Reflection
As a reflective teacher I am continually thinking critically about pedagogy, subject matter, and the needs and backgrounds of all my students. Accordingly, I choose appropriate content and adapt my teaching approaches to students’ needs, while maintaining high standards. To be successful, I need to be a committed student of the disciplines that I teach. I will continually seek out professional development to remain current with professional ideas and use these to guide instructional decisions. I will constantly assess my instructional effectiveness with my students.
The credentialing program at California State University, San Bernardino assisted me in acquiring and integrating the knowledge, skills, and dispositions essential to becoming a successful teacher. The coursework included pedagogy and content knowledge areas with integration into curriculum to include English language learners and children with special needs. As a student I studied and learned theories of human development and cultural diversity so that I could consider available information to make effective instructional decisions. I participated in structured field experiences, which enable me to observe students, instruct them, and transfer theory into practice. I used guided reflections of my classroom experiences from a variety of perspectives, which fostered self-analysis and evaluation skills essential for continued professional development.
The program at CSUSB also emphasized the development of values, which maintains an educated and ethical society within the global community. As a teacher I am accepting the importance of educating its citizenry, who will one day contribute to a democratic society, as caring, thoughtful participants. Sharing the responsibility for recreating schools and meeting the changes in society. While completing the coursework I gained experiences that acquainted me with the diversities that I will encounter in the classroom. It is essential for me as a teacher to accept and welcome the challenges of teaching to all students, accepting and appreciation their diversity. I have seen through my education how technology is altering our society, and it is my role as an educator to foster and instruct communication and performance using available technologies. It is my goal as an educator to dedicate and commit myself to teaching to all students, to learn about their uniqueness and offer them opportunities to connect to their life’s experiences, prior knowledge, and interests.