Section Two: Teacher Candidate Background Experiences

Introduction

Many of my colleagues and friends who are in the teaching profession often refer to

teaching as their “calling” or say that they simply could not imagine themselves taking any other

career path. My journey, however, was not so simply decided. I began my postsecondary

schooling studying environmental science. I was convinced that studying the environment was

my calling. I was going to study climate change and help change the world. That was until I

physically sat in my various classes, taking part in discussions that I didn’t feel passionate about.

Shortly after beginning my first year I decided to withdraw from the program, move home, and

decide what I was going to do next. After about three months of thinking I was feeling a sense of

stress because with no exaggeration, I had absolutely no idea what I wanted to purse for my

studies. I decided to put a last-minute application out to complete my undergraduate degree in

Child and Youth Care, got accepted, and started classes 2 months later.

As I worked through my course work studying diversity, counselling, child psychology

and so on I began thinking that I could find a career here. I looked at different positions as

counsellors and youth workers and began feeling at ease. However, life seems to enjoy throwing

curve balls at me because when it came time to complete an internship to satisfy my degree a

majority of my classmates received placements in group homes, or counselling centers (much

like I was hoping to get) but I received a school for students with ASD and similar diagnoses. I

would be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed in that moment, as I was so eager to finally purse

the career I thought I wanted, but I went and completed my placement with an open mind hoping

to at least gain some experience in the field of children and youth. To my surprise, I adored the

children, the families, the staff, and my time there. So much so that I accepted a job two months

later and had the opportunity to be a part of three school years.

 My internship was my first experience working in a school, and it was there I realized

that teaching was an incredibly challenging, time consuming profession, but more importantly it

was the most rewarding experience I had up until then. What I am hoping you’ll take away from

my background experiences is that teaching was absolutely not what I thought my calling was. It

wasn’t my backup plan either, or something I thought I would try to see if I like it. I had no

intention of becoming a teacher until the world decided to give me an opportunity to experience

it. As cliché as it sounds, I truly believe teaching found me. I have taken the most twisted and

curving road to get here, but I could not be more ecstatic to enter the workforce and begin my

career. I hope you enjoy reading about my experiences and are able to get a sense of who I am as

a student and as a professional.

Teacher Candidate Educational Background and Work Experiences

As I outlined above, my educational background was not straight forward. After a failed

start in environmental sciences, I was feeling discouraged and confused about my future. As a

last-minute effort to get re-enrolled in postsecondary education as quickly as possible, I began

studying Child and Youth Care. Something I feel is important to share is although I didn’t know

when I began my undergraduate degree that I would be pursuing a career in education, I am

extremely grateful for the knowledge I acquired in my studies because it makes me a better

teacher.

As a teacher you need to understand the population you’re working with, which is exactly

what I focused on in the four years of my undergraduate degree. I was able to study topics such

as family dynamics, cultural diversity, counselling, child and adolescent psychology, sociology

and so on. If I had taken the standard route of studying to earn a major/minor in an education

specific program, I would not have been given the opportunity to dive into such important,
relevant topics. I truly believe that my education gives me a more whole outlook on the children

I will be working with, contributing to my ability to be an effective teacher. I believe my

undergraduate studies, combined with the practical teaching skills I am acquiring from my

graduate teacher has given me a very sound foundation to begin my career with.

I began working immediately when I became the legal age in Ontario. From the time I

was 16 and onward I worked and learned how to manage money. I have never been one to rely

on someone else for something I wanted. It was instilled in me from a young age that being able

to provide for yourself is crucial, and that working hard gives you that ability. Whether I was

folding jeans at a clothing store or serving food at a restaurant, I have also put my best effort into

my work because I have learned that working hard does in fact pay off. My family wasn’t able to

support me financially throughout my postsecondary schooling, and I have always been solely

responsible for paying what is owed. Although stressful at times, I am thankful that I had the

opportunity to learn firsthand how to manage money. By working as a server and bartender

throughout my degree, I was able to come out of my first degree debt free. Even now, I have

worked incredibly hard between continuing to bartend and working as a developmental therapist

to be able to be at Medaille and pursue my career.

