Ed 11: Beginning Field Experience Making the most of your field work experience

The Importance of Fieldwork Discussion: Why do fieldwork?

The Importance of Fieldwork As pre-service teachers, you need fieldwork to: Clarify your educational and professional goals Connect course work knowledge to real life experiences Develop self-knowledge about your attitudes and beliefs Understand the complexities of teaching To get the most of your fieldwork, you need to know how to observe and participate in the classroom, and then reflect on your experiences.

Teaching Standards Research identifies the quality of a child’s teacher as the single most important influence on a child’s achievement. DISCUSSION: What are the traits of a high quality teacher?

Teaching Standards Content Pedagogy Student Development Diverse Learners Multiple Instructional Strategies Motivation and Management Communication and Technology Planning Assessment Reflective Practice: Professional Growth School and Community Involvement

Teaching Standards: CA Teacher Performance Expectations (TPEs) Engaging Students in Learning and Supporting Language Acquisition and Development Creating and Maintaining Healthy and Effective Environments for Student Learning Understanding and Organizing Content Specific Pedagogy and Instructional Technology Planning Instruction and Designing Developmentally Appropriate Learning Experiences for Students Assessing Student Learning Developing as a Professional Educator

Fieldwork: Observation Use fieldwork forms to note your observations about teaching methods classroom organization and management how students respond to the teacher, you, and the classroom environment Don’t try to record everything that happens during your observation hours. Focus on what seems most significant (one or two things).

Fieldwork: Participation Observing a teacher can show you a great deal about how to teach, but it won’t tell you how YOU will teach. Until you have experience with participating in teaching activities (i.e. working with students), you won’t know whether or not you feel at home with students in an instructional setting.

Fieldwork: Beliefs and Attitudes DISCUSSION: What are some of your beliefs and attitudes about teaching and learning? How might these affect your fieldwork? Making fieldwork meaningful: Collect data Analyze Reflect

Fieldwork: Feedback Good feedback not necessarily positive – but it should be constructive and appropriate. Ask your mentor teachers and Dean’s Team members, “What would you have done differently?” Communicate clearly with your mentor teacher and ASK QUESTIONS!

Fieldwork: Reflection Reflection is necessary for problem solving. Reflection is central to learning. Teachers who reflect on their actions and performance are more successful than those who merely react. Reflection is both introspective and interactive DISCUSSION: Describe a time when reflecting on a particular situation helped you improve.

The Reflection Process