Monday, June 14, 2010

ED 480 First Day

June 14, 2010

For the past several weeks, I felt that I have been running around like a headless chicken trying to find an instructor who would take me for an ED 480 class. Thank goodness, Dr. Rivera had the kind heart to teach me this course. I am deeply, deeply thankful that she is not only kind enough to provide this support, but that she was also amiable when I first met her. :-)
I met with Dr. Rivera for a briefing of the course earlier today, and at first I felt a bit overwhelmed because of all the assignments that have to be turned in and my concern that when I'm in Korea, would I be too busy to work? But I concluded that, sure, with a little bit more push, everything should come through. This is one of my very last Education courses, I ought to get as much out of it as I can, and prepare for a lifetime career of teaching, or at least get through with student teaching first. There are still a great deal to learn with becoming a teacher, although I know that I have improved over the years through experiences of being a tutor and Sunday School teacher and being a student of the University. My philosophy about being a teacher is that in order to develop the art and science of teaching, theory must be experienced and experience must be incorporated in theory. Yet, since I feel that I am still at the ultimately basic stages of both, I feel very anxious of the unknown.
When I read the first chapter of Kathleen Graves' Teachers as Course Developers, the author expressed the questions that I've thought and felt in approaching the task of becoming a course developer.
"Where do I start?" Although I have had experiences of developing lesson plans, assessments, and even a mini-curriculum, I trust that this course and this textbook would broaden my views and knowledge, deepen my understanding, guide my craft, and open my eyes to the art and science of teaching- in which I do not have to blindly feel through with my first experiences of student teaching, or teaching in general. And thus, yes, I am anticipating a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. ^^

Images
Munch, Edvard. Painter. The Scream. [Painting]. Norway. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scream.
Valentin, Nicolas. Image of a rainbow. [Photograph]. Retrieved from http://digital-photography-school.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/rainbow- photography.jpg.

1 comment:

  1. Ruth,

    I am glad that you are eager to learn various ESL strategies. I'm confident that through hard work and diligence, you will find a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Good luck!

    Best regards,
    Dr. Rivera

    ReplyDelete