As I mentioned briefly above, I have spent much of my time working at a server and

bartender in various restaurants. Many people don’t view this is as relevant work experience, and

although not directly related, I strongly feel as though my experiences in restaurants has given

me a skillset I would not have acquired anywhere else. I have learned to work quickly and

efficiently, and I have learned to communicate with countless individuals effectively. When

working in the restaurant industry you benefit greatly by having sound communication skills and

being able to communicate well is a skill everyone should possess when working with people.
 My most recent, and most relatable, work experience has been working at a school for

children with ASD and similar diagnoses, as I mentioned above. For the last few years I have

been lucky enough to work at Oakwood Academy as a developmental therapist, delivering

specialized education. I made the important note that I did seek out this opportunity, but it is the

experience that has led me to teaching, something I am incredibly thankful for. Throughout my

time at Oakwood I learned how to work on an interdisciplinary team, collaborating with my

colleagues in the development and implementation of IEPs and other specialized services. I have

learned how to teach students with different sensory profiles and adapt my curriculum and

programming to meet their needs, a transferrable skill when thinking about differentiating

instruction and supporting students with different learning styles.

When discussing communication skills, my time at Oakwood has allowed me to hone my

ability to communicate efficiently, but with empathy. A key lesson I have learned while working

in the special needs community is that you are never just working with the child, you are

working closely with their family as well. I can only speak to my experience, but when working

with children with special needs and communicating with their families, I believe you need to

speak with transparency and empathy in sync with one another. The families I worked with were

strong and passionate about their children, but they were often still grieving. Although I am

pursing in general education, my experiences with parent communication will be an asset

because as a general statement, everyone benefits from feeling heard and cared for.

School Observations and Classroom Application

My school observations up until this point have varied greatly from one another. During

my time at Medaille I had the opportunity to observe and volunteer at a Saturday Academy in

Buffalo Public School district, and I had the opportunity to observe and volunteer at Buffalo Prep
located at University of Buffalo. The students and families that attended Saturday Academy

come from high needs communities and were able to come and receive breakfast, lunch, and fun

family activities. I particularly enjoyed taking part in this event because the families who

attended were so full of love and support for their children. To me, it seemed as though Saturday

Academy is a community resource that brings members together and promotes a positive

relationship between the education system and families. This observation also gave me an

opportunity to see many different activities and games to engage families. The games activities

didn’t need to be grand and extravagant, to me it seemed like everyone enjoyed themselves

whether it was board games or a museum tour which was great to see and be a part of.

Also, there seemed to be a Social Learning aspect to these events, rooted in the work of

Vygotsky. Vygotsky suggested that students learn from one another, their teachers and other

experts in social communities (Neff, n.d.). When students and their families would move through

the different stations of activities, the participants would often hear instructions from whomever

was leading activity (a teacher, most often) but then they would turn to their peers for guidance.

With the support of all the individuals present activities were completed. I would argue there is a

strong connection between social learning and the Saturday Academy program as a whole,

because participants use the social community to explore and complete various activities.

Although not directly related to curriculum or academia, the program shows how when in social

contexts, people naturally grow and learn together.

The students at Buffalo Prep also came from higher needs communities, but they were

gifted academically with the same goal in common: getting scholarships into good high schools.

The students who attended were all serious about their studies and advancing in education. After

speaking to a few of the students, it was easy to see that the general mindset what that they
wanted to be there, and they wanted to do well. In this program students take on additional

coursework and attended class on their weekends. From what I observed a vast majority of their

time was spent consumed in their studies. I remember being so incredibly impressed by their

stamina and passion at such a young age. It was a refreshing program to be a part of, even for

such a short period of time. The program curriculum alongside of their regular class curriculum

coincides closely with Blooms Taxonomy, where their weekend work builds upon their regular

curriculum, going further to reach deeper levels of learning and understanding (Adams, 2015).

