From Perfection to Progression: Teaching as an Ongoing Learning Experience

MATC Synthesis Paper

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts Degree in Teaching and Curriculum Department of Teacher Education, Michigan State University

Amanda (Craik) Clarkson PID A35798876 July 12, 2013

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Expecting perfection I began my teaching career on a quest for perfection. I thought that if I tried hard enough and put all of the things I studied in college into practice, I could be the best at my craft. After all, I came close to perfection in college. I graduated with high honors in a renowned education program. I felt confident that the knowledge instilled in me by my professors and the field experiences I participated in prepared me for what lie ahead. I did not think perfection would come easily or that it would come right away, but I knew that with energy and time I could master the art of teaching. Now I know better. No matter how much effort you put forth, how much knowledge you acquire, and how much will and dedication you possess, teaching is not about perfectionit is about progression. If there is anything I have learned from my graduate classes and my short teaching career, it is that teaching is far from perfect. Its messy. Its complicated. There are not always right answers. My graduate program and teaching experience have allowed me to learn and grow as an educator, and I know that this progression will be ongoing. While I am sure that I can look forward to a time where I will feel more comfortable and confident in my practice, I also know my teaching career is a journey, not a destination. My journey of teaching and learning has had many pivotal points, as well as u-turns, detours, and even dead ends. I have now worked in three different schools in three very different classrooms. I have taken a variety of coursework that has allowed me to truly grow in my thinking as an educator. In general, I have seen many signs of progression in my journey as a teacher, and have a projected path of where I can still go and what I can still accomplish.

Progress in building relationships (Goal 2)

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I started my teaching career in a low-income, high-needs school in the southwest part of Chicago. When I arrived three days prior to the start of school, my principal drilled into us the importance of diving into the curriculum from day 1. We do not have precious instructional time to waste with these kids, he told us. I knew establishing routines and getting to know the students was an important part of the beginning of the school year. I also knew that I wanted to make a good impression on my boss. Sure enough, I did a couple of ice breakers the first day of school and then dove straight into instruction. When my principal walked through on the second day of school and saw the students with their science textbooks out, he smiled and nodded at me. It took about a month for me to realize why my students werent engaged in what I was teaching them and why I was so miserable at my job. I did not have a connection with my students. I went into the teaching profession because I care about kids, and I was completely missing the point. My experiences in TE 807 reinforced this idea of building strong rapport with students. Artifact 1 shows my understanding of teacher and student relationships after reading course materials and discussing ideas with my peers. I now understand that building relationships was essential to a creating an environment where students wanted to learn and where I wanted to teach. More importantly, I started seeing and understanding connections between my relationships with students and the quality of teaching and learning in the classroom. In my paper, I noted, When teachers care about their students, they instinctively find ways to teach better. They are not just teaching for the sake of teaching, but teaching to better the lives of the students with whom they have a meaningful relationship. I continued to develop my understanding and refinement of building relationships in TE 892, when I created a classroom management plan (Artifact 2). At first, I did not think this would be a beneficial project, as I had been teaching for three years and thought that my classroom

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management was under control. However, the project required me to look critically at different texts and think about how I could incorporate my knowledge of building relationships into behavioral routines and expectations. I realized that in my current classroom management style, I was forgetting this relational aspect of my teaching. Everything was very systematic and there was more emphasis on consequences, rather than preventative measures that could be implemented to deter consequences. The classroom management plan that I created with all these new ideas and insights about building relationship capacity turned out to be a much better reflection of what I wanted my classroom to look like. I used ideas from both Teaching with Love and Logic (Jim Faye & David Funk, 2010) as well as the Capturing Kids Hearts program (Flip Flippen, 2012) to guide the creation of my plan. When I finished, it was something I implemented in my teaching practice immediately. It was not perfect and still is not perfect, but my new behavior management system shows the progress I made in my thinking in terms of classroom management and relating to students. Getting to know your students is supposed to be the easy part. Clearly, it was something that still required a lot of progress in my own practice. My experiences in these MATC classes allowed me to take a more critical look at what I was doing in my classroom and broadened my view of what a classroom community could and should look like.

Progress in analyzing data (Goals 1, 2) Teachers wear many hats. I did not realize when I became a teacher that I would also be a data analyst. Surprisingly, this is where I find that I spend much of my time. When I began both my teaching internship and graduate studies at Michigan State, this was a concept to which I was first introduced. I initially learned about collecting and analyzing data to help me understand

