Ending the Program

As this program comes to an end, I have been reflecting on where this will take me in my career. I feel that this was a very timely step in my career. This next school year, our department will be changing considerably. Even though I feel that I have always been a leader within my department, even though I wasn't the voice, I see next year being a lot different. The teacher that would normally speak for our department will be switching to a different department. We also will be getting two new teachers within our department. I feel that between myself and the other teacher, we will have to become more vocal leaders. I am excited for this opportunity and I feel that I am now ready to step out of my box and lead. I feel that this program has helped me become ready for this unexpected change. I feel that I am ready to take this on and to continue growing as a leader.

I have also been asked to co-facilitate our special education department PLC for next school year. We were going to try to implement this PLC this school but it was determined to wait a year. I am happy that I have been through this master's program because I feel much more prepared to take on this role. I feel that I have a better understanding of learning in a community and being a leader. This summer I will be attending a three day training on PLC's. I am excited to learn more and to be to take this back to my school and implement it. Again, I feel this will be a great way for me to step outside of my comfort zone and continue to grow as teacher.

By taking more time to reflect on my teaching, I have been able to come up with new ways to document student progress. I have also learned more about the value of goal setting. I am excited to have a plan in mind for my PDP. I plan to continue to find tools to use to document student progress but I also plan to involve my students more in the process. I feel that it can be very valuable to have students aware of what is written in their IEP's and why were work on certain things. At this point, I have not involved my students with the goal setting process on a regular basis. We talk about it at the IEP and then I haven't involved them much more from there. I think it could be used as a great motivator for my students and I think they may take more pride in the work they are doing.

I am very proud of myself for taking this step in my career. I am proud of the growth that I have made but I am even more excited about my future and the challenges that are ahead of me. I am very pleased that I had this opportunity.