My Reflection

Journal
By Dannielle Neral

https://webstockreview.net/picfile/get
Share some examples of how you build a strong student-teacher relationship. If you don't work with
students, share some examples of how you build a strong relationship with your colleagues.

Student-to- Teacher

● I send home nightly/ weekly messages home to communicate with parents about students progress
throughout the day via Class DOJO. PIctures are occasionally sent home to record work samples.
● Students write to me in the “writing journals” each day about a personal topic. They have about 15
minutes to get out their thoughts while I walk around the rooms writing “secret notes” back on their
writing to silently communicate with each of them.
● We have a morning meeting each morning where students are allowed to express their ideas,
concerns, worries, or excitements for the upcoming day, their past weekend, or future night/weekend
away from school

Teacher- to- other colleagues

● The teachers at my school are very social and close. We often have after school get togethers at
restaurants. We also hold montly staff potluck breakfasts.
Identify at least 4 characteristics of a learner-centered teacher based on Ch 1.
Which of these do you possess and what is the evidence?

● Self-reflective- This is something I often find myself doing in the car or in moments where I am not
preoccupied with a new task in front of me. I tend to think back on the previous day and reflect on
decisions I have made. Sometimes this leads me to teaching something differently the next day or
changing my outlook on how I perceive my students and coworkers.
● Highly Motivated- I am always curious to find something new to do. Even in my personal life, I am
constantly setting new goals for myself and like to stay busy. If there is a reward involved or even the
accomplishment of trying something new, I am usually interested.
● Responsive- If it is something I take interest in, for example, the needs to my students who may be falling
behind, I am quick to respond to their needs. I find it nice to be able to help my students when these needs
come up.
● Respectful to diversity- This is something I am working on, coming from not too diverse of a community.
My school, however, is very diverse, so each year I find myself learning new cultures, family backgrounds,
etc.
 Complete the Assessment of Learner-Centered Practices (ALCP) Teacher Beliefs Survey 1 (on pgs.
26-27) and then score yourself following the directions. How does your score compare to the supplied
rubric scores on pg. 29? What does your score tell you?

1. D4
2. B2
3. B2
4. D4 Since the first category corresponds
My Score Rubric Scores
to the learner-center beliefs about
5. A1
4 3.2 learners, learning, and teaching, I
6. A1 would say that I am very much so in
7. D4 2.4 2.3 agreeance with the learner centered
8. C3 practices. I find that these are things I
9. A1 2.2 2.4 would agree to just as a person, even
with my friends in my personal life as
10. D4
well- just who I am as a person.
11. C3
12. D4
13. D4
14. C3
15. C3
Engage in a discussion with a student in your class about what motivates them to learn in school or
what would define a school where they would like to learn. Compare your students' response(s) to the
box on pg. 38, noting any similarities or differences. Alternately, engage in a discussion with a
colleague on the same topic.

When asking students this question in my “morning meeting” in

my fourth grade class, most students responded with
materialistic things that motivate them. Some said, “DOJO
points,” or coupons, or extra recess. This happened to be similar
to what most coworkers said that I spoke with; MONEY. I found
it interesting that in this time period we are wanting more
materialistic things to keep us motivated, rather than what the
text said, including “freedom,” “to be trusted,” “to be respected,”
etc. It makes me wonder if we still really are motivated by these
non-materialistic things deep down, but that we just cannot
articulate that. https://pixabay.com/images/search/money/
What do you do to reach those students who seem "difficult"
to you?
To reach those students who seem “difficult” to me I typically find ways to make
them seem more motivated about their school work. Sometimes students thrive
more on building a personal relationship with me and if they trust me as a person,
they will respect me more as a teacher. Sometimes, students need more of a positive
incentive or reward system to motivate them. At my school we often use Class
DOJO to earn points as well as individual behavior charts for students who need
more direction to complete specific tasks throughout the day.
What have you learned so far about learner-centered practices that was new to
you? How will you incorporate this into a lesson or your own instructional
practices?
So far I have learned that not always is it just one practice that could make a lesson
or day be successful. Sometimes I think to myself that I am trying my very best at one
aspect of one of the practices and things are not going right, however, there could be
multiple factors that are causing this to happen. For example, I could have done all I
can to motivate a student with a behavior chart or extra recess that day, but if there
are other developmental factors playing a role into why a student is not performing,
than I should not be so hard on myself for why my motivational factors are not
working and try something different. In a lesson, I will remember to stop and take
more reflection time in lessons when students are doing independent work and
think to myself are there different factors that I did not think of while planning that I
could use to modify the lesson in the present.
In Chapter 5, Bracey (2002) outlines six conditions that must be met (based on Glasser's
1994 work) in order for quality school work to be produced. Select the condition you feel
you need to improve and identify how you could do so.

