I could not be more happy with my experience in the field. I think this was an amazing opportunity to dip your toes into the profession while in your first year of university to decide if it’s really something you want to do or not. I loved that the school I went to let us experience different grades and rooms to see a new perspective every time we visited. I have learned that at a community school, relationships and health are high priority. I was so happy to get to know each student I had a chance to work with and see the smile on their face when they got something right.

I knew a teaching career wasn’t easy. It was confirmed on this field experience that there will be tough times and frustrating outbursts in every classroom. You have to lead a large group of students with several different personalities. And each lesson won’t be received the same way by each student. You must be quick on your feet with questions that you will never be able to predict and prepare for. You have to be able to adapt your day to fit the needs and abilities of your students.

The only thing that surprised me was the use of computers. A lot of their lessons were from different teacher resources, which is great, but also gives the opportunity for distraction and lack of ability to be innovative and creative. Not every student is familiar with computers, not every student can read at the same speed or level as the next. This was used in the older grades that I was part of, so I think that it’s more acceptable but also I still found a lot of them were doing other things than the task at hand on the laptops.

I know that if you fail to plan, you will plan to fail. Lesson plans are so important and having several ways to teach them will be beneficial. In the end, I know this is the career for me!