1. Institutions that Govern Education in Alberta
1.1. Alberta Teacher's Association
1.1.1. "The Alberta Teachers' Association, as the professional organization of teachers, promotes and advances public education, safeguards standards of professional practice and serves as the advocate for its members." (ATA Website)
1.1.1.1. Reflection: The ATA as an organization will help me to make decisions throughout my teaching career, as well as assisting in defending my rights as a teacher when it comes to political matters with the Government.
1.2. Alberta Education
1.2.1. Alberta's education system has consistently been one of the best in the nation. Alberta Education has imposed various initiatives to re-vamp the entire system in the province, with projects such as curriculum redesign, a project "aimed at ensuring Alberta's curriculum remains responsive and relevant for students." (Alberta Education Website). Another, bigger initiative is Inspiring Education, "a vision for education to the year 2030 and presents the bold and courageous thinking of Albertans about how to position our education system for success in 2030" (Alberta Education Website).
1.2.1.1. Reflection: It is in my opinion that Alberta is THE place to be when it comes to getting an education. As a former student of Parkland School Division, I had the opportunity to take part in many of Alberta Education's initiatives such as the Flex-Learning initiative, and it has inspired me to truly become the best possible student I can be. Additionally, it has driven me to become an educator to future students in this great system. Education in 2030 is going to be very exciting, and I look forward to being a part of it!
2. Development of Professional Identity
2.1. Philosophies of Education
2.1.1. Perrenialists
2.1.1.1. "Schools should develop students' abilities to think deeply, analytically, and creatively". (Martin & Loomis, p.43)
2.1.2. Essentialists
2.1.2.1. "Curriculum of schools should centre on basic subjects... not be promoted to next grade until they have mastered key material." (Martin & Loomis, p.43)
2.1.3. Progressivists
2.1.3.1. "Students engage in doing real-world activities rather than by reading material from a book" (Martin & Loomis, p. 44)
2.1.3.1.1. Reflection: My classroom would be more focused around the progressivist attitude. By creating a more progressive approach, students are more able to process and handle present day situations, and understand how those situations will impact their future. This reflects Ken Robinson's notion of waking the students up and letting them see what's in front of them.
2.1.4. Existentialists
2.1.4.1. "Students should be able to determine their own rules in the education process, while schools offer the choices in what to study during classes". (Martin & Loomis, p. 44)
2.1.5. Social Reconstructionists
2.1.5.1. "Primary aim is to prepare students to accomplish social reform." (Martin & Loomis, p. 44)
2.2. Classroom Management Strategies
2.2.1. Teacher-Centered
2.2.1.1. Ultimately, the teacher is in charge of creating an effective and responsible learning environment. (Shewchuk PowerPoint, slide 4)
2.2.2. Collaborative
2.2.2.1. "Responsibility of student's behavior is shared between the student and the teacher. Needs of group before needs of individual." (Shewchuk PowerPoint, slide 5)
2.2.3. Student-Centered
2.2.3.1. Students are allowed to make many decisions in the classroom. They make wise choices by recognizing their behavior and interpreting consequences of such behavior. (Shewchuk PowerPoint, slide 3)
2.2.3.1.1. Reflection: In my classroom, I feel that this form of classroom management is extremely beneficial to the student. They are able to make the decisions and reflect on their decisions in the form of consequences or benefits. I would be giving students the problems, and they would solve them using strategies that they have acquired from personal experiences.
2.3. My Credo
2.3.1. I believe that all students in the world have the right and responsibility to be a part of the education system in which they live. Sexual orientation, age, ethnicity, religion, gender, heritage and culture are all personal beliefs and values, and should not play a role in the extent to which a student becomes educated.
2.3.1.1. I also believe that the ability to teach is not "learned", rather it is a passion, or drive that is retrieved from within. Pre-service teachers typically have a really positive (or negative, in some cases) experience in their early years that inspires them to emulate (or change, in some cases) the face of pedagogy as we know it.
3. Serve as an Agent of Change
3.1. Integration of Technology
3.1.1. "New information technologies create options for how teachers teach, how students learn and how classrooms look and operate." (Alberta Education Website). With various initiatives such as Bring Your Own Device, and the enhancing of Wi-Fi servers across schools in the province, teachers can reek the benefits of sharing their documents and lessons with students over the internet, rather than printing them on paper. As technology is rapidly evolving, students are becoming more familiar with the use of it, and consider it a valuable learning tool.
3.1.1.1. Reflection: In my mathematics classroom, technology will be a huge tool. With various applications available for free download or use, math can be made simple and easy for students who struggle, such as accessing tutorials that I create. Technology can greatly benefit, and that is why I will use lots of it. students have a more enjoyable experience as they can perform hands-on activities that normally wouldn't be possible in a school setting. They have a new ability to learn.
