Reflecting on Practicum: My Growth as a Teacher Candidate (Part 1)

According to the ethical standards of practice, “at the heart of a strong and effective teaching profession is a commitment to students and their learning”. My experience during my CSL and practicum has made this statement most obvious. The idea of commitment to students and their learning sounds obvious and easy enough, but the reality is much different. I met all sorts of students with all sorts of personalities, interests, work ethic, preferences, and needs. Sometimes within the same day, or sometimes within the same few moments, I would feel that heartwarming feeling and my patients at their wits end. There were copious moments of joy, frustration, and then aha’s! It was all very rewarding, and by rewarding, I mean I came in with a glass full of hope to make some sort of change – even if it’s just to increase the confidence of one student by a little – and I’m coming out of this experience with that glass still full. I of course have seen the realities of the job more up close and the limitations physical education professionals often run into, but I know I am in the right place.

The biggest breakthrough was the relationship I formed with one student who truly got on my nerves at the beginning of the school year. This student refused to do their work, fell into the role of the class clown, and was really clever with smart comments. As I spent more time at my placement in December, this student opened up to me about his home life and began coming to extra math help, and finally listened to reason. It was amazing!

I learned about the challenges of implementing the curriculum. The very generic curriculum is not a recipe to follow. It’s a guideline of what should be covered, but it is important to keep in mind the needs of the students. If the students need information about vaping because vaping has become a part of the social culture in that school, then more attention should be put on vaping awareness and prevention. I also took what I have learned so far at the University of Ottawa about teaching strategies and best methods and experimented with what worked and what didn’t during my placement. Methods of direct instruction were more appropriate for complex topics like nutrition, whereas discussion, or inquiry-based methods were more useful after foundational concepts were laid. With the help of student feedback, free resources on the internet, and my peers I found ways to create innovative lessons that covered important topics in ways that were more personal and appropriate to my students.

During my CSL and practicum placement, I acted in a way that was caring, trusting, respectful, and with integrity. I accomplished this by always acting in the best interest of my students. I relied on the support and advice of my associate teacher and other staff. I am very lucky to learn and gain hands-on experience in an environment full of knowledge. I asked students and staff for feedback, referred back to my academic literature, and really listened when teachers spoke with me about anything. Acting in an ethical way comes back to the golden rule: treat others as you would like to be treated. Treat students with respect, care for them, be someone they can trust, and be honest with others and yourself through constant reflection.

I definitely grew a lot throughout this process. I learned that teaching is only 10% of the job. The preparation, large group and individual discussions, extracurriculars, curating resources, and everything else makes us the larger part of the job. By approaching students and their patterns of learning with a curiosity – thereby wanting to also learn from them creates an interesting relationship with the teaching profession itself. By committing to becoming a lifelong learner with students’ best interest in mind, this job will never feel dull. I know by continuing my professional learning I will benefit my students. By offering safe learning communities like extra math help, or extracurricular sports at school I can also show a commitment to student learning. My participation in research at the University of Ottawa, this B.Ed program, my CSL and practicum experience, coaching outside of school, and engaging in professional dialogue in real life and on social media have all contributed to the development of my social, teaching, and cognitive presence. These all make up my educational experience, or communities of inquiry.