Directions: A requirement to successfully complete Education 1100 is the completion of a minimum of 15 hours spent observing in a public

school K-12 classroom. While observing you are to look for the following indicators, provide examples, and reflect on your observations for
each indicator. You may or may not see all indicators listed below due to the limited amount of time you spend in your cooperating teachers
classroom. You are however required to learn more about each indicator. Therefore you must have a conversation with your cooperating
teacher to understand the indicators not observed.

Classroom Setting
Indicators

Examples

Reflection

Classroom Atmosphere:
Teacher- student and studentstudent interactions.

Mrs. Harbacek engages all her students in the

lesson, the students are always in groups to be able
to assist each other

When I start my teaching profession, I want to be involved

with the students as much as I can. Being able to guide them
with interaction in my opinion will only help them improve.

Classroom procedures:
Groups, materials, supplies,
transitions, and, routines.

Every morning they make their lunch choices on

the smart board, and then start their assigned
morning work

Although routines are good to have, they can also be

repetitive causing the students to be less likely excited to
learn. Trying something new will not hurt the learning
process.

Classroom behavior:
Expectations/rules,
monitoring, and response.

They have 4 rules of what they are expected to

abide by as students, and they really imply whole
body listening

I will have expectations solely based on effort from the

students. It will then be my goal to educate them on the help
needed.

Classroom layout:
Arrangement of furniture,
resources for student use, and
technology integration.

The students desks are put together in groups of 5

or 6, and they each made their own name for the
pirate-themed classroom. They also use
Chromebooks every Wednesday for fun learning
activities like math and presentations

I would like my students to interact with one another, so the

concept of putting the desks together makes complete sense
to me. I also want the students to use the provided resources
as much as they possibly can, this can help them make an
easier transition to the next grade level.

Teaching
Indicators

Examples

Reflection

Communication: Learning
outcomes, expectations,
directions, explanation of
content, use of vocabulary.

The teacher keeps it simple as far as everyday expectations,

directions, and vocabulary. Mrs. Harbacek gives completes
or incompletes on homework, but also provides feedback on
what needs to be worked on.

Questioning and discussion:

Blooms Taxonomy and wait
time.

In a 4th grade classroom there isnt much

discussion as much as higher grade levels, but
when students have a question, the teacher
encourages them to ask.
The students have a cup of popsicle sticks with their assigned
numbers on there so if the teacher notices that they arent
participating, she just pulls one of the sticks.

Even in college, some professors do not

provide enough detail on the material, which
makes it difficult to learn. I want to keep it
simple to the point where the entire class is on
the same page.
Hearing other students perspectives lets you
see what they need help with, or just shows
you the mentality that the student represents.

Student Participation
techniques
Activities and assignments

They are usually assigned reading, and math for homework.

Most of the science is done during the class. Every Friday the
teacher reads aloud on a book theyre reading together as a
class.

Grouping of students: Whole

class, small groups, pairs,
individual, etc.

During math, the students are to check their answers with

their group members and they all go over the answers as a
class.

Materials and resources:

Primary and secondary
sources

Mrs. Harbacek provides the students with some materials like

colored pencils, or blank sheets of paper. The school provides
Chromebooks for the class every Wednesday.

Pacing: Gaining attention,

transitions, reflection, closure,
wait time, etc.

When the students are being too disruptive, the teacher waits
until all the students have focused their attention towards her,
the students will usually raise their hand with a peace sign
and put their index finger on their top lip to quiet others.
Luckily, Mrs. Harbacek has another teacher to assist her with
managing the classroom, and whenever she needs help Mrs.
Klis is always there to provide assistance.

Improvisation: Making
adjustments, flexibility based
on the student needs

The reason some students do not participate in

class is because they are afraid to make
mistakes. I want to encourage making
mistakes, thats one of the best ways to learn.
Class activities are going to be huge part in
what I teach. Assignments will not be as big.
The reason for that is I want students to
interact in the classroom more than just filling
out some papers at home, and not being able to
answer questions they have problems with.
Other than the teacher, the best help you can
get is from your classmates. I want my
students to be able to interact with one another
to solve problems.
Given the proper materials, the students will be
expected to get the most out the resources that
are provided.
The time given in the classroom is not enough,
but its up to the students and the teacher to
make the most of it.
Being a teacher involves making adjustments, I
will be willing to give up my own free time to
help my students succeed.