Students are always asked to evaluate their own work.

This condition I have been referring to at multiple points in this journal and along
this course because it is often something I lose track of time in a lesson to get to or
forget to do. I think an easy way to implement this in every lesson is as the end of the
lesson, to leave a space on the assessment for students to “grade” themselves. They
can provide feedback on how they did and what they will do better or work on in the
future. Having this written down, will keep students more accountable for their
improvement as well.
Describe the culture that you establish in your classroom and the "how" behind it. If you
don't have your own classroom, describe the culture of your workplace environment and
the "how" behind it.

The culture I establish in my classroom is very much so similar to having a theme of

“it is our learning place and you must take care of it.” I teach students that we are all
one big team when they come into our class. They know that it is as much there
responsibility as it is mine to take care of our materials and clean up. They know that
we all have a job in getting things done throughout the day and just as I have a
responsibility to plan their lessons, they have a responsibility to be there and ready
to learn. My principal has a similar motto, and believes that if you take care of what
you need to take care of and get your job done well, then you deserve the benefits of
the job. If we are teaching successful lessons, preparing effective learning climates,
etc. then he allows us to take sick time when we want, plans fun PD’s, etc.
Identify and explain three factors you believe connect to students' lowest achievements.
Identify and explain three factors you believe connect to students' highest achievements.

Lowest Achievements

1. Parent/ home involvement- Many students at my school come from families that just do not value
education, with many being allowed to be absent for many days at a time unexcused. This missed time
drastically affects students grades.
2. Not engaged in content- Some students are not as interested as others in what they are learning.
3. Learning disabilities- Some students often with IEPs tend to fall behind in public schools where
accommodations are not or cannot always be provided at all times.

Highest Achievements

1. Study habits/ practice- Whether taught these habits or picked up on their own, some students are
more motivated to and spend more time practicing their subjects, completing homework, studying, etc.
2. Motivation and engagement to learn- Some students find more excitement in learning than others.
3. Connection to peers, teacher, school community- When students find connection and reason to learn
amongst their peers and other individuals, they tend to be more successful.
Chapter 7 is an overload of information! After reading it, share here a few primary goals for
making your own classroom more learner-centered.

1. Self-assessment and goal setting: I would like to insert time on a daily basis into
my class schedule for my students to assess how their day went and set a goal
for the next day. I think this gives them more responsibility for their own
learning and makes them make a choices about how their next learning day wil
be.
2. I would like to also have more “centers” or “rotations” in my room where
students are allowed choice of how they practice an activity or concept. Often
times, I assign practice work without giving as much student choice as possible,
so I would like to take more time to plan these activities out.
After taking in Pearl Arrodondo's story, share how your own cultural, social, or linguistic
backgrounds, values, family history, experiences, personal education, and/or ethnicity
affect you as a teacher. (Note: This slide is always a fascinating read when you are
exploring your classmates journals!)

What most affects me as a teacher at my current school is my background of

upbringing by my father. My dad was a Baltimore County Police Officer in the same
precinct in which the school I teach at is in. I grew up hearing stories of the kinds of
houses and families my dad would visit on a daily basis and oftentimes lock up for
committing crimes. Now teaching students from families of this area, I am constantly
reminded of these stories from growing up. When I do have a student who parents
may of had domestic violence or students who may have been abused, I always think
back to this being “that area” my dad was a police officer in and that these students
could have been affected by him if he were working in this time period.
 Locate and properly cite a diagram that shows the stages of the Understanding by Design process OR
create your own diagram that shows the 3 stages.

https://slideplayer.com/slide/8886321/

http://www.laramaupin.site/understanding-by-design.html
What difficulties might result from creating assessments near the
conclusion of a unit of study instead of while planning the unit?

