Reflection

It is my hope that this teaching portfolio, and the contents of it, effectively display who I am as a science teacher. Throughout this program, my teaching philosophy has changed greatly as I learned about different instructional techniques. The science education that I received was mostly lecture-based, as I'm sure is the story for many students. Direct instruction has its place in the science classroom, but should not be the main source of learning for the students. Inquiry based lessons help to bring curiosity into the classroom by framing the content through guiding questions that excite the students. My future classroom will also contain a large emphasis on collaboration as a way to engage the students and have them practice that real-world scientists often utilize. 

Direct instruction/lecture still holds a place in the science classroom, but I will not rely only on lecture to teach my students. Throughout the semester, I have gained an understanding of various types of instructional techniques to be used in the science classroom that are not just direct instruction. Including: Guided Instruction, Inquiry, POE, 5E Learning Cycle, Stations, Demonstration, Modeling, Engineering Design, Project Based Learning, Science Labs, Case-Based Learning, Argumentation, and Collaborative Learning. These methods, and my portfolio, highlight the skills that I have learned to inform my constructivist approach to teaching. I have had a chance to try or see these approaches used in the classroom, and guide what I want my future classroom to look like. The techniques I've gained through my student teaching can be used in the classroom to improve engagement. These strategies are also helpful in providing student choice, or meeting student learning preferences.