Section 5: Teacher Candidate Reflection

Introduction
This section focuses on my abilities to reflect upon my experiences and how each
experience has helped me to grow as a teacher. From my very first day on Medailles campus, to
the submission of my last assignment, I have become a totally different person. When I began
this journey I was inexperienced and honestly a little nervous. I took that nervous energy and
inexperience with me on my first day of orientation. I met so many wonderful people and learned
so much from my colleagues as well as the faculty of Medaille. Now, that Im coming to the end
of the program, Im a more experienced educator who is ready to take on any challenges the
world of education wants to throw at me. I have experienced what the inside of a classroom is
really like. I know the theory behind why we do certain things in our classrooms and I know that
the educational world is an ever changing thing. Soon I will be a part of this ever changing field
and thanks to Medaille, I have a shot at helping the field to change for the better.
In this section, I will reflect upon the process of creating this portfolio. I will also reflect
upon my learning experiences while at Medaille and my readiness to become a teacher. I firmly
believe that all of these experiences have lead me to become a better educator. My time at
Medaille has been well spent and I would definitely do it all over again if given the chance to go
back in time. Medaille has prepared me for the educational world and Im very excited to
become a part of it. This portfolio project has helped me to compile my work together into a
cohesive product and I could not possibly be more grateful to have something like this to get me
started on my journey after graduation.
Portfolio Project/Teacher Education Learning Experiences

During my time in the teacher education program at Medaille, I have learned more than I
ever could have imagined. I have learned how to be a teacher and a researcher at the same time, I
have learned how to teach in a way where I can reach more of my students than just using one
method of teaching, and I have learned how to be a caring educator. I know my subject matter for
all of the content areas I will be teaching and I know how meet the needs of my diverse learners
while using best teaching practices and effective pedagogy.
Claim 1 for TEAC says that Medaille graduates know the subject matter of their
certification areas. Since my certification is going to be in all subject areas for grades 1 through
6, I needed to be proficient in every subject. My methods courses prepared me for so many of
these subject areas.
In my science and math methods course, we learned about how the curriculum for math is
the same at every school thanks to the Common Core. My colleagues and I all created different
math lessons and presented them to each other. This way, we could all build off of each other and
help each other grow. Plus, it gave us all ideas for fun things we could use in our future
classrooms to engage our students while also getting the material across. My professor for this
course was a wealth of knowledge. She helped us grow every chance she got. If we needed
something clarified on how to do something, she was always there and gave us several different
ways to do it. She provided us with everything we needed to succeed in the educational world.
Even if we didnt ask for help, she was able to read our facial expressions to know if we needed
just one more example or if we needed a handout on something and she didnt have it on hand,
she would go out of her way to get it to us as soon as she could. She taught me to be prepared for
anything. When conferencing after presenting my first lesson, she and I were both concerned
because I had run quite short with my time. We brainstormed together different ways that I could

have planned extra activities to further reinforce the material as well as stretch the time out more.
After teaching my second lesson, I fell just in time because I had undergone the task of creating
several extra activities for my students and it ended up working out well in my favor. I had
learned from my previous mistakes and thanks to my professor, I was able to make it out the
other side quite well.
The second claim for TEAC is that Medaille graduates are able to meet the needs of
diverse learners through effective pedagogy and best teaching practices. Back in my first
semester at Medaille, I took a course that focused solely on this concept. We worked very closely
with the requirements of DASA to ensure that we knew just how diverse the learners in our
future classrooms will be. No two children are ever the same. Every child is going to learn
differently based on who they are and the life they have lived up until they come to us in our
classrooms. By using best teaching practices and effective pedagogy, we ensure that all of our
students are being thought of. In my future classrooms, I need to be sure that I am reaching out to
as many learning styles as possible while also thinking about being culturally responsive in my
style of teaching. My students should be able to depend on me when they need someone to talk
to and if Im not able to understand where my students are coming from then they wont be able
to trust me and confide in me when they may need to the most. I have learned how to do things
in my classroom to make it a safe space for my students while also making sure that I can teach
them the material at hand.
The third and final TEAC claim is that Medaille Graduates are caring educators. This is
definitely the claim that I connect with the most. Everything I do in my teaching links back to
this claim. Every time Im creating or teaching a lesson, I keep in mind to take care of my
students in any way possible. I need to know my students needs and take care of them

