Final Teaching Reflection

The most valuable insight that I gained from my student teaching experience is how comfortable I am teaching. There was never a morning that I struggled to get out of bed. There was never a time during the day when I was watching the clock. There was never a night that I didn't go to bed feeling accomplished.

The students are behind all of the positive experiences I had during the year. I continued the work of my cooperating teacher who created an environment in which students feel comfortable being themselves. I heard some hilarious off-color yet on-topic jokes. I had passionate but respectful debates with students. I geeked-out with students about music, anime and video games. I had deep heart-to-heart conversations with students about the trials of life. In got to know students as individuals. I was the teacher that I wanted in high school. I tried my best to create a 55 minutes of the day that students didn't hate.

My only wish is that the school year hadn't ended so soon due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. I lost out on valuable time and experience in the classroom. However, this is not to say that no good came out of the event. I learned how to create at-home learning lessons that effectively imparted basic knowledge.

I'm excited to start my career and make the next school year better than the last.