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Section Two: Teacher Candidate Background Experiences

Introduction

In this section of my portfolio, I will discuss some of my educational experiences.

I will identify my work experiences and include my school observations and classroom

applications. Finally, I will discuss my philosophy of education and will incorporate a

copy of my curriculum vitae. This section can help future employers understand my

skillsets as well as the type of teacher I aspire to be. They will be able to see some of the

personal and professional experiences that molded me into the person that I am today and

the path that lead me to this profession. This will enable them to see how some of my

abilities can be transferred into the field of education.

Educational Background

I had the privilege to attend an all-girl private school at the elementary and

secondary level. This is where most of my memorable learning experiences as a student

occurred. My school had very strict catholic values and prided itself on forming elite

members of Québec’s society. It is one of the first schools founded in Québec City and it

is very proud of the mark it has made throughout history. Needless to say that if the

school requested so much from the students, its expectations were equally high for its

teachers.

Madame Marie was my fourth grade teacher, and as the other teachers she looked

very strict and proper. However, as the days passed she would slowly reveal her joyful

and fun demeanor. She was not afraid to be silly with us our to confess her love for large

pickles and the pop icon Rock Voisine. She was still a very strict teacher who expected

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the best of us, but our relationship grew deeper. We came to appreciate the traits that

were so frightening at first. Close to Christmas the classroom dynamic had changed and

the stress level surrounding the extensive curriculum had change to a jovial atmosphere

where laugher was often used as a source of stress relief as well as a bonding experience.

She is the first teacher our classroom purchased a gift for on our own (without our

parents’ intervention), and we bought, of course a basket full of large dill pickles, a poster

and cassette of Rock Voisine. It was not customary for teachers to open gifts in front of

the rest of class, but she opened ours on the last day of school before the holidays and I

remember her laughter and happiness until this day. What I learned most from Madame

Marie was not from the actual in class lessons, but about her behavior towards her

students. She allowed herself to be vulnerable, to be imperfect in a school where

perfection was expected. She showed us that it is possible to learn while having fun. She

allowed us to be ourselves and to be proud of it.

Similarly to Madame Marie, Monsieur Rochette was also a teacher that was not

afraid to be silly in order for his students to learn better. He was my secondary five

chemistry teacher. In secondary five, chemistry was an optional course. Uncertain about

my future education and career path, I had chosen this course to assure that every

educational options would still be available to me. My love and interest for chemistry

stopped at the idea of baking deserts and following pastry recipes. Needless to say, I was

not the most engaged student in his classroom. However, his teaching method and his

passion for his subject became contagious. He was a part-time signer and would bring his

guitar in the classroom and sing about the different concepts he wanted us to learn. I had

never seen such a thing! My classmates and I all thought he was crazy, but it worked! We

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were all engaged, and were waiting to see what he would do next. He was a young male

teacher in a classroom full of teenage schoolgirls and his behavior made us laugh and

learn every lesson he thought us. Looking back, I would have never had the courage that

he demonstrated in that classroom. We could be mean at times and there are so many

ways that his method could have gone wrong, but somehow, it did. He had one of the best

classroom management skills I have ever seen. He was able to make chemistry fun, and I

actually learned a lot from his unconventional teaching methods.

Finally, we come to Monsieur Julien. In my own personal experience as a student,

I encountered many wonderful teachers, but only one truly fits in the image of what I

expect a great educator to be. He was probably the scariest teacher I ever had, because I

never wanted to disappoint him. He saw what we were capable of and he always insisted

for our very best. He was barely 5 foot tall, but he could command a room like no other.

His knowledge was infinite and he made us love his lessons because he loved his subject

matter. His passion was infectious and I aspire one day to be as motivating to my students

as he was.

He was my secondary five French teacher, but in the past he had been a history

teacher as well as a religion teacher. He was able to integrate all of his knowledge in his

lessons. He put books in historical contexts and even created a lesson where we would

include his knowledge in the actual setting. Indeed, one of the last class of the year, he

had prepared a booklet full of works written by authors that had been inspired by a

location in Old Québec. With our booklet in hand, we set out on a walk through the old

city. He would stop the class in certain areas, indicated the page to turn to in our booklets

and we would read the writing on it. He would then tell us to observe our surroundings.

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As we observed he explained what it was at that location that motivated the author to

write that piece. He made the stories come alive and he pushed us to think for ourselves.

To this day, he has affected the way I perceive the world. He makes me want to visit the

locations he spoke of during our lessons so I can see for myself what was so important

for him. He made me care as much as he cared about the subject that I had despised the

most before being thought by him. I can only hope to have as much an impact on my

students as he did on my classmates and I.

