Week 14

   This week of student teaching went well overall, this was my third week of full time student teaching. One very interesting factor that was thrown into teaching this week was MAP testing. MAP testing took place for three days last week. MAP testing is achievement testing that takes place three times a year in many school districts, it also takes place exclusively on computers. This testing happens three times a year so that students and teachers can track their progress through the year and see where they grow and hopefully what areas they need to improve on. The students seem to enjoy this type of testing more than ISAT testing, maybe just because it is viewed with less pressure than ISATS and they also get to do this testing on the computers which they often feel more comfortable with. Many of the students did really well on the testing and almost all students improved in their scores from their previous tests that they did during the Winter. This was encouraging to see in the students and they also enjoyed seeing their improvements.
   Teaching this week went well overall, I think that with each week of my student teaching I am able to grow in my confidence in my teaching abilities, and improve in some of the tools and techniques that I use. Of course, there are days where lessons do not go as planned or do not go well, but I think that as I have been teaching a little longer, I have also been able to have more patience with students, but also learn how to problem solve problems that come up while I am teaching and while I am in the classroom. I think that I have also been able to improve in my relationships with the other teachers in my building as well as they get more used to my time in the classroom and get used to my contributions in the classroom. I enjoy the feeling of being a real teacher and being used in the classroom, of actually being useful and being in charge of my students learning, that is a great feeling and one that I am excited to get used to as well.
    Of course, being a student teacher I can be difficult as well as students are not used to the student teacher and are not quite sure how to interact with student teachers all of the time. I think this comes out in my students respecting me at times. Almost all of my students are really great with respecting me and respecting what I ask them to do, but a few of the students who are a little more rebellious, even in third grade, sometimes need reminders that I am a teacher and that I am not just a college student learning to teach, though that is true. Because of this, I had a few moments last this week where I asked the students to do a certain action, or to follow certain instructions and they struggled in respecting what I asked them to do, instead they did a little of the eye rolling or a little of the attitude often seen in older students. I definitely talked to them and to the class right away, relaying to them once again that they needed to respect me and respect what I asked them to do.