If you do not create an assessment towards the conclusion of a unit of study you may
have wasted time teaching students material that is not on the assessment or that
does not need to be assessed. If you know ahead of time what is on the assessment,
you have more time not for “teaching to the test,” but for finding as many different
ways to teach this material to all of your learners.
Using the 3 stage Understanding by Design process makes it more likely that unit
goals, assessments, and instructional plans are coherent and aligned. Why is this
alignment important?

This alignment is important because without this there would be no structure or

purpose to lessons. Throwing a variety of activities at students with random goals
and assessments, is not going to provide structure, give you accurate feedback or
help students learn the correct progressions of certain content and material.
The Understanding by Design process results in more clearly defined
and wisely blended short-term and long-term goals, the transfer of
usable content (as opposed to recall of skills or topics), more
appropriate assessments, and more purposeful teaching. How do these
outcomes support the learner-centered principles?

While the Understanding by Design process relates and supports many of the
learner-centered principles, I believe the “knowledge of content” principle is the
most important to connect it with. Without knowing exactly what your students are
supposed to learn, the essential questions you are posing for them and the activities
you are having them complete do not have meaning. Being able to understand
curriculum and the content you teach is essential in being able to connect that with
your individual learners. Hence, you should also have a good “knowledge of learners”
so you know how you can connect this material most efficiently with them.
A big idea addressed in Chapter 1 is the premise that often the
curriculum is disabled (and disabling!). The curriculum is not flexible;
the curriculum often poses barriers; the curriculum prevents rather
than supports optimal learning experiences. Do you agree or disagree
with this view? Why? Provide a few reasons to support your opinion.
I disagree with this few because as disabling as it can be, it is up to the teacher to
make the appropriate decisions to change the curriculum. For example, when my
principal comes to observe a lesson, they often do not even look back to the
curriculum to find what unit and lesson I am teaching, but are more interested in
why I am teaching what I am teaching to my students and how I am differentiating
the material for each student. It is up to the teacher each year to take what they can
from the curriculum and adapt it to the needs of their changing and growing
students.
In Chapter 2, Feliks is identified as an expert at speed cubing. In what
domain or area have you achieved master? Describe the process of
developing your expertise.
If referring to an “in school” example: believe I have finally achieved the master
ability to set routines for my students in my classroom. I have now been at my school
a couple years now and have the rules, routines, procedures, etc. down and have the
ability to teach them and regulate them with my students on a daily basis. If my
students are following them properly, the days go by very smoothly. This is
something that took me a bit of learning from my colleagues to see how the school
routines went, then practicing them with my first classes, and now perfecting with
my current class. As my students walk down the halls, etc. they are roles models in
their behavior for the other classes of newer teachers.
All 4 of the expert learners profiled in Chapter 2 describe struggles
with school work and the traditional curriculum. Yet, they all
personify a growth mindset. What does growth mindset mean to you
professionally?
Professionally, growth mindset to me means that we should never stop learning.
There is always something that you will not know and always a reason to keep
learning. As teachers, we should keep learning to teach our students the importance
of it, to show them how to self-motivate, and to be able to teach them new and
up-to-date content. Growth mindset also means to me that errors and mistakes are
just further opportunities to learn and do better next time. I appreciate my principal
in this aspect because he is someone who constantly view our lessons as an
opportunity to learn and do better the next time, whether it be for this year’s or next
year’s students.
Why do you think that "Teachers need to be expert learners
themselves, continuously growing and changing?" (p. 22).
Teachers themselves need to be constantly learning, growing, and changing because
they need to have content to teach their students! Research and what is “new” is
changing everyday. In order to stay relative to their subject, teachers should
continue to stay on top of the content they teach. It is also important for teachers to
show their enthusiasm for their motivation to learn as this will further engage and
motivate their students to learn something new.
Explain in your own words the myth of average as it relates to our
current educational system or your classroom.
I think the myth of average is applied to the current education system and many
students, especially where students are underperforming. There are labels being put
on students and on the school system that are untrue and labeling schools as being
“average” and unable to be successful. I believe though with the right teachers and
mindsets this is not true.
Share 2-3 things you learned from watching Carol Dweck's Ted Talk
about the power of believing you can improve.
1. “NOT YET”- We are never done learning and
done with what we are trying to accomplish until
we tell ourselves we are. We can challenge
ourselves to keep working on something until we
want to be done working on it.
2. A “growth mindset” can never stop us from
learning. A fixed mindset will limit our abilities to
keep learning and will stop us when we come
https://pixabay.com/images/search/growth%2
across our own errors. 0mindset/
While there are thousands of specialized networks for difference functions, UDL is based on the fact
that learning happens across 3 networks in the brain: recognition networks, strategic networks, and
affective networks. Traditional curriculum focuses primarily on which of these networks? Provide an
example of how you know this.
An example of how I know that the brain basically has three networks that learning happens across would be
