Professional Qualities of My Future Job

Ideal Qualities of My Future Job:
Supportive staff
A mentor who can provide me with sound advice and encouragement
The chance to meet with other first year teachers
Encouragement to seek additional schooling
A strong art department where ideas can be shared

I would like to be at a school where the environment is collaborative and the teachers socialize both professionally and personally. I have found that this builds a community in the school and it allows you to feel comfortable asking questions and for help. I would also like the ability to communicate with other first year teachers and art teachers who share similarities in experiences. I have enjoyed the ability to communicate with classmates during student teaching and would hope to have a similar experience in the district I join. Finally, I would like to be encouraged to seek further educational possibilities for myself. Continuing my education is important to me and I would like to feel supported in that decision.

Successful Teacher

I believe that a successful teacher is primarily a matter of hard work and dedication to the students and ones subject area. If you put a lot to time into getting to know the students and listening to their interests you are more likely to create content that is interesting and engaging for them. If they see that you are willing to put in the work and that you are always prepared it gives them more incentive to participate and be ready to learn. I also think that if work hard at designing and planning lessons you are more likely to be successful at reaching the students. For example, by completing the project yourself first you can get an idea of where students may have problems and look for solutions. I also think that a well developed and delivered lesson is easier for the students to understand and for them to complete. I know that I will make many mistakes along the way as I learn to be a successful teacher, however, I believe that if I work on fixing those areas where I'm lacking I can improve myself. Though the work may be hard the reward of a successful project is well worth the trouble.

April 12th Post

During my first year of teaching I foresee that I will need a lot of support from the rest of the staff. I believe I will need support in learning the ropes of the school, like who to ask to get things done. I will also need advice on how to run my classroom and how to deal with students. I have no doubt that there will be many instances in which I will need to ask for help from others. I expect help to come from my building principal, my mentor, other teachers in the building, and other art teachers in the district. During student teaching I have enjoyed working in a collaborative environment with my cooperating teachers and hope that in my first position as a teacher, I will have someone that I can share my ideas with in a similar manner.

Standard J

To enhance my teaching I have used technology in a variety of ways. For elementary I used power point presentations to provide the students with information about artists and their work. For secondary education I have created a digital photography assignment that requires the use of a digital camera and Adobe software. My students will also be creating a podcast to explain their work for another assignment. Finally, all classes are using Google docs to turn assignments into me. In the future, I hope to integrate more technology in my class. There are numerous resources to enhance the learning environment and make learning more fun. In order to integrate more technology in my classroom, it would be helpful to have a smart board or projection system. There are also programs that the district could provide that would be beneficial to my ability to teach the students and to prepare them for their future.