3.1.1.1.1. http://sitemaker.umich.edu/melissakading/files/dscf01497633.jpg (Students using Technology in an elementary classroom)
3.2. Inspiring Education
3.2.1. The 3 E's: "Engaged Thinker, Ethical Citizen, Entrepreneurial Spirit". (Alberta Education Website)
3.2.1.1. Reflection: These are significant as they are pushing future students to become more aware of the world around them, and help them to plan for their future. By emulating these traits in my classroom, such as being engaged in how I teach my material, students can see the benefits of being engaged as a learner, and help them show their entrepreneurial spirit when they head into the workforce.
4. Overcoming Current Issues in Education
4.1. Changing Education Paradigms (Ken Robinson's Video)
4.1.1. "Think Differently about human capacity to learn, and realize that good learning happens in groups." (Robinson, 2010) Robinson is suggesting that the only way to increase student's success in schools is to reform public education. He states that doing what we did in the past is no longer working, and that we are alienating students instead of helping them.
4.1.1.1. Reflection: By incorporating this into my classroom, students will be able to think more originally. They are able to broaden their perspectives and understand others' views with a more open mind, and will help them to grow as individuals.
4.1.1.2. "Intellectual Model of the Mind - This results in students performing enhanced techniques such as deductive reasoning through creative means." (Robinson, 2010)
4.1.1.2.1. Reflection: Instead of teaching students with lecture notes and paper & pen, the students should be able to make curriculum connections through ways that suit them best. As a teacher, I would allow students to use whatever devices or instruments necessary to achieve their learning objectives.
4.2. Standardized Testing
4.2.1. Standardized testing is a way to pose certain questions, and interpret the questions in a way that the answers are uniform. They are scored in a predetermined manner.
4.2.1.1. Reflection: These tests, in my opinion, are not the best way to evaluate a student's learning. According to Ken Robinson, the growth of standardized testing as increased in the amount of ADHD cases across the United States. I feel that this also could be applied to Canada, since students learn the same way here as they do in the US. Additionally, Alberta Education has made graduating high school extremely difficult for some students with the diploma examinations being worth so much of a student's final mark. As Alberta's education system shifts to a more all-encompassing approach (inspiring education), I feel we will see a much needed change in the way tests are written for all students.
4.3. Bullying/Homophobia
4.3.1. "A lone student randomly opened fire on his classmates, leaving one student dead and another injured". (Walton, 2004, p.24) Walton discusses the issue of bullying specifically. He felt that despite the many strategies there has been to combat this issue, there still hasn't been enough done to prevent it. Consequently, homophobic bullying has been a large problem over the past couple of decades.
4.3.1.1. Reflection: Bullying is a topic that has influenced the education world for a long time, and continues to do so. In my classroom, bullying of any kind would not be tolerated, and I would work with students at the beginning of the year to establish some "ground rules" that can be applied to any situation that involves bullying. Kids need to understand that by bullying someone, they are ruining the day of a child that deserves to have an awesome day.
4.3.1.1.1. http://cdn.mtlblog.com/uploads/2013/11/Stop-bullying-girl.jpg (Picture of girls endorsing a No-Bullying Campaign)
4.4. Socialization (Sensoy and DiAngelo)
4.4.1. "Our systematic training into the norms of our culture; process of learning the meanings & practices that enable us to make sense of & behave appropriately in the culture." (Sensoy and DiAngelo, p. 18) In Robyn Shewchuk's PowerPoint, she alludes to Sensoy and DiAngelo's metaphor of the eyeglasses, which aids in shaping our frame of reference in understanding our world/society through: "1. Big Picture norms. That is, what everyone is taught from birth (FRAMES) 2. Individual/personal perspective. (LENSES)" (Shewchuk PowerPoint, slide 8). By considering these two factors, every individual can see the world differently, and have differing interpretations of it, which makes for a very diverse classroom.
4.4.1.1. Reflection: The effects of socialization, whether we choose to conform or not, are simply unavoidable. Much of socialization is internalized and taken for granted. In my classroom, I can't simply remove all of the cultural conformity barriers, but I would work with students to help make them feel comfortable, and assure them that they can bring any concerns they have with me. I can, however, control what is verbalized in my classroom, and take appropriate disciplinary action to ensure that the classroom remains an equal place for all. Because of Sensoy & DiAngelo, I am now more aware of how my own upbringing has impacted me, both at home and at school. I can now view mu students much differently, and simply cannot assume that they have shared in my life experiences.