Professional Responsibility Reflection:

As a provisionally licensed teacher and a M.A.T. candidate, my professional

responsibility to the field of science instruction is something I take very seriously. The job of an

instructor goes well beyond the classroom. An instructor must plan and prepare strong lessons,

that take their learners and social context into account (Brown, 2004). The instructor must also

be able to reflect and analyze the effectiveness of their teaching practices and assessments by

studying patterns in student work. This analysis must be thorough and informed through the use

of peer-reviewed literature. Throughout my time in the M.A.T. program, I have been given the

opportunity to learn about research-based teaching methods and to receive feedback on my

teacher preparedness.

My professional responsibility is first and foremost demonstrated towards my students. In

order to assure that my students receive the very best instruction, I must utilize the resources I

have through Georgia State University, through my district, and through the access I have to

peer-reviewed literature.

One of the greatest growth opportunities I have are my observations. Currently, I receive

two formal observations from my University Supervisor, two formal observations from my

Mentor Teacher, and three formal observations from my Assistant Principal per semester. All of

these observations come with feedback and guidance that I can use to guide future instruction.

As a new teacher, I struggle to find enough time to fully differentiate my lessons. Throughout my

observations, this has been pointed out as a weakness. I have been able to see this pattern in my

instruction from several other perspectives and gone to the literature to help attain strategies that

will help me differentiate without adding excess planning and grading time to my busy schedule.

My professional responsibility here is to the students—each and every student. This means that

differentiation is not an option or a luxury, but something that each student deserves. Through
the help of peer-reviewed literature, I have begun incorporating small group strategies that help

me address individual student needs better while still carrying on instruction for the whole class

(Castle, 2005).

Another weakness that has been presented to me is a need to model the use of feedback

on student work. Because of this, I have started taking time out the beginning of each class to

address questions students may be having about previous assessments.

Additionally, it has been pointed out to me that I need to help my students foster a better

learning environment by keeping students focused and on task throughout the lessons. Through

literature searches and seeking advice from my school administration, I have begin addressing

this issue in a few different ways. One method has been to incorporate more inquiry-based

learning strategies. This change was made to help students stay engaged and keep them on task

(Zion, 2012). Another suggestions from the school administration was that I send students who

refuse to cooperate to work in a separate classroom. In this way, I stay true to my responsibility

to the students to maintain a safe environment centered around learning.

The last weakness that has been pointed out is my use of content-specific vocabulary. In

order to model stronger language use in my students, I need to incorporate teaching strategies

that will allow students to build deeper and more authentic connections with the new vocabulary.

I also need to be sure that I am modeling the use accurately and frequently. One support that I

can use to ensure I model usage of vocabulary accurately is to reference content-specific

phrasing in the student’s textbook. In this way, I will have full awareness of the specific

terminology the students should be learning according to their grade level.

By address these four main weaknesses, I will be able to continue growing as a

professional and uphold my responsibility to the public and to my students.

References:

Brown, D. F. (2004). Urban Teachers’ Professed Classroom Management Strategies. Urban

Education, 39(3), 266-289. doi:10.1177/0042085904263258

Zion, M., & Mendelovici, R. (2012). Moving from structured to open inquiry: Challenges and
limits. Science Education International, 24, 383-399.

Castle, S. (2005, February 1). Flexible Grouping and Student Learning in a High-Needs School.
Retrieved November 20, 2017, from
http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0013124504270787