Post 3

As a future teacher what do you see as your main weakness (or weaknesses) and how will you work on improving this (these)?

For me as a choral teacher, the answer is simple: piano skills. I never took piano until I got to college, and passed with a level of mediocrity in the classes I took. I needed two semesters to complete all the requirements for the final piano class, and after 5 semesters of class piano, I still feel lost in front it. The piano is a simple arrangement of 88 keys, encompassing all the notes of the chromatic scale, but yet it haunts me. Why? I freak out when something doesn't go exactly the way it has to and I usually stop. I have yet to learn the fine skill of ignoring mistakes and keeping the piece going.

How can I fix this? Simple: practice. The answer is simple yet the execution of the answer is difficult. I know that it will take many hours for me to hone my skills enough to be as good as I need to be. This will require discipline on my part, but I can do it. If this means staying extra hours after school is over or getting to school early, I will do it. I need these skills in order to become a better teacher, and so I must practice the appropriate amount. The most important thing for me to remember is that I can do it.

Post 2

How do you plan to leave your "mark" on your students, your peers, your school, or your profession?

Since I graduated high school, I have often enjoyed reminiscing with my former classmates about the good times in school. We also have discussions where we roll our eyes about the bad times. Most of the good times that come up involve a particular teacher or class we took. I want to be the teacher my former students reminisce about and say, "Hey, you remember Mr. Greenfield"s class?" or "Man, choir was the best class I took in high school." How do I plan to accomplish this? I will make sure the students have a healthy and comfortable learning environment while making some wonderful music.

The an important thing for my students to remember is not what songs they sang, or even what musical concepts they learned during the process, but that they continue to support and have an appreciation for all the arts. Most of my singers will not be music majors when they get to college (although it would be nice, I am being realistic), but I expect them to still sing in some capacity after high school. Most importantly, they should be, as the ideals of my fraternity say so eloquently, "manly musicians, musicianly men" (or if it is the case, womanly musicians, musicianly women). In other words, through music, they will understand the power the world beholds, and can be great people because of my teaching. 

Post 1

What things would you change about schools and why?

As long as I have been in school, the American education system has been focused on test scores, especially standardized tests. If a student did not meet the requirements of that particular test, the student was often given a label with a negative connotation. Most tests only cater to one or two styles of learning, yet there is, in reality, a plethora of learning styles spread all across the gamut. The education system needs to do a complete shift in focus to, quite frankly, EDUCATING the students as they learn, not teaching to the test. NCLB (No Child Left Behind) was a complete step back in the progress of the education system.

Now is the time for new teachers and teachers-to-be to change the way schools operate. If we can all begin to return the schools to an education based environment as opposed to test based, I will be happy, as will my children and my children's children. School should be a place where we all can realize our strengths and weaknesses and know how to make our strengths improve our weaknesses. One of the most important ideas in education is allow students to explore and find their strengths and enjoy them.