Reflection and Self-Evaluation

DM1: Diversity
Its important as an educator to be culturally responsive to students and be able to
accommodate their needs because all learners are different. A teacher can do this through
differentiation and modifying lessons, along with assessments. Through the creation and
implementation of my unit for student teaching, Ive been able to put into practice this idea and
meet the needs of all learners. Using the components of Sheltered Instructional Observation
Protocol (SIOP), I was able to be a culturally responsive teacher and all learners benefited. SIOP
allows all learners to reach learning goals and objectives. It allows for high learner in-depth
exploration and be given choice. It also allows low-level learners and English Second Language
(ESL) learners the opportunity to perform on their level and grasp the content through multiple
visuals and scaffolding.
I felt I did well in writing SIOP lessons and using my contextual factors to drive lesson
activities. I have a high number of ESL students in my class and was sure to use examples they
would be familiar with or could relate to. We also talked about the lesson content in relation to
other cultures. My lessons were rich with opportunities for students to produce oral language, a
great deal of interaction, and written assessments. This supported the development of English
proficiency.
A teacher must know their students individually in order to meet their needs. All students
have various needs: academic, personal, social, emotional, etc. Contextual factors are important
to truly understand who the student is and what is essential for their learning. Being in a
classroom for an entire year, I have gotten to know my students well and know them as
individuals. One area I know I need to improve on is differentiation for high-level learners. I
need to do more for those students who finish first and ahead of their classmates. I will be able
to do this as I gain experience, as well as research more ways to meet advanced learner needs.
DM2: Effective Pedagogy
I have learned to create effective and appropriate instruction, using technology to support
and extend learning. Technology was always a major component in my lessons; one lesson was

all about technology! I used Prezi presentations on the SmartBoard with videos imbedded to
keep students engaged and keep the flow of lessons. High-level learners were given an
opportunity to do a web quest and use the Internet to research given topics. I used a timer on my
phone to give students a clear timeframe and deadline to complete activities. I could see through
student involvement and assessment that the use of technology greatly enhanced engagement and
learning.
In addition to the use of technology, I also used multiple learning strategies, hands-on
activities (i.e. the use of play dough), interaction (i.e. class discussion, group work, partner
sharing), use of various materials for assessment (i.e. whiteboards, posted notes, index cards),
and written assignments. Implementing multiple assessments to measure learner knowledge and
skills allowed me to see who grasped the concepts and who needed clarification. I learned in this
unit how important it is to have lesson alignment to the overall unit. For this unit, I wrote the
lessons are the unit was completed. My plan for the future is to write a unit rough draft, write the
completed lessons, then go back and finish the unit. There were times I felt stuck writing lessons
because I had the unit written and did not want to make too many changes to realign everything.
DM3: Subject Matter
I chose financial literacy as my unit because it is a subject I feel confident in my
knowledge and have a passion for the content. I was very comfortable teaching the unit and
made it as interesting as I knew how to. I was able to use instructional strategies to engage
students in thinking. The content taught was age appropriate, able to be understood by the grade
level, and in line with Common Core State Standards. The one objective I struggled with was
technology, and how to teach it well without confusing students. I mainly focused on electronics
and vehicles, but was unsure how to teach that something as simple as a pencil is considered to
be technology. I mentioned that anything that improves our lives is technology, but did not go
into elaborate detail.
As I begin teaching, I will not cease learning myself. I will pursue teacher development
opportunities and will be working toward two endorsements in the next two years. I will
continue to better myself and teaching practices as I increase my subject matter knowledge in all
areas of education.

DM4: Environment
In the classroom I used management strategies to create a physically and emotionally safe
environment. I set high expectations for respect and listening when someoneteacher or student
was talking. If students were talking out of turn, I would stop the lesson and not continue until
all were listening and showing respect. I also established clear guidelines and schedules, giving
lessons structure and students a sense of security. In addition to listening, all students were given
opportunities to share with the class. All were encouraged or required to participate and show
evidence of learning. As a class, all were valued, appreciated, and respected. Students were
always encouraged to work cooperatively. I do realize I need to be more specific and purposeful
in student partnering and grouping in the future. I also realize I need to be flexible and adapt to
any situation. There were times I had certain students partnered together for a specific reason but
one student would end up being absent that day.
DM5: Reflection
As I reflected after every lesson and conferenced with my supervisor and mentors, I
clearly saw my strengths and weaknesses as a teacher. I was offered advice and also sought out
guidance and counsel. It is hard for me, personally, to not focus on the weaknesses, but my
advisors were good to reassure me that perfection is not the goal and many aspects of teaching
would come with experience. My biggest obstacle is lesson pacing and timing. It was a
reoccurring goal in my lesson reflections. I welcomed any criticism and learned to set goals to
improve on my weaknesses. I will continue to excel in my strengths and fine tune practices.
One significant take away from this unit was the importance of data to see what students
learned and where learning lagged. It taught me to adapt lesson planning and teaching practices.
Data gathered from the pre- and post-tests were evidence that students learned and mastered the
content. One example is a student I followed in assessments. This student only got a couple of
questions correct on the pre-test, but got almost every question correct on the post-test. Another
example is a student who has been referred to special education. They only improved by a few
question between the pre- and post-test. I realized I did not do enough to accommodate for this
one student and need to enlist the help of special education teachers to know how to better help a
student with those needs. I also needed a better way to motivate him to want to learn the content.

In future lessons I am going to incorporate role playing and allowing the students more
movement with imagination. I will also better plan the unit assessmentthe foldable did not
come together as I had envisioned.
DM6: Teaching Disposition
I felt confident in the unit with my teacher disposition. I felt I was able to keep
relationships professional yet friendly, uplifting, encouraging, and showing compassion in word
and action. In the beginning, one student consistently spoke negatively about himself and his
abilities. I continually encouraged him and prompted him. By the end he would tell me he could
do it.
I participated in learning communities with school faculty and with parent interactions.
As a teacher I did my best to be a good example to students in dress, action, speech, problem
solving, and adapting. I made mistakes and made sure to let students know it was okay because
we all make mistakes, even teachers. Although I was a student teacher, I recognized the fact that
I still represented the school and my conduct reflected that fact. I collaborated with others and
tried to always be an attentive listener. I worked very hard to focus on meeting students
educational needs and ensure learning took place.
This unit was a positive learning experience for me that has helped me to grow as a
teacher. It stretched me, was time consuming, and difficult at times, but the in the end the reward
was greater than the sacrifice. The most valuable aspect was putting into practice backward
design and seeing the end in mind from the beginning. The opportunities Ive had to reflect and
see what works and does not work have been invaluable. I feel Ive made tremendous growth as
an educator and anxiously anticipate the opportunity to teach young minds in the near future.