Teacher Effectiveness

Being an educator is a great responsibility. It takes having a

passion for children and teaching. The best teachers are determined to
make sure all of their students succeed. On Wednesday, Dr. Newton
discussed research that supported the concept of, what makes a great
teacher and what good teachers do to maximize student learning.
Good teachers are always making changes and are flexible. Dr. Newton
spent a great deal of time discussing the research that supported this
statement. Constant planning is very important for a successful
teacher. Since the first day in the education program weve been
learning how important it is to have a very detailed lesson plan.
Without a lesson plan the classroom will become very disorganized and
students will not be receptive to learning. Even with a good lesson plan
it is important to recognize when it needs to be tweaked. These
changes are needed when dealing with a struggling student. In order
for students to leave the classroom with maximized learning the
teacher must be aware of the students needs academically and
emotionally.
The best teachers are constantly making changes and are aware
of the performance of each student. They continuously work with
students and encourage them to succeed. As a teacher it is important
to recognize the growth that your students are making. If students are
not showing adequate growth then it is the teachers responsibility to
change their teaching methods until the student has an understanding
of the topic. Good teachers care more about how students are growing
than how they performed on just one test. One of the main concepts I
took from Dr. Newton was how important it is to recognize your own
mistakes. Being able to recognize when you have done something
wrong can be difficult. Generally people want to blame others when
something doesnt go according to plan, but as I teacher it is your job
to make adjustments and help your students.
During this next year and even when I have my own classroom I
want to make sure that I am able to notice when I need to make a
changes in my classroom so I can help my students in the most
efficient way possible. Personally, I know I have always loved the
teachers who I felt like took the extra time to make I understood what
was going on so, I want to provide the same thing for my students.
Spending time with students and building relationships with them is
very important. I want to be able to make a difference in all my
students lives. So, learning different strategies like the ones taught by
Dr. Newton I will keep in mind years from now.
Classroom management

Establishing and maintaining classroom management is

important to have in every classroom. There are numerous skills
teachers must use in order to have a classroom that promotes the
most learning. In class we watched a video that discussed some of the
best ways to manage a classroom. These strategies are easy to
implement and can be used on a daily basis. There are five major
strategies big ideas that were mentioned in the video that can help
make your classroom manageable and provide a conducive learning
environment. Before actually watching the video I originally thought
that classroom management only pertained to how one used their time
during class to teach a lesson. From my understanding now, classroom
management also includes the atmosphere, and the relationships that
occur in the classroom. The authors intent was to share strategies he
noticed worked best in his own and other teachers classrooms that
helped maximize students learning. The five big ideas are; engaging
students in learning, establishing and maintaining classroom rules and
procedures, recognizing and acknowledging students adherence to
classroom rules and procedures, establishing and maintain effective
relationships with all students, and communicating high expectations
for all students.
Student interaction I believe was one of the most vital concepts
mentioned in the video. After analyzing my notes I realize how
important it is to have student involvement in the classroom. Student
interaction is evidence that students are engaged in the lesson,
allowing them to retain more information. I noticed that the remainder
of the 5 big ideas all included some form of student involvement, or
teachers providing feedback to students. Instead of controlling all
aspects of the classroom it is important to let students have a chance
to voice their opinions, and to actually use some of their feedback in
classroom activities. Several of the teachers used their students ideas
to help create rules for the classroom or even decide on what kind of
project they wanted to do. One of the teachers in the video allowed
students to pick from a variety of potential projects they would
complete. This example stood out most of all. It gave students a
chance to try something new and allowed them to be creative with
their assignment. Personally as a student I love feeling like I have some
control over of what takes place in the classroom.
Recognizing students is important; it allows them to a chance to
understand your expectations for them. Allowing students to see that
you recognize them can promote healthy relationships, and even
decrease potential disciplinary issues that may occur. Teachers, who
interact with their students and have relationships with them, receive
greater feedback from them. Establishing and maintaining
relationships with all students changes the environment of the
classroom. Having a relationship with my students I believe will help

