Student Teaching Day 8

2/3/10
Day 8

Final Evaluation Day


The day started with the usual morning routine, but with one exception.  We had a class meeting where Mrs. J explained some changes in procedure. It was the end of the grading period and time to move one step closer to fourth grade.  No longer would she prompt them for missing work.  If it's not turned in - too bad.  This is now grade 3.5 and the requirements have changed.  Some students will be unaffected by the change because they always turn their work in on time.  Other students, the ones with poor grades and a poor history of getting work in on time, will have to change their ways in order to keep their grade from dropping further.  The tough-love message of the day might motivate some students, but others just don't seem to 'get it', as they say every day.  Perhaps this is a lesson for the parents as well as the students.  I wish I could be around to observe the results of the changes.

We had a visit from a new guidance person this morning.  Our new  visitor gave a presentation on bullying.  Her lesson included some role playing games to demonstrate what a student could do in certain situations.  The content was good, but the delivery was off.  Most guidance presentations I have seen have this same problem.  I believe that a trained guidance counselor has a valid place in the school, but might not be the best one for presenting the message.  In elementary school the student-teacher relationship is strong.  The classroom teacher knows the students better than anyone else in the school building.  I think it might be best if the guidance personnel assisted the classroom teacher in planning and delivering the content, and let the teacher be the one that delivers the message; either alone or co-teaching with the guidance staff.

One bright spot of the morning was when two members of a island of students assisted a third during the guidance lesson.  The group seating is starting to foster some sense of community.

The afternoon brought my professor and my final evaluation.  The lesson was a flip chart on the IWB about reading and context clues.  A short quiz using the voting devices followed the lesson.  Mrs. J gave my professor a voting remote and told her she had to play along.  My evaluator seemed to be taken a bit off guard, but participated in the exercise.

The lesson went....OK.  Not a slam dunk, not earth shattering, and nowhere close to the best thing I have ever done.   It was just OK. It could have been better if we had written our own lesson, but we opted to use one from the Promethean web site.  The overall review from my professor was favorable.  She was impressed with my tech skills, classroom management, and teaching style.  I received another fantastic review.

With the last visit from my college now behind me, I can finally relax and enjoy the next two days in the classroom.