Standard 1: Educators value the success of all students. Educators care for students and act in their best interests.

Student safety is of the utmost importance for all educators, especially in regards to a science classroom. To ensure that students have every opportunity to succeed, I focus a great deal on student safety and working with and informing students of how they can best achieve success. In order for students to succeed in my classroom, I let them know exactly what my expectations are for their behaviour and learning. As an educator, I intend on collaborating with students to create ground rules so that students have a positive and safe environment that they can rely on every day.

To make learning about safety exciting for my students, I like to play Lab Safety Jeopardy after I’ve spent a few days having students go around Safety, Protocol, and Equipment stations to interact and understand why these rules are put in place. I have developed stations for two practicums, one Grade 8 Science and one Grade 10 Science. Both groups greatly enjoyed the opportunity to show me their prior-knowledge in chemistry, so it was a very useful pre-assessment, and ask questions when they didn’t know something. To ensure that safety was the number one focus, I always ensure that they are well versed in WHMIS symbols and can identify how to cautiously handle the chemicals by observing them and wearing Proper Protective Equipment (PPE).

Materials used for one of the Chemistry Safety Stations.

One opportunity that I had in my last practicum, was the opportunity to participate and contribute to the School-Based Team. If I noticed students may need additional support in my class, I was able to recommend them for School-Based Team, where we could talk about the various ways the school and I could help them in their studies and succeed in school. I learned a great deal about the various school support systems, roles, and what I could do as an educator in my classroom. There was also a great deal of success with the School-Based team and providing student support so students knew they had staff and teachers interested in helping them excel.

To care for my students, I tend to jump on the bandwagon of educating myself, so that students are safe in my classroom. I have my Emergency First Aid certification, WHMIS certification, and have gone through a Naloxone Training Workshop. Each of these certifications are to ensure that students are safe, and if anything occurs in my classroom, I can help as much as I can to achieve a favorable outcome.

Other ways I have been trying to focus on student success is bringing various formats of delivery and interactions with students into the classroom. In my last practicum, I focused a lot on Think-Pair-Share, Tabletalk, and Think Share-Squared. Students gain more confidence and talk through concepts better as a collective because learning is very social. I also encourage student participation beyond speaking in class with whiteboards, Start-Ups, EXIT slips, and other alternative means for students to show their learning.

My classroom management has evolved greatly through my various practicums, in order to accommodate their needs. Every student that I noticed needed adaptations, we would converse and devise plans that would suite their learning needs and preferences, this entailed a great amount of student choice. This is especially evident in the Biotechnology Inquiry I developed for my Science 10 students, where the presentation format and the topic was solely based on student choice, preference, and comfort level. It is always my intention that students research topics that interest them, as I care for their learning and love for them to dive into topics that appeal to their interests.

Student poster of biotechnology inquiry on GMO Salmon.

Through of each these components, I’ve learned a great deal about how students can express their learning to show how successful it has been in the classroom. No student is the same, and therefore, should show their learning in a format that suits them. I’ve also learned that student safety is crucial in a science lab, and we should always be prepared for any situation that may arise. Mistakes happen, and we need to be trained and train our students on best how to react with these situations.