Courses included were : EDUC 402, 401, 351 and 405!
EDUC 405: Reflective Practice Through Inquiry and e-Portfolio
EDUC 405 “provides teacher candidates with an introduction to, and early development of, a skill set to sustain an e-Portfolio that records transformative inquiry over the journey of becoming a reflective practitioner. Teacher candidates focus on introspection and have the opportunity to examine their emerging personal and professional identity as they engage in continuous learning that is focused on their transformation from student to educator. Teacher candidates examine a number of digital tools that allow them to self-assess and document their growth and develop an understanding of current digital literacies to help communicate student learning to parents (course syllabus)”.
EDUC 402: Diverse Classrooms
EDUC 402: “In this course, issues related to diversity and equity in the K-12 context are addressed. Multiculturalism, religious diversity, sexual orientation and gender identity, ableism, racism, bias and privilege are some of the topics explored. Teacher candidates will consider their individual engagement in the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action and what they mean in their local context, and they will deepen their understanding of the lived experiences of new Canadians in classrooms. This course integrates theory and practice to discover how diverse classrooms influence and inform pedagogy, instruction and assessment. Culturally responsive, trauma-informed and equitable educational practices are emphasized.” (course syllabus)
WHO ARE YOU?
- Brief history: locate yourself
- Beliefs about teaching & learning
- Something you WANT me to know
- Something surprising/unique/interesting about you
Hello,
My name is Jonathan McAfee. I go by Jon because nobody has time for three syllables. My last name is spelled Mc-aff-fee, but is pronounced Mac-a-fee, so I just go by Mr. M in the classroom. I was in the last cohort last year. During my year off, I taught everyday. For the first four months of the school year, I had my own classroom (grade 2/3) at [redacted]. During my time at that school, I learned the importance of teaching with a trauma informed lens, the importance of forming relationships and the dire requirement for differentiation. After leaving [redacted], I also had my own classroom for a time at [redacted], teaching grade 7. Both of these schools would be considered inner-city or tier one schools, and the level of violence and trauma were visible everyday in the eyes of each student. I learned so much working in these schools, and I want to continue my learning journey. Inclusively and differentiation are the main focuses of my study currently as I feel they are the most important.
PS. I also worked a lot in high school, and after the program, I’m probably going to keep subbing until an Art/Guitar/P.E. job comes along. I really like high school.
Challenging Behaviours During Practicum:
Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it) I did not have any challenging behavioural situations during my [last] practicum; I did however have copious amounts during my time as a classroom teacher. When I was teaching grade 2/3 at [redacted] I had various levels of supports in the classroom; I had two full-time Educations Assistants (EAs), a Youth Care Worker, an Indigenous Support Worker (ISW), and a full-time Counsellor on staff that would support my class, as well as the rest of the school. The level of trauma and the side-effects were visible, and on display every day. Because more than half of my students had designations (there were even more that needed them, but did not yet have them), both academic and behavioural, we had to do tracking of any incidents that occurred during the day (this was related to funding for supports for these students). I soon found out that there were so many different incidents that would happen during a day, that a person could not remember all the details of the events. Because this fact, my team and I had to carry around a clipboard and a pen, just to write down all the incidents and who were involved. These incidents could involve almost anything you could imagine. There were fights (usually physical altercations), some involving threating language, either towards staff or other students, table flipping, chair throwing, swearing, rock throwing, students leaving the classroom and sometimes even leaving the building. All of these incidents were linked trauma, and the actions of a trauma afflicted brain. The only way to deal with these situations is with lots of love, patience and kindness.
- The first strategy I adopted was to create a set of classroom rules. These rules were not created by me, but rather by the students themselves. We gathered together in a circle and each student suggested rules that everyone agreed on. Some examples of these were: raise your hand if you have a question or comment, no talking while the teacher is talking, treat other people and yourself with respect, ask permission to leave the classroom, etc.
- The second strategy I adopted was to emphasize the need for safety. I wanted the students to know that I cared more about keeping them safe, then whether or not they were learning anything. This meant that students were accountable for their actions and they could not hurt other students, and just as important, other students were not allowed to hurt them.
- The third strategy I adopted was related to accountability. I created behaviour logs for some of my higher needs students. Any incidents that these students were involved in were recorded in their behaviour logs, and these logs would have to go home and be signed by the guardians of these children, and then returned to me. Before I initiated this process, I would connect with the guardians of these students and arrange a meeting with them, and the student. With the support of the guardians, this would create a communication circle that would go from teacher to student to guardian and back to teacher again, thus creating accountability.
- The final strategy I adopted was to create staple and reliable routines for the class. Looking threw a trauma informed lens, routines equate to safety. When a person with trauma does not know what is going to happen during the day that uncertainty will equate to danger. This can be the cause of a lot of incidents that could happen. By having reliable and regular routines, you create a safe space for these students were they can let their guard down and then the learning can actually begin.
EDUC 401: Career Education
EDUC 401 “provides teacher candidates with an introduction to career development and a practical foundation for teaching career competencies in K-12. Teacher candidates will explore current and emerging trends in careers, and the role that teachers can and do to foster in the career development of their students. They will also explore and practice classroom applications of career development through a lens of equity, diversity, inclusion, pedagogy, and curriculum.” (course syllabus)
Some notes from Julie’s presentation:
Integration? or Isolation?
Depends on your style and comfort level
Integration:
- Woven throughout units makes the idea more authentic
- Used as an assessment choice for students
Ideas for Integration & Cross Curricular
- Use music, movement or drama activities to help with wellness, behavior management, start up activities…part of your daily routine.
- Use visual art to represent ideas or concepts such as creating a 3D diorama to show a geographic landscape or habitat and then write or tell about what they have done/create a movie with Claymation.