Work Experiences

I must admit that becoming a teacher was never an occupation that I had

considered growing up. Being a lawyer third generation, you could say that the law was

more a family affair. It was almost expected as a career path. However, throughout the

years and the inspiring people that I met, I realized that as much as the theory of law was

fascinating, being a lawyer was not the professional development I wanted to pursue. I

wanted to find a career that would inspire others as well as myself; a career that I would

be passionate about. This is where teaching plays a role into my professional growth.

Initially, I pursued a variety of professional fields in the search of the right path.

However, it is only recently that I realized that the common denominator from my

eclectic work experiences is the fact that I helped coworkers acquire better work skills.

Additionally, it is with my volunteer work that I recognized my ability to connect with

children. Never had I known of the satisfaction felt when you see a child’s face light up

with pride when he or she has learned something new.

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My diverse work experiences can only enrich my abilities in the education field.

My proficiency in different domains allowed me to develop a good sense of adaptation

and excellent work ethic. I am equally able to work in a team environment as well as

independently. I am efficient, bilingual and I possess good time management skills.

I would also like to mention that working in sales as well as being a flight

attendant helped me acquire a solid knowledge of what constitutes quality costumer

service. These experiences helped me learn how to recognize and respond to the needs of

an esteemed clientele. Similarly, a good teacher has to identify the specific needs of each

student and adapt their teaching methods to those particular needs. A good teacher also

knows how to interact with various parents and update them on their child’s performance

and progress in relation to the curriculum.

Moreover the law, the aviation industry and the insurance world allowed me to

develop better communication skills. They also helped me become better equipped when

handling stressful situations or unplanned events. Comparably, a teacher’s main role is to

communicate their subject matter as well as giving specific directions. An educator must

also provide a comfortable environment that enables the students to feel safe to learn

without judgment.

Finally, being part of certain development opportunities, such as the Mentoring

program and Big 6 Captain (which is a team sales advising program), really opened my

eyes to what teaching, as a profession, could be. I had the pleasure of working with my

colleagues on acquiring various skills. With the Mentoring program I had the opportunity

to work one on one with the new hired. I would teach them the company’s insurance

rules as well as coverages and how to apply them in various scenarios. I applied

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differentiated learning techniques and had to adapt to their level of expertise in the field.

The Mentoring position also allowed me to introduce the company on a more personal

level and help my mentees grow within their role. In addition, being Big 6 Captain (Team

Sales advisor) enabled me to work with my coworkers on perfecting their individual sales

approach. I also created presentations to teach my team a variety of sales techniques in

order to achieve team goals. It is mainly while holding these two specific roles and with

the ongoing support and encouragements from my peers and my superiors that I decided

to transition to an occupation in education.

School Observations and Classroom Application

Throughout the last year, I have been privilege to observe an array of educators in

various learning settings. Indeed, I observed educators in a less formal setting during

Saturday Academy in a few different schools in Buffalo New York. In these types of

settings, we observed the educators addressing a multitude of students from all age

groups. Each Saturday was based on a specific theme, such as oral hygiene or providing

an impactful contribution in my community. Often times, there were no formal lessons,

but more stations offering different aspects of the theme, where the students learning

would take place by navigating through the stations and doing the proposed activities.

Although it was fun for the students to participate in the activities in the order that they

wanted and to stay at each station for the amount of time that they desired, it did become

chaotic and disorganized at times. Students rarely made it through all of the stations and

were easily distracted by others circulating between stations. Students seemed to get

bored quickly and rarely completed the proposed tasks. It also would become very loud at

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times. Students would be shouting at each other from one corner of the room to the other.

I assume that this would not be an appropriate setting for certain types of learners

especially those with loud noises such as mildly autistic children or students with a visual

impairment who rely heavily on their auditory senses. However, some positive aspects of

this setup was the fact that parents or family members could participate in the activities

together. Some of the students seemed to really enjoy being able to conduct an activity

with their sibling as well as one of their parents. A normal classroom setting would never

allow for this type of interaction to happen. Another aspect that I thought was very

interesting was that some sort of physical activity and hands-on approach were always

included. Students were encouraged to participate in those types of activities and they

were by far the most popular stations. Looking at Flemming’s types of learners, it was

wonderful to see the kinesthetic learners feel valued and engaged.