Student interests, culture, and

other diversity incorporated

They have a program called Dojo, which the students

earn/lose points if theyre making progress or disrupting the
classroom.

As a student, it feels good to be rewarded

every once in a while. Doing something that
interests the student in learning does that. I
want the students to be able to relate to their
likes in the learning process.

Lesson Planning
Indicators

Examples

Reflection

Concepts, skills,
prerequisites, and
pedagogy

Before every new lesson, the students must

complete a quick pre-assessment to see where
they stand.

Student abilities,
interests, learning
styles, level of
knowledge, culture,
background, and
needs.
Learning outcomes
linked to standards
within and outside of
the discipline that are
able to be assessed
based on a diverse
population of
students.
Classroom Resources
to enhance the
teachers professional
knowledge and
appropriately
challenging student
materials that fit the
learning needs of all
students.
Learning activities

Some students are more willing to participate

in class than others. The ones that do not
participate tend to be distracted with other
things, like students.

Pre-assessments and post-assessments

are going to be a huge deal when it
comes to teaching my students. This will
provide me with improvements that the
student made.
Each student has their own way of
learning; my goal is to find out how they
learn in the easiest, and most efficient
way possible.

Throughout the quarters, the teacher gives

each student a data folder than has their
graded papers and need to be signed by their
parents to see the progress of the child. This
helps determine what each student needs help
with.

Just like the expectations for every

student, they will also be held
accountable of what action they decide
to make.

The teacher always has the lesson plan manual

with her throughout the lesson to know more
information if needed. She knows which
students are more advanced than others.

You can never know enough about the

profession that you are in. I will try to
learn as much as the students do. I will
also challenge the students to be the
best that they can be, whether its as a
person, or a student.

When the students have visuals, it makes it

I want all my lessons to involve every kid

sequentially designed
to engage and
advances students
learning.
Intentionally
organized student
groups created to
support learning.
Formative and
summative
assessments aligned
to learning outcomes
that drive planning
and instruction.

easier for them to understand the material

compared to just reading a book and work on a
worksheet.

in the classroom, not just specifically to

the faster learners or slower ones. I want
to see improvement from the day they
come in, till when they leave my
classroom.
Every student learns at their own pace, so
I believe that every student can learn,
every day a group that needs more assistance
but needs to find their way of what
steps out the classroom with another coworks best for them. I want to provide
teacher to assist them.
ways for the students that are faster
learners to assist the ones that need
help.
After each lesson, they have exit slips based on I want students to ask questions about
the lesson that they learned. The teacher then any problems that they have. This can
grades them to see what they need to work on. help them improve their learning
process, and will make them feel
confident on what they learn.

Assessment
Indicators

Examples

Reflection

Criteria expectations

All the students are given the same work; the only thing that
may be different is the pace thats taught. They are expected to
make mistakes, but they are also expected to learn from them
as well.
At times throughout the week, if the student hasnt been
paying attention, the teacher usually does a pass/fail in front of
the class.

My thought is that if the teacher can do a good

job, the student will know the material.
Whether the pace is slow, or fast, they will
learn.
As teachers expect students to learn, the
students should also expect their teacher to put
in the same amount of dedication.

Feedback: Timely,
substantive, constructive,
teacher proximity, provides
guidance.
Student participation: Selfmonitoring.

Every Friday the students are given their data folders that are
filled with their graded work throughout the week. Parents are
to sign off on them.
The teacher notices who gives effort in the class and who
doesnt. There are times where the teacher just picks the child
to try and get an answer from there.

I believe that a lot of educators are just there to

make a living. There needs to be more teachers
that are going to be there to guide you in the
proper direction.
As long as a student gives an effort, they make
it a lot easier not only for the teacher, but the
student as well.

Formative Assessment

They have a pre-test before each lesson, and the kids put their

Without any form of evaluation, its tough to

Monitoring student learning

Summative Assessment

Grading system: Traditional,

standards-based

test folders up to see what the kids know just themselves. They
then can see how they can help each other out throughout the
lesson.
At the end of each lesson plan, the students are expected to
know the material that they were just taught.
Mrs. Harbacek does a standards-based grade book which
involves each student getting a complete, incomplete, or
secured, depending on the students knowledge of the lesson.

see the improvement the student has made. So

it is up to the teacher to provide that.
Everyone is given the same time frame for
learning the material; you should also be able
to provide corrections on what the student
missed.
It should not be about grades, but the progress
that the students have made throughout the
material they learned.

