressful. I had trouble narrowing down my ideas on how to teach the content and what would work best. I learned from this exercise that it is okay to not get everything perfect on the first try, so long as you strive to get better than the person you were yesterday.
Some good things or "gems" that I had in my presentation were activities to engage students in the topic and my enthusiasm for the lessen. Some opportunities I had would be to better plan my time for the lessen and to include more checks for understanding/adding variability.
Overall my first RTL experience was one I will never forget. This experience has shown me some weaknesses and strengths that I have. I will continue to work on these through the semester as I strive to be the best version of myself! 

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Principles of Effective Teaching

Essential Question: How can we facilitate and design excellent teaching and learning?

The first week of classes as a senior in agriculture education has been a whirlwind of knowledge, reflection, and fun. This week I have learned that it is okay to not be perfect on your first try at something new, so long as you learn from the mistakes that were made. This concept is a reflection of a growth mindset. I was excited to read the weekly investment resources for this week because I feel that they tie in with our current discussion as well as build upon a new topic. I found one topic that jumped out at me the most which was: what are the principles of effective teaching? I found this information very useful as I reflect on my first week of classes. The principles of teaching and learning held 16 principles of effective teaching. While each principle is important, I have chosen a few that I feel connects to the discussions I have had during my first week of AEE classes.

Principle 1: When the content matter possesses meaning, organization, clarity, and structure, learning occurs more rapidly for students

Principle 3: Students must be motivated to learn.

Principle 5: Success is a strong motivating force.

Principle 10: Directed learning is more effective then undirected learning.

Principle 12: Students learn what they practice.

These are just a few points that piqued my interest as I continue my student teaching journey. These principles remind me that I am still learning ways to be an effective teacher and adopting a growth mindset will ensure that I never stop learning. I know it will take time, patience, practice, and excellent role models before I can consider myself an expert teacher. As I continue my journey, I know that I will be given the tools needed to be an effective teacher. It is up to me to utilize these resources to be the best version I can be for my future students!

References 

Newcomb, L.H., McCracken, J.D., Warmbrod, J.R., & Whittington, M.S (1993). Methods of teaching agriculture. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall

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The Wild Card: Part 2

In part one of The Wild Card, I discussed chapters 1-3. For this installment, my mentor team and I read chapters 4-7 of The Wild Card. This book continues to amaze me with eye-opening strategies and advice that would actually work in the classroom!

Chapter 4

"Evaluate where you are today and accept it so you can move forward". This quote is a powerful reminder that as educators, we should continue moving forward and push ourselves to be better for our students and ourselves.  This chapter discussed self-awareness as a teacher and how to evaluate yourself. During our group discussion, I asked a question that was posed in the book to my mentor team. "Do your students want to be in your classroom, or do they merely have to be there?". MK: responded that it can be challenging to interest every student that walks through your door. By creating relationships with your students, it can be easier to appeal to their interests. I feel that this great advice can be utilized by any teacher. Self-criticism can be a tough pill to swallow however being aware of how your students respond in your classroom allows you to improve your teaching techniques.

Chapter 5

"Let desire drive your commitment to challenge yourself and step outside your comfort zone". What is your WHY? After reading this section, my mind instantly connected with Dr. Foster's saying, "It's all about the WHY". The authors talk about their journey and how their WHY has changed. I asked the question, " Has your WHY changed from when you initially started teaching?". MK: responded that her WHY hasn't necessarily changed, but has grown. MW: echoed the same thoughts and also added that without your WHY, it is difficult to find purpose in teaching. My WHY is that I want to help students find their passion in life and help them to be upstanding and educated adults.

Chapter 6

This chapter brought awareness to the importance of self reflection. The chapter focuses on reflecting on personal creativity, goals, and classroom management. I asked the mentor team if the practiced self-reflection. MW: explained that he often finds himself reflecting on his day during his drive home. He stated that it can help recognize the good, the bad, or the ugly of the day so that you don't repeat the same mistakes the next day. The authors also discussed what creativity means. The authors posed the question, does the word creativity intimidate you? I chose to ask this question during our book discussion. MW: responded that he felt that creativity has many forms and that being creative does not always have to produce an item that has been made. I feel the same way about the word creativity, it can be as simple as an idea.

Chapter 7

"Develop a new understanding of engagement".

In the powerful wisdom from the authors, just because students are filling out a work sheet, it does not always mean students are engaged! I posed a question during our discussion about breaking through to engagement. MK: responded that she has learned to recognize when students are engaged versus when they are not. She also explained that she is still working on finding her balance to ensure that every student is engaged during a lesson.

Over-All Thoughts

These four chapters were full of wisdom and creative advice. It is impossible to list the many amazing things discussed in this segment of the book! Reading this book has furthered my excitement for student teaching and has enforced my WHY for pursuing teaching. Stay tuned for the final reflection of The Wild Card!