This week, I wanted to reflect on some things I have learned through this course. I was especially interested to take this class because it is specifically geared toward the age group one is teaching. No other class has this - there is no course that is focused on teaching high school students, or children aged 5-10 for elementary school teachers. Thus, this made me think that it is especially important to be mindful of the developmental stage of middle school students, and the content of this course proved me right.
I have learned a lot about the specific emotional needs of middle-grade students, and how I can best support them as they go through the challenges and triumphs of adolescence. The readings in the course also inspired me to look back at my own time in middle school, and to keep aware of how I felt. This allows teachers to have empathy and understanding for their students because we can recall how it might have felt at this age and what types of things we were going through. I have also learned the importance of team-building in a middle school environment among teachers, staff, and administrators. This rings true to me as well, because when teachers are put with the same group of students and teachers, it builds a sense of camaraderie and work-family that would most likely not be there otherwise. This allows students and teachers to feel supported, and to model positive relationships so that learning can be meaningful. I am already seeing this sense of community in my student teaching placement at Grissom Middle School.
Overall, I am excited to use the strategies and insight I have gotten from this course as I continue with my first placement. I started this past week. Although I am not teaching lessons yet, I am already noticing some aspects of an effective middle school that our readings have talked about. The sixth-grade teachers communicate very often and are already building rapport with the students. I am doing my best to emulate this, and I am eager to continue and start teaching. I know that I will use the concepts we learned in this class throughout my placement, and into my teaching career.
Hey Melissa!
ReplyDeleteWhen I registered for this course, it also stuck out to me that it was the only one geared toward a certain age group. I have always been a little nervous about working with middle school students and taking this class has been helpful in preparing for my placement this fall. You also make an excellent point about the value of camaraderie in the middle school setting. I have yet to start observing at my placement, but on the institute day it was very noticeable that they have that work-family environment you mentioned in your post. It will be interesting to see what other concepts from this course I will see throughout the fall semester.