1. Sherri Camp Part 1: The Big Interview EDU 650 Final Project December 14, 2014

2. Introduction & Summary  My name is Sherri Camp.  I am currently a school bus driver for kindergarten through 3 rd grade for DeSoto County Schools.  I am a certified Secondary English / Language Arts teacher for grades 7 th -12 th in Mississippi.  I have 3 years experience teaching in a public high school.  I have 4 years experience substitute teaching in a private preschool.  I have 1 year tutoring experience in beginning reading and academic reading for a regional tutoring corporation.  I graduated summa cum laude from Mississippi State University with a Bachelor’s of Science in English Education.  I am seeking a middle or high school English teaching position with DeSoto County Schools. I would like to focus on English Language Learners upon obtaining my Master’s Degree in March 2016.

3. Philosophy of Education  Establish in the beginning that I am an advocate for students.  Establish a rapport with students based on mutual respect.  Define my role as a facilitator of learning and students’ role as owners of learning.  Acknowledge my responsibility to continually learn to become a better teacher, hoping to convey this to my students.  Model 21 st century skills as much as possible in order to create 21 st century learners.

4. Classroom Management Plan  My classroom management plan is based on the following, “A recent report found that educators believe that the secret to effective discipline is proactively building relationships, not reacting punitively to student misbehavior” (Schibsted, 2014).  I have developed five rules to foster a supportive learning environment: o Respect yourself and each other (including belongings. o Use helpful words and hands, not hurtful ones. o Use behaviors that enhance learning, not hinder it. o Listen more than you speak. o Think before you act.

5. Different School Models  My preferred classroom setting is the hybrid classroom where cooperative learning and collaboration are the focus (Newman, 2013, 1.2). I believe this is becoming more prevalent in the public school setting, especially where students are sharing technological devices.  I will implement the Common Core State Standards as mandated with a primary focus on, “[teaching] creativity and critical thinking together because they work in tandem in any innovative venture” (Ohler, 2013).  Technology of some sort will be integrated into every lesson in an effort to model technology use in a collaborative environment as stated in the ISTE Standards for Teachers (International Society for Technology in Education, 2013).

6. Effective Lesson Planning & Design  Have clear objectives that align with Common Core State Standards.  Identify levels of learning according to Bloom’s Taxonomy.  Gather knowledge from coworkers and the internet to determine effectiveness of lesson plan (Newman, 2013, 9.1).  Recognize Common Core as a basis of “consistent goals and benchmarks to ensure students are progressing on a path for success in college, career, and life” (Common Core State Standards, 2012).  Utilize the Backwards Design Approach to first identify the goal, determine the assessments or benchmarks to identify learning, and then plan the lesson around the assessment results (Newman, 2013, 9.3).

7. Assessment Matters  Assessments should also be clearly related to the topic and be a reasonable measure of an attainable goal (Newman, 2013, 11.2).  Assessment should only be done to differentiate teaching in the best way to benefit the student learning.  I will integrate formative assessments into every lesson in order to support the learning process by providing immediate evidence of what is learned and how well it is learned. Then I will determine if the next step should be remediation or enrichment (Rystad, 2013).  I will give summative assessments as required, but I will make them as formative as possible by giving students a voice in the instructional process and allowing them to analyze their own performance (Newman, 2013, 11.3).

8. Professional Learning Communities  Professional learning communities are essential in continual learning environments.  Learning walks, teacher observation, mentoring, and team teaching should occur regularly to prevent teacher stagnation (Newman, 2013, 13.4).  It is crucial for teachers to model collaborative learning as part of 21 st century skills.  “[In] schools where teachers work together, students achieve higher results,” (Newman, 2013,13.1). This is important to note for assessment purposes.  As a lead teacher, I would provide technology training, possibly held by tech-savvy students. Also, in-school time to devote to honing our skills and sharing our ideas would be a priority.

9. References  Newman, R. (2013). Teaching and learning in the 21st century: Connecting the dots. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.  Schibsted, E. (2014). How to develop positive classroom management. Edutopia. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/classroom-management- relationships-strategies-tips http://www.edutopia.org/classroom-management- relationships-strategies-tips  Ohler, J. (2013). The Uncommon Core. Educational Leadership, 70(5), 42-46.  International Society for Technology in Education. ISTE Standards Teachers. Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/20-14_ISTE_Standards- T_PDF.pdf http://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/20-14_ISTE_Standards- T_PDF.pdf  Common Core State Standards (2012). Retrieved from http://www.corestandards.org/http://www.corestandards.org/  Rystad, M. (2013, April 7). Assessment for learning [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcLMlY6R7RM