Assignment # 2: Teacher Interview

Action Assignment #2: Teacher Interview My interview with my teacher was one of the most interesting and informative moments I have had so far. Throughout the interview I learned a lot about what to expect as a teacher, how education has changed (and how it can and will change within the future of education), and advice on what I can do as a future educator. I feel as though the interview opened my eyes more to the reality of being a teacher, and how being a teacher is not all is seems.
I interviewed Ms. Meadow Van Meter, a teacher at Cleveland-Bailey Elementary School in the Mid-Del School District. Ms. Van Meter had previously taught for eleven years within Oklahoma City Public Schools. She spent five years teaching first grade and six years teaching departmentalized fourth, fifth, and sixth reading/language arts.
When asked

Van Meter gave me some interesting ideas when I asked her to describe the different ways she motivated her students. One way she motivates students is to really get the know them individually and build a good rapport with each one. She told me that students what to be valued and validated, and knowing their teachers cares about them and will listen to their problems gives them the motivation to come to school and do their best. Another way Ms. Van Meter motivates her students includes utilizing verbal praise, allowing her students to display work that they are proud of, letting her students call their parents during the day to announce a good grade on an assignment, and giving her students ways and opportunities to praise and receive praise from their peers.
In order to challenge early finishers and keep them engaged, Ms. Van Meter use them as peer tutors and have them assist those who need a little more help. Those who finish early are also given a variety of activities to do, such as projects they can work on individually, class journals to write in, and using of technology to work on math skills at their own pace, to name a few