Teaching is important to me because a good teacher has the ability to impact a student’s life for a better professional and successful future. I would like to become a SPED Teacher that has an organized classroom, which provides everything a student might need to learn, and makes accommodations if necessary for those students that need them. I will follow the program provided by the school district as a guide to instruct my students and will put in practice all the strategies learned through the educational training.

My goal as a future educator is to provide the best quality education possible to each one of my students. As a SPED Teacher, I will follow each student’s individual plan of education so they may have the best opportunity to gain experience in the least restrictive environment. I will be an advocate for them in and outside of my classroom making sure their IEP Goals and accommodations will follow them to all their classes.

My objective is to have an entire year full of opportunities for students to learn everything they need with a variety of educational strategies. Accommodations like extra time for tests or assignments and the use of manipulatives will be provided for those students that need them. Their assignments and schedule will be modified, as needed.

I believe the best learning theories for students are cognitive, constructive, and behaviorism. I think once the students understand what they are learning we can proceed to introduce new knowledge. Once students have mastered understanding we can build new knowledge based on their previous skills. All this could happen while routines and positive reinforcement are established in the classroom. In order to be successful in teaching, I believe in teachers should use a variety of instructional strategies for students. Students learn better with hand-on-activities so I believe that manipulatives and learning by doing assignments are very effective. Furthermore, I think that students grasp better information when it comes from themselves so role-playing, debates, and learning/reading circles are good methods as well. Students like to take initiative in their own learning so investigations, case studies, and project work will be great practices.

The best way to assess students’ understanding will be through data. Data could be collected by using a diversity of assessments. When beginning a new concept pre-assessment can be put in place to learn the student’s academic level and therefore have a base for placement. With this information, I could do future lesson plans for upcoming concepts. To put the concept into practice, the student could do a project or a presentation to demonstrate their new learned skills. These assessments are great tools go provide student data as well as any possible struggles from the latest information/concept.  Finally, the Exit Tickets Strategy can be used as a question or writing an essay about what they just learned giving me information about students’ understanding.

Not all students learn the same way, so by providing a variety of assessments and assignments I will be able to acquire a better understanding of what they need to work on and what can be taught next. Also with the correct data we can provide assessment and assignments at their appropriate learning level. I feel that letting the students own their learning will give them a better opportunity for growth and they will retain new information more efficiently. I will improve my teaching by proving different topics for assignments, and activities that will provide these opportunities for students.

 As an educator, we never stop learning. I will learn new skills and strategies by attending the trainings provided by the school district to stay updated with all the latest information.  I can also look for other opportunities through educational organizations such as Region19 that give seminaries on different topics as well as the training available through UTEP and other higher learning institutions in person and online. I can use the internet to search for studies or documents relating, to appropriate topics.  Last, I will observe and learn from my peer educators.

I will use my student input such as results from formative assessments, observations, and standardized test scores to create student groups and seating charts for assignments in the classroom. These data will guide me to review the lesson again or to plan the following lesson plan. I will continue to collect input throughout the year to teach the adequate material based on each student’s level.

I will know that I have taught effectively when students are completing and returning their assignments with no extra help or further instructions. After teaching a concept for a period and practicing during class with different activities, if most of them pass an assessment that shows progress. Also, when students successfully complete an exit ticket. The main proof will be when the students are passing the benchmark, START test, or other state exams.

Teaching nowadays with technology is not an option is a necessity. Students use Technology for everything. Using technology to teach is the best way to connect with students. I will use technology to display my lesson plans through PowerPoint using the whiteboard. I will create activities where students can use technology as well.  I will use technology at an elementary level by using engaging programs where students can practice their math and reading. Videos like Jack Hartman where they can practice and learn new concepts.  I will also use programs that are mandated by the school to measure growth. At a middle school level, I will assign presentations where students need to use technology for example PowerPoint, Excel, or Microsoft. I will use Kahoot to interact with students and check for learning in math.  At a high school level, I will provide students the opportunity to do and return assignments by a program on the computer. I will provide assignments where students can keep communicating with each other, even if they are not at school.  I will also assign different research topics where they can use the internet to complete them.