A Journey Back in Time
Tammy Roosa
As I look back through my time here at Michigan State, first I cannot believe the knowledge that I have gained and secondly that I actually completed my Masters. College in general, much less a master’s degree, was not in the cards for me while attending high school. The tools that I will take away from this program are irreplaceable. The decision to obtain a Master of Arts in Education was one choice that I struggled with. I was not sure what direction educationally would best suit me for my current career path. I am a Special Education teacher that teaches Math and co-teaches Conceptual Physics and was not sure if continuing on with an additional endorsement in a particular special education field would be most relevant for my current classroom. All of my teaching so far has been based off the general education curriculum. I figured receiving a Masters with a focus in Math and Science would make me a well rounded teacher for all of my students, both general and special education.
Most Memorable Courses
Though all of my course work was extremely important there are two classes that I reflect on often. During the fall of 2012 I took CEP 802 with L.Benson and E.Oka as the instructors. The course was called Developing Positive Attitudes towards Learning. We were assigned a design project that would focus on one particular student and their struggles with motivation in the classroom. When I was observing my class of students and trying to decide who I would focus on, I soon realized that most of my students struggled with motivation for one reason or another. The reading for this course referred to students in a different descriptive fashion for example; Helpless Hanna or Defective Dan. Helpless Hanna is a student that has developed the ability to not work on anything independently. Defective Dan on the other hand was a student that when confronted with difficult material would create some type of diversion in completing the task. What I quickly became aware of was that the majority of my students were one of these two examples and most of them being more like helpless Hanna’s. My Hanna was actually a Sarah that is a student that has struggled her entire educational career and has become dependent on teachers and/or parents to lead her directly to the answer or find a solution for all her problems. She has become accustomed to waiting for someone to guide her through the majority of her classroom work. After reading this section I was stunned when I walked back into my classroom to realize that this was the majority of my student’s problems. Not to say that they do not struggle with disabilities but they have learned to not ask questions, look for solutions, or even try for fear of being wrong. I realized that if not addressed these would be issues for their entire life. I wanted to come up with a plan that would not only address the needs of Sarah but my entire class.
What I also came to realize was that this is called learned helpless and not something that students will recognize and want to change easily. This type of learning was created in what I believe to be the best of intentions. Teachers and/or parents that truly wanted to help their struggling student with material they were having difficulty with. What they did not foresee was that at some point their struggling student would need to know how to not only solve problems on their own but recognize their own disabilities. Being that my students are all seniors and less than three months away from graduation, the chances of this changing before then is very unlikely. This is both a scary and a defeating realization for me as a teacher.
What I took away from this project is that I need to come up with more strategies to help students become more confident and self-reliant in their education path as possible. Though I do not believe that they will all continue on with their education after high school they do need to know how to accommodate the areas in which they struggle. Even as a special education teacher, at times I need to remind myself that no matter how students present themselves there is usually an underlying reason for their lack of motivation in the classroom.
I also had the pleasure of having E.Oka as an instructor for CEP 883. I found extremely beneficial. This course was called Psychology of Classroom Discipline. The main purpose of this course was to help us focus on our own classroom management styles. There were two projects that I found personally helpful. We created and worked on websites for our classroom and this is something that I had not completed in the past and was on my “to do” list for this school year. Though at the time I did not really know how helpful the second project was to my class learning and it really was. The second project was when we were asked to create some type of parent presentation. I created a PowerPoint that outlined what was expected in my classroom along with the services available to students, transition information for graduating seniors, and community resources. It was not until the following school year that I came to truly appreciate this project. Our school district asked us to create a running PowerPoint that could be displayed in our classrooms during open house. It worked out great! My PowerPoint was already created and I received a great deal of positive feedback from the information provided by the parents.
Another class that I reflect on is CEP 850, Technology and Literacy for Students with Mild Disabilities and the instructor was Mei Shen. This class gave us an opportunity to review many different types of technologies that are available to all students. The focus of this class was finding tools that best fit the needs of students with disabilities, which was extremely helpful for my personal classroom. We discussed topics such as social networking, digital text, and technology based writing tools, study tools, and emerging technologies. Most of these tools are readily available for students and/or teachers to use free of charge. There are tools that read text out loud for students which is extremely helpful for students that are below grade level. The writing tools from this class were another area that I found to be extremely useful. I thought that both of these tools were useful in all contexts but thought they would be even more helpful in an English classroom.
When we initially discussed the topic of social networking I thought this was not something that should be incorporated into the classroom. I viewed social networking for just that… socializing. After the course and discussions with other teachers my views have changed. If used appropriately I see this as a wonderful opportunity to keep in contact with both students and parents. Students could also use this tool to receive help for homework, a project, or extra preparation for tests or quizzes.
