# data[].attributes.body
-Teaching and Learning
-Why I enrolled in the MSED program
-My Artifact

# data[].attributes.body
-Adding My Voice to the Field of Educational Professionals

# data[].attributes.headline
Adding My Voice to the Field of Educational Professionals

# data[].attributes.subject
Adding My Voice to the Field of Educational Professionals

# data[].attributes.body
During this presentation, I will explain to you my views of being an educator and what that looks like in our world today. I will share about my passion for teaching, the roles of an educator, and how the NBPTS Five Core Propositions and RWRCOEL Professional Dispositions align with my passion for teaching and view of the role of the teacher today.

References
Laureate Education, Inc. (2016). RWRCOEL Professional Dispositions. Walden University Blackboard. https://class.content.laureate.net/59c52f6d4b6b96ee07ecfa10c2002276.pdf

National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. (n.d.). Five core propositions. http://www.nbpts.org/five-core-propositions

Walden University, LLC. (2019). Voices from the field: The role of the teacher [Video]. Walden University Blackboard. https://class.waldenu.edu

# data[].attributes.body
-Professional Mission and Vision statements
-P–12 teaching and learning issue
-teachers well-being in today’s educational environment
-impact on positive social change

# data[].attributes.headline
Professional Mission and Vision Statements

# data[].attributes.subject
Professional Mission and Vision Statements

# data[].attributes.headline
Teachers Well-Being in Today’s Educational Environment

# data[].attributes.subject
Teachers Well-Being in Today’s Educational Environment

# data[].attributes.body
Social change is making a difference in others’ lives, showing growth, and improving our world today. As stated by Walden University, “‘people working to improve the lives of others is a fine definition of social change” (Walden University, n.d.-a). Walden University’s mission is to have a group of professionals that can develop into well-educated individuals that can positively affect social change in our society (Walden University, n.d.). With this mission, they have a vision that education is held to high standards to obtain the degree of choice to then graduate and be solution-orientated to improve social changes and have a great impact on our world today (Walden University, n.d.).

According to Walden University, “research suggests that all social change efforts begin with the individual and build out from there, based on the individual’s knowledge, skills, and passions. These efforts are amplified by the individual’s ability to build teams and networks of others who can collectively address problems at the group, organizational, community, and societal levels of application” (Walden University, 2017, pg. 16). This has a great impact on the need for positive social change in our world because it starts with an individual and it shows how it can make major changes in our world today. By starting in the community, we can make changes that have a great impact on improving the people in our community. This is something that changes and starts small but can grow and develop to other communities and areas over time. One social change can grow into multiple areas of social change.

At my school, my administrators and colleagues hold my opinions and thoughts on educational topics very high. I have held multiple leadership roles over the past few years at my school where we have been pushed to grow and develop as a grade-level, team, school, cluster, and community. This is a great opportunity for me to encourage social changes in my school that start small and then grow to other parts of our school. As educators, we are part of this constant cycle of learning, growing, and developing as individuals to better ourselves, our colleagues, and our students. This is an area that I want to continue working on because I want to continue to learn, lead, serve, and grow to address problems, obtain new skills, and build a team of growth-minded peers. In a lot of cases, people do not like change; however, it is important to have some type of change in our lives to help us grow and develop as people and educators. As stated by Kang and Kline, “we are reminded of the importance of creating a safe space in which tensions can be revealed, examined, and negotiated. Not only do we need to become comfortable with the uncomfortable we must also find ways for our future educators to do the same, and for them to give this gift to their future students” (Kang, G., & Kline, S., 2020, pg. 9).

References
Kang, G., & Kline, S. (2020). Critical Literacy as a Tool for Social Change: Negotiating Tensions in a Pre-Service Teacher Education Writing Course. Journal of Language and Literacy Education, 16(2).

Walden University. (2017). Walden 2020: A vision for social change. https://www.waldenu.edu/-/media/Walden/files/about-walden/walden-university-2017-social-change-report-final-v-2.pdf?la=en

Walden University. (n.d.). Social change. https://www.waldenu.edu/about/social-change

Walden University. (n.d.-a). 5 things that everyone should know about social change. https://www.waldenu.edu/about/social-change/resource/five-things-that-everyone-should-know-about-social-change

# data[].attributes.body
Harbins Elementary School is where I am currently teaching. Our school currently has 1,653 students.  I have taught 1st grade for three years, and this is my first year adventuring into Kindergarten. I teach in a general education classroom with a special education co-teach setting. Thus, I have a co-teacher that is with me for part of the day to accommodate the needs of all of my students. I am also ESOL certified, so I have the joy of teaching students where English is their second language.

