Educators engage in professional learning.
A Few of my Thoughts on Standard Seven:
If there is one thing that I have learned as an educator about to enter into the profession it is that professional development can happen in many different ways. The most common form comes around on Pro-D days where us teachers go to support our own growth as educators. Constantly learning is crucial to teaching and providing the best practices for our students. As we all know, when we teach to the individuals in our classrooms, that means constantly growing and evolving to best fit their needs. These professional development days are extremely crucial to me because I am just coming into teaching and there is so much that I still have to learn, and I need the help of seasoned educators guide me.
On the note of getting the help of other educators, I personally consider teacher collaboration as another important form of professional development. The teaching program sets us new teachers up for this perfectly as when we are in our practicums, we have another teacher in the classroom with us for much needed mentoring, guidance and ongoing support. I know that I personally will forever be indebted to my Coaching Teachers who have been so patient with me and offered feedback, exemplars, resources, and teacher tips that I will forever use in my own practice.
Another huge source of professional development has actually come from my fellow collogues that entered into the education program with me. I have learned so much from my fellow student teachers and would not be the same teacher without their knowledge and support. I have gained so much from these individuals that I know call my friends. From UNBC’s program I have found life-long friends and collogues that I know I can call on when I need help.
Being a life-long learner is one of the reasons I chose to become an educator. I want to always continue to grow and evolve. I cherish the fact that this profession not only encourages this ongoing development but requires it. This standard challenges us as individuals to never get too comfortable, too complacent. We are intrusted with educating future adults; it is important that we continue to look for the best ways for us to do so.
The moral of this page here is: everything can be a learning experience and as educators, we should try and take as many chances to learn as we can. Our students depend on us for their learning. Parents trust us with their children. We need to make sure that we are always doing our best job at providing our students with the best education possible, and professional development is a big part in how we do that.
There is so much that I am still learning about when it comes to teaching, and I will always welcome any opportunity I have to learn more from others in this profession.