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students personal lives better so I could, in turn, better serve them at school. During my internship I had to interview a parent about several questions regarding literacy at home and at school. I did not see the value in the experience until after I sat down with the information from the interview and analyzed its significance and implications in the classroom (Artifact 3). For example, I found out that my students mom helped her daughter with her homework at home. My cooperating teacher (CT) and I were under the impression that most students did not receive help at home, and this changed our perspectives. We discussed how we might be making assumptions about students home lives and potentially lowering expectations for our students because of this. I also learned that my students parent (and many other parents) felt that some sort of reading incentive at school would encourage students to read more outside of school even for those who already enjoyed reading. We did not realize how many students were unmotivated by reading at home. Analyzing this data was scary. It made both of us realize that mistakes we had been making that we were unaware of, and certainly highlighted our imperfections. However, we were determined to act upon the data we had analyzed. . Had I not collected data from this parent, we never would have had the mindset to make the changes we did in our classroom. One aspect of the classroom that we changed was trying to involve parents more in their childs homework. We sent home helpful tips of ways they could promote literacy at home. If we were teaching a new concept in math, we would send home practical activities that could be done quickly on a daily basis. We started to see parents as a part of what we were doing on a daily basis in the classroom, despite the fact that they were not physically in our classroom. Based on the feedback we received, we also started a reading incentive program in the classroom. Students would mark the amount of minutes they read with stickers in the classroom. When the whole class reached their goal, we had a celebration.

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Because of the data I collected and then analyzedfrom an assignment that I initially did not see the value inwe were able to make changes that had a positive effect on our students and on our own way of thinking. Analyzing students academic data is also essential in determining what to teach. During the first couple years of teaching, I was just trying to keep my head above water. To survive the enormous workload I had and unfamiliarity with teaching in general, I taught straight from the curricular tools and gave little thought to assessments. I gave tests at the end of a unit just to get a grade in the grade book, and moved on to the next topic regardless of the scores my students received on the test. I was not using data to inform my instruction. When I took TE 846, I learned how to effectively use assessments to guide my instruction and best serve students. Artifact 4 shows how I used an assessment when planning for instruction, and another to see what the student had learned as a result of the lesson. I taught this context clues lesson to a fourth grade English Language Learner. In the preassessment, I saw that my student already had strong background knowledge in one of the words. The other two words were words that he was unfamiliar with. This data was invaluable to the subsequent lesson and activities. I was teaching context clues, so if I had not given a preassessment and looked at the results, I would have included the term that my student already knew in the lesson. This would have skewed the results of the lesson, as I was looking for whether or not my student could use context clues to determine the meaning of words, not whether or not he already knew the meaning of words. After the lesson, I gave another assessment to determine what he had learned. I was able to see through this assessment that he had used context clues correctly and was able to define words using the skills that were taught in the lesson.

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The implications of using data in instruction are enormous. A teacher can make better use of planning time when she knows exactly what her students need and what they understand about a certain concept. It allows a teacher to pinpoint instruction and ensure that all students understand what has been taught. Instructional decisions can be made more thoughtfully and carefully. Applying what I learned about data in these two classes has certainly made a difference in my teaching practice, and it is perhaps the area in which I have made the most progress.

Progress in challenging the curricular tools (Goal 1, 2) As I previously mentioned, I started by teaching career in survival mode. It was hard enough to find time during the day to take attendance, let alone find time to plan lessons that strayed from what my teachers guide told me to teach. I tossed aside everything I knew about good teaching and taught straight from the curricular tools. I was quickly reminded of the error in this when the 35 students before me, most of them English Language Learners and almost all of them below grade level, were not making the progress I had expected or hoped. I knew I would have to start making adaptations to the curricular tools to better engage my students in the learning process. In TE 896, I wrote a geography unit plan based on the Michigan GLCEs but designed to meet the needs of the learners in my room (Artifact 5). The unit plan largely strays away from the textbook, because the textbook simply did not match the state standards and was not helping me meet my students needs. I also carefully considered and noted adaptations for ELLs in my lesson, since I had several language learners in my classroom at the time. It was time consuming to create lessons on my own that were not simply copied out a teachers manual. It was also time

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consuming to think of specific and useful adaptations for each lesson. But when I used the unit plan with my students, I saw much greater results in their engagement and in turn their learning. This course and the unit plan project helped me to realize that I know a lot of great teaching strategies, especially for English Language Learners, and I need to make sure that I am using them all the time in my teaching. Sometimes challenging the curriculum means using the curricular tools but implementing them in a different way. In TE 843, I was required to challenge a part of the curriculum I use on a regular basis but has not been effective in my classroom. I chose to redesign the way our vocabulary program was used (Artifact 6). The way our staff was taught to implement the program was to play a CD that pronounced all 20 words for the week and read their definitions. There were then a variety of activities for the students to do with the words included in the workbook. The activities were very rigorous and gave the students several modalities in which to practice the words; however, I realized that the students were not comfortable enough with the words in the first place to then apply them in these activities. To redesign the curriculum, I put more emphasis on guided instruction before the students even got to the activity to ensure that the words were first understood by the students. Based on some of the strategies I had learned in the course, I decided that it would be beneficial to first introduce only a portion of the words at a time. When these words were introduced, rather than simply reading the definitions, students could have discussions about the words (e.g. noticing the root words, synonyms they know, etc.), work in partner or small groups to write using the words, and use graphic organizers to better understand the meaning of the words. The curricular tool and the content within it was not bad in fact, it was quite the opposite. However, the approach that it recommended teachers take to actually deliver the content needed to be adjusted. This was yet another plan that I used in my

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classroom, and immediately I saw huge growth in my students engagement with the lessons and success with vocabulary. Challenging the curriculum and straying from it altogether is not easy. It would be much easier to simply plan from the materials provided. Research shows that this is not always the best for students, and my own experience shows this too. Armed now with experience and more knowledge in good teaching strategies, this is an area in which I am progressively improving.

