Personal Growth Leads to Student Growth

MATC Synthesis Paper

Maggie E. Ribick

Michigan State University

November 30, 2023

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Masters of Arts Degree in Curriculum and
Teaching Department of Teacher Education, Michigan State University
Introduction
I was the type of kid who got home from school only to beg their sibling to play pretend

school. I was the student who always did the right thing when no one was looking, who loved

learning, and who gave their best effort every day. I was known for annoying my family by

constantly asking “why” and sharing “did you know” facts. In high school, I was ecstatic to

become a company member on my dance team, not only because it meant that I was improving

my skills, but it also meant that I was able to teach dance classes to younger students.

When it came time to pick an undergraduate major in 2013, it was no surprise that I

decided to go into elementary education, even though I had my fair share of family members

begging me to choose a different path. It is commonly said that teachers feel a calling that draws

them to the profession - that they know in their hearts they are meant to educate. While these

feelings may be true, they are just the beginning. With the desire to become a teacher comes the

desire to gain knowledge, grow confidence, find your voice, and embrace challenges.

From Student to Intern

Throughout my internship year at Michigan State University in 2017, my passion for

education grew because I was growing as a person. My mentor, field instructor, and students

pushed me daily, presented new learning experiences, and allowed me to apply what I was

learning in my courses to the field. During this time, I learned how to pair my content knowledge

with supporting the whole child. My first artifact (Artifact 1) features a Vision Statement for

Literacy, which was developed as a part of TE802 (Reflect & Inquire Teaching Practices I). For

this assignment, we had to identify three key elements of successful literacy instruction. Before

the course and my internship experience, I would have said that the three elements of literacy

instruction were reading, writing, and grammar. While that isn’t necessarily untrue, my
coursework allowed me to think about literacy on a deeper level. Effective literacy instruction

isn’t solely about the content standards; it is also about access to resources, student involvement,

and differentiation.

My Vision Statement’s first key element emphasizes the importance of providing

students with a diverse range of literature. Diversifying classroom libraries ensures that there is

ample access to books that connect to all reading levels, interests, cultures, and genres. Further, I

believe it is important to use books as windows and mirrors - students should feel represented

within literature, while also being able to learn about lives different from their own. My second

key element focuses on empowering students through the use of self-reflection and autonomy.

When students have a sense of ownership over their learning, they transform into active

participants. Finally, I believe it is crucial to differentiate instruction so all learners are supported

to meet their individual needs. Six years later, this is still a vision I wholeheartedly believe in and

strive toward daily in my classroom.

Growing Sideways
After my internship year, I was hired as a third-grade teacher at Lake Fenton Community

Schools, which is where I have been ever since. Throughout this time, I was finding my footing

as a new educator, adapting to a new district, and discovering how to teach through a pandemic. I

wish I could say my passion for education never wavered during that time; however, that would

be unrealistic. Four years after taking a break from my own personal education journey, I

realized that I was stuck in a personal growth plateau. Although time was passing by and I was

gaining experience in the classroom, I knew I wasn’t growing as much as I could. That is when I

felt another calling. This time, the calling drew me toward the MATC program. I truly believe I

am the best version of myself when I continue to learn. Knowing how Michigan State University
prepared me at the start of my career, I knew that it would also be the best place to continue my

educational journey.

In the Fall of 2022, TE807 (Professional Development & Inquiry) helped reignite my

passion for learning. Throughout the course, I developed my stance on what quality teaching

entails. Each week, our readings pushed my thinking further, challenged my preconceived

notions, and helped me gain confidence as an educator. During this time, I was inspired by Ayers

(2016), who challenged the faults in our current educational system, and implored teachers to

speak up and act now. At the end of the course, I developed 11 teaching commitments (Artifact

2) that incorporate aspects of quality teaching I pledge to live by. Some of my commitments

reflect concepts from my Literacy Vision Statement (Artifact 1), while others are new

developments that were inspired by my coursework. Overall, each commitment fits into four

categories: developing positive student relationships, being an advocate for students, effective

teaching strategies, and self-improvement.

This course is where I first found my voice for social justice. Prior to the MATC

program, I recognized faults in our education system, but I didn’t feel capable of making change.

I naively assumed that being a newer teacher meant that I couldn’t challenge systems, be taken

seriously, or speak out differently than some veteran teachers. I am proud to look back on my

teaching commitments because they remind me that my voice matters and that I have created

positive change. Since this course, I have improved my school’s Positive Behavior Interventions

& Supports (PBIS) framework, started a National Elementary Honors Society chapter to honor

student leaders, and been heavily involved in the redesign of my district’s vision and mission. I

continue to pledge my support for the whole child - to value my students’ differences, to curate a
warm and safe environment, to use my voice for advocacy, and to reflect on my own practices in

order to create a better tomorrow.

From Teacher to Leader

As I settled back into the role of being a student once again, I felt myself becoming a

more confident teacher. TE872 (Teachers as Teacher Educators) helped me gain that confidence

through collaborating with fellow passionate teachers and reading literature that supported my

educational beliefs. It was through this course that I grew into a teacher leader. After learning

about the recurring inequities in how student discipline is handled, I knew change was necessary.

Furthermore, after reviewing my school’s student behavioral data, there was clear evidence that

our disciplinary measures were unsuccessful and did not change future behaviors. In fact, student

behaviors, detentions, and suspensions were increasing at a rapid rate.

