https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm Reflection en-us 2019-03-13 18:42:43 UTC 2025-06-13 15:58:06 UTC hello@padlet.com bxkrau17 https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/380669072 I completed the Teacher Mentoring Teacher Readiness Self-Assessment and got a score of 75. To be honest, i am not sure what that number means. However, as I took the assessment, various thoughts popped into my head. For one, it made me think of my first days as being a teacher. My mentor (who is also my teaching partner) went above and beyond to make sure I had everything I needed to be successful. I hope that I can make that kind of an impact on someone else entering the field of education. Another thought that came to mind throughout the assessment was a feeling of hesitation. Right now I feel like I am swimming up to my ears in things to do on top of being a mother and wife. I am a bit nervous to see how much time will be devoted to being a mentor. However, I am confident that as long as I take everything one day at a time and not procrastinate, everything will work out. I want to make it work out because like I mentioned before, I want to make a positive impact in someone's life like my mentor did for me.]]> 2019-09-05 21:42:41 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/380669072 jaritc17 https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/380707562     I got an 80 on the Teacher Mentoring Teacher Readiness Self-Assessment.  As the others have indicated, I do not know if this is a positive or a negative thing.  However, I do believe that I will be a better mentor than the mentor that I had when I started at my current school.  My mentor only met with me three times throughout the year.  We did not develop a relationship or trust  because we didn't have enough one-on-one interaction.   Furthermore, there were many instances where I had to seek out answers to questions that I had. Sometimes I was flying by the seat of my pants.  I felt like I was a lost fish floating in the big blue sea.  
My hope is that my experience with my mentor will make me a better mentor for someone else. I do not want another teacher to feel the way that I did. Starting a new career or an old career in a new place is intimidating and overwhelming. If I can help a person feel a little more knowledgeable and secure, I will feel like my purpose as a mentor has been fulfilled.]]> 2019-09-06 00:53:58 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/380707562 b_canfield https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/380733285 2019-09-06 02:50:48 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/380733285 b_canfield https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/380733289 I got a 90 on the self-assessment. I am unsure of if that is a good thing or not. As I reflect on my experiences with having a mentor, I know that I do not want to mentor that way. I felt more confused and lost after meetings with my mentor. He taught me very little and would not give criticism. There is no way I was not making mistakes as a brand new teacher. Looking back on it, I think it made me a better teacher because I was able to learn by doing. At the same time, I wish I could have had someone to guide me when I needed it. ]]> 2019-09-06 02:50:49 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/380733289 https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/381139433 After taking the Mentor self-assessment seeing my score of 85 makes me see on paper I’m ‘ready’ but I still wonder if I am truly prepared to be a mentor. Although I feel as if I’ve laid the ground-work in a lot of ways, I know that I tend to worry about things that are out of my control. This is important to recognize and deal with in a variety of ways. I wonder how being a mentor would look for me, as a specialist, during different times of the year. For instance, concert season (traditionally Nov-Dec and Apr-May) gets crazy. Between preparing for my performances musically, I have to set up art shows, design and create costuming, schedule and organize parent volunteers along with continuing to try and work on content development within my normal class times. I wonder how juggling the ‘unseen’ and ‘undocumented’ hours of this job would also work with showing a mentee the ropes. It can be done, I just haven’t yet been exposed to this in a professional manner. As stated before, being an island subject has its rewards but also it’s major difficulties. 

]]> 2019-09-06 23:46:26 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/381139433 j_rubenzer https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/381207373 2019-09-07 15:40:29 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/381207373 c_yohnk https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/381223337 Taking the Mentor Readiness Self-Assessment surprised me in a way.  My score was much higher than I had anticipated.  Upon closer examination of my answers, the 5 questions that I disagreed with were mostly due to my lack of self-confidence.  If I were a little more confident in myself, I (and my former principals would probably tell me that I am very capable of doing  what the questions asked) could have marked those 5 questions as I agree.  Also, I am struggling with the idea that I am an "Old Fogy" having to be a mentor to a "Very Young" first year mentee who has all new fresh ideas.  I am confident that in taking this class, it will help me get my new teaching partner off on the right foot and we will make a great team - like my former partner of 24 years and I had been.]]> 2019-09-07 18:26:04 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/381223337 j_rubenzer https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/400609306 After I read what I wrote in the pre-assessment, I see that now I need to pay more attention to detail and to better plan when I meet with my mentee. For example, I used to just meet informally with my mentee after the initial months of the year. I see that it is still important to keep a more organized log of what was discussed in each meeting. I also realize that there are many different attitudes and beliefs that come with each new teacher. They could have a totally different cultural background than I have. I need to really get to know them personally before I can help them. I also need to find out how they themselves learn so that I can differentiate the way I teach them as well.]]> 2019-10-21 23:32:30 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/400609306 bxkrau17 https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/401131120 As I completed the self-assessment, I found myself marking the "strongly agree" section a lot more than I did at the beginning of this class. I now feel more confident in being a mentor. I also have a lot of tips and tricks to help myself manage my busy life and be more resilient. One tip that has helped me a lot is learning to better recognize my emotions. By acknowledging that I am feeling crabby, frustrated, sad, etc, I am able to focus more on the moment and how I can help myself handle the emotions that are flooding over me.]]> 2019-10-22 20:19:50 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/401131120 r_beaufeaux https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/402301340 Taking the assessment once again I found that on paper I seem 'good to go.' Through understanding and further developing my personal resiliency as well as further planning ahead to reach my mentee in ways that are meaningful and lasting, I hope to implement ideas and practices found through this course. 

I found myself looking at how my first few years as a teacher went and wishing I could go back and ask for help. More time observed as a new teacher, more time developing curriculum and learning about building relationships with my co-teachers as well as my students and their families. Seeing how one outreach- that single nudge email- could have helped me drives me forward to help others develop in their early years!]]> 2019-10-24 21:13:09 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/402301340 c_yohnk https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/402819538 Retaking the pre-assessment, I did score a little higher than the first time but this is just if I feel like I would be ready to be a good mentor. Feeling and doing are two different things. One thing I DO have to devote more time with my mentee is having her reflect on how her lessons are going.  I do ask her and she says great and has no questions but I need to start using the CESA mentoring language log for our weekly meetings to help me with this. My mentee and I have been meeting twice a week but these meetings have mainly just been for planning for the upcoming week. ]]> 2019-10-26 01:17:29 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/402819538 jaritc17 https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/402929242 As I completed the self-assessment for the second time, I realized that when I completed the self-assessment the first time, I may have been overconfident in my abilities. I may not have known what I didn't know. Therefore, my score didn't change much because I was able to understand the statements more clearly. For example, prior to this class, I thought that I was a good listener. However, I realize now that I have to make some changes in order for me to be a truly effective listener. I also recognize the importance of being a good mentor and having a good mentor. As I work with several new teachers this year, I am confident that a strong mentoring program would be very beneficial for them. I have learned a lot over the course of the last few weeks and I am eager to put that new knowledge to use..]]> 2019-10-26 21:01:39 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/402929242 b_canfield https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/403641570 After taking the assessment again, I found that my score was similar to the first time. I feel like I would be a good mentor and that feeling has become stronger since taking this class. There are some things that I realized that I needed to change throughout the various activities in the course. For example, I am quick to offer suggestions instead of being an active listener. This is because I feel such a strong sense to help others. Working with a mentee will be a challenge at first because it is new, but like most things, it will get easier after implementing the skills we have learned in this course.]]> 2019-10-29 00:34:44 UTC https://padlet.com/jessicaaprilwilliams/gkoqdykv96pm/wish/403641570