Participating in a Professional Development School has given me the opportunity to be totally immersed in two different school’s cultures as well as form professional relationships with two sets of staff members. The partnership between a mentor and an intern is different in the Professional Development School experience then it is in a traditional nine to twelve week student teaching experience.  I had the opportunity to develop strong professional relationships with two classroom teachers as I progressed through my internship experience. 

           

Phase I

Beginning in August, I began my first clinical experience phase at Wilson Intermediate School in Pekin, Illinois.  I spent phase I in a fifth grade classroom.  During this phase, I worked closely with my mentor teacher.  We worked as a team.  I became aware of the preparations and decisions that a classroom teacher makes as he or she prepares for the learning experiences for the students.  I assisted my mentor in the classroom by working with small groups of students, working with individual students, observing strategies and techniques that were being used, understanding the resources that are available, and learning the science and art of teaching.  I observed and participated in classroom management skills such as behavior management, parent conferencing, student seating arrangements, daily routines, and much more.  I took on daily procedures such as leading the morning and afternoon routines, taking the class to specials, monitoring restroom breaks, and maintaining class record keeping.  I also had the opportunity to conduct whole class instruction. Consequently I provided an extra set of hands to complete daily plans in the classroom.  It was truly a hands on experience.  In addition to having conversations with my cooperating teacher, I also kept a journal that was used as a communication tool between us. This journal provided us with a reflective component that was crucial to the development of my knowledge of teaching. 

 

 

Phase II

In October I began the second phase of my clinical experience.  I spent this phase in a third grade class classroom at C.B. Smith Primary School in Pekin, Illinois.  This phase was similar to the first in that I worked closely with my mentor teacher.  I became aware of the preparations and decisions that a classroom teacher makes as she or he prepares for learning experiences for the students while having the opportunity to observe the similarities and differences that are found across grade levels.  I also had the opportunity to conduct daily procedures such as morning routines, afternoon routines, taking the class to specials, monitoring restroom breaks, and record keeping.  I had the opportunity to conduct one-on-one instructional assistance as well as whole class and small group instruction. I also participated in parent-teacher conferences and home communication.  

 

 

Phase III           

My student teaching phase began in January of 2006.  Up to this point, I had already been completely immersed in two different classrooms.  For student teaching, I returned to the fifth grade classroom where I had completed my first clinical experience.  Upon my return, I was able to observe the personal growth that had happened during my absence when I was completing phase two of the program.  The first few days upon returning to my fifth grade classroom were spent observing, but my role quickly changed.  Due to prior experience with my mentor and the class, I began to assume more teaching responsibility in the classroom immediately.  I took over all daily procedures including morning routine, daily procedures, record keeping, classroom monitoring, as well as individual, small group, and whole class instruction.  In the following weeks, I took over one subject at a time until I had taken over all of the subjects.  I was carrying a full load by the fourth week of my student teaching experience. Taking over a subject included all of the planning and coordination for the subject.  I wrote weekly lesson plans as well as prepared all of the materials necessary for each lesson. Communication between my mentor and I was extremely important at this time.  Through having conversations with her, I was able to adjust my plans as needed so that they would be as beneficial to the students as possible.  During my student teaching phase, I also attended all school improvement meetings as well as meetings that took place concerning individual students.