RILEY WILLIAMS

EDT 427 FINAL

ANGELA FAULHABER
DECEMBER 12, 2017

Final Portfolio Self-Assessment

VISUAL ELEMENT

The visual element I chose to symbolize my self-assessment was a picture of one of my previous
teachers and I. This semester has forced me to realize that sometimes I will fail and sometimes I
will succeed. It is all about trying your best and learning from your mistakes. The reason I chose
to include this picture is because I reflected a lot on what type of teacher I want to be this
semester. I could either be a teacher who takes a backseat in students’ lives and just teaches the
curriculum and that’s it; Or I could be a teacher that shapes students’ lives and helps them figure
out who they are in the world through the content being taught. Mrs. Duning was a teacher that
chose to shape her students’ lives. She took a personal interest in every one of her students’ lives
and let them know she cared. To this day Mrs. Duning sends me a letter every few months
checking in on how classes are going. She never fails to send care packages during finals week
and make sure her students know that she is always there for them. She advocates for her
students, current and past, always brightening their day. Throughout this semester Coni has
encouraged me throughout my struggles I have faced in classes and has reminded me why I want
to be a teacher. I hope to impact my students as she does hers. Coni Duning is a teacher I aspire
to be.

ACCOMPLISHMENT

My biggest accomplishment when thinking back to all I have encountered in this class
throughout the past semester was how much I have grown in my writing. The piece I have
chosen to include to show this growth would be my Qualities piece. Before this class, I had never
experienced writing outside of my comfort zone and tried different writing styles. I chose this
piece because I loved how I took on a quality and wrote from the perspective of that quality. This
may not be out of the box for some people but for me it was. I have never thought I would be
able to accomplish writing like that and write from a different perspective, such as writing from
the perspective of a quality. This piece of work also was a big accomplishment to me not only
for expanding my writing but I was also very vulnerable with my feelings towards this quality. It
focuses on my feelings towards my field experience and the constant hope I maintained
throughout the four weeks. I, also, focused on the hope I have in my life and the struggles I have
faced during this semester. Overall, I really like what I accomplished in this piece and showed
me that anyone has the potential to be a great writer. I will definitely use an activity like the
Qualities piece in my future classroom to motivate my students.

Hopeful
Hopeful is the girl that keeps going. She dreams of her life following the plans she has made but
uncertainty creeps in. He is the king of change and fear, ruining all of her plans and making
doubt set in. He is the younger sibling of anxiety, making her doubt everything. Although
uncertainty is powerful, Hopeful keeps pressing on knowing that her future is bright, making the
most out of every situation. Hopeful is the future.

Hopeful is the teacher that sees potential in all her students. Each one a canvas that has so much
to offer in this beautiful mess we call life. Distracted students are discouraging but she still
remains. Some days are good and some days are bad. Even on the bad days the glimmer of light
from her still shines. Unmotivated students, test scores, and standardized tests are her bullies,
making it seem like her goals are not realistic. Hopefulness is a fighter. Always consistent and
constant. Always shining through each student and their story.

Hopeful is old pictures and memories. Remembering how she felt during that time and craving
for that feeling to come back again. Hopeful is wanting to change the outcome of what has
happened. Hopeful is the excitement seeing his name on her phone, hoping that things will go
back to the way they were before. She keeps that constant glimmer of her cousin Faith in her
thoughts. Hopeful is the cousin of Faith.

Hopeful is what keeps going. Hopeful is encouraging. Hopeful strives for better. Hopeful is the
positivity that lights up any room. Hopeful is meaningful. Hopeful is constant. Hopeful is love.
Hopeful is compassion. Hopeful is never giving up. Hopeful is the sun shining through after a
thunderstorm. Hopeful is believing. Hopeful is passion. Hopeful is bright. Hopeful is what keeps
life going and her going. Hopeful is a smile. Hopeful is seeing the best in a situation. Hopeful is
everything one needs. Hopeful is making the impossible, possible. Hopeful is a friend.

