To say that I have come a long way since the start of this program would be an understatement.  I remember starting my first course of the Master of Arts in Education program (MAED) at Michigan State University and googling the definition of pedagogy.  With an undergraduate degree in science, I was obviously very far from my comfort zone. I had been teaching in dental programs for several years prior to the start of the MAED program. However, I always knew there was a disconnect in my teaching practice. I knew I wanted to pursue my Masters degree, because, how could I become the educator I wanted to be without formal education IN education? Like anyone beginning a new journey, I was scared I wouldn’t finish, I was scared it would be too much work.  I was moving in forward direction, but in my mind I was peddling backwards. I never thought about what I would learn as a student within this program. I more or less though of it as a means to a piece of paper that would allow me to take the next step in my career. Reflecting back on my journey I can say that the experience and journey turned out to be so much more. I have gained a voice and confidence in my teaching practice that I desperately needed, I have started to build on my own personal teaching philosophy and I have learned that there is no one correct “path” or right way in successful teaching and learning.  

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Building Confidence

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Confidence in my career has been something I have struggled with in the past.  The number one reason was my lack of formal education. As I began my journey in this program I never thought that I would gain confidence.  I only thought that I would gain the credentials  I needed to obtain a teaching position.  Looking back at the courses I have completed I can say that completing CEP 817, Learning Technology Through Design, was a benchmark in my developing confidence and voice.  This course focused on all the aspects of design thinking. In my own words, design thinking is a process of problem solving and innovation that focuses on empathizing with group of people or students you are designing for.  In CEP 817, we used Stanford School of Designs bootcamp bootleg document for design thinking. By using this document as a lens to solve a problem or issue within our own practice, is where I felt like my inner “leader” was born. This document was used as a guide in the course as we worked through the five modes of design thinking: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype and Test. The first step in the process, Empathizing, is where I really started to see my own potential as a problem solver and leader in my personal and professional life.  Empathizing is all about observing your user, interacting with them and immersing yourself in their situation.  In my practice, my “users” are dental hygiene students. To me, empathizing seems like second nature, almost common sense in a way. Yet, I was constantly overlooking this step in my practice. Once I took that first step in the design process and started empathizing with my students, I knew that my potential as a leader was endless.  I was eager to complete the remaining steps in the design thinking process to see how far I had come. At the completion of the course, I truly felt like I had exceeded my own expectations of become a true problem-solver and moving towards real, workable solutions for problems that may arise within my practice.

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The completion of this course was my "aha! moment" in my journey in the Master of Arts in Education Program at Michigan State University.  As I reflect on that moment in CEP 817 where things finally started to fall into place for me, I realized, It wasn’t just this one course that was responsible for my transformation. All of the courses I have completed built on this moment and provided me with bits and pieces of knowledge that have molded me into a leader. A leader who can take any problem and confidently move forward knowing that I have all the tools I need to work towards a resolution that makes sense for students and educators.

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Perfecting My Practice and Fine Tuning My Teaching Philosophy

 

Since I began teaching within a community college setting, I always had interest in how to effectively teach adult students.  I had some experience with teaching adults and knowing what worked well and what didn't. But these strategies were mainly from observing other experienced instructors and trial and error. As I entered this program I knew, personally, how important it was for me to really develop my methods and strategies with this group of students. Gaining knowledge on how to teach adults is relevant to my practice and I needed to acquire knowledge on real theory and practice in adult learning. As I look back on this program there are two courses that helped me refine my teaching skills as an Adult Educator.

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EAD 866, Teaching in Postsecondary Education, introduced me to theory in adult learning and allowed me to put my new knowledge to work by completing a microteaching session, revising a syllabus and starting to work on my own teaching philosophy.  The microteaching session was extremely relevant to me and allowed me to directly apply some of the things I had learned about teaching in a postsecondary setting.  Specifically, I designed a small teaching session with our students that included active learning strategies.  The active learning strategy I used was the think-pair-share method.  By using this method, I incorporated two small lectures then allowed the student to pair with a classmate and share their ideas on the lecture.  This allowed them to become active in demonstrating methods that were discussed in that specific lecture. Learning these strategies in EAD 861 and then being able to try them out in my teaching setting has made a huge impact on how I will move forward in my teaching practice.  Because of this course, I am aware of the benefits of active learning methods and have already seen first hand how it engages students in the learning process. Prior to this course, I always thought that once I moved into a classroom teaching setting, lecture would be my main teaching strategy.  This thought process has definitely evolved during my time in EAD 866.

