Quality Standard 4: Teachers demonstrate professionalism through ethical conduct, relfection, and leadership.

Element A

Teachers demonstrate high standards for professional conduct.

Artifact: Note from colleagues in Student Support Services

Rationale: This note demonstrates that not only did I aim to have the highest standards for professional conduct, but I succeeded, as the teachers I worked with felt that my teaching was beneficial for all students. I worked well with the other teachers at Stargate for the benefit of all the students I had the joy of teaching and I am honored that the other teachers felt the same.

Element B

Teachers link professional growth to their professional goals.

Artifact: Evidence of reading "How the Gifted Brain Learns"

Rationale: My biggest goal in this student teaching was to get to know ways to approach gifted learning in the elementary music classroom. Because of this, I chose to read a book on gifted learning so I knew how it differed from an average classroom where one might have some gifted students, some average students, and some students with learning concerns. This book helped me effectively plan and execute lessons that were interesting to students and on their level, and I found great success in working with them because I had a greater understanding of how their thinking changed their learning and how much deeper I needed to dive with my critical thinking questioning and skill development to keep it interesting and forward-moving.

Element C

Teachers respond to a complex, dynamic environment.

Artifact: Calendar of Teaching

Rationale: This was our second draft of a teaching schedule, and it continued to change throughout my time at Stargate. We frequently traded off teaching, particularly as concert preparation began and moved to the forefront of our planning, which means plans always had to be ready and I frequently had to be prepared to switch depending on what classes needed to work on most.

Element D

Teachers demonstrate leadership in the school, the community, and the teaching profession.

Artifact: Evidence of Substitute Days from Frontline

Rationale: I was asked early on in my time as a student teacher to consider substituting for teachers at Stargate. I did apply to be a substitute and was able to take on that responsibility when Mrs. Delevoryas was sick and will continue to take on that responsibility when this placement is complete. I also successfully maintained my full-time private music studio throughout this placement, which I will continue to do while substituting at the school as needed.

Quality Standard 4 Reflection

It was very important to me to demonstrate professionalism during my time at Stargate. I always strive to make the most ethical choices, reflect on my choices and how they impact those around me, and to take my role as a leader in the classroom or in a school building (since typically music teachers are the only music expert in a school) very seriously. Without consistent reflection, we cannot improve our practices as teachers or make positive decisions for our communities as leaders. While I was quite busy during my student teaching managing both this and a full time job as a private music teacher, I made time daily to reflect on how classes went, try to resolve any outstanding concerns, and consider how best to move forward for my students. This has been my practice since I first began teaching and I doubt, since it is now so engrained in my practices, that there will ever come a time when I won't reflect on my teaching with the intention of ensuring that my students are truly receiving the best music instruction they can from me. Often my self-reflection will result in seeking more information about a specific topic, and this is how I have come to read a great number of books on teaching, parenting, etc., or take classes when available in new curriculums or methodologies. I often reflect on my previous teaching while reading these books or taking these classes to see how I could have improved previous practices and in this student teaching, I was determined to attempt new lesson ideas as often as possible so I could apply my recent learnings and check if the new ideas that resulted were at least as effective as my previous lessons, preferably more effective.

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