I have learned so much on this educational journey, and with it now rapidly coming to a close, I am feeling more confident in myself and also in my ability to navigate through this career. This career I chose has so many layers. Meaning that I feel that once I have accomplished one goal and exceeded, there is another goal just waiting for me to achieve it! I am truly grateful to be a part of this journey.

One word that resonates more than any other word at this moment is: COMMITMENT. I choose this word because this is what I feel this job is about. I am commiting myself as an educator or pledging to do this job to the best of my ability. I am commiting myself to my work, to my students, my collegues, parents and to my community.

Reflecting back on last practicum 490, the commitment to the classroom and to my job grew stronger as time passed. As I became more comfortable, I was able to reach out more to collegues, I was able to connect more to the students and build relationships, and started building connections with parents as well (even though it was difficult due to COVID restrictions). My commitment towards the classroom teacher also grew. With tight restraints around report cards, I needed to be on par with students learning and adapting to their development as well as both of us working together to assess the students achievements.

Coming from a grade 2/3 classroom for my first practicum and a K/1 classroom for my second practicum and now moving into a grade 7 classroom will be a huge change. One of my goals will be to focus on classroom management. Going from primary to intermediate will be much different. It’s not like I can clap my hands in a pattern to get their attention anymore! I will need to use a different tone, different management strategies and a variety of different kinds of movement breaks. I will look forward to going into class prior to practicum to observe what management strategies are already in place. Another goal for practicum 491 is to focus on assessment and aligning the teaching to the learning intentions. More feedback from the classroom teachers will help me solidify my learning in this area. My third goal I have made for myself is to incorporate more indigenous content into my lessons. Looking back on last practicum, it was difficult in the K/1 classroom, but I am confident it will be much easier in an older grade. I think that understanding and learning more about other cultures will help me to integrate in easier into the teachings.

I am looking forward to this last chapter of our journey and I am commited to be open-minded, reflexive, creative and energized by everything and everyone around me. This journey is not the end, but the beginning of a lifetime of commitment to the best career ever!