Last week, I had the pleasure of "visiting" a fellow student teacher, Ms. Megan Royer, at Athens Area High School. Even though our visit had to be conducted via Zoom, I was still able to glean a lot from this experience and gain new perspectives.
Lately, I have been trying to create assignments for my students that do not involve screen time. So, taking a page out of my own book, here are my big picture aways from my visit with Ms. Royer as a mindmap.
1. Zoom integration - While Ms. Royer had her face-to-face students in the greenhouse her Zoom students were researching seed prices. I really appreciated how Ms. Royer did not make it seem as if the Zoom students were having a lesser experience, instead, she made them apart of the process.
2. Learning environment - Ms. Royer creates a positive learning environment and 2 distinct examples stood out to me. The first being that she gives her students a lot of autonomy. At the beginning of the class, there was a vote to see which seeds would be ordered. Secondly, she plays music during work periods and I could tell her students were enjoying the productive atmosphere.
3. A new demographic of students - As a result of watching Ms. Royer's classes I also obtained a greater perspective. Right now, I currently teach most students that come from the suburbs of Harrisburg; however, Ms. Royer's students come from a very rural part of Pennsylvania. There was a slight difference in the perspectives and opinions of students, but also their ideas about agriculture which I did not expect to observe.
#PSUAgEd2021 have you visited a cohort member yet? What were some of your big takeaways?
Nicole,
ReplyDeleteGreat reflection. Your blog reminds me of why we require this assignment as part of the teacher preparation program! You "hit" the important pieces of observation and reflection, and their impact on your own teaching!
Dr. Ewing
Nicole,
ReplyDeleteI also visited Athens with Miss Royer! I had similar thoughts and findings when I visited as well. While I am at a rural school like Megan, I still have a very different demographic and my students learn in completely different ways. I wish I had to time and ability to visit every member of our cohort's schools to continue to learn and grow as a teacher!