Assignment 3B: Field Experience Reflection

During week one of TED 633, we were assigned to design a 5-day Lesson Plan. Mine focused on theme, irony, and plot for the short story, The Sniper. For week two, we were assigned to choose one of the 5 lessons to design a One-day Teaching Plan. I chose to focus on Day 1 of my 5-Day Teaching Plan, which focused on irony and the three types of irony - situational, dramatic, and verbal.

For week three, we have been assigned to conduct our field experience based on our One-Day Teaching Plan. I had four students volunteer to participate in this lesson. Below is the One-Day Teaching Plan, followed by a link to my Google Slides presentation, which outlines how the lesson went.

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1dp0AlBwUuYeTGl7EAVdQqdj0I5kZHowYVKTVkMRbuaw/edit?usp=sharing

Analysis and Reflection

What did you learn?

Using the One-Day Learning Plan, I learned that time is extremely limited when it comes to lesson planning. I didn't realize how quickly time is used up once you factor in everything that comes before and after guided practice. Everything prior to the guided practice took at least 20 minutes, leaving me with less than 40 minutes for guided practice and independent practice. I learned that it's also important to factor in time for adjustments that could not have been predicted, such as a student coming in during the middle of the period, or dealing with a behavioral issue. 

The information I gathered from my assessments indicated that Carlos and Diego comprehended the content fairly well, where as Jonathan and Saul needed a little more support. It was also difficult to indicate how much support Jonathan needed and in what areas, because he would simply agree with his peers for the same reasons they explained. Both Saul and Jonathan chose to use verbal irony as their independent practice writing activity. This may have been because this is one of the easier forms of irony to identify, which means I would need to check for their understanding of situational and dramatic.

What would you change?

One of the main things I would change would be to break this lesson up into 2 days, rather than one. I had a feeling that I was cutting the time close with my planning, and I definitely did. The part of the lesson that would definitely need more time would be the guided practice. The reason I think that is because I wouldn't be working with just two groups like I did with my field experience. In a regular classroom, I'd have about 7-8 groups. Forming groups would take time, as would having each group come up to get a card. The length of the group discussions would also vary. Then having 7-8 groups presenting would also take longer than I have planned for, most likely. I would instead have guided practice take up about 40-45 minutes, rather than 25 as I had originally planned. Having the two days would also allow me more time to check for understanding with students like Saul and Jonathan who might need that additional review.

What did you enjoy?

I enjoyed working with these students, overall. Obviously, I was able to choose this group, which may have contributed to everything running quite smoothly other than running short on time. In a real classroom situation, however, I will have many more challenges to adapt to and/or accommodate. I enjoyed learning more about these students by placing them in a different setting than the 5 of us are used to. Subbing for their art class, I didn't have as much knowledge of their reading or writing skills. It was interesting to see how they collaborated and how they participated in group discussions.

Assignment 1A: Introduction

Hello there!

My name is Jacqueline Mendez. I am from Riverside, California. I am 28 years old and am currently working on my single-subject teaching credential for English. I graduated from Cal State Fullerton in Spring of 2015 with a Bachelor's degree in Art History and began the Credential/Masters program with National University in the Fall of 2016. I have had plenty of experience working in education. For 2 years, I worked as an AVID tutor for AVID students at the high school and middle school level. For 5 years after that, I worked as an instructional aide for an elementary level RSP program. Currently, I am working as a substitute high school/middle school teacher. This has been my second year working as a substitute teacher and so far it has been a wonderful learning experience.

Me in Chicago last winter

After taking the Kisa Personality test, I discovered that my personality type is INTJ. According to the Kisa Personality Inventory, elements of my personality include:

Introverted iNtuition
Extraverted Thinking
Introverted Feeling
Extraverted Sensing 

I think the area of my personality that affects my choice of content area is my Introverted iNtuition. According to the Kisa Personality Inventory, "INTJs are idea people. Anything is possible; everything is negotiable. Whatever the outer circumstances, INTJs are ever perceiving inner pattern-forms and using real-world materials to operationalize them. Others may see what is and wonder why; INTJs see what might be and say "Why not?!" Paradoxes, antinomies, and other contradictory phenomena aptly express these intuitors' amusement at those whom they feel may be taking a particular view of reality too seriously. INTJs enjoy developing unique solutions to complex problems." These aspects have affected my choice to teach altogether. I think that ways it would affect my relationships with students would be by developing an open and creative learning environment. In an ELA class, I plan to promote the expression of thoughts and ideas, as well as openness and acceptance of the ideas of those around my students. 

After taking the Grasha-Riechmann teaching style survey, I scored highest as a Facilitator. With this teaching style, I can promote self-regulation in my class in which learning is student-centered and I take on the role of the facilitator. I like the idea of this kind of environment because it teaches students, with my help, to be responsible for their own learning and develop the skills that they need to think and learn independently.