At Buffalo Prep in specific there were many different teachers I had the opportunity to

observe and learn from. There were teachers who captured their students and taught with

efficiency, and there were some whose class were seemingly running the show. The was one

teacher who taught ELA that I thought commanded the attention of her students in the best way

possible. She never yelled or spoke negatively of her students and as a result she had the best

classroom management of all of the teachers I observed. It didn’t appear that any of the students

fear her, but instead respected her. There was a distinct feeling of ease in the room, where

students felt comfortable taking part in activities and discussions. Of course, there were jokes,

the students were seventh grade, but they never seemed to get out of hand because she knew how

to engage and redirect back to the content.

When I step into the classroom I hope to apply some of her tactics. I come from working

in a school where building relationship was essentially our philosophy and foundation for

practice. She was proof to me that relationship matters and helps build a positive classroom

community. While at Buffalo Prep there were less effective teachers who, for example, would

get louder when students began getting loud. There was no sense of relationship or respect, and

to me the classroom community suffered because of that. I’m thankful to have seen so many
different teaching styles in such a short period of time, because I got to see different strategies

being employed on the same group of students that worked and didn’t work as well. It was a very

beneficial experience for my own development going forward.

Philosophy of Education

The School

The school plays a crucial role in the development of a child, because it becomes one of

the largest communities a child is a part of, from a very young age. When a child enters the

school system and becomes a student, they begin being shaped and prepared to function in

society. With that, they learn crucial skills such as socialization, time management,

responsibility, how to act respectfully, etc., making the school go beyond simply being an

institution that teaches curriculum. With the social/emotional needs of children and their learning

styles become more important when looking at individual needs, I think the school, more than

ever, should be required to have the resources to differentiate appropriately. Not all school are

going to need the same resources, and school and community needs vary are you move through

different locations. The main mission of the school should be to build a school community that

appropriately supports the child’s overall development, having the resources to support both the

curriculum and community needs.

The Curriculum

Both Ontario and New York State have put together a detailed curriculum to be taught in

schools. My belief is that the curriculum is important but differentiating your instruction to meet

the needs of your students is equally as important. The curriculum is put in place so that as

students age, they are meeting the learning outcomes associated with their grade. From my

experience observing in schools, teachers and administrators are being more aware that there is
no “one-size fits all” approach to learning. Howard Gardner discusses multiple intelligences as I

outlined above, and I believe that is extremely relevant when analysing the importance of

curriculum. Some students are going to be naturally inclined to do well, such as those students

who are studying math and are logically-mathematical intelligent (Armstrong, 2018). However,

just because someone doesn’t identify as being a certain type of intelligence doesn’t mean we as

teachers can’t differentiate and adjust our teaching methods to help support different learners. As

an overall arching statement, I believe that the standard curriculum should be taught, but you

should be passionate enough as a teacher to help support all different kinds of learners in your

class to succeed.

I believe that children should always know what is expected of them, learning objectives

should not be a surprise. However, I am a strong believer in Discovery Learning, an inquiry-

based learning theory discussed by Jerome Brunner. Brunner suggests that “learning happens by

discovery, which prioritizes reflection, thinking, experimenting, and exploring” (Balim, 2009),

speaking to the idea that children learn by doing. When teaching curriculum, I believe that there

is an amazing opportunity to include Discovery Learning and in turn help students develop the

ability to problem solve and critically think. Teaching curriculum can promote different skills

like problem solving when taught creatively, ultimately shaping our students into more well-

rounded, contributing members of society.

Learning

Briefly discussed above, I am a strong believer in the work of Jerome Brunner. Speaking

from my own experience, I gain a deeper understanding of what I am supposed to be learning

when given an opportunity to engage in inquiry. There is something to be said about having to

think critically to solve problems; for myself, it is both enlightening and rewarding to explore a
problem and come to a solution. To engage in inquiry-based learning, the ability to engage with

those around you is an important skill. A second theorist that informs my own philosophy of

education is Jane Addams. Addams was innovative, and although she was involved in education,

much of her work advocated for the overall function of society. Addams suggested democracy in

our society relies on the ability of social relationships to be reciprocal, ultimately giving citizens

the ability to be empathetic and contribute ethically as overall good people (Winkelman, 2013).

