Impact on Student Learning

How does all that I have learned affect my students and their ability to learn? One thing is for sure – they are now much better off. Although I am not currently in the classroom, and cannot speak for how well my students have already improved, I know that mapping out my lessons ahead of time and developing essential questions that will guide my lessons will move my students toward a more focused learning experience. Since I now see my students as individuals with their own learning styles and speeds, I also see curriculum mapping as a flexible tool that can be used to make each lesson meaningful, unique, and challenging. The students will not only be learning what the state standards says they should know, they will also be given an opportunity to be more creative. Their learning will be full of purpose. No more every day all day lectures. No more textbook learning that takes up most of the period. No more worksheet upon worksheet that accounts for the death of many trees. We will have discussions, write poems, play parts, color, draw, dance, and do anything else that gets them active and keeps them engaged, while at the same time fulfilling the requirements set by the state. I will consult and collaborate with my students and fellow teachers. I will continue to read, research, attend classes, and participate in professional organizations in order to improve myself for them. In the end they will know that I cared and that their success in learning mattered to me.

Mastery of Program Competencies

Mastery: expert skill or knowledge; command, control, domination, supremacy (Random House Dictionary, 2009). The word alone is a bit intimidating. So, how does my ability to create a curriculum map reflect my mastery in any of the MSE program competencies? In short, it does not – yet. Mastery of these program competencies implies that I am “a successful promoter of student learning, advocate for cultural and learning diversity, curriculum/program designer, classroom manager, problem solver, effective instructor, user and producer of educational technology, student achievement analyst, scholar/researcher, reflective decision maker, and a professional colleague and collaborator” (Kaplan, 2009). Of course my goal is to be the embodiment of this definition by the end of this program of study.

With that said, as I have learned more about myself as a teacher, and as I make plans to take all that I am learning and implement these methods and strategies into my future classroom, I feel confident in my first steps towards mastery, especially in the competency areas of knowing the subject I teach and how to teach it to my students, and thinking systematically about how and what I teach while learning from past experiences. Being able to successfully map out a lesson will allow me to better communicate with my students the purpose of the lesson. I believe that when students understand and see a purpose to why they are learning something, it has more meaning and they are more likely to work productively. I have also come to understand that curriculum mapping is not only about what I will teach, but it helps me to weed out what I will not teach, so that I don’t spend so much time trying to cover everything – after all that would not be possible anyway. Focusing on the essentials makes for a more focused learning experience for my students. Always thinking about what I am doing and what I am not doing, and what I can do to make it better is what will move me towards mastery. Now, I just need a class to practice on!

Kaplan University. (2009). Master of science in education conceptual framework. Retrieved July 6, 2009, from Kaplan University Web site: http://kucourses.com/ec/dcs/DocView.learn?CourseID=3444061&47=5596862&dt=7%2F7%2F2009+3%3A32%3A25+PM&DocID=15561720&DocCollab_PK=20855100&Name=%22MSE+Conceptual+Framework.pdf%22

Random House Dictionary. (2009). Retrieved July 6, 2009, from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/mastery

Improvement in Practice

It’s difficult to describe how my practice has improved, since I have not been in the classroom for some time. I have not had the opportunity to put to the test all that I know and have learned. So, since I don’t yet know how things will turn out once I put what I have learned into practice, I will speculate. Before my experience with curriculum mapping, I never thought much about what went into creating an effective and challenging curriculum. When I thought of curriculum, I thought of state standards. It went no further than that for me. I did not take the time to consider my teaching practices or professional actions. I just did what I thought would not bore me or my students on top of following what other teachers did. I’ve always believed in the importance of education and the role teachers played in that education. School was the place to learn the 3Rs and more, but I never looked beyond the teacher’s role as the disseminator of information to see what else was involved or necessary for students to learn. Knowing about diversity in learning, the importance of content knowledge, assessments beyond multiple- choice and essay, and the importance of responsibilities and relationships when making professional decisions, was not even on my radar as a new teacher. Yes, I realized that these concepts and ideas were important, but I never reflected on them while creating the curriculum for the class. Again, I just looked at the state standards and felt that as long as I was covering them, I was doing what was being asked of me. But it goes beyond that. I’ve taught classes whose make-up has been as diverse as the United Nations; each student coming with their own educational needs. By taking the time to get to know my students and their individual learning styles, I am able to create a curriculum that caters to many of their learning needs.

Curriculum mapping is the tool that will help me to ensure that my class is student-centered and that it promotes performance-based activities that also adhere to the state’s standards and supports authentic instruction. Additionally, since a curriculum map is a work in progress, as the needs of my students change in each new school year, I am able to modify it to make it fit my students’ current needs. However, before this can even happen, I need to have a great knowledge of my academic content. The students need to know that they can trust what I say, and that I will be able to not only answer their questions, but expand on it in ways that they can understand. I can also improve my teaching practice by integrating the concept of the Backwards by Design Model into my curriculum mapping process. I have the advantage of knowing what it is I want my students to learn, and then creating assessments that adequately reflect the mastery of these objectives, before I even decide how to teach the concepts / lesson. The creation of the map allows me to identify, analyze, develop, and reflect on all the necessary data and steps needed in creating a well thought out curriculum that addresses the needs of each individual learner in the class. Continuing to learn and grow in the area of curriculum development will be aided by my relationship with my fellow educators. I will continue to seek help, ask, questions, and be willing to change what makes me comfortable in order to make the students comfortable. I have a responsibility to the students as well as my profession in making sure that the decisions I make are always in the best interest of all involved and that it works towards the ultimate goal of producing life-long learners that are prepared for a competitive and global world community.
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McTighe, J. & Thomas, R. S. (2003). Backwards design for forward action. Retrieved July 3, 2009, fromhttp://reserves.uah.edu/eres/docs/1759/mctighe_backward_design_for_forward_action.pdf

Udelhofen, S. (2005). Keys to curriculum mapping: Strategies and tools to make it work. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Zemelman, S., Daniels, H., & Hyde, A. (2005). Best practice: Today’s standards for teaching & learning in America’s schools. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.