Student Teacher Talk- Anna Bush

A current student teacher, Anna Bush, came into our classroom to give us some tips on the edTPA. Her enthusiasm and admittance of difficulties student teaching and teaching with the edTPA made me at ease when teaching with the edTPA. It was nice to hear her honest opinion of student teaching and her honest feed back on the benefits and disadvantages of the edTPA.

One thing that she recommended for future student teachers is to not do the edTPA lesson right away in your practicum experience. She admitted that she learned a lot about her teaching strategy and her approach but realized that it would have been easier to wait, as she gained more as her time increased in the classroom. Anna suggested teaching your lesson during the fourth or fifth week of class as it allowed for you to get to know your students more. Anna also emphasized the importance of having an open relationship with your cooperating teacher. This relationship will benefit you, as they will help you become a better teacher. She also mentioned that without this relationship, it could change your overall experience student teaching.

Anna also had a few good tips about classroom organization and by simply writing the criteria up on the board for your students, can help them stay on task and keeps them in the loop of what is expected of them today. She mentioned that taking on a class week-by-week would help eliminate the sense of being overwhelmed when it comes to your head weeks. By adding a new head class each week, by week seven, you will be teaching all of the classes anyway. I think this approach makes sense as it could help eliminate the stress of teaching all at once.

Overall Anna had some great tips and pointers about the edTPA and student teaching. It was great to hear her talk about these issues from the point of view of something who is currently going through these difficulties.