Michael's Reflection

Students are our business, and their success is our profit. If we want to succeed as teachers we need to remember the students. This We Believe states that curriculum should be student-based and relevant, challenging, integrative and exploratory. A diverse curriculum will appeal to every student because it focuses on what makes them unique and connects to the community they come from. Thus, according to This We Believe, using multiple learning and teaching approaches that respond to our student's diversity is important. Each student brings their own successes, their own failures and their own talents to our classroom and as teachers, it is our responsibility to make sure that every student has a chance to share what makes them special. Also, This We Believe and the says the educational community must expect high expectations of every member. Students and teachers alike need to be held accountable to hold up their end of the educational continuum: teachers pass on their knowledge to the students and create an authentic learning environment, while students listen, keep developing their learning and provide the teacher with feedback for future planning. The student-teacher relationship is fresh out of M. C. Escher's "Drawing Hands" where both sides are constantly adding to and changing the other for the better. The relationship is effective only as long as both the teacher and the student are holding up their end of the bargain. This is what This We Believe describes as students and teachers engaged in active learning, because both groups are working together toward a common goal: student success.

Teachers who want to teach Middle School should take professional development and learn how to best work with this age group. This We Believe states that successful schools have teachers who value working with adolescents and are prepared to do so. A teacher who is trained to work with adolescents and understands their plight is more likely to know what they need in order to succeed: the success of the student must be our primary goal as teachers. This We Believe mentions an inviting, supportive and safe environment. I want my students to feel safe to share their ideas in the classroom, and me understanding their cognitive development is the first step in this process. If you do not consider what the student is feeling, then how can you possibly teach them in a way that benefits them. Our students are changing physically and have a ton of energy, so remember to let them get up once in a while and move. Our students are at a crossroads between the individual of yesterday and the moral, psychological citizen of tomorrow, so help them along by being an advocate and helping them interact with one another and make connections. This We Believe states that every student needs an adult advocate, someone they can go to when they hit trouble in school or just need to find a solution to whatever is bothering them during the transition to adulthood.

We need to be united in our endeavor to help students. This We Believe tells us that we need a shared vision that guides decisions, which basically means that the entire educational community needs to be on the same page. This is why teams are such an integral part of the true Middle School, because they allow students to experience a collaborative learning experience and get the full benefit of everything the teachers have to offer. If one teacher is acting apart from the rest, students feel confused about what is expected of them and lose interest in school altogether. Next, This We Believe mentions that courageous, collaborative leadership is a must in the Middle grades classroom. Teachers are bound to run right into trouble working with this age group because they are unpredictable and always re-evaluating their place in the structure, often feeling as if they don't know where they fit in. One job of a teacher is to let each student know they do belong and helping them find their place in the community while also trying to teach them knowledge at the same time. In this way, Middle School teachers have to maintain a healthy, productive balancing act for their students that meets all the standards while taking the individual student's personality into consideration. In This We Believe, they mention that quality learning comes from authentic assessment and evaluation programs. If teachers are mindful of their students and provide assessment designed to get the students thinking and yearning for more, then school is successful. Otherwise, I believe that students start to lose interest in school and stop listening. Once that happens, the student may never check back in.

There must be a community of support for the students. This We Believe says successful schools are characterized by school-initiated family and community partnerships. I agree that education must be a joint effort between the entire educational community, which means that parents, teachers, the principal, the superintendent, the School Board and even the community at large are responsible for the development of the students. School cannot be separate from the home for we want students to become life-long, consistent
learners. The only students can become consistent learners is to show them that education is not a six hour commitment, but a daily non-stop mindset in thinking and discovering. According to This We Believe, there must be organizational structures that support meaningful relationships and learning. this goes back to teachers and students working together within the classroom and within the bigger context of the community to keep their minds open to each other. Each level is focused on protecting and developing the resources of the level below them: Superintendents advise the Principals who provide support to the teachers and the teachers and parents watch over the students. Every level understands its responsibility and as long as they work together, then the structure is effective for safe and productive learning.

Students need guidance to succeed. First and foremost, This We Believe says there must be guidance and support services available to our students. This comes in two forms: 1) As actual guidance counselors that provide assistance to the students both in personal and educational situations, and 2) teachers and parents, who must serve as advocates to children and guide them through a safe and productive adolescent period. A teacher's main goal must be to instill knowledge and understanding, but our second job is to serve as an advocate for our students even when it seems unnecessary. According to This We Believe, another important aspect of a successful school is school-wide efforts to foster health, wellness and safety. Many of the ideas in This We Believe do seem to repeat themselves, because they are extremely important to forming and maintaining a successful school environment, and safety is one of those elements most harped upon. Students are forced to attend school; they do not have a choice and so it is our responsibility to provide a safe environment, since we are forcing them to be there. That said-students should not be made to feel forced, but rather should feel excited to be in school, which can be accomplished if the school puts policies in action that promote learning rather than take away from it.