TE 846: Accommodating Differences in Literacy Learners
Summer 2014 Jessica Meier |
As my first course in the program, this was very applicable to my current third grade teaching position. The focus of this course was on students who struggle within the areas of literacy and how teachers can target skills areas to help these students' literacy needs. By choosing a student within our own classroom, we were required to assess our students and then evaluate the results in order to gain an understanding of what the student needs in order to be more successful in one area of literacy. Though this helped me with one particular student, the course as a whole helped me see some common areas where students may struggle and what can be done to assist them.
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CEP 816: Technology, Teaching and Learning Across Curriculum
Summer 2014 Rand Spiro |
We live in an age where technology is all around us and continues to advance each day. As teachers, there are many doors open to us when we integrate technology into our classrooms. This course allowed me to explore some of the opportunities available to teachers and gave me more confidence to utilize technology within my instruction. From this course, I acquired the background knowledge and experience of using popular resources for teachers, which helped me in later courses when these resources were revisited.
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TE 842: Elementary Reading Assessment and Instruction
Fall 2014 Marliese Peltier |
Within each classroom, teachers educate students who have a wide range of abilities and knowledge for a particular subject. Part of our role in today's education is meeting the needs of our students by assessing their knowledge to discover what they know and what they need to learn. In this course, we spent time delving into research to examine some of the most effective assessments for targeting the needs of our student in the various areas of literacy growth. Through case studies, we evaluated problem areas and strengths and then made recommendations of what a teacher could do to best assist each student.
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TE 850: Critical Reading for Children and Adolescents
Fall 2014 John Wargo |
Over the years, there have been many texts that are read each year by students because they are considered classics. In this course, we were asked to define the word "critical" after weeks of read through some works of literature that push students to think hard about the issues of our society today. While some of these works were not considered classics, we defended why students might benefit from reading them. Finally, as teachers of reading, we were asked to think about which texts might truly be critical for our students and why those that are currently read for their status of being a classic may not hold the same weight of importance.
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TE 849: Methods and Materials for Children's and Adolescent Literature
Spring 2015 Laura Apol |
In this course, we spent our time examining some of the effective methods for teaching children's literature. One of these methods was spending time discussing literature with others, which we practiced first hand through our conversations with classmates. We also looked closely at the ways to teach students about themes like diversity, gender issues, different cultures and the voice of the writer. We did this through the materials we used, which included a wide range of texts spanning across many genres. Through the use of these methods and materials, we considered the important role literature plays in the lives of our students.
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ED 800: Concepts in Educational Inquiry
Spring 2015 Steven Weiland |
This course began by taking a look at how we come to gain knowledge and considering what is worth knowing. As we explored the various ways that we come to gain knowledge, we examined different areas of inquiry and the questions that arise from our learning. By reading texts from notable educators, historical figures, and experts in the field of education, we came to see how knowledge can be gained through experience. This is a powerful reminder to take into classrooms today that are often bogged down with testing and meeting standards.
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TE 848: Writing Assessment and Instruction
Summer 2015 Jen Vanderheide |
While many of my courses examined literature in today's classrooms, this course allowed me to explore writing, another important area for students and their literacy development. As the Common Core requires students to write more to prove their understanding, this course helped me see opportunities for students to practice writing throughout my daily instruction. Another layer of this class required us to think about the writing process and how students share their writing in a digital format with others. In addition, we considered how and why the content of a student's writing should be examined rather than focusing too much on mechanics, which has changed the way I grade writing in my classroom.
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TE 838: Children's Literature in Film
Summer 2015 Laura Apol |
In this course, we surveyed some popular and classic children's novels and picture books and then were required to view the films created based on each text. While one of the areas of focus was taking note of the similarities and differences between book and film, the major theme throughout the class was considering why the filmmakers chose to divert from the text in some places and why they chose to remain loyal to the text in others. This course provided a place for me practice an instructional strategy for my own classroom and consider ways to help my students think critically about the purposes of the differences between books and films.
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TE 865: Teaching and Learning K-12 Social Studies
Fall 2015 Tamara Shattuck |
The content area of Social Studies allows students to gain knowledge of history, geography, economics, and politics. Within Social Studies education, teachers also have the opportunity to work through themes of teaching citizenship, perspectives on learning about the past, and issues of social justice. In this course, we focused on why these themes our so important for our students and considered ways to incorporate them into our Social Studies content.
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CEP 870: Capstone Seminar
Fall 2015 Matthew Koehler |
As the final course within my program, I had the chance to think back on what I've learned in my time at Michigan State. In doing so, this course allowed me to consider how I will use this knowledge as I move forward in my career. To showcase my learning, this portfolio has been created as my own reflection of my work within the program and as a statement of what I hope to accomplish upon completing the program.
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