Sarah Brown

I believe that the most important aspect of teaching is setting challenging but clear and achievable goals and objectives for students. It is not only important for students to clearly understand what is expected of them, but for students to know what they can expect from their teacher as well. Outlining these mutual expectations at the beginning of a school year is an important part of creating a classroom climate of mutual respect, trust, encouragement and support. 

 

I plan to present materials and activities while taking into consideration the different interests and learning styles of students. It is important to present the course content in a way that seems relevant to students, so for that reason I plan to illustrate the content using as many real-life examples as possible. I believe that students should learn actively, and I plan to give my students many opportunities to participate in group projects and hands-on experiences. I feel that focusing mainly on lecture as a method of delivering course content is not effective and I plan to use varied activities. I believe that having a clear, detailed and structured lesson plan prepared on a daily basis is essential, especially for a new teacher. 
 

I plan to assess students according to the objectives and goals that have been outlined, and those goals should be challenging for students but also fair and achievable. I also believe that a student’s effort, improvement and individual growth over time should be considered in assessment. 
 

I plan to create a classroom atmosphere built on a foundation of mutual respect between teacher and student as well as between students themselves. I believe that it is effective to start the school year with somewhat of a strict demeanor, but still be approachable, encouraging and engaging with students.