I also observed gifted underrepresented students of low socioeconomic

backgrounds at Buffalo Prep. The dedication that these students have for their education

was inspiring. I mostly observed mathematics, science, English language arts (ELA)

classes. The teachers for each class had very different methods. For the mathematics and

ELA classes, the students were divided by gender. Consequently, female students would

be in one class while the male students were in the other. They would switch places and

the same teacher would teach the class again but to a different gendered class. This was

especially interesting to see how a teacher would apply different teaching methods based

on the students that were in their class.

The ELA teacher broached very difficult subjects with the students. She used

many group discussions to prompt higher learning thinking from her students. She was

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very mindful of everyone’s opinion and never took sides in a debate. She also controlled

the class very well (for both genders) and was always able to bring the students back to

focus on the lesson when the conversation would start to go sideways. Before doing so,

she would allow a few comments to be made that were not lesson oriented in order to

diffuse the tension from the difficult subjects broached. This method was very successful

and you could see the students enjoyed the class very much. She was able to provide a

safe learning environment for all based on mutual respect.

The mathematics teacher, however, was not as successful with the students,

especially the boys. She often lost control of the class and had difficulty get her point

across. It also wasn’t helpful that most of the male students in her class already seemed to

be familiar with the proposed lesson and showed no interest in reviewing concepts they

were already familiar with. She also lost the female class but in a completely different

way. The female students were quiet but were completely disengaged. Some of them did

not follow her explanations at all. I believe that she would have had better success if she

had an approach that would have allowed her to move around the classroom to see who

was following and who was falling behind. However, she seemed to have noticed that she

was loosing the students’ engagement because the last session I observed she introduced

personal white boards for all the students. During this lesson she asked the student to

work on their mathematic problems on the white board and to show their answers when

they were done. This method was much more successful and although she originally had

lost most of her students, you could see that slowly some were starting to become more

engaged.

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Contrarily to the previous two subjects observed, the science lessons where a

double period and included both male and female students. During these lessons, students

had one portion of theory followed by an activity based on the theory previously learned.

Often students were asked to stand or to work into groups. Finally they would go back to

their seats and engage in a group discussion to talk about their findings. This teaching

method was very successful. Students seemed more focused during the short theory part

of the lesson due to the anticipation of the upcoming activity. The teacher was very

skilled at using activities that could later be transposed into real life settings in order to

further engage the students. This enabled the learners to relate the theory to events that

occur in their day-to-day life. There were no real behavioral issues from the students.

They did however have sometimes very animated discussions where the teacher would

loose control of the class. She would talk louder over them in an attempt to regain

control. This technique was not as effective as the ELA’s teacher’s methods. For a

moment, the class would be a bit hectic with having students and teacher speak at a high

volume.

Finally, I was also able to observe a variety of teaching approached from our

teachers at Medaille. The approaches were as diverse as the teachers were. Most teachers

made a point to apply a few teaching methods in order to demonstrate what it would look

like in a classroom setting. It also allowed us to discover how a student might feel or

react when using these specific methods. Strangely enough, I usually did not initially

react well to most of the teaching methods. I feel that I have come to have certain

expectations when entering a classroom based on the type of school that I am in, the level

of education provided and obviously the teacher giving the lesson. I found it particularly

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interesting to witness teachers who did not convey a love of their lessons when they were

teaching students on how to be teachers. To me it was even more impactful than on a

normal school setting when you expect to encounter these types of attitudes. However, I

was very impressed by the level of dedication and passion that some other teachers

possessed. They were able to convey their love of their subject matter and were able, just

by their manner, to change the classroom atmosphere.

I was also able to observe my classmates while they conducted a few lessons of

their own. It was also very interesting to see them morph from friends and colleagues into

persons of authority. I really enjoyed seeing how some had teaching methods that were

very similar to who they are in the classroom as students. However, some others came

alive when they were placed in that role. I was able to discover another side of them,

because in some way, being a teacher is becoming a better version of yourself. It is about

becoming a model to your students, a guide, a mentor and an ear to listen to without

judgment. I also appreciated the fact that each student utilized different teaching methods

in order to deliver their lessons. Some were focused on personal work while other seemed

to prefer cooperative learning. The jigsaw technique and group discussions were very

successful to push the students to achieve higher-level thinking. The scientific method

and inquiry based learning through the use of manipulatives were also very effective. But

no matter what method they chose to use, one common denominator could be observed: it

was their knowledge of their lesson. They knew what they wanted their students to learn

and they had planned their lesson in such a way that would provide multiple methods to

get us there. They all demonstrated a caring and respectful attitude towards their students

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and I believe that I have learned from all of them as much if not more than what I have

learned from the other teachers I observed.