me become a great teacher and have a stronger effect on the

academically and socially, which is my overall goal.
Dr. Rogers
September 1, 15
Dedication, patience, and perseverance, these are a few
characteristics that I believe a good teacher should have. Anyone can
be a teacher but in order to be a teacher who makes a difference in
students lives you have to be dedicated to the profession and the
students. To be an effective teacher there are three essential things
that are important to have, a significant knowledge base, teaching
skills, and dispositions. Having a great disposition can change the
entire atmosphere of a classroom. Teachers that are remembered by
their students years after they have graduated are not just
remembered because of the lessons they taught but because of how
they made students feel. Dispositions are the values and positive
characteristics that a teacher carries inside the classroom. They are
embedded in you and it is imperative that you keep them with you,
even on the roughest days.
Dr. Rogers mentioned how important language is in the
classroom. Communication is vital when working with students. The
tone of your voice can change a students perspective on schooling. It
is important for myself to remember that one word can change a
childs thinking, from positive to negative or vice versa. I want to be
that positive influence that helps students succeeds inside and outside
of my classroom. I believe teachers have a great responsibility to
withhold. As a teacher you have a great impact on students
emotionally. Children spend a majority of their time at school. In order
to make sure students are academically successful students need to
feel safe and must be encouraged everyday, while they are in the
classroom.
This year in clincals we will have the chance to work closely with
teachers and students, learn about a functioning classroom. Clinicals
provides an opportunity to figure ways that we potentially may run our
own classroom. I am very excited to start clincals so I can learn handson about becoming an effective teacher. Last year I was lucky to have
great experiences at all of my placements. I was able to learn a lot
about the different schools and myself along the way. This year Im
looking forward to adding on to that and creating new experiences.
Throughout the time spent a Trace Crossings I am hoping to learn a
variety of skills to help me become a better teacher but also to learn
about being a better person, so I can add to my dispositions. For
myself entering the education program is nothing less than a calling
from God. If you would have asked me just a few years ago if I wanted
to be a teacher the answer would have been no. I have always had a

serving spirit and loved working with children but I never would of
thought of myself as a teacher. Entering Samford I was a business
major but some how whenever volunteering or working during the
school year and summer I would always find myself surrounded by
children.
Dr. Julie Hannah-Assessments
September 4, 15
Dr. Julie Hannah on Thursday and discussed the importance of
assessments in schools. Assessments are more than just test teachers
give their students to measure their performance level in a subject.
They help determine numerous factors for schools that help determine
how well students perform. Before Thursday I was not aware of how
important assessments were. I knew that they measured the
performance of students but I was not aware of how great the impact it
had.
It is important for teachers to understand that students should
only be assessed on information they have been learning in the
classroom. Many times teachers will teach students the test and not
the actual information they need in order to be successful long term.
This does not ensure that students are actually learning the
information needed for long-term success. A problem that occurs
nation wide is that numerous students graduate without having the
proper skills to succeed on higher-grade levels. Students are not fluent
in the standards required, and graduate high school without the proper
skills. The test these students take are created on an 8th grade level.
Some students are not capable of affording the necessary resources to
help them thrive while in school causing them to be behind in the
classroom. Assessments allow school districts the opportunity to
provide resources for students, like ACT prep courses and tutoring
services. It is very important for students to receive these resources to
ensure their future success.
Assessments can occur in many different ways, it doesnt always
just have to be academically. It is pivotal for teachers to assess
throughout the academic day for students performance socially,
emotionally, and academically. Each child in the classroom needs your
help, and attention and it is important that they are given that. When
students feel cared for they put forth more effort and perform on a
higher standard. It was very interesting learning how important
assessments are and how they are used to help improve schools and
students.
Dr. Bluiett
September 12, 15

There are many different aspects to assessments, more than I

was ever aware of. The purpose of assessments is to help determine,
how a child is performing, progress they have made, and how they are
doing in comparison to benchmark testing. This week Dr. Bluiett
discussed some early literacy assessments, some that I will potentially
get a chance to try out in a few weeks during clinical. Since I am apart
of the leadership team, morning crew I will get a chance to assess
students when working with morning intervention. This will be a great
opportunity and a great way for myself to become comfortable working
with students in areas they need assistance in, like reading. With this
opportunity I will get to not only work with students but will get a
chance to collect data from the assessments. Collecting data provides
valuable information for planning whole group and individualized
instruction, determining quality of instruction, and allows others to see
how students are developing.
There are five essentials of early reading instruction, phonemic
awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Without
a child knowing these skills their reading, and communication abilities
will suffer. When working with students it is important to know how to
recognize each form of instruction. Knowing these helps teachers
better prepare their students to become stronger readers. They also
are used to help teachers work with struggling students so they can
recognize what exactly areas they need guidance in. Becoming more
familiar with these will allow me to better assess the students I will be
working with during morning intervention. There are numerous types of
assessments that can be given to students for literacy. It is important
to monitor childrens growth and level of performance throughout an
extended amount of time when working with them. There are four
purposes for reading assessments, each assessment measures
students differently and at different times period during an extended
period. Outcome assessment, surveys the reading achievement of the
entire class, Screening assessments provide initial information about
students, Diagnostic assessments provides in-depth information, and
Progress-Monitoring assessments provides ongoing and timely
feedback on individual students. Learning how to use each form of
assessments will help provide feedback for students and guide them to
a successful academic year. I believe that during my time in clinicals I
will get to use a majority of these assessments, which will help me
better teach students. Giving all students adequate attention will help
provide a positive learning environment and will encourage students to
perform well in the classroom.
Gifted students
September 11, 15

