Name

Jan, 2015

List three areas where you made the most

progress as a teacher
1.Maturity- I feel as though I grew up a little
when I began my practicum and I think it really
reflected in my persona not only in school but
everywhere else as well

List the three biggest challenges you faced

while teaching in your placement.
1.Time management Effectively allotting
activities in the gymnasium so that they would
fit into a given lesson.

2. Student interaction- Prior to placement, I

havent had a whole lot of experience with
interacting with people 6,7,8 years younger
than me. Placement really helped me develop
my skills to help interact with these individuals.
3. Teacher appreciation I definitely appreciate
the position much more than I did when I was a
highschool student and even as a university
student leading up to placement
List three new insights into MS/HS kids
behaviour in schools

2. Student interest Keeping students

interested in a lesson was sometimes very
hard, as every student has different things they
want to do and its easy for some of them to
lose interest and goof off.
3. Activity explanation I felt as though I would
have the activity nicely thought out in my head
prior to explaining it, but every time I would
seemingly leave out one concept or component
that should have been included in order to
effectively demonstrate the lesson.
List three questions important to you that were
generated by your teaching placement.

I found that you just never knew what you were

going to get with highschool kids. Their
behavior varies depending on their mood and
the day. Sometimes there will be a student who
is 100 % co-operative and then the next day
that student may be hyper, and a real
detriment to the lesson.

Why have such a strict curriculum if teachers

try, and do, stray away from it anyway ?
How can we place students in situations unique
to their learning/interests ?

What features of the practicum encouraged or

restricted your professional learning?

What actions by your Associate Teacher or

Faculty Liaision were most helpful to you?

The fact that my associate teacher let me have

full reigns of the classroom for the past 3
weeks was really helpful to my development.
He basically told me that I could do whatever I
want and that he trusted my ability to
formulate effect activities. This helped me
problem solve and truly learn from the good
and the bad that came as a result of this.

The way that my associate formed

relationships with the students really stood out
to me. My associate appeared to be a really
cool guy to the students and I think that
helped him because they looked up to him a bit
more. Although he was a bit laid back, he still
made sure the students knew what was
expected of them and made sure to discipline
them or talk to them if they did not meet these
expectations.

How good was your teaching (overall)?

According to the department head, my
teaching was excellent. He said that I looked
like a natural and that he could tell this
profession was me

How good was your learning (overall)?

Describe several puzzles, surprises, and critical incidents from your practicum

Which of your expectations for the practicum

proved to be incorrect or inadequate or
misleading?

Which innovative teaching techniques did you

try?
[Indicate how often in brackets after each item]

The expectations from some professors and

faculty leaders in regards to lesson planning
made it seem as such a crucial and critical tool
in order to be successful in the classroom.
However after a few classes and getting
adjusted, I felt as though trying to stick to the
lesson plan hindered my teaching. In gym, I
feel as though it is much more effective to go
with the flow and get a feel for the class mood.
For example, if an activity is going really well, I
would just stick with it and scrap another
activity. Or, if an activity wasnt going well, I
would cut it short, forget about it and move on
to something else. Physical education definitely
provides for a more loose and free lesson
structure and I didnt really feel the use of
lesson plans helped at all, especially as I got
more comfortable with the teaching position.

What (if anything!) did you learn in

September/October that improved your
teaching?

What do you need to learn/do/explore in the

next 2 months to prepare you better for your
next practicum?

I used many different DI techniques in opening

exercises of phys ed classes and I always tried
to think outside of the box when formulating
lessons or activities.

My next placement will be in a classroom

setting as opposed to a gymnasium setting so I
will have to learn how to keep students that are
stationary interested in the task at hand over a
long period of time.

What other features of your 1st placement would you like to record here?
My first placement was certainly an experience to remember. I learned so much about students
and really developed my maturity and leadership skills. The situation I was put in was excellent
for my development and I could not have asked for more when it comes to associate teachers
and their willingness to help and guide me.