It is bittersweet...just like dark chocolate

At last...it's all done!

It has been a wonderful and challenging journey. This credential program here at Vanguard has been so rewarding and so stretching that I am not who I was when I came into the program. I grew professionally as the professors pushed us over the edge several times (if not always) throughout the semester. I told them this week that NOW I'm thankful they pushed us beyond what we know what we are capable of, but at that time they we were in the midst of it, we weren't so thankful...we just laugh about it now.

Next semester is going to be different. As Advanced Student Teachers we will be in the classroom every single day. They said it's still gonna be busy but a different kind of busy. Well, whatever kind it is my prayer for my cohort (and those who have to split up their semester in 2 for various reasons) that we will not give up on the calling God has placed on our hearts. That we will press on just like what Paul said in Philippians. That we will keep our focus not on our to-do lists but on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. It's all because of Him that we are able to do all this. It's for his glory that we are here living our life the way he wants us to. And its awesome!

Then again, here we are, at the end of BST (beginning student teaching). I'm gonna miss miss my cohort and seeing the professors and interacting with staff. These were good times...but its not the end. Although...

...it still is bittersweet...just like dark chocolate.

Pressure Cooker Program

Crazy!!! it has been a whirlwind of hectic schedules, designing lessons, handling kids of all personalities, writing up TPA's, assembling portfolios, doing presentations, engaging in oral final/interview... Honestly, this program is one of the most challenging educational experiences I have ever had...plus not to mention that I'm married, have a 2-year old boy and gonna give birth in about 4 weeks!!! Many times throughout this program I questioned if I was meant to be a teacher because it is not easy. But God did not call us to have an easy life, he called to live an effective one, for his glory. Just like a pressure cooker, you put in raw meat and in a few minutes you have tender beef and delicious stews...as if you cooked them in a crock pot!!! (this is making me hungry!) Well, this program is definitely like a pressure cooker, but I know its all worth it. Many times I was in class and I just receive confirmation in my spirit from God that I was meant to be t Vanguard...I was meant to be a teacher, not 6 years ago after I graduated from undergrad (I was originally an education major then switched to communications)...but it's for right now.

Intersection of Faith and Learning

It has been a trend for most Christian teachers/administrators in the public school system to "pretend" to be atheists because they are fearful of loosing their job. It's a sketchy subject, which we need to know more about. That is why I'm so glad that today we had an awesome guest speaker who spoke on how to be an effective Christian and a public school teacher in the same time.

I appreciate how he placed everything in perspective of what will bring the most impact to the students regarding Christianity. He mentions there is a balance that can be found within the American culture that can help Christian teachers live out their faith. Now, he is not promoting to be a total evangelist to your students through explicit teaching, as in like a church service. The point is within the content standards, especially in History-Social Science Curriculum Framework, there are many opportunities to teach students on the Judeo-Christian heritage that our nation is founded on which is PERFECTLY LEGAL and ACADEMICALLY EXPECTED.

He gave several examples on integrating faith into our lessons, without "crossing the lines" of preaching to the students. One is national holidays. One in particular that I was surprised about was Thanksgiving. He mentions that though Thanksgiving is mainly taught in schools as a time to remember what the pilgrims and the indians did, he actually says that the president of the United States always issues a proclamation that it is a time to give thanks to God for all the blessings he has given us in the past year...every time!!! Wow! It's an actual document that each president has to write each year. Also, national day of prayer is also another presidential proclamation. I mean, there's ton of things out there!

Now, I can really go crazy on these things, but one thing I have to say is that this nation is so blessed to have a heritage so rich and so ROOTED in God and in His Word. The key thing now is that we, as culture-bearers, need to pass on this legacy to the next generation, otherwise, we will have no future to look forward to. I pray that God will give each Christian teacher the passion, the wisdom, the resources and the anointing to be the best teacher of their specific content area so that on the divine, opportune moments where the gospel can be LEGALLY talked about, students will be ready, willing and receptive to the message. All we gotta do as teachers is to be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit: he has given us hearts to honor God and love the students, and minds to be meek as doves and wise as serpents, especially when integrating faith and learning.

God bless America!...especially the public schools...the cutting edge of society and the beacon of the future...

p.s. For more info go to the following websites:
www.gtbe.org
www.religiousfreedomday.com
www.gatewayspartner.org

New Tutoring Challenge

When I entered the credential program, I decided to get both multiple subject (teaching elementary) and single subject credential (teaching junior high and high school); because of that, I had to take a weekend class. Though it may seem daunting because of the extra work load we had to accomplish that weekend, it was totally worth it because we learned about how to teach students necessary study skills that will help their overall performance academically, which will also influence their personal life as they mature. One of the requirements for this class was to do a case study on improving grades for a student, group of students or a whole class. I decided to go with one student.

The past months as a beginning student teacher, I have been working with elementary age students. But, for this case study I decided to go with a junior high student. The student I chose needed help to raise her grade because she was mainly getting D's and F's in class. Being an 8th grader, her grades are crucial to graduating to move on to high school. So, we began working together so as to find ways to improve her grade.

