Allyson Henes

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then and Now

 

It is crazy to think how quickly the past two years have gone by. I remember beginning my Master’s classes with a stomach full of nerves and stress. I wondered if I would be able to handle the workload while continuing to teach. Before beginning my classes, I had to write a goal statement of specifying different goals that I would like to achieve over the course of my work. In my statement I wrote that one of my goals was “to stay current with educational practices by attending workshops, professional developments and other educational services. “ I also wrote about working hard to create a comfortable and safe environment for my students.

 

Looking back at my goals, I find that they have stayed the same with a few changes. When I wrote these goals, I was currently at a low-income school with little resources. Now, I work at a school where there is a lot of technology provided for me as well as the students. Workshops and professional developments are available as well as encouraged by my administration. Being able to attend these events have allowed me to explore different ways of teaching my students. I enjoy attending workshops because it gives me a different prospective of how to do things. I am always eager to return to my classroom and “steal” the ideas. There is usually a lot of trial and error with this practice but allows students to explore different options. Attending professional developments also tie into my other goal of providing a comfortable environment. Providing different resources in my classroom allows my students to feel confident as well as learn at their level. I work hard to stress and praise my students’ strengths while we continue to work on their weaknesses. I believe that my hard work and efforts have allowed my students to be able to reach their full potential.

 

It was great to see my goals and how they have slightly changed. I think that I am much more confident, educated and a strong leader than when I began my classes two years ago. Although I have been emerged in different graduate courses, my goal about providing students with the best education has remained constant. If I were to add any more goals to my statement, I would simply add to continue to work on adding more technology in the classroom. This past year, I attended two workshops on how to incorporate Ipads into the classroom for educational purposes. My students responded in a positive manner with the ideas that I brought back from this service. We were able to use the Ipads in math and reading on a daily basis. The world is ever-changing and evolving. I believe that it is my job to always bring back the latest tools into my classroom. I look forward to the future on how I will continue to develop into the best educator possible for my students.