- Dramatically re-enact a historically moment during a Social Studies u it to demonstrate understanding.
- Have them create their own dance during musical activities
Risky Play:
“The cited benefits for children of spending time in natural settings, such as increased well-being, resilience, and social competencies (Mygind et al., 2019), was articulated by practitioners as being influenced by the risks associated with the natural environment.” (Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning: Articulating outdoor risky play in early childhood education: voices of forest and nature school practitioners, Nevin J. Harper & Patricia Obee, p.9)
Educ. 401 Career Ed. Resources
EDUC 351: Curriculum & Instruction: Second Language
EDUC 351 “provides Elementary teacher candidates with curricular, instructional and assessment methods for teaching a second language. The second language offered may be French, or another provincially approved second language, such as a local Indigenous language. Teacher candidates are provided with an opportunity to develop a deep understanding of second language acquisition and development; research-informed pedagogical content knowledge; and ways to personalize classroom learning.” (course syllabus)
EDUC 351 Journal Reflection #1
One of the main strategies that I use to get students to learn is I try to make my lessons fun. I find that if you can almost trick the students into learning they won’t even realize that they are learning because they are enjoying what they are doing. This is a strategy that I developed when I had my own classroom at [redacted].
I was teaching a grade 2/3 split class and I found out very quickly that I could not present lessons in the traditional way. I had many students at various levels of intellectual abilities and behavioural exceptionalities. In a traditional classroom I could present a lesson, students would listen and ask questions and then do an activity that was connected to my intended learning outcomes. At [redacted] this was not possible. I would have about 25% of the students were paying attention, 25% would be out in the halls, 25% would have no idea what was going on, and the other 25% of the students would be trying to distract the 25% of the students that had been paying attention to the lesson in the first place. What I learned from this situation is that a lot of the problems that I was encountering were connected to differentiation. Once I figured that part out, the next issue was my classroom management. The answer to this issue took a long time to develop, but once I figured it out, the final problem I had was keeping the students engaged. If the lessons were boring, I would lose the students. I overcame this by using different tactics.
I tried to incorporate things that the students were interested in, in the lessons that I taught. I wasn’t teaching a lot of L2 with these younger students, but when I did, I tried to make the lessons fun, so that the students would stay engaged. I would teach more L2 when I taught older grades, and I would try to incorporate the lessons that I had learned at [redacted].
The next classroom that I had was a grade 7 class at [redacted]. [redacted] was very similar to [redacted] in that it could be considered a tier one school, with many of the same needs and exceptionalities. I knew that I had to differentiate, I knew that I needed to have my classroom management on point, and finally, I knew that I had to make my lessons fun!
When it came to teaching French in grade 7, I used a website called Blooket. Blooket is a really cool website that is used for making quizzes, but it doesn’t just make a boring multiple-choice quiz, it makes a game out of them. I found that it was a very successful strategy because these students were very competitive with each other. Not only did the students enjoy playing the games that were involved in the quizzes, but they also enjoyed competing against each other, and I think that they might not have even realized that they were even learning at the same time that they were having fun! I hope to use these same strategies when I have my next classroom in the future.
Journal Reflection #2
When I think about l2 teaching and learning now, compared to the beginning of this course, I definitely feel good about where I am at as a teacher. At the start of the course, I definitely felt uneasy about the possibility of L2 teaching. I did not have the easiest time in school as a student with the large majority of my teachers. I did do quite well in school, although I do think it was a lot harder for me then it could have been. That is not to say that I did not have any good teachers, but it was a different time back then, and I had a lot of the old guard of teachers; the “Sage on the Stage” type, that only really taught one style of teaching. I know now that I am more of a kinesthetic style of learner; I learn best by doing. Sitting in a class and listening to a teacher lecture, and being handed a worksheet was never a productive style of instruction for me. This usually let to me disrupting the class, and just being an all-around turd to my poor teachers. I find it funny now, to think back on how I was as a young student, especially when I see similar behaviours in the students I teach now. It’s almost like karma is laughing at me, and saying “here you go, you get what you gave”. But at least I understand the behaviour, and the cause of it. Whether it’s trauma, a cry for help, or just lack of proper motivation and engagement, I know how to at least try combat it with a trauma informed lens and patience.
I do wonder if my past teachers had the same enthusiasm and energy that I have when they were new teachers, and just by the time I came along they were just burnt out and didn’t care anymore? I don’t slight them if that was the case. I wasn’t the only difficult student in the classroom, and my school was filled with trauma and what would be considered a tier one school these days. I also don’t think teachers back then knew what they do now; the way the brain works, how trauma can affect a person, or even the different styles of learning.
I do find it interesting to think about now though, because even back then, I knew I had to learn but doing. I first realized this though working with my father. He would always try and explain things to me, but he was never very articulate with descriptions or explanations, and I knew that even while he was talking the information was going in one ear and out the other. He would always get so mad because I didn’t understand, or wasn’t able to learn what he was trying to teach me. I know now that he was a cognitive learner, and that he was just trying to teach me the same way that he would have learned best.
One of the greatest things that I’ve learnt in my teaching journey (and has been reinforced in this course) is the strategy to teach to different styles of learners, and to have the ability to be inclusive to all learning styles. I know this strategy will be especially useful in L2 teaching. When I think back to my own experience with L2 learning (French in particular), I feel like the main reason I struggled with it so much is because it was mainly taught through auditory and visual styles, with teachers writing on the board, and the repetition of phases and words said out loud. I know this style of teaching can be beneficial to some students, and so I do not forsake the merit of it, but for myself, it grueling. The simple memorization of words and phases, over and over was enough to make me abandon the language, and I do not want that for my students. I want to make learning fun. I want to engage my students and help them to be successful in the classroom, in the way that suits them best. I am optimistic about the future and my potential to teach students a new language.
