When I began my educational journey, I came in without any expectations, knowledge, or understanding of the significance of the teaching profession; all I knew was that I wanted to become a teacher. As I progressed throughout the program, entered classrooms, and engaged with students, other teachers, and other professionals, I began to recognize and acknowledge the strengths and areas for growth I had not only as a pre-service teacher but as a global citizen.
Through the development of my portfolio and reflecting on my field experiences, it became apparent that my strong ability and desire to build and foster positive relationships have been pivotal to my professional development as an aspiring teacher. Through my interactions, conversations and collaboration with my friends, family, classmates, students, and peers, I have been able to form unique bonds and connect on a deeper level. “Every child deserves a champion, an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection, and insists that they become the best that they can possibly be” (Pierson, 2013, 6:48). As I reflected on my experiences in the classroom, I realized that the understanding and ability to connect with students assisted my ability to build diverse, inclusive, and welcoming learning environments that encourage students to reach and go beyond their potential. Building a community based on the principles of respect, empathy, kindness, and understanding naturally followed as I formed relationships with my students and peers. However, I also recognize that there are areas for growth to further develop my pedagogy and identity as an educator. I have recognized my limited knowledge and implementation of First Nations, Métis and Inuit ways of knowing and hope to address this by trying new approaches and ideas based on research and literature, even if I make a mistake. Both in the workplace and the classroom, I have been fortunate enough to be in environments that allow me to make mistakes. Rather than viewing mistakes as failures and shortcomings, I view them as learning opportunities as I continue to engage in life-long learning and self-reflection. To critically self-reflect is to reflect on my actions and assumptions to make more informed decisions so that “when [I] do something that’s intended to help students learn it actually has that effect” (Brookfield, 2017, p. 5). Recognizing, acknowledging, and critically reflecting on my strengths and areas for growth have been and will continue to be a part of my identity as an educator.
This educational journey would not have been possible if it were not for the collaboration, feedback, and support from my peers, mentors, partner teachers, and everyone I have met along the way. Reflecting on my ideas, actions, lessons, assignments, and the comments or suggestions left by my peers and partner teachers have allowed me to grow and become better not only as an educator but as a global citizen. Through collaboration with my peers, I created and developed formative and summative assessments that were inquiry-focussed and engaging for my grade 9 science class during my last field experience. The peers I had have acted as critical friends, acknowledging and “providing structures for effective feedback and strong support” (Bambino, 2002, p. 25) to refine my practice as an emerging educator to improve student learning that will allow them to be successful. Ultimately, the refinement of my pedagogy and practice as a teacher will come from constant self-reflection, lifelong learning and collaboration.
References
Bambino, D. (2002). Critical friends. Educational Leadership, 59(6), 25-27. http://ezproxy.lib.ucalgary.ca/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=6504020&site=ehost-live
Brookfield, S. (2017) Becoming a critically reflective teacher. (2nd ed.). Jossey Boss: San Francisco. https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy.lib.ucalgary.ca/lib/ucalgary-ebooks/detail.action?docID=4790372
Pierson, R. (2013, May 3). Every kid needs a champion [Video]. TED. https://www.ted.com/talks/rita_pierson_every_kid_needs_a_champion