Qualities of a Good Teacher Survey

1		Sense of humor
		(278 responses)
		3%	1 -- Barely Important
		2%	2
		17%	3
		40%	4
		42%	5 -- Very Important
2		Knowledge of subject matter
		(279 responses)
		1%	1 -- Barely Important
		0%	2
		2%	3
		15%	4
		82%	5 -- Very Important
3		Manages behavior well
		(279 responses)
		2%	1 -- Barely Important
		0%	2
		3%	3
		25%	4
		72%	5 -- Very Important
4		Enjoy and respect young people
		(277 responses)
		2%	1 -- Barely Important
		1%	2
		4%	3
		18%	4
		78%	5 -- Very Important
5		Adapt to change smoothly
		(278 responses)
		2%	1 -- Barely Important
		1%	2
		12%	3
		42%	4
		43%	5 -- Very Important
6		Motivating and inspiring
		(276 responses)
		2%	1 -- Barely Important
		0%	2
		5%	3
		26%	4
		68%	5 -- Very Important
7		Creative and innovative
		(274 responses)
		2%	1 -- Barely Important
		1%	2
		14%	3
		32%	4
		52%	5 -- Very Important
8		Cool in a crisis
		(275 responses)
		3%	1 -- Barely Important
		1%	2
		13%	3
		32%	4
		53%	5 -- Very Important
9		Good with adults and workmates
		(275 responses)
		2%	1 -- Barely Important
		0%	2
		12%	3
		40%	4
		48%	5 -- Very Important
10		Approaches things with variety
		(276 responses)
		1%	1 -- Barely Important
		1%	2
		17%	3
		34%	4
		47%	5 -- Very Important
11		Well-organized
		(273 responses)
		1%	1 -- Barely Important
		1%	2
		7%	3
		28%	4
		66%	5 -- Very Important
12		Reflective and introspective
		(275 responses)
		2%	1 -- Barely Important
		2%	2
		19%	3
		36%	4
		44%	5 -- Very Important
When I went through all the questions, I marked the number 5 for all of the questions except for Question #1.  I think that all the attributes are important qualities for teacher to have except for a sense of humor.  I've been in many classes where the teacher and atmosphere of the class is very serious all the time.  I think that depends on the students, teacher, and subject matter being discussed.

Technology simile

Technology for me is like having a helper with me at all times.

Whenever I give a presentation, I find it easier to use google slides, prezi, or powerpoint.  I find that it actually makes me more comfortable in front of a classroom.  It really helps to be familiar with different kinds of technology to take care of homework, write papers, research, lesson plan, and a host of different things

Dear Future Me

Dear Future Me,
At this point at in the MSMC Grad program I've learned that this is more complicated and difficult than I ever thought it could be. 
We go to classes as students and participate in discussions, write papers, perform math problems, and do homework. 
We never think about what goes into the lesson for that day, I never think about how much time, effort and work goes into preparing for the classroom experience. 
And the amount of education needed through undergraduate and graduate course study is amazing. 
But I've learned that I am diligent, hard-working, caring, motivated, and born to do this.
I've learned that I need to improve upon my content knowledge in Math, my lesson planning skills, and jump in head first.
I want to be the best Math teacher in the history of Math teachers, I want my students to WANT to come to my class, I want them to be EXCITED about Math, above-all I want them to love to learn.
I want to be passionate about what I'm going to do because I want to pass my passion onto my future students.
It is my hope that I  can create a rich learning environment using all the methods of technology that we have learned in this class and the Teaching with Technology class.
Here's some advice to Future Me:  Don't get frustrated, don't lose your passion and love for math, always be happy in the classroom, remember how all YOUR teachers were, remember what you learned in your college courses.
When you read this you will be student-teaching, the dog will be over 1 year old, you will be married for over 1 year, and you may have a baby in your life.  Be patient, take time to meditate, tell your wife that you still love her, tell your students that you are proud of them, praise everyone in your life for helping you.
Ask for help because we can't do this alone.  Thank your fellow teachers and thank your students because they are why you want to be a teacher.
ABOVE ALL:  Make a difference, be a force for change, encourage your students to make a change, encourage them to do better.
Sincerely,
Frank Napolitano (November 5, 2016)

This week's questions

What diverse learners are there in today's classrooms?

Dyslexic, ADHD, English as a Second Language, emotional or behavioral problems that interfere with concentration, lack of interest or engagement, sensory and physical disabilities

What does a brain research provide teachers with to adjust their teaching in the digital age?

It looks at 3 different areas:  Recognition networks:  gathering facts; Strategic Networks:  planning and performing tasks; Affective Networks:  are students engaged, interested and motivated?  This shows teachers how students think when they perform these tasks and teachers can show students how to perform these tasks based on how they think.  For example, teachers can show students how to gather facts in a meaningful way, they can show students how to plan and perform tasks so it makes sense to them, and certainly it is a teacher's main job to keep his/her students engaged and interested at all times.

What is a UDL? How its principles help teachers improve planning and teaching?

Universal Design examples are speaker phones, closed captioned television and curb cuts, all universally designed to accommodate a wide variety of users, including those with disabilities.  The goal of UDL is to use a variety of teaching methods to remove any barriers to learning and give all students equal opportunities to succeed.  A universally designed curriculum offers multiple means of representation, to give learners multiple means of acquiring knowledge and information, multiple means of expression to provide learners alternate ways of demonstrating what they know, multiple means of engagement to tap into learners' interests, challenge them appropriately and motivate them to learn.  To reach each student teachers need to customize learning using flexible tools, teaching methods and assessments.  For example, manipulatives in Math can help every student understand concepts (not just students with disabilities, but ALL students).

This week's Simile

Educational Technology for me is like the key to open a door that has been locked. 

Let me explain briefly........I think all of today's students are interested in technology because they all have laptops, ipads, iphones, or whatever form of digital technology that is being created today.  It is our job as teachers to unlock that door and show them what's in that room.  It's our job to show them around the room and make everything useful to them.