Reflection (Standard 1: The Learner and Learning)

Christine Carnegie

Department of Information Science, University at Buffalo

LIS 525 School Media Center Practicum & Portfolio

Susan Allen

Spring 2024
 I believe that the included plan for delivering instruction to high school students in a

blended learning environment demonstrates my understanding of how children and teenagers

learn, how to address diverse abilities, backgrounds, and learning styles in a class, and how to

foster a positive environment conducive to learning.

The course that I prepared this for, Curriculum Role of the Media Specialist, was my first

experience with developing learning objectives and thinking about instruction in an adjusted

format such as with learning stations. The teacher learning station in the lesson design offers an

opportunity for students to share examples of their own experience with the information cycle

which allows for varying perspectives and backgrounds to be drawn into the instruction. This

can help students connect their understanding of the topic to their own lives and will also help

potentially allow students to learn about others’ experiences. Including this in the lesson and

seeing the potential impact on a diverse group of learners allowed me to really understand the

value in making sure opportunities for students to share is integrated into lessons.

The learning station format lends itself to supporting students with different learning

styles as well because in addition to the teacher station there is a station for independent work

which includes video and another station which includes reading and discussion with a partner.

Offering some of the instruction using video provides a useful opportunity for students who

learn best with visuals. When students work together at the collaboration station, they learn to

collaborate and share ideas. The learning stations, together, provide opportunities to engage

with the content in multiple formats while also encouraging positive social interaction.
 I also previously had no understanding of how impactful preparing for things like

transitions, getting student attention, and explicitly providing expectations on things like when

to use devices were on managing a classroom. Planning out the specific procedures and

expectations taught me about the important variable of classroom management and how it can

have a significant impact on the effectiveness of a plan.

I failed to incorporate sufficient supports for English learners or students with special

needs. In the artifact, I did not include the full articles that students would use for the

collaboration station, but it may have been better to have groups work on devices to access the

articles anyway. When accessing articles digitally, students could have access to read-aloud

options, varying Lexile levels, and translation or ‘define’ tools. Graphic organizers, an evidence-

based tool, could also have been beneficial to provide to students for the collaboration station

and technology station.

I am eager to apply the knowledge and skills that I have acquired from this program, course, and

specifically the coursework showcased in this artifact, to provide the most effective instruction possible

to the diverse learners in our school communities!