Philosophy of Education

Introduction

As a new member of the educational community, I am learning every day more

information that helps me improve my views on education. Since learners and society are

always changing, it is the educator’s duty to have a philosophy that evolves with them.

These viewpoints include my perspectives on the school, the curriculum, methodology,

and theory that is supported by evidence based practices and observations about learning,

the learner, the assessment process, classroom management and the teacher.

The School

I believe that the mission of a school should be to provide support and guidance to

its students throughout their years of learning. I also believe that a school should know its

student population and find ways for its learners to feel connected to the school. In order

to do so, schools should provide a safe environment where students feel welcomed and

part of a community. Students should feel valued and represented, no matter their cultural

backgrounds, physical or mental disabilities. A school is also part of a larger community.

This community includes the parents and caregivers to the students that attend the school,

to the staff that work within its space as well as the neighborhood it is located in. Keeping

this in mind, it is important that the institution does not only fulfill the needs of the

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students, but also provides a range of services to the broader community. This could be

done by providing night classes to parents of English Language Learners (ELL) in order

for them to better assist their children, or by creating out reach programs for residents of

the neighborhood.

The Curriculum

It seems that “the growth in the number of ELL students has surpassed the growth

in the number of non-ELL students” (Gottfried, 2014, 23). Knowing that this is the reality

in the United States as well as in most large cities in Canada, and that students perform

better when the teaching reflects their own cultural characteristics (Gay, 2002, 108); we

must conclude that the curriculum should be adapted to improve the amount of cultural

diversity we find in the classrooms. Another factor that needs to be addressed is the fact

that a curriculum should be built in meaningful patterns in order to assure students’

understanding of the material. A “Curriculum for understanding provides ample

opportunity for students to apply their knowledge in a variety of contexts and conditions.

This helps them transfer their learning to new situations and better prepares them for

future learning” (National Research Council, 2002, 137).

I also believe that additional life skills, such as budgeting, grocery shopping,

banking and investment knowledge, understanding what is insurance and finally

educating on the logistics of planning your estate, should be included in the curriculum.

In my opinion the current curriculum prepares students either for higher education or for

employment. However, it lacks the ability to prepare students on how to live once they

are independent and have an income of their own. This responsibility lies solely on the

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shoulder of the parents, the caregivers or the learners themselves. In a society where

many students come from different countries and socioeconomic backgrounds, it is easy

to imagine that there is a sizeable gap between students who have proper knowledge of

those skills and students who do not. With this in mind, it would be reasonable to expect

the curriculum to take on the responsibility to bridge that gap.

Learning

As mentioned earlier, the number of ELL students as well as students with special

learning needs is becoming increasingly high. As such, educators must not only find

ways to provide a more diversified approach to learning, but also to be aware that they

will encounter many different types of learners. Flemming emphasizes this concept in his

VARK theory by stating that there are five different types of learners (visual, aural,

read/write, kinesthetic and multimodality) and as such, educators should be mindful to

create lessons that will appeal to all types. This is why it is so crucial for educators today

to use teaching methods such as the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) model. Indeed,

the UDL model enables teachers to use differentiated instructions in order to support all

types of learners. Offering a variety of methods to accommodate and engage all learners.

Moreover, providing cooperative learning lessons would enable students to have

access to Vygotsky’s concept of MKO on whom students may rely on instead of always

relying on the teacher. This is particularly beneficial for the ELL students since they

often do better by learning from their peers than from the teacher. It is also a great way to

encourage the MKO students to reach higher order thinking levels recognized in Bloom’s

taxonomy. Along with the concept of MKO, educators should also include scaffolding

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teaching methods in order to slowly enable students to achieve their learning goals on

their own. Using a variety of teaching techniques and by building strong educational

foundations, students will become more confident in their abilities and should be able to

execute the tasks on their own.

A final aspect that needs to be addressed is, the fact that since classrooms become

more culturally diverse, the lessons should as well. Indeed, Geneva Gay advises that

educators should assure to provide culturally responsive teaching in order to allow all

students, not just from the dominant group, to feel valued. Providing positive attitude

towards all cultures and finding ways to integrate significant contributors of each culture

into the lessons will not only provide a meaningful learning experience for the students,

but it should also empower the students.

