January Reflection #6

FORM 8

Georgia Southern University

COLLEGE OF EDUCATION

Department of Leadership, Technology, and Human Development

SUPERVISED FIELD EXPERIENCE REFLECTION

EDLD 7738 Spring 2020

Candidate: Tammy Holton

Campus Mentor: K. Joey Floyd

University Supervisor: Dr. Whitford

School: Atkinson County High School

PART I: DESCRIPTION OF THE FIELD EXPERIENCE

Date of Activity: January 14, 2020

Time Involved: 4:30-5:30 PM

Standards Met though this Experience (List All): Standards 1, 3, 5, 6, 7

Description of the Field Experience Activity and Your Role: Mentor Meeting at Okefenokee RESA

PART II: REFLECTION

I am a volunteer non-paid Mentor for a TAPP candidate at our school. Dr. Danner is going through TAPP certification and I am his school mentor for this year. I have to attend various meetings at RESA to be trained. The meeting was actually a 3 hour meeting but since I am a volunteer and a non paid mentor I only had to stay 1 hour.

As a Tapp Mentor I carry a great deal of responsibility to help, guide and nurture an educational candidate his/her first year in the field. It is very challenging at times however very rewarding. During this meeting I am able to share how I am putting my leadership style into practice on a daily basis with my mentee. It allows me to work one-on-one with a rising educator and help to support him on his journey. I have found that the hardest part is being honest without crushing the spirit of the candidate. Constructive criticism and positive feedback is crucial in order for my candidate to learn and grow.

One thing I have learned during this experience about my own leadership style is that I have the ability to lead and inspire another teacher. Even though we are very different in our approaches to teaching I have been able to analyze my mentee’s strengths and give him teaching strategies that work for him. One thing I would change about this experience would be for us to have some built in days to sit down and plan things out, discuss and communicate more often. We never seem to have enough time to address all the things we should be going over. Since we don’t have like planning we have to squeeze in meetings before school or after school. It is hard to be able to really share ideas when we feel rushed or we are exhausted at the end of the day.

Mentorship is rewarding. It allows me as a leader to see first- hand why some new teachers struggle the first few years. It allows me to be a sounding board, an encourager, an advocate for these new teachers. It also reminds me of how hard the teaching profession is. After twenty-six years in education, many things I take for granted are foreign to the new teacher. I have to remind myself what may seem simple to me might be overwhelming to someone just starting out. It has shown me that new teachers have to find what works for them. It has allowed me to give some professional guidance to young men and women who often doubt their talent and abilities. It has shown me that being an inspiration and role model is not just for my students but for the teachers I work with.