Educators support, mentor or encourage other educators and those preparing to enter the profession. Educators contribute their expertise to activities offered by their schools, districts, professional organizations, post-secondary institutions or contribute in other ways.
The first evidence piece I have chosen for this standard includes a photo from my Robotics presentation during EdExpo as well as the link to the website with the PowerPoint slide show.
This Robotics presentation was prepared collaboratively with another classmate. During this process, not only did I acquire new knowledge about the STEM industry and how early education in this field affects the future careers of our students, but I also understood the importance of teamwork and collaboration among educators.
In relation to this standard, this experience has taught me a number of things. Firstly, as I have already mentioned, cooperation among teachers is a fundamental element in education. When educators work cooperatively by contributing their expertise and knowledge to their schools and professional organizations, everybody benefits: teachers acquire new skills and knowledge, which in turn improves the quality of the teaching students receive.
Another thing I learned from this experience is that we all have something to contribute to the profession. There are many ways to achieve this besides making a formal presentation at an education fair. By contrast, we must remember to be humble enough to seek the advice, support and mentoring of more experienced educators and colleagues who specialize in certain areas. Protecting our pride should never get in the way of ensuring we do everything we can to provide the best learning experience possible.
This evidence is a solid example to support TRB 8, because as a future educator I was able to support other colleagues entering the profession by sharing my expertise and knowledge. In addition, I also experienced the importance of seeking the support of more knowledgeable colleagues as this presentation was prepared in collaboration with a classmate who has stronger robotics and computer science skills. In other words, I have learned the importance of supporting and mentoring others as well as seeking and accepting help in areas where as educators we still need to grow.
Personally, I understand Standard 8 as a two-way street because if we all contribute to the profession we will all improve as educators. Therefore, this standard is intrinsically related to the improvement of my teaching skills and abilities as well as those of others. Having understood the importance of upholding this standard, in my practice I will always endeavour to seek opportunities to support my colleagues and future educators and to contribute my knowledge and abilities to improve the profession.
The second evidence piece I have chosen for this standard includes a collection of activities that I planned for my practicum class that were shared with another grade 4 teacher.
During my second practicum, I was very fortunate to experience the benefits and challenges of team-planning by teachers with different pedagogical styles who had classes with differing strengths and stretches. Given that these two grade four classrooms had distinct sets of skills, both teachers adapted the lessons and activities for each group based on their own classroom needs.
As a student teacher I was invited to attend the planning meetings and was even given the opportunity to share my ideas and comments. Every Thursday both grade four teachers would meet to discuss the topics they were going to be teaching in the upcoming weeks, the content and activities they would be teaching. They also shared ideas for any challenges they were experiencing.
These meetings also offered a chance for them to exchange and share resources, activities and materials. As a student teacher it never occurred to me that I would also have knowledge, materials and ideas these experienced teachers would want to implement in their own practices. Therefore, I was pleasantly surprised when I found out that the other teacher had liked some of my activities and wanted to use them in her classroom. In turn, I also used some of the materials and activities she had shared.
In relation to this standard, this experience has taught me a number of things. Firstly, that cooperation among teachers is a fundamental element in education. If a fellow teacher is willing to share their expertise, materials or knowledge, there is no need to reinvent the wheel or feel like we have to be better and compete with them. Working together and collaborating makes our lives easier, allows us to save our efforts and energy for the real challenges of the classroom so we can provide a better experience for the students.
When educators work cooperatively by sharing their expertise and knowledge with fellow teachers, the entire education community benefits. Through the support and encouragement of other educators, teachers are able to find solutions to challenges as well as new ideas to help them improve their practice and the learning experience of their students. Consequently, we must keep in mind that contributing to the profession can happen in ways that are as simple as sharing materials, videos or ideas with other teachers.
Another thing I learned from this experience is that we all have something to contribute to the profession. As a student teacher I was not expecting to have much to contribute, but clearly a more experienced teacher was wise and humble enough to find my materials useful for her students. With her example, she also showed me that even as we gain more experience, we must remember to be humble enough to seek the advice, support and mentoring of other educators even of those entering the profession. New teachers might have fresh and novel ideas and teaching methods that might reinvigorate the practices of long-time teachers. Therefore, protecting our pride should never get in the way of ensuring we do all we can to provide the best education possible. This evidence is a solid example to support TRB 8, because as a future educator I was able to support other colleagues by sharing my materials and resources. In addition, I also learned that as an experienced teacher it is important to keep an open mind as to who might be able to provide assistance and support. In other words, I have learned the importance of supporting and mentoring others as well as seeking and accepting help in areas where as educators we still need to grow.
Personally, I understand Standard 8 as a two-way street because if we all contribute to the profession we will all improve as educators. Therefore, this standard is intrinsically related to the improvement of my teaching skills and abilities as well as those of others. Having understood the importance of upholding this standard, in my practice I will always endeavour to seek opportunities to support my colleagues and future educators and to contribute my knowledge and abilities to improve the profession.