How was it to be in front of the camera? Where was it challenging? Where, in your classroom, do students encounter these same challenges? What strategies did you use to overcome your obstacles? How can those strategies be applied in the classroom?
Being in front of the camera wasn’t too bad, however I was by myself so that made it easier. Just filming myself answering questions with no one watching helped relieve some stress about being on camera. However I do know that later on people will be watching these clips which will eventually bring back some of that anxiety and stress. It was challenging to not have someone asking me the questions because it felt weird interviewing myself. I believe that there are many times our students encounter the same challenges as I felt. They may feel stress about being on “camera” (answering in front of class). This could cause them to become overwhelmed and not answer as well as they would have. Some strategies to help overcome these types of obstacles would be to practice, practice, practice public speaking in front of the class to help relieve some of the stress. Some affirmations that might help you and that foster a growth mindset: “Everyone has to start somewhere. We are all beginners at something.” “If I can risk looking foolish when learning something new, I can show my students that it’s OK to take that risk too” “Things get easier with practice.” Where can you infuse a growth mindset in this project? How often do you personally do the projects that you ask your students to do? Where are you in your learning pit experience right now? Growth mindset is hard to teach someone. I think that sometimes people have more “grit” or motivation than others. However, we as teachers, can create an environment where failure is celebrated and challenges create opportunities for growth for our students. I always tell my students that if they aren’t willing to learn, no one can help them, but if they are determined to learn, no one can stop them. (it’s a sign in my classroom too). I also apply this idea to myself and the struggles I go through. I believe that everyone has the power to do anything they want if they have the right mindset. By developing a growth mindset, we are setting up for a future of successes. Growth Mindset will help in life when failure happens and when one feels like giving up and it can help one push through and persevere. I feel like right now I am almost out of the learning pit, however I know I can easily fall back in.
4 Comments
6/26/2020 03:06:40 pm
Thanks for sharing Krista. I love your point about realizing that "camera stress" is a real thing and it can make all of us more self conscious. I am considering giving more supportive instruction about camera work prior to student filming in future projects.
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Megan
6/26/2020 11:36:07 pm
It is interesting how much being in front of a camera, even if the video is shown later, causes anxiety and stress. It seems that, as teachers, it would be easier because we're in front of students so much. It's still a struggle, though, when the audience changes (for example, parents at Back-to-School Night). I also appreciate your point about teachers creating an environment where growth mindset can flourish. Even though we can't just hand our students a growth mindset, we can help them see that "failure" is not the end of the world and that both failure and success are needed in the learning processes.
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Evrim
6/27/2020 02:28:01 pm
Good call on the growth mindset, we also have to practice what we preach. I'm going to try to remember that when I try video taping myself again.
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Kathy Martin
6/28/2020 07:23:41 pm
I appreciate your comment about how students may feel like they are on camera when we ask them to give presentations and/or answer questions in class. I think this has much more truth than we realize. I think where this changes from class to class is how a teacher builds the culture within the classroom. I know I always tried to make my classroom a safe space and shared my own struggles with students. I allowed them to see me make mistakes, change my approach, and persevere to solve it. However, I don't know if my approach had the same affect on each of my students as they all come to me with different comfort levels and experiences.
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Krista LoperHarvest Middle School Archives
May 2020
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