To continuously improve as an educator, it is important that we set goals for ourselves. There have been two goals in particular that have always been at the back of my mind, but I have been stalling on; creating a flipped classroom and taking my students on field trips. These two goals have struck me as a lot of work, yet I see the value of them and would like to, over time, start interweaving them into my science classroom. The third long-term goal I would like to work on has to do with creating a positive and safe environment within my classroom while being a dynamic role model.
First, I would consider my goal of flipping my classroom a long term goal. I do not see this as something that can be done overnight. It will take a lot of work to create a successful system where students can access all materials online while making it enjoyable. I don’t want to make my flipped classroom boring. I want it to be engaging and exciting for the students to see what Mrs. Owens has posted. Within my flipped classroom, I want to incorporate my theater background and create my own fun, theatrical, and educational videos for my students. This is probably the biggest of my three long-term future goals. I terms of what resources I will use to accomplish this, I plan to use Google Classroom as my site where all class documents are stored. I also will be referencing multiple sites, such as Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching to help me take the initial steps needed to create this flipped environment. I am hoping it will help me also become aware of possible pitfalls. Fulfilling this goal will take a lot of time and commitment.
My second goal, providing more field trip experiences, seems daunting; the thought of coordinating these events, finding volunteers, and keeping tabs on all students seems like quite a task. I am quite ignorant in terms of knowing what it entails to coordinate a field trip. The main reason this is one of my goals is because I believe it could be extremely educational for my students and I know they would love it! Again, Vanderbilt University provides information regarding tips, techniques, and what to look-out for when planning a field trip. I believe this website will be useful. I will also contact my administrator to learn about school policy and procedures regarding field trips.
My last goal involves establishing a report with my students and making my classroom feel positive and safe. I have been teaching for 5 years and this past year was very much an eye-opener in terms of what I discovered about my students. This past year I changed schools and had a difficult adjusting to the students and the system within the school. I was experiencing a tremendous amount of discipline issues and was struggling to deal with them. Eventually, I had an epiphany that instead of telling the students about the behavior I did not want to see, I started telling them about what I wanted to see. Changing from a negative to a positive atmosphere created a tremendously more motivating environment. I also started to publicly recognize students for being awesome and handed out “Awesomeness Awards” with hand-written notes. Generally these awards are for demonstrating great character.
I also try to model good character and discuss taking accountability, and good vs poor choices. The respect and transparency within my classroom skyrocketed and fostered a safe, supportive, and caring learning environment. Thus, another future goal of mine is to forever continue down this path of learning more about creating a positive classroom environment. One resources I found was from Dr. Robyn Silverman. She has written multiple books and has a website. Within her website, she has a link titled “Powerful Role Models: Seven Ways to Make a Positive Impact on Children.” I think her tips work for all age groups and I will be working on mastering these throughout my teaching career.
I believe my three future goals will really make my classroom a place where students want to learn. I think flipping my classroom while incorporating hands-on activities and field trips will be very engaging and fun. I also think focusing on creating a positive, trusting, and safe environment will allow my students to feel comfortable taking risks while learning.
References/Links
Google Classroom:
https://www.google.com/edu/training/get-trained/classroom/introduction.html
Vanderbilt University Flipping the Classroom: http://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/flipping-the-classroom/
Vanderbilt University Field Trips: http://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/teaching-outside-the-classroom/#field
Dr. Robyn Silverman: http://drrobynsilverman.com/parenting-tips/powerful-role-models-seven-ways-to-make-a-positive-impact-on-children/
Images
The Flipped Classroom:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Flipped.jpg
Paleontologist Field Trip: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6a/Field_Trip_with_Paleontologist_Bill_Parker.jpg
Role Models: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/Malala_Yousafzai_Role_Models_3.jpg
Kim Owens 