STRUGGLE

The biggest struggle I faced this semester, which actually took me by surprise, was my ability to
write a lesson plan. I have tons of ideas for writing lesson plans but have unfortunately found out
that I am very scatterbrained when it comes to creating them. I, also, think I struggled with them
so much because this is the first actual semester we started writing real lesson plans with real
standards, goals, objectives, etc. One thing I struggled with the most was trying to do too many
activities within a lesson. Throughout the course of the semester I have gotten exponentially
better at writing lesson plans but it was definitely eye opening to realize this was something I
struggled with. I have never doubted my ability to be a teacher but this was definitely a humbling
experience for me to go through and realize. I am not an expert at writing them yet but am
excited to take what I have learned this semester and keep adding onto my lesson writing skills. I
have included one of my very first lesson plans and one of my most recent lessons. Within each
of these you can see the growth I have endured throughout the semester.
NCTE MEMBERSHIP
I think the most rewarding thing that the NCTE membership brings is a community of English
teachers who are dedicated to bettering students’ lives. By being a part of this membership I feel
that I am part of something bigger than just the classroom and English department I will one day
be a part of. This membership proves that I am part of something bigger than myself and am
committed to my students’ success. I was also fortunate enough to be one of the PR chairs for
NCTE-SAM. This was a great experience this semester and helped me grow lasting relationships
between my peers in the cohort and our passion towards English and our future students’ lives. It
is also beneficial to hear new ideas and lessons to incorporate into our future classrooms and this
program is one way we can hear those things.

Attendance at Teacher In-Service Day

During the first two weeks of field the teachers had an in-service professional development day.
They told the other student teachers and I that it would be optional to attend but we all decided
that this would be a great experience to observe and learn some skills we could apply in our
future classrooms. This being our first real field experience, we were eager to see all aspects of
teaching, even the behind the scenes meetings that go into this amazing profession.

This professional development day was broken up by departments, so basically all of the English
department was together learning new things to incorporate into the English classroom. It was
very motivating to see all the English teachers bouncing back and forth ideas off of each other
for lessons in the classroom, even before the actual meeting started. The theme of this PD was to
focus on the new technology, Schoology, being used in the classroom. They specifically focused
on how class sites could be set up on this program.

One of the things I really took away from the PD session was how technology is being
incorporated into the classroom. It was very cool to see that a lot of things are being done online
now. I also got to see the play out in the classroom I was placed in. They used Chromebooks and
Schoology to take all their notes and complete assignments. It was rare to see an assignment on
paper. By sitting through this PD I learned a lot about incorporating Schoology and how to create
assignments on the program. My mentor teacher also let me create a lesson on Schoology to get
comfortable with the program and familiarize myself with how it works. One note I included in
my notebook during this session was that Schoology “looks like Facebook/ Acts like Canvas”.
By relating it to programs I am already familiar with, it made it easier to catch on to the program.
Lesson I will Take with Me

I have two lessons that really stuck with me throughout this semester. These lessons I felt like
brought something different to the classroom than what I was usually used to. This semester I
have been exposed to so many new lessons that I am extremely excited to try out in my
classroom. They bring a new twist to the curriculum that is usually taught the same way, which
tends to get boring, for both the students and teacher.

LESSON ONE:

One lesson, more so an activity, that really stuck with me throughout the semester was the
iPhone background activity Faulhaber’s class experienced. This lesson focused on getting to
know students through their phone background. It also was a great way for students to get
comfortable with writing. After creating their phone background, they were able to write and
reflect why each app, background picture, etc. describes them. This lesson is very beneficial for
students who do not feel very comfortable with their writing. By incorporating this lesson,
students are able to write about themselves and something they are passionate about, their
phones/technology. To start this lesson, Professor Faulhaber had a picture of Mari Andrew’s
work who created this iPhone autobiography. She had us analyze the picture for a moment,
focusing on what each app’s excerpt was for the author. She then had each of us pull out our
phones and create our own phone background and had us include excerpts as to why each app is
important to, or explains us. As a further extension of the activity, students can write essays on
why their backgrounds explain them as an individual. Once again, this lesson is perfect to get
students comfortable with writing and their capabilities.

