Blog Assignement 9

"What I've Learned This Year" by Mr. McClung

The first topic Mr. McClung talks about is "How to read my crowd." In this paragraph, he talks about how he developed a mindset that was all about him, the teacher and that he lost tough with his lesson. I imagine that a lot of first time teachers would fell this way because they are trying so hard to give a good lesson, all the while thinking if they are even doing a good job. I am quite sure that first time teachers let their nerves get the best of them.
The second paragraph Mr. McClung talks about is being flexible. He states, "No lesson is ever perfect. The lesson you teach and the one you plan are always different." I think this statement is very true because you can plan and plan for something to go perfect, however the reality of it is nothing is perfect. As much as we would all like to be perfect and have the perfect class with the perfect lessons, doesn't mean its going to happen. Also, you can't plan out life. I am quite sure that this is something that all first time teachers are going to experience. Teaching is something I have dreamed out since I was in the 2nd grade, and I know I am going to want everything to go a perfect as possible.
The third and in my opinion the most important paragraph of the entire blog is Communication. In my opinion, communication is the most important aspect of any relationship, be it a friendship, relationship or student-teacher relationship. If you do not have communication, you do not have a relationship. I also agree with Mr, McClung when he says communication skills are the hardest to develop. I think the reason communication skills are the hardest to achieve is because people are afraid to express their opinions in fear they may be wrong. I know that working with students now, they are deathly afraid of being wrong. I blame society for this because our society is very judgmental. We are constantly judging the girl with the crazy hair or the boy who looks like he just rolled out of bed. I believe our students are afraid they will be scolded if they are wrong.
The fourth paragraph Mr.McClung writes about is to Be Reasonable. I know as teachers we are going to want the best from our students. We are going to want them to give their best and be their best. Some students will be able to exceed this expectations, others will meet our requirements, and the rest will fall behind. We have to learn to except that that is how its going to be. We need to acknowledge the ones that exceed our expectations and that meet our expectations, and then encourage the others who fall behind.
The fifth paragraph is about not being afraid of technology. This is true because technology is all around us. It is in our homes, offices, schools and stores. We are having to incorporate this into classrooms because that is what our students are comfortable with. We need to make them as comfortable as we can in the classroom and whether we like it or not, they are comfortable with learning thought technology and we need to respect that.
The sixth paragraph is about listening to your students. It is very critical that we listen to our students. They are a voice in this world and deserve to be heard. Mr. McClung also points out that teachers do not know enough about the students they are teaching. I think that all teachers should know everything they can about their students, especially the younger ones. The reason I feel this way is because if something tragic has happened or something bad is going on in the household, the teacher should know because it could affect their learning and school work. Also, teachers should want to get to know the people they are teaching. I know that I try to find out different things with my students. I always ask them how things are going or how their family is so I can find out if their is something I should know. From the older ones I get answers, and from the younger ones I generally have to ask their parents because the child gets confused. I always feel much better after knowing whatever the issue is because I am able to help and be another eye when the parents aren't around to make sure the child is alright.
The last topic in the blog post is Never Stop Learning. Mr. McClung talks about how some educators "refuse to learn ans grow as professional learners." He also points out that we work in a learning environment so why not soak up as much as we can. This I completely agree with because education is constantly changing. Things are changing so rapidly that you have to be apt to learning new skills and things. Not only to we have to learn it, but also pass the information along to our students. They also can teach us a thing or two about technology so we need to be able to learn from our students while we are teaching them.

For the full article by Mr. McClung, you can click here