After
a week of classes, navigating the new schedule, and figuring out how to juggle
my class schedule and my private time, EDUC 250 comes as a breath of fresh air.
Talking about the five standards of the NCTCS is a bit overwhelming but I am
thankful that to some level I am familiar with some of them. Particularly the
one pertaining to diversity in learning differences as well as students who
come from different backgrounds some of which are not good. Working with the We
Foster ministries, RFKC, and Xtreme Life has given me some insight on children
who come from rough family lives. In the last three years my family has had
four kids living with us in our home. At one point or another I helped each one
in their classes with all of them having different learning skills, capabilities,
and handicaps. This forced me to adapt new teaching techniques for each of
their different learning styles. I know that there is still so much more to
learn just in this specific area and the other four but I am thankful that it
gave me a taste of what to expect in the future.
What
I have not given much thought to until now is how teaching has changed and how
much it will change by the time I get my own class room. The ability to adapt
to the times, as it pertains to technology, is something I have never been
strong at but now I see it as failure to adapt to the changing world of
teaching will mean the difference between having a job or losing it. After
attending this class for only a few days it has solidified my belief that this
is not a class in which you can show up to class and not get involved in discussions;
this is not a class in which you can just go through the motions. What we are
learning will be the cornerstone of our future careers in teaching for forty or more
years. What we do now in these next two years will define our future and who we
will become.