The Learner

Looking at Piaget’s cognitive developmental theory, I must admit that I would

love the privilege to work with students who are in the concrete operational stage. Indeed,

this stage consists of learners between the ages of seven and eleven who have gained “a

better understanding of mental operations. [At this age,] children begin thinking logically

about concrete events but have difficulty understanding abstract or hypothetical

concepts” (Cherry, 2019). I believe that it is at this stage of the development that teachers

can have a meaningful impact. Indeed, here students have the ability to use inductive

logic which “involves going from a specific experience to a general principal” (Cheery,

2019). At this stage, learners have the ability to make key observations and have “the

ability to focus on many parts of a problem” (Cherry, 2019). This means that students

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become be more and more sociocentric, instead of the egocentric characteristic found in

the previous stages. This is where a teacher can really guide and collaborate with a

student through lessons. At this stage, we can help our students aim for higher-level

critical thinking. We can also apply more easily Vygotsky’s ideas of cooperative learning

and the MKO principle since students are more willing to work in groups and possess

more empathy toward others.

Assessment

Throughout the years, students in general classroom settings have been requiring

more and more individualized learning assistance due to a various types of learning

difficulties. This fact combined with the growing number of ELL students must make us

rethink our traditional assessment methods. I believe that, at its core, the goal of

assessment is to see, in a tangible manner, if the student’s understanding and ability to

apply the concepts presented to them. With this assumption, it seems that educators

should use a variety of tools; in the same way they have while teaching students through

differentiated learning techniques, to enable students to be appropriately assessed. How

students should be assessed/evaluated on their progress should be addressed on a need to

basis. Teachers should know their learners well enough to be able to provide

modifications or accommodations, when there is a need in order to make the assessment

equitable.

Classroom Management

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Having good classroom management skills is imperative when it comes to

learning. A teacher might have the most stimulating lesson, but if there is no classroom

management it is very unlikely that any learning will take place. To have good classroom

management is to ensure that the educator stays in control of its classroom. The

behavioral issues have been anticipated or are being addressed in a timely manner in

order to prevent any disruption that may prevent students from learning.

There are many effective techniques that promote classroom management but

none of them will fully work if the teacher does not have a good relationship with its

students based on mutual respect. Once this is in place, the teacher must adapt their

classroom management methods based on the students present in their classroom and the

type of person he or she is. There is however, in my opinion, a universal technique that

should be applied by all educators. It is the idea that a teacher must always be aware of its

students. This means that a teacher should use a zigzagging pattern when looking at their

students in order to assure to always have an overlook of their student. Another method to

achieve the same result is to set up the class in a way that permits the teacher to walk

around the classroom instead of only staying in the front. These are two very easy and

efficient ways to deter most students from initiating disruptive behavior. It also allows the

teacher to assess its students and see their level of engagement.

The Teacher

I believe that one of the most important tool a teacher must have is the ability to

listen. They must not only be able to listen to what their students are saying but also what

they are not saying. Indeed, teachers have the responsibility to know their learners in

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order to be able to customize their lessons in order for them to be engaging to their

students. This also allows the teacher to create the proper classroom environment within

which the students will feel safe to learn and to share thoughts and ideas that they may

not if it were not for this level of comfort and trust developed not only between them and

the teacher but also with the rest of their classmates.

Incidentally, a teacher must build relationships with their students based on trust.

In order to achieve this the educator must first learn how to communicate with their

students. They must learn their language, verbal and non verbal. They must also learn

about their culture and their interest and integrate these elements in the lessons he or she

presents to the students.

Finally a teacher must model the behavior he or she expects to take place in his or

her own classroom. A teacher must be a guide for its students but educators must not be

afraid to be embarrassed or to experience failure in front of their students. Showing that

failure is part of learning and be willing to be vulnerable in front of their students is the

only way an educator will be able to gain the respect and trust of its students.

Resume

My curriculum vitae is the most appropriate document to highlight my

educational background, my various work experiences and the many other relevant

portraits that best represent me as a professional individual and prospective educator.

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Conclusion

This section of my portfolio, examined some of my educational experiences. I

identified my work experiences and included my school observations and classroom

applications. Finally, I discussed my philosophy of education and incorporated a copy of

my curriculum vitae. This section will help future employers understand my skillsets as

well as the type of teacher I aspire to be. They are now able to see some of the personal

and professional experiences that molded me into the person that I am today and the path

that lead me to this profession. This enabled them to see how some of my abilities can be

transferred into the field of education. In the following section, readers will be able to see

some artifacts that represent my teaching abilities and values, and how they relate and

adhere to the curriculum and professional standards. It will also emphasizes my

knowledge and understanding of various subject matters and confirm my ability to

translate this knowledge to the students in ways that facilitates and enhances their

learning experiences.

[Back to Table of Contents]

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