Reflect on your work in your PDS this semester. How have you benefitted from the mentoring relationship you have with your mentor teacher? What actions have you taken to be sure that the mentoring relationship is beneficial to you both? When commenting on your partner's posting, reflect on your prompt and your partner's prompt, then discuss what you plan to do next semester to ensure that this mentoring relationship is successful.
This semester as a participant at North Marion High School has been an incredible learning experience. My mentor teacher is a third year teaching of 10th and 11th grade Language Arts and he also teaches Journalism for one class period. Fortunately, I have been able to work a bit with the journalism students and it has really been great. My host teacher has a background in folklore and he is also a musician so it has been interesting to see him incorporate this into his teaching.
I plan and teach a lesson on my own once a week. I usually ask my host teacher what the students are working on that week and guide my lessons from there. I rarely sit back and observe the classroom. On the days that I do not plan my own lesson, I typically co-teach for three class periods. We have a lot of class discussion and the students seem to enjoy having two teachers to interact with. My host teacher and I also share many of the same (though not all) beliefs about education. I have learned a great deal this semester about myself as a teacher and my students. I am completely comfortable in front of the classroom and I am confident in my teaching abilities.
Megan,
ReplyDeleteKnowing the teaching philosophy of your mentor teacher is beneficial to you as pre-service teacher, as it gives you a framework to understand his/her instructional style. I am glad that your philosophy matched that of your mentor teacher (for the most part).
I think it is absolutely wonderful that you have had such a great with your mentor teacher. I feel it is essential to have the support and good example to enhance your own confidence and teaching abilities. I, on the other hand, have struggled with my own mentor teacher. I will admit she is getting better, but it is still a lot more of seeing things from her that I don't want to do or be like in my own classroom. I will be with a different mentor teacher next semester so I am a little nervous because I feel I am less experienced and not very confident because of my current situation, but also looking forward to seeing a different and hopefully more positive experience.
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