The assignment that I enjoyed the most out of not only this class but my entire masters program was an ABC book I made using Digital Story. This tool was simple to use even for someone who does not consider themselves technology savvy. I created a simple book designed for my own children. Teachers could use this tool to create fun stories to go along with readings that they are utilizing in the classroom. This would also be a great assignment for students to create their own stories as well. If I was still teaching English this would be a tool that I would definitely use with my students.
On-Line Learning
Having a program that is offered entirely online offers students the ability to achieve their Masters in a manner that is best fitting for their personal lifestyle. An online program has both pros and cons. For myself there are far more pros than there are cons. The biggest positive aspect of working entirely online is that I am able to work on assignments, readings, and/or projects at times that do not take me away from my family. I do not have to attend a class once a week from 5-10 and miss both dinner and bedtime with my children. Even with the prospect of only attend class one day a week this did not appeal to me. Just as the thought of getting up each morning at 4 am so that I could read assignments and work on homework before my children woke probably does not appeal to many other master’s students. I am able to get up at the same time on the weekends and get a great deal of work done before anyone has started to stir in my house. At the start of my program I thought this would be the only selling point of taking an on-line program. I quickly learned that I was wrong.
There are far more positives to working entirely online. The exposure that I have had with technology is something that I would never have experienced in a classroom setting. Though I will openly admit I am not entirely comfortable with technology, I feel that I have quickly become a novice. So much so that I have incorporated many different types of web based activities to my classroom setting already. I have also learned that when giving these assignments in class my main goal is not necessarily the content being assigned but that my students become exposed to technology as well. In a day and age when technology is everywhere it is extremely important that students feel at least moderately comfortable with using technology and not just to check their Facebook account.
I believe that technology and on-line learning opens doors for students that were not previously available. The possibility to receive an education via the internet helps future students in many aspects. The ability to work and receive a degree is now a reality for many more students. Offering a program online allows students to study around their work schedule without having to alter when they are available to work. This gives them the freedom that otherwise may not have been an option. During my undergraduate degree the online programs also allowed me to receive support that was not available in the classroom. As someone who struggles with writing, taking an online course allowed me to have my work checked before being submitted it for review by either the teacher and/or another student.
As a learner
When entering the Masters program I thought I would simply learn a few tools that would help support what I was currently teaching. I did not really think too much about what I would learn as a learner. The knowledge that I have learned about my learning style has been as valuable as any content knowledge I have taken away from this program. First and foremost I learned that I can actually learn new things. Not just because I have too but because I can and want to. As a high school student that did not visualize they moving onto college receiving a Master degree… well that is quite a feat in itself.
Though many of my students say they are going onto college I do not believe that they truly think they will. I do think that given support, confidence, and the correct tools this could change for many of them. I hope that I can share my experiences as a learner with my students to spark some hope for them as well.
As a teacher
What I have learned as a teacher is that I need to learn more. Even after finishing up with my Masters degree I still feel there is so much more that I need to learn. I am not sure that this will ever be fully achieved. The knowledge that we need as educators is something that is ever changing and will be a lifelong journey.
While taking my Technology and Literacy for Students with disabilities I realized that there are many endless possibilities that students with disabilities could utilize with technology. For me the problem has been that I was not entirely comfortable using technology in my classroom. As I am coming to the end of my time in this program; not only am I more comfortable with technology, I am very comfortable introducing different tools to my students. As I continue to learn and grow as teacher I know that my technology base will grow as well.
In Conclusion
My time spent receiving my Masters has helped me grow as a learner, a teacher, and in my personal life. I hope that I am able to transfer my experiences in a manner that is helpful to my students. I feel that once this portion of my educational journey comes to an end I will be able to reflect and review all that I have learned and better incorporate it into my classroom. Many times while taking a class I come across many different concepts and/or strategies that I wanted to implement in my classroom but did not have the time. I have set aside books, articles, example projects, and personal notes of things that I will add to my classroom teachings while planning out my lessons for the following year.
I am truly grateful with the time that I have spent attending MSU and for the knowledge I have gained. Even though I feel that there is so much to learn I now know that there is a place that I can go to continue on with that quest. I have already discussed the possibility of returning to pursue more classes in technology. I believe this is an area that students will need continued support in. The tools and skills that I have obtained during my time at MSU are irreplaceable. There is no unlearning what I have already learned. The quote that I placed under the title of this paper sums up my feelings about what I have learned. I really had no idea about all I did not know about. I thought I would leave the program feeling more confident as an educator but I now feel as though I have more uncertainty then when I started. Just what path do I want to take from here? As long as its forward, that is all that matters. This is why I will be what they refer to as a “student for life”.
Synthesis Essay