Five Dimensions of Learning

Confidence and Independence- When I consider this dimension of learning, the first thing that comes to mind is the work I have been doing at Apache. I have had to find confidence in myself and my teaching abilities in order to successfully communicate and coach the students I am working with. When I first started working with my three students I was a little nervous and was questioning myself on how successful I would be in helping them create a Chautauqua. After creating my own Chautauqua, getting to know the students and having success, my confidence has grown immensely. I can walk into Ms. Bradshaw’s classroom knowing that my students will succeed in our session together and that we can all have a good time doing it. Also, this webpage gives me the independence of working at my own pace while simultaneously giving me practice in self-reliance and accountability.

Knowledge Content- Throughout this semester my knowledge and awareness of cultural diversity has grown tenfold! I have learned some information from the text book and from other students’ chapter presentations, but the majority of my learning has occurred through class discussions. I have learned so much about how to enrich the experience of diverse learners just by listening to other peoples experiences and insights. One example that stands out loud and clear in my mind is the discussion we had with Mabel at  ENLACE. She shared with us about how she was told not to speak her native language in class, and told how devastating it was for her. I was very moved by her story and will always remember it when I am in my own classroom. I believe that anyone can study a culture and probably learn a lot of facts- but it is only with human interaction, exposure and shared stories that one can truly gain the knowledge required to fully understand the needs of diverse students.

Skills and Strategies- While working with the students at Apache, I have been able to practice a variety of skills and strategies not only to get my students to effectively create their story, but to open up and trust me as their coach. At my first session, the students were very distant and shy. I had to use different strategies, including telling them several of my own stories, in order to get them talking. I have also learned that asking a million questions is often a good strategy for getting them involved in conversation and later in developing their stories. Perhaps the most important skill that I use when working with my students is my listening skills. I have developed great listening skills over the years and make sure that I bring them all to the table when I am coaching my students. I know that by allowing them to do the talking and just listening to them, I will gain their trust and respect and in the end be able to accomplish our goals. This leads into perhaps the most relevant theme that I have learned throughout all my experiences this semester- getting to know my students is crucial for my success as a teacher and theirs as a student. The different strategies that I have learned (considering and incorporating different cultures and languages, getting to know the family etc.) will allow me to understand my students, relate to them, develop mutual respect, and in the end be able to reach our educational goals.

Use of Prior and Emerging Experiences- Performing and coaching a Chautauqua is a perfect example of how I was able to draw on my own experiences and use them as an advantage with the current task at hand. I was able to put myself in the shoes of my students because I was in the very same shoes a very short time ago! I was able to understand their troubles with choosing a character (I had a difficult time myself) and I am better able to help them through the process because I have done it. I feel like the students appreciate the fact that I have preformed a Chautauqua and know that I can empathize with what they may be going through. Also, I use the prior experiences with my students to help guide the next session. I have learned what I can talk about that will warm them up, and I now know enough about them that I can ask them personal questions (How is your dog Sheba?) that will get them talking and working on their stories.

Critical Awareness/Reflectiveness- Throughout this semester I have begun to use reflection as a tool to analyze situations and be able to take on a multi-view perspective. I have been able to put myself in other peoples shoes by listening to their stories and testimonies and in turn understand situations that I may not have understood in the past. When we were visiting ENLACE, Mabel told how many woman come to the center to simply talk with one another and vent their frustrations. She told us how many people in our community who do not speak English may feel intimidated by their surroundings and be shy and reserved in public because they are not comfortable being themselves. Hearing this viewpoint, I am able to analyze situations that I have been in in the past and make sense of them. I have been in different scenarios where I felt uncomfortable being around a person that spoke mostly Spanish because I thought they didn’t like me, when in reality they probably were just uncomfortable because I didn’t speak Spanish. For one example, I was a waitress in high school and the cook at the restaurant spoke very little English. I was so scared of him because he was not friendly to me at all, but was very friendly to the other people there that spoke Spanish. I believed then that he just didn’t like me, but I understand now that perhaps he was just uncomfortable trying to communicate with me. These insights and reflections have helped me to begin to develop my professional identity. I am enjoying and appreciating the enlightenment and am looking forward to what more is in store for the future.

Midterm Evaluation-

Estimated evaluation of grade- I believe that I deserve an A. I have participated in class discussions, planned and executed my field trip, presented my Chautuaqua, successfully worked with my students at Apache and prepared for my chapter presentation.

For the remainder of the semester I need to find new ways of using the technology for keeping up on my webpage. I have had a difficult time this semester because the internet at SJC has been corrupted and my home internet does not always allow me to upload onto the site. I will need to make use of other resources, such as the Farmington Public Library, and other places in the community that offer internet access. I also want to start keeping a journal that I can record personal reflections and insights that I may not feel comfortable publishing to my webpage, and be able to use as a tool in my future teaching career.

Other suggestions- As a suggestion for class activities, I would like to suggest to my classmates to start keeping a folder of all of the hand outs that we have received from our various field trips and attaching a reflection to them. I think this would build a great resource not only for ideas of how we get our classroom involved in the community, but also as a useful resource of ways that our community can aid us in our educational experiences.