accordingly. Specifically, I recently taught a science lesson during which we would be drinking
root beer floats. In the class profile we were provided, it was noted that there are different
cultures in my classroom. I had had a student from one of those cultures in a class prior to
coming to Medaille and I knew that that particular student could not have milk products within
an hour of having fruit. Since fruit is served with most school lunches, I made an accommodation
for him as well as my students who are lactose intolerant by providing lactose free ice cream for
the experiment as well as informing the parents as to what was going on for the experiment. By
contacting the parents prior to the experiment, I eliminated the chance of the student going home
and just telling their parent that they had ice cream at school instead of the parents knowing
ahead of time that their child would be provided an alternative. By creating the lesson in this
way, I have cared for my students in several ways. Firstly, I have taught my students the lesson
which cares for their cognitive well-being. Secondly, I have cared for them by knowing their
cultural rules and adhering to them. Thirdly, and possibly most importantly, I have cared for
them on a physical level. If my students who are lactose intolerant had consumed the regular ice
cream, they could have become very ill and that would have been my fault.
By caring for my students I continue to create a safe space for my students. Since
diversity is an obstacle I am going to face when I have my own classroom, its important for me
to remember that some of my students may not have someone to care for them at home and some
may not have a home at all. These students will depend on me to provide that and be that
parental type figure for them. My students need to know that their environment is a place where
learning can flourish and they can grow. They need to know that I will advocate for them when
they need me. My students need to know that I will protect them and do everything I can to
ensure that they are safe in my classroom, especially when the outside world can be so cruel and

unforgiving. Students all over the world need to know that their teachers care about them. They
need to know that they arent just children, theyre our children and that we care about how they
are physically, emotionally, etc.
Back in section two I mentioned a situation I observed in which a student had ripped
something that the teacher had made for the class. Had the teacher not shown the students how
much she cared about them and their well-being prior to the incident, its possible that no one
would have come forward to say that it had been an accident. The teacher made sure that her
students knew how much she cared about them and made sure that her classroom was a safe
space for all of her students. The majority of the students in that school, if not all of the students
in that school were from the low end of the socioeconomic scale and needed someone to care
about them while they were away from home. They needed to know that their teacher was
someone that they could talk to if they were having issues at home, and many of them did. I will
never forget this one little girl in particular who felt so safe in the classroom, but she always got
a little anxious near the end of the day. It turned out that she was having issues at home and she
had felt comfortable enough letting the teacher know. When we are able to communicate so
freely, we make sure that we can understand why our students do the things that they do. We
know what is going on and we can help our students as long as they are in our care.
Readiness to Become a Teacher
Having gone through the majority of this teacher education program at Medaille, I
believe that I am ready to become a teacher out in the field. I believe that I now have what it
takes to succeed in the field of education. I am able to research, plan, instruct, assess, and care
for all of my students.

I am able to conduct research in my own classroom by using the action research method I
learned early on in my time at Medaille. I can take any sort of issue I may be having in the
classroom, step back, develop a plan, and research different ways of fixing the issue. I am also
able to effectively research new developments and changes in the world of education and how
those developments can affect my classroom for the better and how I can implement those
changes.
I am now able to plan effectively for my classroom. I am able to take the lesson plan
format given to me and prepare a lesson for my classroom that doesnt just list what we are going
to do in the lesson. Instead it also handles how we will do those things, who will require
additional help of accommodations, and why we will do everything. My plans make my
classroom a welcoming space for everyone involved even if a parent volunteer comes in for the
day or even if we have a visit from the principal. My planning shows how Im connecting to my
students prior learning and schema as well. I am able to choose and create activities for my
classroom that are engaging and interesting to my students like my Smart Board lesson. I am
able to write lessons in which my students create something they can call their own like in my
unit plan for EDU500. I create plans that make my students use higher level thinking and guide
them to do so.
I am now able to instruct my class as well. Prior to Medaille I had mainly worked for
summer camps, after school programs, and with much younger students like toddlers. As much
as I was able to learn from those experiences, I was truly able to learn about my certification age
group through a study of the standards and how each grade should be taught as to what is
developmentally appropriate for their age. I am able to find those standards and use them to
create plans and instruct. I was lucky enough to have my field experience with a teacher who let

me go above and beyond the call of duty. I was allowed to work with groups of students and
guide them with their reading. I really got a feel for what its like to be a third grade teacher from
working with her and I am forever thankful for having that experience provided to me by
Medaille.
Assessments used to make me nervous when I began this journey. However, through my
studies I now find them much less intimidating than they were before. One of my professors
gave my class a piece of advice where he said Always be assessing and that couldnt be a
better piece of advice. I am able to constantly be assessing my students whether it be a
summative assessment, a formative assessment, or even quick checks for understanding
throughout my lessons. By constantly assessing my students, I am able to figure out more
quickly who may need more help or if my whole class just needs one more example to grasp the
material.
I care for my students. I am a very caring person in general, but when it comes to my
students, I will do anything for them within my power. If they need extra help with a homework
assignment, maybe I just need to stay after school to help them out. Maybe I need to rearrange
my classroom in a way that my students feel more comfortable, or maybe my students just need
someone to talk to about whats going on at home. I will be there for my students when they need
me. I will create that safe space that my students need in order to thrive.
Conclusion
I am ready to be a teacher. All of my experiences at Medaille have prepared me to take on
my own classroom and Im very excited to begin the next part of my educational journey. I keep
saying we are always a work in progress and those words ring true in this section as well. I was
a completely different person when I first set foot on Medailles campus. I have grown and

changed into someone who is ready. I am ready for any type of challenge thrown my way. Not
only am I prepared for what my classroom may throw at me, Im ready for what life has to throw
at me. In the next section, I will answer several different interview questions as well as showcase
my website and technological abilities.