Children spend a great deal of their young life in the education system, and I believe it would be

naive to suggest that the education system isn’t one of the largest socialization systems for young

people. I believe that in order to work cooperatively with one another, developing a sense of

empathy is crucial, and is a quality that will benefit our ability to participate in society.

I believe that when we provide students with the ability to develop skills that help them to

become good members of society, we are helping them apply their knowledge in a meaningful

way. Learning is changing, and now we have more tools and strategies to support our learners. It

is now widely recognized that young people learn different than one another, and we have

developed and continue to develop tools and strategies to engage our students, no matter where

they call on the learning continuum. For example, technology has played a great role when

engaging students. When used appropriately, technology can be used to engage students by

accessing information more quickly, using educational games and activities to enhance learning,

and allowing for students to be presented lessons in different formats. Schools can use tools like

technology to engage students and differentiate instruction to help support the diverse needs of

the learners in our classes.

The Learner
 Although I am completing my graduate degree in elementary education, I am interested

in teaching students grades 6-8, or the “intermediate level” in Ontario. The students at this level

are entering an exciting time in their lives, where the curriculum is becoming more difficult and

students tend to discovery their interests and strengths in education. By eighth grade, students in

Ontario are determining which courses they will take in high school and at what level (applied or

academic). I remember being that age and not quite knowing what I wanted to do, or what level

of education I wanted to take because applied generally meant college bound and academic

generally meant university bound. It is a confusing time, and I was lucky enough to have

amazing teachers throughout my intermediates years to help guide me. I want to help guide

students at the beginning of their next academic journey, because again, I know how much I

benefitted from having a good mentor.

Assessment

I believe that students should be given a variety of opportunities to demonstrate their

understanding and be evaluated on their progress. Although there is a time and place for written

tests, especially in light of the growing amount of standardized assessments students are being

required to take and need to be prepared for, students deserve the opportunity to showcase their

knowledge in different ways. I’ve mentioned it many times above, but I strongly believe in

differentiating instruction to meet the needs of our students. To further explain my beliefs, if we

as teachers are being creative in the delivery of our instruction, don’t students deserve the right

to be creative within their assessments? The goal of assessment in education is to gauge student

understanding of the curriculum, and I believe students can do that through a variety of medians

such as final projects, poetry, art projects, essays, presentations etc. Finally, students should be

informally assessed through the course of instruction to ensure they are meeting the learning
goals before a final, summative assessment. Checking in with our students is crucial, and it also

speaks to our ability to effectively teach our students.

Classroom Management

Classroom management is the foundation to successful teaching. As a teacher, you could

be the most creative and passionate person, but if your class isn’t attending to what you’re

sharing out, you might as well not be attempting to instruct. I believe that the first step to

achieving sound classroom management is to build relationship and rapport with your students. It

is absolutely possible to maintain the appropriate student-teacher boundaries while building

relationship. Feeling appreciated and cared for is empowering, and students benefit when they

feel supported by their teacher. When done well, relationship also promotes respect in the

classroom. I do not what to be a teacher that is fear by their students, I instead want my students

to be in a mutually respectful relationship with one another. From my observations yelling and

speaking over students is not effective. The best teachers I have observed and had the

opportunity to know have managed to build a classroom community that has respect as its

foundation.

The Teacher

The teacher should be appropriately educated, with an applicable degree and practice

experience. While completing teacher education, I believe it is important for the candidate to

have as much in-class observation and experience as possible. There is an incredible amount to

learn from those already in the field, and we as candidates should be looking for guidance and

support of seasoned teachers. I know when I enter the field, I will be looking for guidance and

suggestions from my colleagues, as all new teachers should. I believe that there are personal and

professional characteristics that all teachers should possess. To begin, I believe that good
teachers genuinely care for their students. Also, I believe that good teachers take the time to

build relationship and rapport, as I mentioned above. Finally, I believe that good teachers know

how to compose themselves in times of stress to be an anchor for their students. Young people

are incredibly resilient, and we as teachers should be able to be a sound support system for them

when needed.