LESSON TWO:
The other lesson that I really enjoyed this semester was the Zoo Mini Unit, focused on in
Faulhaber’s class. I really liked how this unit approached organizing one’s thoughts about
argumentative writing. I remember being in high school and struggling to include the counter
argument in my paper and also how to go about writing it. I actually ended up teaching this
lesson during my field experience and it turned out to work really well. The concept this lesson
offers was the idea of the note-catcher while reading different articles. This helps students
organize their thoughts and find evidence easier while writing their essays. This lesson also does
a great job of helping students write thesis statements. Faulhaber gave each of us a sentence strip
at the end of the lesson. This allowed us to look back at our note-catcher, pick which side we
agreed with, and then create our thesis using evidence. It was a great activity that helped simplify
such a scary and complicated process for high schoolers.

Skill I Need to Improve

The skill I have learned from this semester that I need to work on would be being stricter in the
classroom. I tend to be a pushover and like to please everyone I can. This obviously is a problem
when teaching high school students. I do not want students to walk all over me and have my
future classroom be a free-for-all. I really tried to think about this during this semester and
during my field experience. I did not want to just be “liked” by my students. I needed them to
respect me and pay attention when needed. I feel like this is a very hard concept to grasp as a
new teacher. Obviously, you want your students to like you- every teacher wants that, but you
also need to be an advocate for their futures and ensure they are learning. Their education is
more important than if they “liked” you and you were their favorite or not.

The thing I learned most about myself during field is that when it came down to it I was strict
when needed. This was exciting for me to see because I was worried I was not going to be able
to get students to mind and follow the rules. One obstacle I faced during field was getting
students to put away their technology in the classroom. It was a hard rule to enforce and really
put my so called “strictness” to the test. Every day students were bringing out their phones
during lessons, while my mentor teacher was lecturing, or during tests. It was a huge problem in
the classroom. Instead of just sitting back and watch this happen, being too afraid to correct the
students, I faced the problem head on.

I put my fear of students not liking me behind me and wanted to focus more on their future
instead. If I wanted students to be successful in the classroom I had to address the problem that
was distracting them, their phones. Each time a student had out their phone I would remind them
that it needed to be put away or it would be taken. My mentor teacher made the comment to me
that I was “becoming a natural” right off the bat. She said one of the main things for her to learn
as a first year teacher was that sometimes you have to be the bad guy. You have to look out for
students’ wellbeing and be willing to correct their misbehaviors. If you just let these things slide
it is difficult to gain control of the classroom. One thing I learned from my mentor teacher that
will help me grow in this skill would be to be consistent. Miss. Bogotay stated that consistency is
key in the classroom. If you establish a rule in your classroom you need to carry through with
that rule. You cannot just pick and choose when to enforce it because students will take
advantage of it. Be firm in the rules of your classroom but also have fun. In my opinion, looking
out for students’ futures and ability to learn is the number one thing a teacher can do for students.
‘
For my artifact I included a detention slip. Although this seems harsh, I have to remember I will
sometimes have to be the bad guy in the classroom. If students are constantly misbehaving and
distracting other students, I will have to be strict.
Non-Negotiable

Students will be able to choose what they want to read/write about based on what they are
interested in.

I think allowing student choice in the classroom is absolutely CRUCIAL- especially for less
motivated students who do not enjoy reading. This can also be true for writing as well.
Unfortunately, students do not care to pay attention to classic texts. They have trouble
understanding and relating to them. If a student cannot relate to the text, then how are we
supposed to get them to connect to it? By allowing student choice of what they want to read and
write about, teachers will be more effective and experience more student success.

As teachers we have to teach things we do not want to and things that students do not want to
learn about. That is the harsh reality. On the other side of that, we do have the ability to
personalize instruction for students and use resources that they are interested in. For example, the
“What My Phone Says About Me” lesson allows students to get practice writing while enjoying
the process and talking about something they are interested in. This can also be seen when
having students read novels. Finding resources that are relevant to our students’ lives and
interests will always be something I strive for in my classroom.

