Final Product

I finally got my video edited down to around five minutes. It is exactly four minutes and fifty eight seconds long. I was very proud of my work as I watched the final product. My PLC gave me very good and useful feedback when it came time to watch it. I liked my lesson after I watched the edited version more; it seemed more to the point. I am glad to have learned how to edit a video because I will be sure to do that in the future.

The Editing

I had never edited a video before; I had never even uploaded a taped video to the computer. I thought the process was going to be very tedious and difficult but to my surprise it was not like that. The only problems that I had were when uploading the video to the computer. The computer completely froze close to the end of uploading my video twice. That was stressful because I had to start uploading all over again. The third time I moved into a completely different room in the cite lab. Many people were having that same problem in the first room I was in. After I got it uploaded and started to edit I made sure to save as often as possible. I was glad to do so because Windows Movie Maker froze on me a couple of times. Editing the video was not difficult; the difficult part was getting it down to five minutes.

Before the Video

As I was thinking about my lesson that was to be observed and video taped I felt nervous. I thought I was nervous during my first observed lesson, now this one would not only be observed but also video tapped. I knew that camera would give me chills. I already got nervous even when a teacher observed me. There would be three other pair of adult eyes along with twenty one students observing me plus, the rest of the people that would be watching my video. Talk about pressure! I made a plan to be prepared, I worked on my lesson a week before, fixed it to the point I wanted it to be in and gathered my materials all in a timey manner. I knew my students would not be a problem; they are all very respectful and attentive.

In Conclusion

As the semester comes to an end I think back to the beginning when my brain was at overload from the amounts of information I was receiving. Method courses, cooperating teachers, observations, professional developments, meetings, and much more were in everyone’s conversations. It was an intense semester, I feel like I learned more in just Quest 2 than in all of Quest 1. The experience in the classroom made the biggest difference in my learning. Both of my rotations made me growth as a teacher very positively. As the semester progressed I noticed a positive change in my classroom management and instruction practice. I got ideas on what to do and how to react in certain situations as well as how to not act. My second rotation was a different world than my first one. I was in a fourth grade classroom; the students were much more independent and structured. Due to the structure I was able to gain experience with classroom management by practice and observation. My cooperating teacher was team leader and had experience with other classroom environments and techniques; she was very helpful and supportive in planning my lessons. In all honesty it was the best behaved classroom that I had ever been in, which surprised me because of the age range of the students. It was a very structured, respectful and comfortable environment, which is my goal for my classroom. I did not only learn from my cooperating teachers, but also from everyone else at the school. I learned to get myself more organized in order to not get assignments, due dates and documents mixed up. I also learned to take everything one step at a time, which supports my professional attributes. The only one that would sneak up on me ever once in a while was the punctuality one. It never was to the point that it affected my time in the classroom or my ability to teach my students. It was always that I felt that I could not control. The amount of time that I allowed myself to get to school raised as I realized the bad traffic situation, but still it was unpredictable. There would be days that I arrived so early at the school that I would sit in my car for a few minutes before going in and others in which I had to hurry in a couple of minutes after the clock. I used my flexibility and maturity attributes to not let any situation affect my performance. I now know why this program is so demanding; only such a program could make me grow and learn so much. I learned from the choices and mistakes I made as well as from everyday observations.

Mid Way

QUEST 2
Quest 2 has been an exceptional experience. In my opinion, it is where I have learned the most. The two days that I am in my assigned classroom have taught me the most. Having to take on the teacher’s schedule and sometimes taking over the whole class is an eye opener. This semester has assured me that I do want to become a teacher, and the answer is yes. I have experienced being a teacher means to be committed, alert and always “on the go”. I had always heard this from others but now I see it and I am living it.
Experiencing Quest 2 has brought many challenges to my life, some more simple than others. The more simple ones have to do with my method courses. Sometimes it seems like I have to do so much at once, so many assignments to turn in at the same time. That brings an overwhelming feeling that makes it tough to get started. I have learned to take things one step at a time instead of thinking about everything at once, that way everything is less of a challenge. The most serious or difficult challenges have been in my assigned classroom with my cooperating teacher. I say challenging because they are all new experiences. The most frightening experience was during my last day of the rotation. A child had a seizure right in the middle a class activity. I have dealt with assignments, projects and writing papers plenty of times. However, I had never had to deal with a situation like that. That is most challenging, dealing with scary situations in which someone’s life is in danger. My cooperating teacher and I were very nervous but dealt with everything correctly. That was the most difficult challenge, it was very emotional.
My goals for the rest of the semester include staying on track, which I have done so far. A challenge I had at the beginning of the semester was being on time but I have thankfully gotten better at that. My goal is to continue with that in order get my day out to a good start, making the rest of my day more successful.

As a Professional

My Professional Attributes


Since I have been a part of the education program at University of Houston the demonstration of professional attributes has been really enforced. The farther I get in the program, the more important they are. Personally I have been able to follow and enforce the professional attributes with ease. Growing up with a mom that greatly enforced positive attitude, cooperation, patients and responsibly as I was growing up makes it that much easier for me to enforce those qualities now as an adult. Life experiences have made me learn to be mature, flexible, tactful, appropriate, and enthusiastic.
All professional attributes seem fair and natural for me to follow except for the one stating punctuality. I will always be where needed, however I have found that being punctual for me is a challenge. I found this out when I stated to drive to University of Houston from Katy, Texas early in the morning. Being that I am not a “morning” person and the fact that I use a highway with high traffic as a main route is where the challenge comes in. I can not control the traffic on my route however what I will do is to go to bed earlier each night so that I can wake up earlier and give myself more than enough time to reach my destination. My goal is to aim to be early rather than to aim to be on time.