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I have also started to work on my own teaching philosophy as a result of this course.  When I initially began the MAED program, I had very superficial thoughts on what my own teaching philosophy was.  Mainly, it was based on the learning experiences I had as a student.  I remember how I learned best and what made it easier for me to be successful in my courses.  As I transitioned from student to educator, a few main things encapsulated “good teaching” to me.  I strived for organization within my courses, put a heavy emphasis on communication with my students all while hoping to keep an element of “fun” while learning.  As I conclude my journey in the MAED program, I still find these things important to my practice. However, I am proud to say that where I once had superficial knowledge has developed into a deep understanding of what it entails to put these elements into action in my practice. To foster better communication I plan to incorporate more feedback opportunities within my courses.  I believe that gathering feedback on my teaching methods is a very useful way of communicating with your students. In the future I plan to take this feedback and make appropriate changes in my practice to make myself a better educator.  Anyone can gather feedback but it is what I do with that feedback that will set me apart from other educators and leaders in my profession. I plan on working on the organization of  the courses I teach by focusing on choosing the right materials that are relevant for my students.  In addition to that, I plan to put a heavy emphasis on creating solid goals and objectives and teaching from there. To foster a learning environment that is fun and enjoyable for students I am excited to incorporate a Learner-Centered teaching environment. By fostering a Learner-Centered environment I hope to engage and involve students in the learning process and make them responsible for their own learning. I am proud of how my personal teaching philosophy has grown as a result of the MAED program. Moving forward I am excited and motivated to implement these things in my classroom in hopes of building content knowledge with students and creating independent, lifelong learners.

    

EAD 861, Adult Learning, is where I gained a deep understanding and built a solid base of knowledge regarding theories in Adult Learning. I was also introduced to different learning styles I may see among my adult students as well as what motivates and inhibits them from learning. Learning about these motivational factors among my adult students has changed who I am as an educator. I will now take familial, social and economical factors into consideration as I plan my teaching strategies and I will be aware of how those can affect the motivation, learning and understanding among my students.  I built a strong understanding on the impact that prior experience has on the learning outcomes of adult students within a dental hygiene program.  Moving forward, I plan to know what each students’ prior experience has been and plan my instruction from there so that it is interesting, relevant and applicable to their future practice as a Dental Hygienist. During this course I learned that adult students excel in performance based activities and was able to directly apply this knowledge in my practice and see first hand how it increased student participation and success.  Therefore, in the future, my hopes are to incorporate more performance based competencies within my courses.

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Final Thoughts

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Lastly, one of the most important parts of my personal transformation through this journey, has been my exposure to so many different teaching philosophies, methods and strategies.  I used to think that there had to be a “right” way to instruct my students and prior to this program I was convinced I was doing it “wrong”. As I reflect back on these thoughts now that I am coming to the end of my journey, I truly believe that there is no one “right” way or one teaching strategy that works best. There are many strategies and methods and philosophies that work great.  What I know now is that different things work for different students and it is part of my job and responsibility to figure out what makes my students thrive in the classroon. All of the courses I took in this program have contributed to preparing me to be the most well rounded educator I can be. One that can communicate and interact with my students and help them succeed. 

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This program has given me the tools to teach many different kinds of students in many different environments.  Moreover, I know what it means to be a lifelong learner and I understand that, while I have made a great transformation thus far, my transformation will never truly be complete. I will continue to strive to be a better educator for my students by staying active in my profession, continuing to learn about better educational methods and surrounding myself with like-minded individuals. This journey has made me realize just how much I am capable of personally and professionally.  I believe I have transformed into a leader and an effective educator and I am excited to see what the next step in my transformation will be.

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