Critical Reflection on Action

Justine Higgins

During my teaching internship, I was able to critically analyze my practice, and reflect on

how to better my teaching in the future. While I encountered something almost every day that

made me rethink a part of my teaching, there is one event that really pushed me to analyze and

change how I was teaching a specific student. About one month into my internship, it was clear

that one of my students had such a hard time focusing, that it was negatively affecting their

academic progress and performance. Once my mentor teacher and I realized this, we had to

take a step back and reevaluate how we planned to really meet and support this child.

Following this event, I had to approach the situation as a type of puzzle, searching for the best

way I could help piece together their educational experience.

Since this realization, I have been able to more effectively teach and support this

student. For each subject, I created a visual reminder checklist for the student, so they are able

to practice self-regulation and keep themselves on track. I’ve also found that if the student

does get off track, it doesn’t take as much time to engage them again, as I can quickly reference

their checklist. I have also found that using this checklist allows the student to feel

accomplished, when they are able to check things off as they complete them.

A second part of this reevaluation of my teaching includes how I instruct all my students

now, not just this specific student. Whether it’s following a lesson or helping the students pack

up for the day, I’ve learned to make my instructions as concise and specific as possible. The

more steps I give my students, the more off task or confused I sometimes find them getting.

This is especially true for that one student, but with changing this way of instruction I was able
to target all my students. Now, offering short, simple directions, instead of multiple steps, has

helped all students stay focused and get done what is being asked of them.

This critical reflection on my practice has only made me a better teacher, and I look

forward to other events in my career that prompt this reevaluation. I believe you can always

improve your methods, which I am so excited to witness within my own practice.