Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.

~Nelson Mandella
As with anything, practice makes perfect. This statement, while tired, is trueeven to
those of us who are learning to teach. I have been teaching grades 6-8 religion classes for the
past year-and-a-half. I remember the feeling of standing up in front of 40 rambunctious middle
school students and teaching them for the first timethe knot in my stomach, the sweaty palms,
the endless thoughts racing through my head: am I talking too fast, too slow, do they understand
this, is this engaging? And I remember the sigh of relief when it was all over, and slumped down
in my chair breathing for what was probably the first time that night. Eventually I worked out the
kinks and things ran smoother each time I taught. I picked up on the little thingslike how
important it is to have a detailed lesson plan, that its better to have more things to do and run out
of time than to run out of things and think on your feet, that you can never rely on a photo copier
an hour before class starts, and that procrastination is not an option. Observing Beth York
emphasized things I had already known, but also opened my eyes to elements of teaching I had
not considered before. Yes, reading textbooks is important; but at the end of the day it is in the
classroom setting that the real learning begins to happen. Prior to this class, I had mainly
observed teachers. However, being able to observe students was a wonderful experience and
made me appreciate all the knowledge I have gained from this class about child development.
Rather than writing a student off as moody, talkative, or rambunctious, I was able to appreciate
that they were right where they should be developmentally. As such, I was much more patient
with them. I think it is evident in my work that I put time and consideration into this portfolio. I
particularly enjoyed the opportunity to observe younger children, as I do not get to typically do

that in my field of secondary education. However as the director of K-8 Faith Formation at my
parish, it was very helpful to gain these skills and knowledge.
Overall, I really enjoyed this project. Some of the things I found challenging were
making check lists and rating scales for high school and middle school students. At first, I felt
overwhelmed and could only think of using these skills for observing young children. However,
when I examined it more closely, and thought more critically, I saw that I use these types of
observations to observe how students are doing with their writing. I also saw that I could use this
format to analyze a students behavior in the classroom. Anecdotal observations were more
comfortable to do, perhaps because I am an English major and I am so comfortable with writing,
but I recognized this would not be the most efficient or productive means of observing.
Checklists and rating scales provide quick, reliable, quantifiable data, and they are something
that you can do regularly without spending an unreasonable amount of time doing them. With
that said, because I am used to producing large amounts of written work, I felt that my checklists
and rating scales did not require as much effort, and did not reflect me well as a student.
However, if I look at it from a professional perspective, I am able to shift away from this
mentality.
Throughout this project, I felt organized and well prepared. However, I was not always
good about turning in the work on time. I loved creating the website, the culmination of all my
work, and the way it looks on the website it the part of my portfolio I am most proud of. It is
easy to see how useful this tool would be when teaching or collaborating with other teachers. If I
could change one thing on my final portfolio, I would have had a page/link for each observation,
however I could not figure out how to do this. This project represents my skills in observation. It
demonstrates the three forms of observation I believe I would use most frequently, and it is also a

sample of my best work. Additionally, it demonstrates my knowledge of Child Development. I

challenged myself to not only focus on middle school and high school studentsthe age groups I
am most familiar withbut on younger ages as well. If I were to use this project as part of a
larger professional portfolio, I think a prospective employer would be impressed with my
knowledge of child development, my knowledge and use of observations, and my understanding
of what types of observation are most appropriate for various situations. Moving forward, I
would want more detailed links to development and more observations on each child/student I
observed. It would be interesting to do an anecdotal, checklist, and rating scale for each of the
individuals I observed. This would also make my portfolio much more robust and extensive.
I think one of the most challenging things about high school students is where they are at
developmentally. Many of them are self-conscious, and this can drastically affect their work in
the classroom. There is an expectation of social disapproval. One thing that is important to
remember in ones approach to teaching is that each student is unique, different, and will
approach situations differently. While you want to be realistic, setting high expectations will
help the students to achieve goals and give them the opportunity to work to their potential.
Though students may be reluctant to share their work/opinion, it is crucial to make students feel
noticed and appreciated. By respecting the students, they will in turn respect us, and we are
given the prospect to gain their trust. At the end of the day the students should know that we
genuinely care about them and their futureif they do not believe that, then we must examine
how we are teaching/interacting with them. If we believe in them, they may start to believe in
themselves. You must be willing to meet them where they are at, work with them so to make the
information accessible to them, and put in the time. As I have already stated, this experience also
reinforced the idea that it is paramount to believe that your students are capable of brilliance.

With that said, you need to be able to create an environment in which a student is able to
demonstrate their brilliance. Toni Morrison, in her novel The Bluest Eye writes This soil is bad
for certain kinds of flowers. Certain seeds it will not nurture, certain fruit it will not bear, and
when the land kills of its own volition, we acquiesce and say that victim had no right to live
(206). I think this quote speaks to the nature of many school systems today. We put our students
through school, and if they dont succeed, it is their faultif only they had worked harder, they
wouldnt have failed. But with that attitude, we fail to examine how we contribute to the death
of a student. Teaching, I have learned, is not about right or wrongthough in some ways I used
to think it was; but rather, it is about working with the student where they are in their life. The
goal is (amid the chaos, or painfulness, or loneliness, or neglect in a students life) to help them
find their voice, and to give them the power and courage to share that voice with others.