Final Reflection

I am very glad I was given the opportunity to experience the classroom for my placement. It gave me a great idea of what it’s like to be a teacher of elementary school students. I was able to connect a lot of things to the ECS class, such as viewing the curriculum. I was able to observe diversity in the classroom, and see how lessons are taught in a Catholic school, as I had never been in a religious classroom. 

I can see that my supervising teacher really wants the best for her students. I noticed she had a lot of ideas that I enjoyed, such as bringing technology into the lessons, establishing group assignments, and letting them work at a horseshoe table with the teacher in the middle. I liked the idea of the table setup, as it lets the students sit among the teacher as well as their peers. This type of idea was mentioned in the lecture, saying that it was a good idea to have the teachers be able to be equal with the students, such as sitting in a circle. I believe that this method is very beneficial for learning as it allows the students to be able to ask questions and receive any extra help they may need.

Multiple methods of teaching are also very important in the classroom setting. My supervising teacher brings in many ways for students to learn, whether they are visual learners, hands-on learners, or learners who work best with reading and writing. This makes a diverse environment for the students, and makes learning more fun for them.

The ECS 100 field placement taught me a lot, and also helped me make connections to the course. It showed me a more in depth perspective of becoming a teacher. Seeing I’d like to become a high school teacher, my next goal within ECS is to learn more about teaching high school students, as the placement was in an elementary school. I really like some of the methods my supervising teacher used for her students, and plan to keep them in the back of my mind along my journey to becoming a teacher. The field placement helped me make many observations, and overall helped me with not only my Education journey, but also my journey of learning about diversity, residential schools, and cultures.

“The field placement helped me make many observations, and overall helped me with not only my Education journey, but also my journey of learning about diversity, residential schools, and cultures.”

my final reflection

Being a part of the field placement taught me a lot about the journey to becoming a teacher, and showed me what it takes to be in the career. I was able to observe so many things in the classroom, and learn so many different methods of helping others learn.

Curriculum and Instruction

Overall, the students were able to learn some diverse content in their classes at my placement. They’re able to connect what they’re learning to background knowledge, as well as learn new techniques in Math. They’re also starting out with presenting in front of their peers.

Teachers and Knowledge

From what I’ve seen so far at my placement, there is many opportunities for students at the school to achieve success in their classes however their learning pace and style may be. There is many different methods, with hands-on learning, technology, and group work seeing everyone learns and works differently. The school is also able to have a flexible schedule for the students. If the students are very enthused with what they’re working on, they are able to work for some extra time on it into other classes, as long as the lessons are taught later.

School and Community

The school seems to be filled with many diverse students and staff members, and the classroom I was placed in has a very warm environment decorated with crosses and students’ work. The school is very connected to their church also, and encourages students to attend the church services.

First Day of Field Placement!

I was fortunate to work with a Grade 3 class. It was a small class of about twenty students. We were very interested to see that the students were very quiet and on task. It was very nice to be able to meet the students and staff at the school. Learning about the classes in a religious school, and how they can tie prayers into the students’ daily learning was a new and intriguing experience for me!