DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.

Domain 4: Professionalism

 

     I frame my participation in professionalism as striving to collaborate with an open mind, and working to make sure that all voices in the room are not just heard, but respected. All the people that I work with in BSHS: mentors, co-teachers, principles, directors, and students all bring a wealth of knowledge and experience that are unique to each individual. I firmly believe that one of my primary jobs, both at Brown and at Brown Summer High School, is to learn as much as I can. As a result, I must treat every person that I meet as an instructor and every moment as a potential moment for learning.
     I have worked to respect constructive feedback provided by my director and mentor in concrete ways. When V explained to me that successful classroom management requires holding students accountable for their mistakes, I worked to develop my teacher voice and understanding of my positionality in a way that would allow me to improve the environment for the whole class.
     When receiving feedback, I also worked to develop the ability to ask for help when necessary. For example, when my mentor pointed out that I had too much direct teacher presentation time and that I needed to break it up for the students to be able to focus, I felt confused as to what to add. I her advice for what she would do in that situation, and she shared tips based on her own experiences that helped break up the lesson. I also sought help from fellow teachers. While struggling with how best to make my vocabulary presentation engaging for students, I reached out to a fellow BSHS teacher for guidance. She shared with me that she often has students explain what the term means in their own words before showing the definition. This served both as a way to engage students and assess students prior knowledge. My mentor and fellow teacher both shared their personal experiences with me, and their guidance helped me develop lessons that more actively considered the needs of my students. I believe that part of professionalism entails knowing your strengths and weakness and how to improve through the strengths of those who are supporting you.
     In addition, I’d like to seek more opportunities for professional development. I know that there are conferences/workshops that MAT students are encouraged to attend, and I would very much like to attend one. I will review the list of recommended conferences that the MAT handbook references, and I will see what could possibly work.

DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.