simply to look at my class of students during a lesson. If I do not start off the lesson with engaging them
about something or giving them something to get interested in, they will not see a point in “why” they are
learning it and become bored; demonstrating the affective network. If during the lesson, I do not give them
the appropriate tools to explain the content and give them an idea of “how” to do something, they will not be
successful in doing what I am teaching them; representing the strategic network. At the end of the lesson,
there should be some sort of outcome in “what” students are producing; representing the recognition
network. Although traditional curriculum is focused mostly on the strategic networks, I do believe in BCPS
we do all parts of the lesson, specifically focusing on engaging my students in my lower-income household
school.
http://www.cast.org/binaries/content/assets/c
ommon/publications/articles/cast-udlandthebr
ain-20180321.pdf
Write a few sentences defining and describing the
affective network.
The affective network behind the brain and it’s
learning has to deal with the “why” behind we learn.
People need a reason to do everything they do in life,
along with learning. They have to find meaning and
purpose in what they are learning or else they
becoming disengaged. In the classroom, we try to
engage our students as much as possible to reach the
affective network and show students why it is https://www.google.com/search?q=the+affecti
ve+network+of+the+brain+represents&rlz=1C
important to learn what we are learning. 1GCEB_enUS810US810&sxsrf=ACYBGNQ2
tOhLfO4tudRFhVvdiTVDkhfVBQ:157159745
3655&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0a
hUKEwiRttHfwKvlAhXwpVkKHTdfCmUQ_AU
IEigB&biw=1280&bih=610#imgrc=Cfa9NZZQl
JW3BM:
Write a few sentences defining and describing the
recognition network.
The recognition network of the brain has to to with
how we “access” what we are learning. In the
classroom this is the “what” we are teaching. It is
important to provide students with multiple means
of being able to learn the “what” behind the content,
whether that be in different visuals, using different
language, or applying comprehension strategies to
https://slideplayer.com/slide/9211125/
reach all learners.
Write a few sentences defining and describing the
strategic network.
The strategic network of the brain deals with
how we, as learners, can output our learning.
What we allow our students to create or
express based on what they learned falls into
this network. The “how” of what they learned
can be shown through different types of
assessments and projects.
http://www.cast.org/our-work/about-udl.html#.
XaytVuhKg2w
Why is it important for educators to know about
systematic learner variability?
It is important for educators to know and
apply their knowledge of learner variability
in their lessons because all students learn in
different ways, have different things that
motivate them, and may need different
accommodations to reach the same goal.
Without realizing that every student needs https://slc.stanford.edu/what-do-we-mean-lea
rning-differences
something different, you could be over or
under- teaching your students.
In Chapter 6 you learned that from a UDL perspective, effective goals are goals that:
● separate the means from the ends
● consider all 3 learning networks
● challenge all learners
● actively involve all learners
Making sure it meets these requirements, share a goal for an upcoming lesson that you
plan to teach.
An upcoming goal of a lesson I plan to teach is to allow students to come across the
answer to an addition/subtraction math word problem on their own using the
strategy and visual representation of their choice. I have been teaching them
different strategies and ways to explain their thinking, however, on this upcoming
“Tiered Task” that the county implements, I will let them have their choice on how
they would like to show their thinking.
Provide an example of a poorly designed assessment from your college (or earlier
schooling) experience. Describe it and then provide a description of an alternative
UDL-friendly assessment that takes into account the flexibility needed for the most
accurate and informative assessments as described in Chapter 6.
One poorly designed assessment I recently had from a college class was to create a
work sample of what a made-up student would have created out of one of our
finished lessons from the course that we were going to “pretend” to teach. If our
professor would have taken into consideration more of a UDL -friendly approach,
they would have understood that we were college-aged and to make up an example
of students work would not of been as effective of an assessment than if they would
have let us taught the lesson and given the assessment to an actual of-age student to
complete for us.
Using the star rating system provided, indicate a star rating for Dr. Rose's presentation,
"From Bach to Lady Gaga" and provide justification of a few sentences for your rating.
** Disliked it
As much as I hoped I would like this video, I unfortunately
was not as engaged as I thought I would be. I think if it
seemed like it was more modern and recent of a video, I
would have enjoyed it more. Also Dr. Rose used music as
his main method of engagement, which I am just not as
interested in as other topics. I do want to point out though,
that I did like how there were visuals on the screen and not
just the speaker talking on the screen the whole time as
normal TED talks can sometimes be. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFKyTPq
OHGo&feature=youtu.be&t=193
Share 2-3 things you learned from reading the perspectives
and experiences of the practitioners identified in Chapter 7.
- Expert learners and teachers often surround themselves in a “community” of
experts to further learn, just like the Rubik's Cube expert! I love this concept
and being a very social person, I agree it is best to learn from others’ real-life
experiences and share your own ideas with others!
- Metacognitive reflection can be just as important as the actual learning! We
have teacher in my elementary building who are using metacognition lessons
simply to get students why they are thinking about what they are thinking and
how they learn best, which will help them take more responsibility for their
learning.
I believe UDL will...
...help learners and teachers to be more
successful on a day-to-day basis in the
classroom. If teachers are able to follow a more
standardized set of guidelines while following https://pixabay.com
/photos/happy-child
their curriculum, as long as administrators have ren-education-8765
41/