Gifted leaners can often be misunderstood, and become

overlooked in the classroom. Gifted students are very bright but the
classroom teacher may not always notice the childs abilities. It was
very interesting hearing Dr. Wood describe how the average gifted
student behaved. The overall description she gave was completely
different from my initial ideas. Gifted students are not always
considered to be the best students. They often are the students who
ask numerous questions that may not pertain to the topic being
discussed, seem uninterested in class, and may often times forget to
turn in their homework. Originally I thought that gifted students were
always recognized by their teacher, made excellent grades, and were
very organized. What I had in mind is a completely different type of
student, bright/high achiever. These students are students who are
always prepared for class, is interested in class, and completes
assignments. It can be difficult to meet the needs of gifted students,
especially when dealing with a diverse classroom. For gifted students
its important that they are always being challenged in the classroom
just like peers. Many gifted students get bored and do not increase
their learning skills, which can potentially lead them to being
complacent dealing the learning abilities.
One of the biggest issues I noticed while listening to Dr. Wood
was that some teachers struggle recognizing their gifted students and
creating a challenging enough curriculum. Its every important to
provide students with enrichment and acceleration. It is common for
students that are gifted to be assigned more work in a subject they
have already proven to know very well rather than teachers giving
them more challenging assignments to complete. This information
allowed me to realize that it is important to make sure all students stay
intrigued in the classroom. When I have my own classroom the best
way to make sure all my students are receiving the best education
possible taking time to plan out each class day will be a large factor in
having a effective learning atmosphere. I want to be able to provide
students numerous options for different activities they can participate
in that can help increase their learning. From the information we
received on Wednesday, in my opinion it seems difficult to make sure
that your gifted students are being stimulated. My fear is that
potentially some gifted students will notice that their assignments are
more difficult than the other students and they will not want to
complete the work. They may act as though they cant handle harder
assignments and will compare themselves to other students. I want to
make sure that I encourage all of my students to push themselves to
do their best and sometimes students will have different assignments.
It will be important to implement strategies that will help all my
students.
Dr. Underbakke

October 11, 15
Reading to all your class is a great way to encourage students to
read. As a teacher it is important to read to your students, no matter
the grade level. Reading books to the class encourages them to read,
advancing their reading abilities and skills. Dr. Underbakke spoke on
this concept and shared some of his favorite books, and one book he
didnt enjoy reading. The books that he shared he was very passionate
about and thought that his students truly enjoyed them as well. The
way he discussed how much his students loved listening to him read
was amazing and I want to make sure my students have the
opportunity to do the same. The students in his class develop a
relationship with the characters in the book and become invested with
the story. Making sure students are actually enjoying, and following
what is being read is key. Dr. Underbakke mentioned that when the
book was not on the students level he would spend more time
explaining it and the students wouldnt enjoy it as much, causing them
to not be engaged.
Remembering to read book to students even in older grades can
become difficult to do sometimes, especially when you feel like there
are other subject areas you should be focusing on. Personally, I want to
make sure I read numerous books to my students so they can be
encouraged to read and so they can be exposed to different genres
they may normally not read. Having the opportunity to listen to Dr.
Underbakke was a great experience; he provided great insight into the
classroom related to reading, which I know I will take into consideration
with my own classroom.
Dr. Cheshire
October 28, 15
Throughout the semester we have been learning how important
assessment is in the classroom. Dr. Cheshire came and spoke on the
different forms of assessment and how to ensure that your teaching is
benefiting the students. Dr. Cheshire shared what she believed was the
most important information to share reading assessments with the
class. There are three main purposes for assessment; to assess for
learning, assess as they learn, and an assessment of their learning.
These three are what Dr. Cheshire described as good reasons to assess
students. Assessing students throughout a lesson ensures that
students are retaining the proper information. The teacher is able to
assist the students more effectively when they assess the student
during different points on the lesson, because they are receiving active
feedback. It is important for teachers to also have an understanding for
the students they are teaching, how they learn. This is one of the most
important things I have realized throughout the semester. All students

