Blog Assignment 9

"An important decision I made this year is stay positive". This thought, contained in the picture for Mr. McClung's blog post, is just one of the many things I learned while reading What I've Learned This Year. In this blog post, Mr. McClung talks about his learning experience during his first year of teaching. Mr. McClung seems to imply, that teaching is not everything we think it will be when we're still in college. Even though we learned a lot in college, we will continue to learn our first year and beyond. Mr. McClung discusses seven key points that new teachers should learn.

1. From their experiences in college, education majors may develop a mindset of impressing superiors and fellow teachers. This can cause first year teachers to forget that their audience isn't the latter, but a room full of children. Not only is their an age difference in the two audiences, but there is also a comprehension difference. Lessons needed to be designed for an audience of children. Teachers need to remember that their main goal is for the students to understand. We must build our lessons around the students. Also, they must play a big part in the lesson. Meaning, students should be able to tell their teachers if they need something explained again or slower.
2. Teachers can't be preoccupied with making everything perfect. It is very unlikely to have a perfect lesson that goes exactly the way a teacher has planned. Lesson plans can change because students need more explanation or practice. Another reason lesson plans can change is because of some mistake on the teacher's part. Teachers can't let themselves feel bad about any mistakes. They must smile, maybe even laugh at themselves, and then keep on going. 
3. Communication is key to any job, but especially teaching. Teachers should practice this important skill with their students and their fellow teachers. In regards to fellow teachers, communication shouldn't only be used when there is some form of conflict. Communication is an effective way of building great relationships with fellow teachers.
4. Teachers should have high expectations for their students, but they should never forget to be reasonable. Again, a teacher should be worried about their superiors or their fellow teachers. They should be concerned with their students. Teachers must remember that children aren't perfect and can make mistakes often. Some children will live up to the standards or expectations that teachers set, but for those that don't teachers should never falter to encourage them. 
5. Teachers shouldn't be afraid of new technology. They should embrace it as a technological tool for their classroom. To use it in the classroom, teachers must be willing to learn how to use this technology.
6. Besides communication, listening is another useful and effective skill. Listening strengthens respect and the student/teacher relationship. Listening to students shows that the teacher truly cares about the students' lives. 
7. Since teachers want their students to learn, they should be open to learning themselves. It's never too late to learn. If teachers let themselves learn, they could find something that is really beneficial for their students.

I could not get enough of this blog post. Like I told Mr. McClung, I'm keeping this blog post close to my heart forever. I will even read it the night before my first day of work. This post is so important and I think that every new teacher should read it. It sure helped me, so I know it would be extremely beneficial to others.
I think that all of the key points discussed in Mr. McClung's post can be connected. I feel like (if I hadn't read this post) before starting work I would feel that everything had to be perfect. That is a big problem I already have. I get so focused, ahead of time, on making everything perfect that I end up getting too swept up in things. This just creates a huge, cluttered mess that is far from perfect. I think a new teacher's focus should shift from perfection to educating students as best you can. I don't mean just taking a lax approach, as that sentence may make it sound. Teachers need to take their thirst for learning and transfer it to their students. I feel like I have said that so many times, so I'm sorry for the case of deja vu. I just feel strongly about it. My thoughts are becoming one cluttered mess in my mind, so to save readers from getting so lost I'm going to list my thoughts.

• Teachers can't focus on perfection. They have to focus on their students' comprehension of the material. 
• Growing up, we have always been told not to worry about what others think. I feel this applies to our future teaching careers. I am not saying disregard the thoughts of your principal or rudely ignore the opinions of fellow teachers. I mean don't build your teaching around the latter. Don't worry about impressing people of your age, worry about delivering this material in a way that your students fully understand it. I believe this thought of mine is a combination of first and second key point.
• Communication and listening gets you so far. Both of these life skills can fix conflict and built or strengthen important relationships in your future. When we start our teaching career, we will depend on our use of these skills to create united teaching staff that can overcome any conflict. We will also use these skills to develop a respecting and friendly student-teacher relationship. For some teachers, they want their students to fear them. This establishes the idea that the teacher has total power and shouldn't be disobeyed. This isn't the type of teacher I want to be. I want to have respect going from both ends. I respect my students and in turn they respect me. They will follow the rules not because of fear, but because they respect me and want to do the right thing. They won't only see me as their teacher or a person of authority, but someone who really cares about their life. I feel that effective use of communication and listening will establish the classroom I see in my dreams. Of course, I'm not picturing or focusing on perfection.
• Another thing I want to touch on is technology. Mr. McClung is right. We shouldn't fear technology! I feel EDM 310 has put on the right path to technological literacy. I don't want to become someone of an older generation who has no idea what is going on technology wise. I also don't want to be that person that fears learning about new technology. It's a fact: teachers should want to learn. This means we can't shy away from technology, like some do. This is hypocritical. EDM 310 has shown me the potential of the current technology for classrooms. I fully intend to use everything I can, but I can only imagine what new technology could be invented in the years ahead of me. I'm going to want to learn to use it, just as I want to learn to use the technology of today. All teachers should feel this way.

Overall, this was a very thought provoking post for me. I feel like I could write so much more about what I read. I'm going to keep the message in this post close to my heart for the rest of my life, especially as I prepare for my classroom.