This week was the last full week of classes with a full load that I will have for the internship. I will have had 11 weeks with the full load of class, even though Penn State requires 4 weeks. Time has gone fast, but I am ready for the next chapter to soon begin.
This past week was a great week for me at the school. I was able to teach my Horticulture class the basics of Integrated Pest Management (IPM). This was awesome, because I can use the information I am teaching to help me take my Pesticide Certification Exam. I LOVE when I can make things count for 2. I asked my students if they would be interested in taking the exam, however, they were not as thrilled as I was for the opportunity. As we continued through the lesson, they really seemed interested in the biological control factors, especially the males in the class. This is because they found the parasitic wasps to be fascinating. As a result, they were interested in discovering more methods of controlling pests.
My Introduction to AFNR class is very challenging for me. Some of my students do not care if they pass or fail. They have given up hope for a good grade in my class. This is a full freshman class that is very hard to work with. I have struggled with them throughout this internship. At one point, I over heard one student say "I don't care anymore, he gave me a bad grade". With this, I addressed the class saying, "some of you are constantly distracting others, we can not have this if you all want to do well. I know that you are all capable of good grades, you just have to apply yourself". With that being said, some students were ready to listen and start and have maintained it. One student still does not want to try and I am trying desperately to find the connection.
My community based unit of instruction was a great success this week. The students are cutting out the pieces for the barn owl boxes and we had a guest presenter from the PA Game Commission. The South Central Wildlife Biologist came to the school and presented the students with information about the barn owl. They asked him many of questions and kept working towards the goal to improve their habitat in the Big Spring School District.
Todd,
ReplyDeleteBe sure to send your link to me when you are finished with your blog. This will help give you more timely feedback. I know we talked about several of your concerns yesterday. Be sure you continue to require students to meet your expectations, whether that is related to classroom policies/procedures, or class assignments. Hold your students accountable, and if they don't care about the grade that is up to them. You still need to have them complete the learning tasks, or you are doing them a disservice.
- Dr. Ewing