In applying several strategies I learned from the study skills class, I found out that this student just needed the extra attention and motivation to want to learn the things she is learning. She is an intelligent young lady, it's just that her cognitive processing needed direction. I gave her the double entry journal strategy. There are several versions of this technique. The one I advised her was to have 2 pieces of paper when taking notes in class: one for notes to self and the other was for the actual notes to class. The notes to self is a place wherein she can write details regarding thoughts unrelated to the current class, such as how she feels, what she wants to do later, comments about events or people, etc. The class notes were just basic information of what the teacher was teaching. The following weekend, she told me, she raised her grade in several classes and the double entry worked for her! I got so excited! The downside was she got in trouble for writing the notes to self which the teacher took away.

So now, at least, she found a way to redirect her thoughts back to class instead of just "going on vacation" while the teacher is teaching, which really helped her focus on learning. However, I'm still waiting on what my professor would advice me to tell her so that my tutee will not get into trouble again in using the double entry journal.

Go Team!

In this current elementary school that I'm working with, my Master Teacher has been a blessing to me in such a way that she brings me to the different meetings that she is a part of, usually before or after school. Sometimes, she actually feels bad that she "drags" me to these meetings, but I told her I'm really glad that she does because I get to see the other side of being a teacher and the support that a school gives to the student beyond classroom instruction.

One meeting in particular that she has brought me to was a Student Support Team (SST) meeting wherein different teachers volunteer to give support to a teacher with a special case student. In this meeting the principal and the school psychologist was also present to give advice and share what available resources the school has for the child. In most sessions, the team talks about student's personal history and academic history to give a good foundation of what the student has had in the past and what he is dealing with currently. After which the teacher shares on what adaptations or interventions have been done to accommodate to the needs of the student. Then, the team gives suggestions on other ideas the teacher can incorporate to those adaptations (Most of the time, the teacher has done so many adaptations already before it even goes to the SST meeting, so they have pretty much done their part. In some cases, some of the suggestions that are given have already been done by the teacher.) At some point the principal or school psychologist would make the team and the teacher aware of what extra support or other interventions that the school can provide the student and his/her family.

I realized how awesome it was that so many people cared about that one student. Sadly, due to budget cuts, some of the students will not be given much attention because major funding has been taken away from the school. But, the good part is, the teacher has already started the process of developing the child's current skills and providing the support he/she needs, so he/she is not left alone in the dark. There are many hands that is holding the student up.

Reading time!

This past earth day, my Master Teacher (MT) asked me to read a sunflower story. It was a fictional story about a young boy who planted a sunflower garden in a circle. I was excited to read aloud to the children because the book my MT gave me was a 1st or 2nd grade reading level book. However, I realized that I was going to read to the children after recess! (coming back to class after being wired up in running around the playground is a bit challenging).

But anyways, after the children got back to the room and my MT told them I was going to read them a story, amazingly the just sat on the carpet and listened intently as I read to my kindergarten class. It went really well! Thank God! Even the most rowdy kids were paying attention and fully engaged with story. My MT even said that she noticed and was amazed that everyone was just paying attention and that she had to take notes of what I was doing!

Honestly, that is all God! He had angels keep those kids calm and anointed my voice to be as creative and entertaining/engaging to them as possible.

3...2...1...!!!!!

I just realized that we have 3 weeks of school left! That is crazy! I didn't know that we're nearly at the end of the semester. It's just that there's still so much to do and I sometimes feel like I'm still catching up with all that's expected of us.

But in the next few weeks:
- we got a lot of work to do on our Portfolios
- we have to finish up our tutoring sessions with a Reader's Theater Performance (we're doing Chicken Little) and a student portfolio for each tutee that we have
- we have to study for finals
- we need to get our final evaluations for our MT's
- we have to write a case study (this is for the reading class I did that was over the weekend that's usually for Single Subject students)

I know we have more than that I just can't think of it off the top of my head! So, I just need to really rely on God to help me finish all this in time, keep my head on my neck, and specifically have the joy in knowing that God helped me through this all and the end is almost near and I gained so much from this experience.

Now, the countdown begins...

It's all in the bag...

In this credential program, professors always refer you to your "real" jobs, meaning they're trying to make you think how would you apply what you just learned when we actually start teaching. So, one of the BIG THINGS they're requiring from us is creating our own professional portfolio of things we have done. Before all this, I thought professional portfolios were only for artists and financial investors. But I guess, it goes for every profession. So now, for BOTH of our classes, the Reading/Literacy class and the Curriculum/Methods class, we have to create 2 portfolios that would demonstrate how we can synthesize the information we are hopefully absorbing.

Today in class, we talked about how we are expected to organize and write out our professional portfolio. It seems easy, it's just a lot of work. Honestly, the workload can feel overwhelming many times but I know the rewards of actually doing it is far greater. So, in doing this I'm already thinking that I hope when I actually interview for a job in the near future I will be able to use these portfolios and have them as a way for me to review all the things I learned in school. So all I got do is pull it out of the bag, 'cause it's all in there.