Lessons Learned in "Teaching Literature to Adolescents"
"Teaching Literature to Adolescents" was one of the most informative classes I've ever taken concerning teaching and the education field. It was definitely challenging at times, but I would 100% recommend it to future teachers, even if they are not planning on teaching English at the secondary level.
The three-week unit plan project was one of the most difficult tasks I've ever been assigned as a student. It was a huge reminder that I need to work on my time management skills, but more than that it showed me just how hard it is to be a teacher. Deciding what curriculum to use and what kinds of activities to use in class doesn't sound too difficult at first, but once you get into the process of making sure your activities will help students meet certain objectives, checking that the curriculum you've chosen is appropriate for grade levels, determining how to assess students based on your chosen objectives...you realize there is a lot of work behind the scenes that goes into a single lesson plan. On the one hand, the project scared me a little - maybe teaching isn't the right thing for me, maybe I made a mistake! But I finished the project, I learned a lot, and I feel more confident now in my abilities to be an educator than I ever did. I still have a lot to learn (SO much), but I think that I'm now headed in the right direction at least. Plus, part of the reason I wanted to teach was because I love learning - and thanks to my decision to choose texts I'd never read or heard of before, I definitely learned a lot content-wise, too.
I really enjoyed the book talks that were done in class as well. There were a lot of books talked about that I definitely want to go back and read (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? sounds really cool, and I'd never heard of that one before!), and may consider when choosing my own curriculum. For my own book talks I chose one book that I had never read, The Outsiders. It was an incredible read, and I'm so grateful that I decided to read it and use it for my presentation. I also had a lot of fun sharing Half Magic. It was a choice I made out of nostalgia, and I'm glad I was able to share that experience with others. I suppose that's one of the joys of getting to teach, too!
More than anything, this class taught me a lot about myself and what I believe about teaching and education. From our weekly readings, I learned what exactly standards-based grading is, and thanks to my own research I think it is the best method for evaluating students - despite my initial hesitation at an idea that felt (and still feels) so foreign. I also have a better grasp now of what the Common Core State Standards are, and why educators use them. I actually really like the standards; I appreciate that they provide a general framework for educators, while still allowing teachers or districts the ability to exercise some creativity in forming their curriculum. The standards really do allow for teachers to guide students towards becoming critical thinkers, and refrain from using the "banking" concept of education that Paulo Freire writes about in his Pedagogy of the Oppressed.
Furthermore, I learned a lot about how to teach. I learned a lot about different methods of facilitating classroom discussion, and decided that discussions are definitely something I'd like to incorporate in my own classrooms. The readings done for class that dealt with teaching students to read were especially helpful, especially the methods for helping students overcome difficulties with reading comprehension. Not only did I learn some useful tips for myself as a reader, but I learned some reading strategies that I can pass along to future students, whether they are in an English or Social Studies classroom (I'm planning on endorsements in both subjects).
Overall, I am very thankful for the content and lessons learned in "Teaching Literature to Adolescents." I got a lot out of the class, and I will very likely use a lot of the readings and books we used in class in my own teaching. Despite the difficulties I had with some portions of the class (which were typically a result of my own actions, or inaction, rather), it was totally worth it and I am very thankful to have taken this class so early in my journey towards teacher certification.
The three-week unit plan project was one of the most difficult tasks I've ever been assigned as a student. It was a huge reminder that I need to work on my time management skills, but more than that it showed me just how hard it is to be a teacher. Deciding what curriculum to use and what kinds of activities to use in class doesn't sound too difficult at first, but once you get into the process of making sure your activities will help students meet certain objectives, checking that the curriculum you've chosen is appropriate for grade levels, determining how to assess students based on your chosen objectives...you realize there is a lot of work behind the scenes that goes into a single lesson plan. On the one hand, the project scared me a little - maybe teaching isn't the right thing for me, maybe I made a mistake! But I finished the project, I learned a lot, and I feel more confident now in my abilities to be an educator than I ever did. I still have a lot to learn (SO much), but I think that I'm now headed in the right direction at least. Plus, part of the reason I wanted to teach was because I love learning - and thanks to my decision to choose texts I'd never read or heard of before, I definitely learned a lot content-wise, too.
I really enjoyed the book talks that were done in class as well. There were a lot of books talked about that I definitely want to go back and read (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? sounds really cool, and I'd never heard of that one before!), and may consider when choosing my own curriculum. For my own book talks I chose one book that I had never read, The Outsiders. It was an incredible read, and I'm so grateful that I decided to read it and use it for my presentation. I also had a lot of fun sharing Half Magic. It was a choice I made out of nostalgia, and I'm glad I was able to share that experience with others. I suppose that's one of the joys of getting to teach, too!
More than anything, this class taught me a lot about myself and what I believe about teaching and education. From our weekly readings, I learned what exactly standards-based grading is, and thanks to my own research I think it is the best method for evaluating students - despite my initial hesitation at an idea that felt (and still feels) so foreign. I also have a better grasp now of what the Common Core State Standards are, and why educators use them. I actually really like the standards; I appreciate that they provide a general framework for educators, while still allowing teachers or districts the ability to exercise some creativity in forming their curriculum. The standards really do allow for teachers to guide students towards becoming critical thinkers, and refrain from using the "banking" concept of education that Paulo Freire writes about in his Pedagogy of the Oppressed.
Furthermore, I learned a lot about how to teach. I learned a lot about different methods of facilitating classroom discussion, and decided that discussions are definitely something I'd like to incorporate in my own classrooms. The readings done for class that dealt with teaching students to read were especially helpful, especially the methods for helping students overcome difficulties with reading comprehension. Not only did I learn some useful tips for myself as a reader, but I learned some reading strategies that I can pass along to future students, whether they are in an English or Social Studies classroom (I'm planning on endorsements in both subjects).
Overall, I am very thankful for the content and lessons learned in "Teaching Literature to Adolescents." I got a lot out of the class, and I will very likely use a lot of the readings and books we used in class in my own teaching. Despite the difficulties I had with some portions of the class (which were typically a result of my own actions, or inaction, rather), it was totally worth it and I am very thankful to have taken this class so early in my journey towards teacher certification.
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