MWSU DISPOSITION SELF-MANAGEMENT VIRGINIA PERKINS Adaptability Despite the rigorous planning each effective teacher does to prepare

re for a lesson or an entire course, it seems to be a law of nature that unexpected events will occur which are not accounted for in their plan. A teacher that is too reliant on a plan may be unable to handle such situations, and so having the characteristic of adaptability becomes essential. I would consider myself a rigorous planner, but even so, I have on numerous occasions ran into situations in which I had to think on my feet. Sometimes Ive considered the worstcase scenario before a lesson and have come up with an alternative plan, but other times I was not prepared. For example, on a test review day, I had handouts for students that had been printed off and left in the classroom with my cooperating teacher during the previous class. When the time came to pass them out to students, they were nowhere to be found, and my cooperating teacher wasnt in the classroom to tell me where he had put them. It just so happened that before class, I had printed off a certain page of their handout (because it had a graph that their original graph was missing), and so I passed it out to students to work on while I looked for the rest of the handout. I eventually found it, but having the other handout and thinking to have them work on it during that time saved precious test review time. One problem that happens frequently is the failure of needed technology. I have had lessons in which students needed to watch a video, and the technology to do so was in some way dysfunctional. Ive always found alternative ways to productively preoccupy the students while the technology was being sorted out. Another event that occurs is when students have unanticipated questions. Given that the question is relevant to the topic were talking about, or at

least worth a sidebar, Ive usually been able to adapt my lesson to explore the student suggested facet of whatever concept were discussing. Timing issues also result in many small adaptations. Situations in which adaptability is warranted does not merely extend to classroom mishaps, but is also applicable to dealings with school staff and parents. Changes in policy and life situations are challenges that I readily meet. I recognize cohesive adaptability akin to finding solutions to problems that benefit everyone in a school setting. Being mindful of the far reaching consequences of decisions should affect the short term decisions you make to adapt classroom learning. Regardless, it remains essential that these choices are made quickly in a classroom setting. Being able to consider the broader consequences is helpful, though not always necessary. My considerations in regards to adaptability has been shown, and I can point to many instances in which I made adaptations to my lessons, either on the go or post-lesson in consideration of the future. The teacher disposition of adaptability for myself extends not only to quick thinking in the classroom, but broader thinking about school administration and student home life. This is a characteristic of self-management that I excel in that benefit myself as well as others.