FE #5: FINAL
REFLECTION
EDU 221 SMCC BY: KATHLEEN KELLY
WHAT DID I LEARN ABOUT MYSELF IN
CLASS?
• I learned a lot about myself during this class.
• First, I learned about my learning style. I do not do well with generalized instructions. I want to know
clearly what the expectations and instructions are so that I can be successful.
• I also do better when the instructor openly communicates. I don’t like feeling like I’m interrupting or
annoying the teacher by “bugging” them or talking to them.
• Next, I learned that I see teaching in a very distinct way. My experiences as well as growing up with a
parent who was a teacher drastically influences my expectations of teachers.
• I learned that my viewpoint and expectations of teaching is very modern and non-traditional.
WHAT CAN I CHANGE TO BECOME A BETTER
STUDENT/TEACHER?
• To become a better student, I believe I need to have more confidence. I need to believe in myself to be
successful.
• I also learned that spending 6-8 hrs. on an assignment or studying each day does not always guarantee
success.
• As a student, I also need to be willing to reach out to the teacher more often. Even if they don’t have
time to help, it at least informs them that there is an issue.
• As a teacher, we need to guide our students to learn and grow. Open and honest communication is
important while not making them feel like giving up.
WHAT WAS I NOT EXPECTING BUT I’M HAPPY
THAT I DID IT?
• I was not expecting assignments that help create a website. I did enjoy this! It helps modernize our
skills.
• I also like the assignments that made us think of nontraditional teaching methods. This got me thinking
more about how I can make my teaching unique.
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE PART OF THIS
CLASS?
• My favorite part of this class was learning about the different teaching methods. It helped me learn
more about my personal styles of teaching.
• I also enjoyed learning about the website. I had to really think out of the box on how to make it work.
WHAT WAS THE MOST CHALLENGING FOR
YOU IN THIS CLASS?
• The most challenging for me was keeping up with the expectations for assignments. Several
assignments had generalized instructions and I would be graded for things that were not included in the
rubric or instructions.
• I also found the lack of teacher involvement to be hard. It made reaching out feel like a nuisance.
• I struggled with some of the questions in the quizzes. They came from super obscure comments in the
text and my notes didn’t always cover them. It didn’t always happen but when it did, it was frustrating.
• I struggled with the discussion board set up as well. The expectations vs dates on the assignments didn’t
always line up and made working around a busy schedule challenging.
• Also, the last discussion boards didn’t make sense to me. I couldn’t find where to post them and by the
time I did, the teacher had already graded the assignment out.
WHAT ADVISE ARE YOU SHARE WITH OTHER
TEACHERS?
• Communicate! It will help your students flourish.
• Give clear instructions on every assignment! This allows the assignment to be completed as needed.
• Be patient. It takes a bit for students, and teachers, to learn new information.
• Be willing to adapt. Depending on the students, you may need to change the lesson plan so that they
can be successful.
• Open and honest communication. Passive aggressiveness will only bring the students down.
• Reference textbook assignments more than once. If stated at the beginning of the week without
reminding the students again, it will be easy for the students to forget or get confused as to what they
need to do.
IN 3 YEARS, WHAT DO YOU SEE YOURSELF
DOING?
• In 3 years, I hope to be continuing my education. I plan on working my way up to a doctorate.
• I hope that I will have a job that will lead into my career.
• I also hope that my family is growing by that point.
• I see myself studying art or fashion history. I want to use this to teach history and/or being a dress
historian.
WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE FOR NEXT
CLASS/YEAR?
• For this class specifically, I would change the use of the website assignment. I think it could be used
more often and better to incorporate learning.
• For myself, I would change the amount of time I am studying or working on an assignment. It doesn’t
always pay off to spend 8 hours on an assignment or studying.
• For myself, I am going to reeducate myself on canvas. I have used it for several years while taking
classes. However, I found certain key features were foreign to me.
• For this class, I would change the set up for the field experience. We weren’t educated on finding a
school or family to work with. This made it almost impossible to figure out how to go about it. Also, the
change to the field experience happened toward the end of the semester making things challenging.
Knowing how to handle it would help everyone out.
WHAT WORKED FOR YOU IN THIS CLASS?
• I liked the variety of assignment types. It made the assignments more interesting.
• I enjoyed the website, but I feel that it wasn’t used that often and could be used more efficiently in the
class.
• I liked how the home page would update each week so that we know what is going on.
IS TEACHING FOR YOU?
• Yes.
• I do have more modern viewpoints pertaining to teaching styles but I feel that is necessary for the time
we are in.
• I find watching people develop, learn, and grow to be a very fulfilling experience. It is healing for me.
• I’m not sure what grade level I want to teach just yet.
• However, I am ready to put the work in to be a teacher.