CAMALIGAN NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL
(Formerly: Sto. Tomas National High School)
San Jose - San Pablo, Camaligan Camarines Sur
LEA MARI N. RADA
What went wrong and what went right during my off-campus teaching
My first experienced as a teacher was a very challenging and exciting. When I wore my formal clothes and came out of my room, I saw my parents. They were very proud to see me going to school as a student teacher. This made me very proud of myself as I have almost completed their dreams; I went to Camaligan National High School. I was very excited as I was going to the school. I also learned that teachers have to prepare a lot before they teach a class.As the days progressed I was feeling more comfortable with both teachers and students.An exposure was given to me to supervise the teachers class who was absent. I was able to see some of the behavior of the students towards teachers and felt respected. Other teachers also gave me some of their classes to teach. I felt very nervous at first but then I controlled it and moved on teaching. My cooperating teacher helped me explain the students some of the concepts which I was not very clear on.Moreover,I sometimes faced difficulties in supervising the classes as it was hard to explain student on concepts which are apart from my discipline. I was also reluctant to talk to all teachers as they were new to me. As days passed by I became more confident and was able to interact well with them.
I had a lot of experience as a teacher. I have learned a lot of things about the school and the amount of work the teachers need to do in order to carry out a successful class, I also learned that teachers need to ensure the student learn the concept taught in class.
Personal experience of the student teacher
When I first thought about student teaching. I went through many emotions. It started with excitement because that meant I was that much closer to graduating. I had so many questions running through my mind. What will my teachers be like? Will the faculty be supportive? With all these questions, I started to feel intimidated by what was soon to come. I was worried that my teachers and I would not get along. I was terrified that my students would not understand me. What was I going to do if I was not able to be the kind of teacher I had hoped I would be? When the time came for me to begin my student teaching, all I could do was hope and pray that things went smoothly. I soon found out that any worries I had were no longer an issue.
What an amazing experience student teaching has been. There have been ups and downs throughout the months. I have been faced with decisions and hardships, as well as joys and great achievements. My student teaching experience has been the best. Generally I had a great time with my students, and I could not have asked for a better report with my cooperating teacher. I felt supported from day one, and he gave me the confidence I needed to keep progressing. Interacting with my students was fantastic and I was very surprised at how much my students taught me from everything to relationships to school practices. I learned many things through my student teaching experience, which will shape the way I teach for years to come. The biggest and most important thing I learned during my student teaching is to be confident. In the beginning of my practice teaching, I was little timid with my students, even while presenting them information that I know backwards and forwards. After a couple of weeks,however,I was more comfortable in front of the class. This experience has taught me that students are much more likely to buy into your class and listen to you when you come in with a positive and confident demeanor.Once I gained my confidence in the class,I had more fun with teaching and my student had more fun as well.My increased confidence levels definitely translated to the students doing better in class,and even worked to stem some of the problems I had with classroom management.Respect for myself and my students ties into this as well, and is closely related to the relationships you have with students.I learned that respect and confidence will go a long way in terms of connecting and maintaining relationships with your students which does help the classroom atmosphere and performance. I also learned more strategies in teaching on how to handle students, to teach and prepare some activities to motivate and get the intererest of my students so that they will participate in class, because I believe that through participation we can gain knowledge and by experienced we learned a lot and more. My student teaching experience has been like no other. I have learned from both cooperating teacher,as well as students.I wouln’t trade my time here in Camaligan National High School for anything.I have been challenged many times over,but I feel I have risen to the challenge.I would not have had the success I have had if it weren’t for the support and guidance of my cooperating teacher and the students themselves.Over all the practice teaching was done successfully.