I want students to be able to take what they learn in the classroom and apply it to their lives. I
want to teach them that learning can be fun and CAN relate to them. I feel like this is the biggest
disconnect between our students and the classroom. They do not feel a personal connection to the
content they are learning which lessens their motivation to interact with it. I am so thankful for
EDT 427 and EDT 346. Both of these methods courses showed me that learning can be engaging
and fun for students. Not to brag about my professor but Angela Faulhaber did a great job of this
throughout the semester. I have always struggled with my confidence and creativity in writing.
Each class Angela personalized instruction and really engaged each student to show how the
material can relate to a student personally. The biggest thing I have taken away from both of
these courses is that you can personalize instruction and bring new ideas to the table. I am
excited to incorporate everything I have learned in these classes and being them into my future
classroom.

For my artifact, I included a picture of Taylor Swift and Kanye West. This represents a text set I
created in Professor Faulhaber’s class. This text set focused on teaching students argumentative
writing by viewing different stances on a situation. For my text set I focused on the feud between
Taylor Swift and Kanye West, specifically who is in the wrong in the situation. While this might
seem humorous to choose as a topic for a lesson, many students will be motivated to interact
with the content. They will have an interest in the topic and be motivated to read and learn more
about it.

Growth
Confidence. Something I have always struggled with. I believe that you are your own biggest
critic. I tend to critique myself all day long, every day, 24/7. Going into this semester I was not
confident in my teaching- AT ALL. I was nervous I would not know what I was doing and fail
miserably at being a teacher. I remember writing my first lesson plan for Nach’s class and
completely ruining it. My confidence plummeted even lower than it already was. Through these
struggles, I have become a stronger and more effective teacher.

I remember walking into Middletown High School the first day of field. Nervous was an
understatement. I did not feel confident at all at what I was about to embark on. I held it together
though. I remember Angela telling my class we have been equipped with everything we need to
go into field so be confident and soak it in. After the first day I remember thinking, “Hey, that
wasn’t so bad, I might actually be good at this.” I kept up this mentality throughout my field
experience, viewing each day as a learning experience to improve upon the previous day.

Teaching my lesson during field was the biggest challenge with my confidence. I felt like I was
going to fail miserably and the students would eat me alive. I kept telling myself I was capable of
teaching a lesson even if I did not feel like it. Once the lesson started, I felt unstoppable. I had
made myself think I would not be capable of something I clearly had every qualification to excel
at. I was no longer nervous in my field classroom and my confidence grew each day. I think this
was such a great learning experience. My confidence has grown as a future teacher and I am
starting to believe in myself and my work. For my artifact I included a picture of McGuffey.
Here, my confidence has grown each semester as a future teacher. I am so thankful for the
classes and professors I have encountered during my time at Miami. Each semester, professor,
course, and peer has grown my confidence in my future profession and I am ecstatic for the
future.

Where I’m Going

I’m going to a classroom
Full of faces figuring out who they are
Searching for inspiration,
Motivation, and care

I’m going somewhere close to home

Ohio will always have my heart
Somewhere I am familiar with
Full of fields and small towns

I’m going to a room full of opportunity

Where we will be immersed in new worlds
A young girl growing up in Alabama one day
To a family’s struggle during the Dust Bowl the next

I’m going to an uncertain future

Full of excitement
And joy, uncertainty, and faith
Ready to leave my mark on future generations.

The first stanza of my poem focuses on my future classroom and students. I described my
students as I remember myself and my peers during high school, confused. At this age, students
are trying to figure out who they are as an individual. They are looking for something inspiring,
something to motivate them, and be shown that someone cares for them. I want my classroom to
be a safe place for my future students and help them figure out who they are. The next stanza
focuses on where I would like to teach at. My dream school to teach at is the high school I
graduated from, Lebanon. It is a small town and has such a great feel. I want to teach at a place I
can call home. I focused on my future English classroom in my next stanza. I mentioned how
literature can take you into different worlds and lives of others. I focused on the novels, To Kill a
Mockingbird and The Grapes of Wrath, since these are popular titles taught in high school
English classrooms. Lastly, I focused on my feelings towards being a future teacher. I am
uncertain of what the future may bring but am excited to impact my future students. We will
learn and grow together, and I cannot wait!