S.

Sharma
Internship 2 Reflection
October 2018

Internship 2 Reflection
For this second internship I had a lot of changes as to what I would be focusing

on. Last year I was teaching full time at Queen Elizabeth Secondary and this year I am

at Tamanawis. In terms of the internship focus, I focused on applying and connecting

the various Leadership Standards for Principals and Vice-Principals to school

situations. A majority of the accounted time for this internship was spent on

conversations and reflections because of the change my school placements.

Domain 1: Moral Stewardship

Standard 1: Values, Vision and Mission

At Tamanawis Secondary, staff and students consistently refer to our Code of

Conduct when making and applying our choices. We have a school Code of Conduct

that is adhered to by all staff and students and is posted all around the school. Our

mission statement: “Caring Community, Engaged Learners, Inspired Citizens” is also

incorporated into our school code of conduct. Both Tamanawis and Queen Elizabeth

are large schools with over 1,200 students and 100 staff members, however, the school

procedures and expectations are very different. At Tamanawis students are expected to

know and adhere to the mission statement. For example, I had three senior students

who were constantly late to class and one day the bell for class had rung and they were

still outside the hallway hanging out as if it were break time. My room is all windows and

I was able to see these students. Their tardiness caused not only a disturbance to me

and the other students in the class but also another teacher and his students as well. To

deal with this situation I walked outside and asked the students to go to the office.

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Internship 2 Reflection
October 2018

There alongside the Vice Principal we used the code of conduct to deal with the

concern and referred the students back to what was expected of them. The code of

conduct came into play in this situation as it is a to go manual for every staff and student

in the school. It sets in place expectations for the students as to what is expected of

them. This situation also enabled me as the adult to defend the schools value and

mission because these students were not caring about their school community and

being engaged in their learning.

At Queen Elizabeth one of the most rewarding experiences was the Athletic

Banquet at the end of the year. Alongside the PE department I helped plan this event

that honored our schools coaches and athletes and their commitment to activities

outside the classroom. Being a coach is a rewarding experience, seeing the happiness

on the Junior Girls faces when they won their volleyball games was a great moment of

celebration. Last year I coached a team of 12 Grade 10 girls who had a strong season.

At the end of the year at the Athletic Banquet we were able to honor these girls and

their commitment and good effort to the volleyball season. The Athletic Banquet is a

prime example of recognizing and celebrating individual collective accomplishments that

support any schools values, because we as educators value our students and their

experiences.

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Internship 2 Reflection
October 2018

Domain 2: Instructional Leadership

Standard 4: Curriculum Instruction & Assessment

At both schools we had monthly department meetings. A part of our time at these

meetings was dedicated towards the information that administration wanted to pass on

to the staff, however a majority of the time was spent on discussing what was

happening in our classes. These department meetings are a great way to communicate,

encourage, and support colleagues and myself to incorporate new and innovative ways

to teach and for students to learn. A example includes talking to a colleague who

teaches the same course as me - Computers 8, even though we teach the same

content we have different ways of teaching. Being a teacher who is predominately

computer based meaning in my classes most of the activities are online. Where as my

colleague is predominantly paper based yet we both teach the same concept of

computer programing. We both find our practices to be effective but we both were open

to trying each others so we could better provide enhanced learning experiences for our

students.

One of the biggest challenges I have had this semester is teaching a course that

has students ranging from Grade 9 to 12. Desktop Publishing is a class that I have

never taught before but this semester I am teaching two blocks. I have taught split

courses in the past but one that is split across 4 grade levels was a challenge. To

overcome this challenge I modified this course to provide differentiated instruction and

assessment so that I could meet the needs of all students. This was done by grade

level, the Grade 9’s start at level one and the Grade 12’s are at a level 4. Students can

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Internship 2 Reflection
October 2018

move up and down to any level depending on their understanding. Students who have

progressed to level 4 also become leaders in the class and help other students. They

are also a pillar of support for me because with the big difference in grade level and

understanding it becomes difficult at times to balance my time spent with each level

group.

Assessment for this course is also based on levels. I use a four point scale for

each assignment but every level has different criteria. This helps in setting the

expectations for students so they know what to work towards. Most students once they

have exceed the expectations for an assignment are able to move onto the next level or

challenges as well call them in class.

Domain 3: Organizational Capacity

Standard 7: Systems Thinking & Planning

For Standard 7, communication was my main focus. The counsellors are an

important pillar to rely on in any school setting. Anytime I have a concern with a student

I check in with the counsellors to see if the are any concerns or information that I should

be aware of. Once I have talked to the counsellors, usually a face to face conversation

as sometimes information is confidential, I then reach out to fellow teachers who may

teach the same student. From there I contact the parents. Both Queen Elizabeth and

Tamanawis have a predominantly South Asian student population and fortunately for

me I am able to speak the language that most of the students speak at home making

communication easier. When I call home I often speak to the parents in Punjabi so they

are less intimidated and are able to speak freely. At the end of the conversation I invite

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Internship 2 Reflection
October 2018

the parents or guardians to come meet me in person and provide them my school

phone number and email. This opens a direct line of communication between the

parents and myself. This helps in fostering a better learning experience for students

because they know that it’s not only their parents who are invested in their learning but

their teacher as well.

This year at Tamanawis we are the pilot school in the district to use Microsoft

Office 365. Since I am the Computers and Business teacher, I thought this would be

great opportunity for my class to help out the rest of the school. So for the first

Business/Computer classes assignment, the students were responsible with guidance

from me to learn the ins and outs of Office 365. They were then to create brochures and

mini tutorials for the rest of the staff and students. We also provided one on one

workshops for other classes and it was a great success. Many of the classes who

signed up were teachers who had Grade 8 students. For these Grade 8 students who

don’t know how to even create a word document this was a great learning experience

for them to learn and engage in a tool that would be a great asset to use in their

learning journeys. For the adults in the building I taught them how to use Microsoft

Teams in addition to the other apps on Office 365. Teams is a useful software, a great

tool for collaboration.

In reflecting on this internship I learned that is important to have clear values, a

vision and mission for each and every school. As different schools are made up different

populations it is important that this moral stewardship is directed towards creating an

environment that is safe and engaging for not only students but staff as well. Being at

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Internship 2 Reflection
October 2018

two different schools during the midst of this internship, one where there was a lack of

direction in moral stewardship and one where it is very evident the school culture and

environment where noticeably very different.

Instructional leadership is important because without taking a lead on the content

or assessment practices in a classroom or school level setting there would be a lack of

engagement. As educators we know that engaged learners learn better. They are more

passionate about what they are learning and as a result become holistic learners. We

also know that in education it is not a one size fits all approach hence why it is important

to have differentiated instruction and assessment practices to better meet the needs of

all the learners in our building.

Last but not least, organizational capacity enables communication to become

more efficient and impactful. Using technology to communicate eliminates the time

delay that we can sometimes have when trying to connect face to face.

Internship 2 Hour Log