Teacher Interview
1. What ways do you find yourself reflecting on your teaching practices? For example do you think your conversations with your
colleagues, journal writing, examining student work, conversations with your students, or just thinking about your teaching for the
day?
Talking to her co-teacher daily, and analyzing data on student growth.
2. How does reflecting on your teaching practices drive your future instruction?
They do a lot of adaptability; they do a lot of intervention with each other to see the progress of the students.
3. What method do you use to keep track of grades and homework completion?
Standards-based grade book, identifies if the student is initiating, developing, or secure with each standard. For small groups, they take
individual student notes, they meet bi-weekly on the small groups and analyze their data.
4. What assessment does the district use to determine a students ability at the beginning of the year and what assessment is used to
determine progress? Do you use any other forms of classroom assessment to determine academic progress?
MAP Testing (Measurements of Academic Performance) computer based, this year they also implemented pretest and post-tests (Mastery
Management).

5. Can you tell me about the Rti process in your school district? What is the process to refer a student for special services?
The first thing is bring the student to the team, discuss concerns and given a packet to track data. Meet at 4 weeks and 8 weeks and
determine what help is needed.
6. What methods would you suggest for keeping yourself organized? For example what method do you use to keep track of parent
contact, when students turn in permission slips, lunch count, attendance or picture day money?
She keeps a binder of Parent Communication Log, takes notes of how the parent contacted the teacher, and vice versa.
7. How do you keep your students families informed about what is going on in the classroom or with their individual student?
Class Dojo keeps parents informed about behavior, and also has data folder with graded work, parents also sign off on what goes home.
8. Do you encourage parental participation and volunteering in your classroom? Why or why not?
If you can get the parents involved, it will only help the student be more successful.
9. Do you meet with your grade level partners on a regular basis? Do you have collaborative plan time built in your schedules? What
is discussed at these meetings? Is this district or school mandated or do you find time to collaborate yourselves?
They meet once month, thats district mandated. In addition, they do meet on their own time about once a week, if needed.
10. What clubs, coaching, or committees are you involves in beyond the school day? Does you district compensate employees for
sponsoring, coaching, or committee membership? Is there a minimal requirement?
She is the safety patrol supervisor, grade level rep, and both of those are stipend positions. She is on the literacy committee and the math
committee; those are positions that are not reimbursed.
11. Does your administrator solicit feedback from teachers on school initiatives? What kind of initiatives are taking place in your
school right now?
The teachers have a monthly faculty meeting, and she does ask for feedback. The big school initiative is visible learning, teaching students
about learner qualities. Teachers writing learning targets and success criteria.
12. How do you stay current on hot topics in education or best practices?
She serves a lot of committees and attends a lot of trainings that are offered. They have book studies where teachers read the book, and
discuss best practices and how to implement it in the classroom. Being involved in committees has its perks.
13. Do you attend workshops or participate in professional development activities? What are the most recent ones you have
participated in?
She recently attended Achieve 3000, online site that provides individual reading practices.
14. Are you a member of any professional organizations? If so, which ones?

No.
15. Are you on any leadership teams or are you in charge of any committees? What are your roles on these committees?
Grade level rep for the 4th grade, and she runs her grade level meetings and collects data, then she send the data to the administrator rep at
school level and board. She reports information to the schools intermediate teachers.
16. If you knew then what you know now, what advice would you give me?
If your heart is not involved in what you do, youre not going to like your profession. You have to look at the progress that youve made
with your class and embrace it. Get involved a lot your first couple years of teaching.
17. What is the most rewarding thing about being a teacher?
Seeing the difference from year to year, hearing from past students to see how they are doing, and seeing your students develop.
18. What is the most challenging this about being a teacher?
There are many different challenges with financial problems being one of them. At times the school doesnt provide the money that is
needed for activities you want to provide, so you have to provide it with your own. Things that happen outside of the classroom will
sometimes effect inside the classroom. When the students parents arent involved with their kid, it makes it difficult for the teachers to
improve their student. There are outside problems that you cant control at times.