are different and learn differently so teachers have to know how to

adapt their lesson to be beneficial for all students. Keeping the
importance of assessment in mind ensures that students are actively
learning. I want to make sure I plan all of my lessons in advance as well
as my assessments so my students can learn at the highest ability
possible.
Trace Crossing teachers
November 5,2015
On Wednesday we had the opportunity to listen to numerous
speakers who are currently working at Trace Crossings. We heard
different perspectives pertaining to, work experience, and job titles.
Listening to the various perspectives from employees was a great
opportunity. Before this moment we hadnt heard or truly discussed the
different jobs other than a teacher that are inside a school. We were
also able to learn valuable information related to what to expect in an
interview and during your first year of teaching.
The first speaker was Mrs. Drake she controls the finances at
Trace Crossing. Her job consist, of numerous task that help make sure
the school is running appropriately. She also ensures that teachers and
administrators are following the Alabama Code of Ethics. The Alabama
Code of Ethics explains how the money should be spent in a school, if
its provided by the government or even donated to the school. There
are rules it seemed to be for everything, every situation that could take
place in a school regarding money. Mrs. Drake job covered payroll, key
card spending, field trips, budgeting, PTO board, salary, and inventory.
Each of these aspects if reflected in the school it allows teachers to
have the proper resources for the classroom, and makes sure teachers
and administers are taken care of.
Students participate in specials everyday. I think listening to
these teachers share is their job description and the role they take on
with the teachers was very insightful. The music, art, PE, and librarian
are all great resources for classroom teachers. These teachers are able
to recognize various things that classroom teachers may not be able
to. They mentioned how they are great resources for helping make IEP
goals and with integrating various artistic skills into classroom. Many
teachers depend on these teachers for different strategies that they
can use in the classroom. I didnt realize how great of a resource they
could be and how well they often times know the students. They have
a great insight of what the students are capable of even though they
are not in the classroom with them a majority of the day.
Mrs. Collins is the lunchroom manager; she was very passionate
about her job and has been working at the school for over a decade.
After listening to all of the teachers and employees she seemed to be
on of the most passionate about her job. She loves taking care of the

students and loves all of them. She makes sure that all the students
are fed and taken care of. Without her and the other women working in
the cafeteria students wouldnt be able to have there breakfast and
lunch. TTrace Crossings has 47% of the students on free lunch.
Everything that takes place in the kitchen is mandated through the
Central Office, the menu, and the prices. From listening to Mrs. Collins I
was able to understand the importance of lunchroom and the work and
dedication the women at Trace Crossings have for their job. If all
cafeteria workers could be like this I think a lot more school could be
successful.
Mr. Pitts is the ELL teacher at Trace Crossings. The biggest
segment of his job is managing student data. He records the students
information measuring how they are progressing in learning English.
Another aspect of his job is to identify ELL students who need
assistance when they enter the school system. He will contact with the
parents and ask if the want LMP services. There are several types of
groups of ELL students. Each student is put on an IELP plan, which is a
plan that provides accommodations for students so the teacher can
know how to best teach the student. Mr. Pitts was able to provide
numerous tips for classroom teachers to be able to best teach their ELL
students. A few of his suggestions were to: teach in small groups, and
use pictures as frequently as possible. I think these are great easy
ways to work with ELL students.
Mrs. Barber is the principle of the school. She has been working
in education for forty-nine years and worked in administration for
thirty-nine. The experience that she has is amazing. She has worked in
numerous different areas in education, which has helped mold her into
a wonderful principle. The advice she gave regarding first year
teachers I know I will definitely use. I want to interview to the best of
my ability so I can have a wonderful job that leads me into different
administrative aspects of education. Being involved during my first
year of teaching was one of the most important pieces I took for Ms.
Barber. I think that the first year of teaching can be the hardest and
but even with being swamped with all the work it is important to work
hard to make the school a better place and to volunteer as often as
possible to you can be a contributing factor in the school and the
principle will see the work that you put in. Having the opportunity to
listen to Ms. Barber was a great experience and I know the information
I gained from her I will keep in mind.
I have had the opportunity of meeting with the Title one
teachers once before. They are three wonderful ladies who work
closely with students in the school to help them with their academics.
There is one group of students that they have been working with
consistently throughout the semester. These students have assessed
and have strategically been selected to work with the Title one
teachers. They work on different areas they may be struggling with