I have always enjoyed being around kids, watching them grow and learn, as well as watching them obtain the skills. I really enjoy watching their aha moments. In my classroom, I have a variety of dynamics. I have general education, special education, and English Language Learners. Each one of those sections holds a special place in my heart. Each one of these is why I became a teacher. As teachers, we are a coach, a facilitator, an instructor, and it's our job to make sure that kids have differentiated learning. Also making sure that we are being the parent, the social worker, and the nurse. As a teacher, the number one reason I became a teacher is to be committed to my kids and their learning. It is my job to make sure that they are able to manage the things that I am giving them, that I am monitoring their progress, and giving them multiple opportunities to practice. Also making sure that I am continuing my learning as an educator. Whether this is through professional development, through my masters, or through a program that my county provides. Therefore, I am teaching my students to be lifelong learners, and I am being a lifelong learner myself.

Being in a diverse school, having a variety of learners in my classroom, and being a lifelong learner myself, I decided to adventure out of my comfort zone to obtain my Master's Degree in Education with a focus on Reading and Literacy. This is a goal that I set for myself when I first started my Bachelor's Degree. After reflecting through the past few years of teaching, I knew it was time for me to expand my education to better fit the needs of my students. As stated by Mary Ginley, “It will be enormously demanding but more fulfilling and rewarding than you can begin to imagine” (Nieto, 2014, pg. 23)

References
Nieto, S. (Ed.). (2014). Why we teach now. Teachers College Press.

# data[].attributes.body
As an educator, it is important to have a growth mindset. Having a growth mindset means being open to new ideas, collaborating with others, setting goals for yourself as a professional, and being open to new ideas. As stated by Elizabeth Trach, “Setting professional development goals is an important way to make sure you're continually improving your practice. By taking the time to craft a specific goal, adhering to a timetable, and gathering evidence of your progress and success, you can make sure you accomplish whatever you set out to achieve in your classroom this year” (Trach, E.,2018, October 2). Setting goals and tracking your progress is not always easy. However, a lot of changes that are happening in the classrooms today benefit the educator and the students to help them grow and develop based on their goals.

By setting the goals, we are also encouraged to have a growth mindset. One of the things that my county does for teachers, to encourage opportunities for growth and improvement, is we not only have goals for our students but we have goals for ourselves as Educators as well. We set a personal goal that is specific to us, and we set a team goal as well. As stated by Jennifer Dunn, there are a few things that we need to focus on as educators. To have a growth mindset, we need to never stop growing, experiment and innovate, ask questions, be flexible, learn new technology, really listen, and reflect (Gunn, J., n.d.).

One way that I'm continuing to be a lifelong learner is by obtaining my master’s degree. I can take the learning that I obtain and apply it in my classroom as well as share my new knowledge with my grade level and mentee teachers. To grow we have to ask questions, reflect on our observational feedback from our administrators, and make sure that we're having an open mind to new ideas from our colleagues. Therefore, we need to take some time to reflect on what's going well in our classroom and what's not going well. Then we need to figure out a solution that will work best for the educator and the students.

Growing up, I never saw myself as a lifelong learner. Learning was not easy for me when I was in high school. While in school, I always had difficulties with grades, writing papers, and any type of reading assignment. Thus, when I started college, it was very hard to adapt to the expectations to grow my knowledge to become an educator. Since obtaining my bachelor’s degree, I have strived to continue my learning through hands-on and interactive professional development opportunities. I am working on keeping an open mind to the ideas of others and taking this time to reflect and grow as an educator. By having a growth mindset, I am being a role model to my students and showing that even though I'm out of high school and out of college I'm continuing my learning to better myself and to better their experiences in my classroom. As specified by Doctor Steven Covey, “Renewal is the principle—and the process—that empowers us to move on an upward spiral of growth and change, of continuous improvement” (FranklinCovey.com, 2019).

Through this program, I hope to grow both professionally and personally. I love to challenge myself in different ways! I have been talking with a few coworkers about doing my master's for a while. One of my coworkers one day just simply said, "what are you waiting for? Are you waiting for life to slow down?" As you know, it's not, so here I am! I have already learned and grown so much as an educator over the past 8 weeks, and I look forward to continuing that growth over the next year.

References
FranklinCovey.com. (2019). Habit 7: Sharpen the saw. https://www.franklincovey.com/the-7-habits/habit-7.html

Gunn, J. (n.d.). Building a growth mindset for teachers. Resilient Educator. https://resilienteducator.com/classroom-resources/growth-mindset-for-teachers/

Trach, E. (2018, October 2). Setting professional development goals and tracking your progress. Schoology Exchange. https://www.schoology.com/blog/setting-professional-development-goals-and-tracking-your-progress