Progress in becoming a leader (Goal 3) I am not a natural leader. Leaders are charismatic, confident, and naturally engaging. I am none of those things. I would prefer take responsibility for what I am told to do, rather than what I seek out to do. Leadership is risky because you put yourself in a place where failure can occur, and failure negates the option for perfection. Though I readily accept my role as a leader and role model for my students, I hesitate at the thought of leading my coworkers and peers. Am I really cut out to lead anyone? I know now that being a teacher leader is not a choice. As a teacher with a certain knowledge base and a teacher who wants the best for all students, I have had to step up and lead in my own way. I initially took on a leadership role almost by accident. I was part of the first group of Michigan State interns to teach in Chicago Public Schools. Without realizing it at first, my fellow interns and I had to step up and be leaders by representing our university in a positive light and demonstrating how valuable this experience could be for future interns. We had to prove that this endeavor was worthwhile and one worth pursuing. As the first group of interns, we had to set the precedent for anyone else who would come along after us. One way the interns at my school and I took a leadership role was by creating something that we called Walk

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Around Woodlawn (Artifact 7). Doing some sort of extra-curricular activity was a requirement of our internship year, but we wanted to give back to the school by filling a need that we saw that was not already met. The school that we taught at was considered to be an African Heritage School. They had an assembly each morning where students would sing and chant phrases in Swahili. Each classroom represented a different African country. However, we did not see much integration of these ideas in the classroom. The students did not seem to know anything about the countries that their classrooms represented or about African culture in general. The other interns and I designed the Walk Around Woodlawn program to fill this gap in understanding that we saw and build excitement in the students about their unique school. We started by communicating our idea to the staff at the buildingthat each classroom would represent their country by planning some sort of activity or event in their own classrooms to share with the other students. Then, we would plan a rotational schedule that would allow students to walk around their school and visit each different country. Our event was a major success. Students were engaged in the planning process and looked forward to the day of the event. Once the event had passed, the principal of the school said that it was something they would continue after we had left. It was inspiring to step up and do something that was a little intimidating, being that we were only interns. It was important step in the leadership process for me because it showed me that it is important to have a see a need, fill a need attitude. Several of my classes have inspired me to continue taking leadership roles in my practice, despite my always-present hesitation to do so. This is especially true when it comes to advocating for English language learners. Working with ELLs is my absolute passion, and I have designed my MATC program so that I would be as highly educated as possible in best practices for teaching ELLs. At my current school, I am considered to be the ELL guru and will talk

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with anyone who needs strategies to use with their language learners. My TE 825 course encouraged me to be even more proactive about my knowledge and passion for ELLs so I could be a leader among my colleagues. As a final project, I had to collaborate with other classmates to create a professional development seminar for teachers (Artifact 8). The purpose of the professional development was to focus on instructional strategies for underserved and underachieving students. Naturally, I chose to focus my portion of the presentation on ELLs. At first, it was a challenge to create something that would be engaging for adults. However, the more I worked on the presentation, the more excited I got about it. Though this assignment was meant solely as a final project for my class, I have already contacted the principal at my school to see if it would be something I could share with my coworkers when we return from summer vacation. This project allowed me to realize how much I do know about ELLs and how much potential there is for me to lead my colleagues by sharing my understanding. I will always be making slow progress in my leadership skills. When I stand in front of my peers to share about ELLs, my voice will tremble and I will be extremely uncomfortable. If I come up with a school-wide project to fill a need that I see, I will have to talk myself into approaching the principal and suggesting the idea. Leadership is not easy, but I have learned through my MATC experience that it is an essential part of being a teacher.

Embracing progress My story is one that is clearly far from perfection. I did not start as a perfect teacher. I will not end my career as a perfect teacher. Surprisingly, that is no longer something I desire. Perfection implies that all that can be learned is already learned, and for the sake of my students I never want to stop learning or growing. In each of the areas of progress I detailed, I still see

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room for growth. When it comes to building relationships with students, I know I need to learn more about the culture of the students I teach. I recently started working at a school where many of the students are Indian, a culture I know very little about. When it comes to analyzing data, I know that I need to give more formative assessments to help me get an even clearer picture of what students understand at any given moment of a lesson. When it comes to challenging the curriculum, I know I need to be more mindful of the needs of all learners, not just my students who are struggling. My gifted students deserve to have their needs met, too. Finally, when it comes to leadership, I know I need confidence. I have the tools and knowledge to be a leader to those around me, and I need to take the initiative to do so. The most liberating part of my education and career was the realization that perfection is not the goal of teaching, but that the continual progression of knowledge and experience is. I never have to truly master the art of teaching to be a great teacher, as long as I recognize that teaching is an ongoing learning experience. My MATC program has opened my eyes to this idea and given me the means to continue learning and growing. I may be exiting the MATC program, but I am continuing the process of teaching with the mindset of progress.