Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
Telling My Story
Brittini Wade
June 4, 2019
National University
TELLING MY STORY !2
Abstract
In this paper, I will give a description of my journey thus far as an educator and how I came to be
where I am today. I will then discuss my progress in Domain A of the California Teaching
Performance Expectations (TPE) and list the strengths and needs within this domain. I also
discuss the different TPE competencies that I will be using in my Professional Development
A Look Backward
Deciding to become a teacher was an easy decision for me. I never really felt I should
explore other career options. Teaching was always what I wanted to do. I realized that I was
pretty good at mathematics, so I decided to get my degree in math from San Diego State
University to then one day hopefully teach math to junior high and high school students. My
husband and I made the decision to move our family to Northern California and live in a rural
community in the mountains. I explored my options for being able to receive my credential and
was very fortunate to join the internship program at National University while working at Plumas
Charter School. My first year of teaching was extremely challenging to say the least! After many
long months of working as an educator while being a student myself, I finally received my
Preliminary Single Subject Credential. I then worked toward clearing my credential the year after
that. I took a break from classes and was able to focus on my teaching practice. I was able to set
my own beliefs about how to best educate my students. I believe that all students are unique and
learn in different ways. The school I work at taught me that students cannot fit into one mold.
Being able to plan instruction and design learning experiences for students that are effective and
productive while keeping them engaged is a tough job. There are days where teaching can bring
its frustrations and heartaches, but the good days always out weigh the bad days. I enjoy creating
a safe environment for my students where they can have fun and build their confidence in math
teaching. These standards are meant to help teachers reflect on their teaching practice and
TELLING MY STORY !4
encourages them to improve as time passes especially because it greatly affects the students and
the level of education they receive. I absolutely love math and I think this positive attitude
themselves. I have taught for a few years now and have come to realize that not all students learn
the same. It is imperative that I continually adjust how I make math comprehensible to all
students. I work toward making meaningful connections for the various math topics and
providing real world applications whenever possible. I understand the importance of using
Strengths Needs
I am amazed at how much I have learned in the past 6 years of teaching and how each
year there always seems to be something else I struggle with and have to learn how to improve.
Because of this, I have noticed that I have also grown tremendously as an educator as each year
passes. There are many artifacts that can showcase my abilities as a teacher. The competencies
that I am thinking about using for my PDQP are my supervisor observation and performance
review along with some examples of student work. I have created many lesson plans that I will
be using as well. I also will be posting my five year plan and goals for the future.
TELLING MY STORY !5
Domain A is a crucial aspect of being a successful and effective teacher. Often times there
are teaching practices that contribute to a student’s mindset. In many classrooms, “Teachers often
adhere to the expectation that only high-achieving students should have access to mathematically
rich tasks whereas lower achieving students should primarily focus on basic skills” (Horn, 2007;
Stipek, Givven, Salmon, & MacGyvers, 2001). Having low expectations for certain students
sends the message that only some students are capable of succeeding in mathematics. Teachers
should be providing opportunities for all students to engage in rigorous mathematics within the
classroom. Making subject matter comprehensible to ALL students should be a priority for all
teachers. One goal I have for myself is to continually learn new ways to integrate technology into
the math classroom. I took some risks this past year and tried new things. I want to continue
References
Horn, I. S. (2007). Fast kids, slow kids, lazy kids: Framing the mismatch problem in
mathematics teachers’ conversation. The Journal of the Learning Sciences, 16(1), 37–79.