Then and Now: An Evolution of Professional Goals

By: Amy LaPonsie

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       When I first graduated with my Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Professional Education from Western Michigan University (WMU), I felt fully prepared to step into the classroom and take on my first year as a teacher. I was not aware of how much I would learn about myself as a professional educator and as a person in my first few years of teaching. After teaching for two years in an urban Title 1 school, I began to identify areas of teaching in which I could improve. I have always been very reflective of myself (read: critical) when it comes to my profession. I wanted to do better for myself, but mostly for my students.

        When I applied to the Michigan State University Master of Arts in Education program, my goals were simple: I wanted to be a better teacher. I wanted to enhance the knowledge I had from my time at WMU and learn new ways to reach my students. This is a short excerpt from my initial application to the program: “I believe achieving a Master’s degree will help me achieve my goal of becoming [a] great teacher by increasing my knowledge of teaching and give me the skills to reach all of my students. Another goal of mine is to reach my students in different ways...I need to enhance my skills to help all of my students learn in the best way possible. Gaining new skills and earning a master’s degree will help me do this.”

       Over the course of the past two years, I can definitely say I have increased my skills in differentiation as well as increased my knowledge of pedagogy. I have also formed new, more concrete goals during my study. Originally I chose the areas of Mathematics/Science and Special Education as my concentration areas. I completed the Mathematics/Science concentration and learned a tremendous amount about integrating these subjects into other subjects, utilizing technology to teach these subjects, as well as many other great skills added to my figurative “teacher toolbelt.” However, I really enjoyed one of the technology courses I took, and shifted my concentration area away from Special Education and to focus on earning the Educational Technology Graduate Certificate instead. The courses I have taken in Educational Technology have all been extremely worthwhile courses and my skills have increased dramatically.

       A new goal of mine has emerged, being that I would like to effectively use technology to enhance the learning of my students. When I return to the classroom in August of 2016, I will strive to critically analyze my students’ use of technology and ensure they are reaping all the benefits of what is available to us. There is such an opportunity for students to learn and explore through digital technology. I do not just want to teach my students to use technology, I want to help them learn content through the use of technology. My goal is the same - I want to reach my students in ways that are meaningful to them. I think using varying digital technology in my classroom will be one way to achieve this goal. When students walk away from my classroom, my goal is that they will feel like digital technology was an important, meaningful part of our daily learning.