Resume

Introduction

Below you will find my resume. My resume includes my education, all of my work and

volunteer experience, as well as the skills and attributes I possess that contribute to my ability to

be a skillful teacher.
 Allison Warren
121 Fanshawe Drive Telephone: 647-888-5616
Brampton, Ontario E-Mail: arwarren@hotmail.ca
______________________________________________________________________________
OBJECTIVE: To apply my education and experience as an educator within the field of
teaching and education.
______________________________________________________________________________
EDUCATION:
Medaille College, Master of Science in Education – Sept 2018 - Present
Humber College, Bachelor of Child and Youth Care (With Honours): Sept 2014 – April
2018
______________________________________________________________________________
EMPLOYMENT EXPERIENCE:
Moxies Bar and Grill- Bartender
August 2016 - Present
- Working in a team-oriented environment to effectively tend to guests
- Duties include delivering food and drinks to guests, creating relationships with
guests and working collaboratively with coworkers

Oakwood Academy- Developmental Therapist

April 2017 – June 2019
- Began in 2017 as a placement student (TA), supplied from September 2017 – April
2018, hired full time in May, 2018
- Duties include being responsible for the creation and implementation of
Individualized Education Plans (IEP’s) for students with autism in a one-to-one
setting

Kids CAN Charity: Energy Sports Club – Facilitator

October 2017 – December 2017
- Collaborating with other facilitators to run a sports group for children with autism
and similar diagnoses
- Goals support both social and sensory needs, and include: Gross motor skills, motor
planning, self-regulation, engagement and teamwork.

Lone Star Texas Grill- Supervisor/Bartender/Server

December 2013 – August 2016
- Worked as a manager on duty as well as a server/bartender
- Assisted with marketing initiatives
- Worked with other team members to create and maintain a positive work
environment

Milestones- Hostess
September 2013- December 2013
- Helped to provide guests with an enjoyable dining experience
 - Responsibilities included seating guests, running food and drinks and quickly
clearing and setting tables

Bluenotes- Sales Associate

May 2011- August 2013
- Worked to provide the highest possible standard of customer service.
- Provided a comfortable and enjoyable shopping experience by assisting customers
throughout the store and as a cashier.
______________________________________________________________________________
SKILLS AND ATTRIBUTES:
- Certified in Developmental, Individual-Differences, Relationship-Based (DIR)
Floortime Therapy
- CPR Level C Certified
- Child Victimization Certified (CV Web Training – Medical University of South
Carolina)
- Trained in Suicide Awareness (ASIST training)
- G Class License
- International Volunteer Certificate
- Self-motivated quick learner; ability to adapt quickly to new situations
- Fluent with computer technology (i.e. Microsoft Word, PowerPoint)
______________________________________________________________________________
VOLUNTEER EXPERIENCE:
PLASP Before and After School Program-
- Worked with coordinators to run activities before and after school

Autism Ontario Sports Readiness Program-

- Assisted therapists with planned activities
- Volunteered at other events organized by Autism Ontario

International Volunteer Headquarters (IVHQ) Spain-

- Worked with fellow volunteers in a substance abuse residency program for young
men aged 14-24 in Madrid, Spain

Summer Camp Interactive Learning Adventure-

- Assisted teachers in their daily duties of teaching math and language arts while
creating a fun and safe environment for the participants at the camp.
______________________________________________________________________________
References available upon request
Conclusion

Section two of my portfolio outlined who I am as a student, and as a professional. My

experiences in education and the workforce were discussed, and I have provided my resume to

showcase all of the organizations and institutions I have been a part of thus far. My currently

philosophy of education was discussed in detail. The information I have provided speaks to the

person I am now, drawing on the experiences that have shared me into the teacher I am

becoming. As I delve into the field of education, I expect that my philosophy will grow and

expand as I will as a person throughout my career.