and help strengthen their skills. I think having Title one teachers at the
school are a great resource for students. These teachers give those
students extra guidance which overall helping the teacher. Working
with the students in Morning Intervention is another method of helping
provide those students with extra attention. I think it is a great
opportunity for Samford to be able to have a positive impact of these
students learning and visually get to see the progress we are making
with them weekly.
The final teacher that spoke was the Instructional method/
Special Education teacher Mrs. Paige. The job of a special education
teacher I believe can be one of the hardest jobs in the school. Mrs.
Paige is responsible for more than a classroom of students. She is
constantly moving throughout the school to teach and assist students
in various skills. The job she has seems very busy leaving her with little
down time. About 70% of her day is spent working with students the
remainder spent completing paperwork related to the students. She
shared with us a copy of some of the forms she is responsible for filling
out for each student. The paperwork seems is very extensive but once
done the information can be used to best assist teachers and parents
with the child. Mrs. Paige also works closely with classroom teachers.
She ensures that they are knowledgably on the students need in the
classroom and helps them make the needed accommodations. There
are many jobs that have to be completed but Mrs. Paige completes
them and loves her job and says she wouldnt trade it.
After listening to all of the teachers, administrators, and other
employees from Trace Crossings everyone has a love for their job. They
are very enthusiastic about their work and have a passion for what
they do. If everyone in a school felt the way these teachers felt I think
the education system would be better and students would achieve at a
high level. Everyone loved not only their job but understood that
everyone working at the school has an important job. I am hopefully
that get the opportunity to work in a school similar to Trace Crossings
and have the opportunity to work with great, positive people like the
ones we have met this semester.
CaDric Moulton
ELL Reflection
November 11, 15
This week we had the opportunity of having ELL training. This
was a very in depth training to teach the class how to best teach ELL
students. The training was from November 10- 11th. Having the
opportunity to learn various strategies through this training was very
beneficial to my future as a teacher. My hopes as a teacher is to work
in an inner city school area or to work with students who come from a

less fortunate background so I believe that have ELL training will guide
me to be the most effective teacher possible.
The first day of training, November 10th we covered a great deal
of information. We learned how various strategies and skills could best
assist us in teaching ELL students. To begin the session we discussed
how students inquire language. ELL students acquire language by
listening, speaking, reading, and writing. They learn language through
these four processes. Students learn and master language at different
times. This was one of the most important concepts that we learned
during ELL training. Knowing that all students process language
differently is important for teachers to know. They must be patient with
the students and give them time to learn the language. This was very
interesting to learn about. Students go through five different steps
when learning language. The steps are preproduction, early production,
speech emergence, intermediate fluency, and advanced fluency. Each
student goes through theses phases differently. They can last for an
extended periods. The hardest period I think as a teacher would be
having a student who is in the preproduction phase. Having a student
who does not talk in class or even respond to you I think could be very
difficult to deal with. It could seem frustrating. I found it very
interesting that students could be in the process for months and when
they start talking speaking they can speak English very well. They
dont speak because they do not have the confidence to speak so they
will refrain until they feel comfortable. Making students comfortable is
very important. I have learned that once students are comfortable than
they are more effective in their learning. Working in small groups was
stressed during training as well. Small groups allow students to get the
attention they need in learning a new language.
Students learn two different types of language. Social language
and academic language, these are both languages that students
develop when first learning a language. We learned that there are
about 2500 words that are developed in social language. These are
words that students learn from their peers. The teacher does not have
to spend much time teaching these words. Teachers mainly focus on
academic language. This is abstract higher-level vocabulary that is
found in the classroom.
On the last day of training we discussed numerous strategies and
ways to assess students. VPD and WIDA are great ways to understand
the development of an ELL student that is in your classroom. I found
this training to be very informative. I am very grateful for the resources
that we were provided and I will definitely be using them in my
classroom when having an ELL student.

Mrs. Joyner

November 16, 15
Mrs. Joyner is the STEAM facilitator. She is responsible for
incorporating science and math into technology as well as helping
teachers incorporate technology into the classroom. Mrs. Joyner
discussed various ways to incorporate technology into the classroom,
specifically a math classroom. She shared some great strategies and
resources that could be used in a math classroom. Technology can be
very useful in the classroom and can greatly benefit students. One
thing that stood out to me was how important it is to use technology
correctly. It is important for teachers to remember that technology isnt
always the best method in teaching. I think this was a great topic to
discuss because many of times people think that using technology is
the best way to teach. This is often times not the case and technology
can become misused.
A few resources we viewed were to help us tech math effectively
while using technology so we will not misuse the technology. I found
these sources to be very useful and encouraging. One video we
watched was of a teacher who was very invasive with his teaching.
Students loved being in his math class because he was very interactive
with the students. On numerous occasions the students mentioned
that they sometimes werent even aware that they were learning math.
I think that all classes need to be interactive because it helps students
be engaged in the lesson and retain the information they are learning.
At Trace students are currently making a virtual school by using Mind
craft. Creating the school is giving students a hands-on real life
experience. Providing these times of experiences in my classroom will
be very important to me as a teacher.