trust in them, they will be able to adapt their

lessons to meet the needs of all learners.
Learners will be further engaged and motivated
to learn.
UDL is included in the Common Core Standards...
...specifically in the way that students progress from one grade to another! When
students learn content in one grade, they are expected to carry this on to the next
grade and content will continue to build upon itself. Teachers are able to monitor and
track progress throughout the year and set appropriate goals for students to reach.
https://bcps.schoology.com/group/148837248
3/materials#/group/1488372483/materials?f=
58397769
An example of
Common Core
progression from a
Baltimore County 4th
grade math lesson:
 One concern I have about implementing UDL is...
The amount of time that it takes for teachers to plan lessons for
all students. In a typical day, I get 50 minutes of planning time
and by the time I take away dropping the students off, picking
them up, signing into the office, going to the bathroom, and a
couple other typical interruptions, I barely have about 30
minutes to plan each day. As much as I would love to make sure https://pixabay.com/images/sear
each and every one of my social studies, science, math, reading, ch/teacher%20stress/
writing, and word work lessons are well-planned out for each of
my 27 students each day, sometimes it is just physically
impossible with the amount of time I am allotted.
The most significant learning I have about UDL is...
The most significant think I have learned about UDL is that it is the best guidelines
for teachers to follow to be able to adapt and modify lessons to reach all learners.
Even if teachers can pick a few of the guidelines to keep in mind when planning each
lesson, they can drastically change the way they teach and the way their students
learn. It is key to remember that these guidelines are not the end-all-be-all, but are
important things to remember to make the most of yours and your students’ time.
How are you going to use the information learned in this class including the
learner-centered principles, the Understanding by Design process, and
Universal Design for Learning to make you a better teacher? Identify 3-4 ways
or strategies.
1. Use multiple media for communication: I am going to try to use different methods of communication
for my students whether they are writing to me or are writing to their peers. Sometimes I forget that a
worksheet or journal response is not always the best option to for them to communicate their thoughts.
I will try my best to let them type on discussion boards, maybe record their ideas, and write letters to
other students as new ideas to try.
2. Develop self-assessment and reflection: This is something that I often forget to do at the end of
lessons. I enjoy letting them help me create rubrics but we often lose track of time and forget to go back
to them at the end of lessons. I will keep trying to fit this in, so students can self-assess more on their
own before I do their grading!
3. Minimize threats and distractions: I have several students in my class who need very minimal
distractions in order for them to concentrate enough to complete their work. I am going to start utilizing
the use of a “buddy classroom” which a lot of teachers use in my school to send students to another
room to complete unfinished work so they do not have students of their grade level to talk to while
working.