Artifact 3 represents my final project for TE872, which is a professional development

presentation focused on the benefits and implementation of Restorative Practices. After extensive

research, I learned that the Restorative Practices framework can effectively minimize negative

student behaviors while preserving student dignity, continuing access to education, restoring

harmony, and promoting equity. Furthermore, it provides proactive community-building

measures designed to make classrooms a safe space where students are loved and heard. Inspired

by this framework, I shared this presentation with my principal. She saw the value and need for

change, so she asked me to present my project to our staff and superintendent. Since then,

teachers have been implementing daily community circles and have reported stronger feelings of

connectedness to their students. In addition, restorative circles are being conducted by trained

staff members to restore peace after a conflict arises. I am incredibly thankful that TE872 guided
me to become a leader. By doing so, I have made a positive impact in my school and found a

passion for teaching and supporting fellow educators.

The next semester, CEP841 (Classroom and Behavior Management in Inclusive

Classrooms) brought out the leader in me even further. This course expanded my knowledge of

Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS), individualized behavior plans, and

effective management strategies. As the PBIS committee chairperson for my school, I knew this

course would provide me with immense valuable knowledge that I could share with others. My

final project for CEP841 (Artifact 5) reflects a professional development presentation centered

around social-emotional learning in the k-5 setting. The phrase “social-emotional learning” has

been put under the microscope by politicians, members of my community, and people who lack a

full understanding of what it truly means. In the past, I would get frustrated hearing about the

misconceptions and roadblocks put in place to limit social-emotional learning in schools.

Completing this project allowed me to communicate the benefits of social-emotional learning,

clarify its purpose in the school setting, and empower other educators to continue supporting the

whole child.

Using research and literature to support my claims, I no longer feel frustrated when

communicating with people who do not initially understand the purpose behind social-emotional

learning. Expanding my own knowledge helped me promote its benefits and advocate for more

social-emotional learning support in my school district. The PBIS committee and I worked with

administrators to get a formal social-emotional curriculum, increased counselor support for

students, and explicit social-emotional training for teachers. Now, I see our students growing as

they build positive connections, express their thoughts clearly, and work to understand their

feelings.
Cultivating Growth

While many of my MATC courses cultivated my personal growth, other courses helped

my students grow alongside me. A major focus of TE846 (Accommodating Differences in

Literacy Learners) involved conducting a semester-long case study on one student’s literacy

development. Having only been a third-grade teacher, I was quite comfortable teaching third-

grade literacy standards. That being said, I lacked the confidence and content knowledge to

successfully teach struggling readers who were significantly behind grade level. When selecting

a learner for my case study, I knew I needed to step out of my comfort zone and work with a

young literacy student. Artifact 4 showcases my Literacy Learner Analysis Project, in which I

had the pleasure of working with a kindergarten student named Mason (pseudonym). I spent the

summer researching best practices for phonological awareness development, analyzing pre-

assessment data, and designing lessons that would target Mason’s instructional goals and

personal interests. After several sessions together, I was incredibly proud to see that Mason

showed a 40% increase in his understanding of phonological awareness. Looking back, I am glad

I challenged myself to work within a new grade level because I have since used that knowledge

to support my third graders who are still developing foundational skills.

While TE846 helped my students grow academically, CEP802 (Developing Positive

Attitudes Toward Learning) allowed me to support students behaviorally, as well. The

Motivational Design Project (Artifact 6) was a semester-long project in which I worked with one

of my current third-grade students, Henry (pseudonym), as he navigated learning challenges and

motivational roadblocks. At the start of the school year, Henry expressed big emotions and

would shut down during any tasks that required him to read. Past versions of myself may have

naively assumed that Henry was simply seeking attention, being defiant, or didn’t care about his
learning. CEP802 pushed me to analyze Henry’s motivational and academic concerns on a

deeper level as I reviewed his academic history, conferenced with his family, partnered with

school counselors, and built a positive relationship with him.

Pairing my coursework with my observations of Henry, I was able to unravel the

complexities of Henry’s motivational issue and design an individualized plan using the TARGET

framework. One of Henry’s biggest challenges was that he developed severely low self-esteem

due to his low reading capabilities. Further, Henry exhibited task-avoidant behaviors in hopes of

being saved from embarrassment caused by his lack of reading skills. A key factor to Henry’s

intervention plan focused on developing attainable performance goals, explicitly promoting a

growth mindset, providing positive feedback, and celebrating his accomplishments. Making

these small changes to our daily routine led to a significant change in Henry’s motivation.

Observing Henry in my classroom now, he seems like a completely new student. I am proud of

his newfound eagerness to learn, his confidence to share his thinking with peers, and his

determination to take on academic challenges. Conducting this motivation project allowed me to

reflect on my practices, build a positive connection with Henry, and improve the learning

environment within our classroom.

From Teacher to Learner

Up until this point in the MATC program, I had reflected on my role as a learner and my

students’ roles as learners, but I hadn’t thought about the psychology behind the learning process

itself. Rounding out my MATC experience, CEP800 (Psychology of Learning in School and

Other Settings) allowed me to critically analyze the intricate complexities behind the process of

learning. As we studied psychological theories, we were asked to come up with our own

definition of learning. Early on in the semester, I was overwhelmed by this task. After all,
learning is a complex process, so how could it be boiled down so simply? As the weeks went on,

we were asked to create a personal Theory of Learning (Artifact 7). Each week, as we viewed

learning through different lenses, my theory morphed into new shapes. My Theory of Learning

was strongly influenced by Constructivism, Sociocultural Theory, and Social Learning Theory.

By the end of the semester, I no longer felt overwhelmed by the complexities of learning. Even

though learning is still a complex matter, I now value its multifacetedness and use it to enhance

my classroom. Successful learning is impacted by our environment, interactions, and

motivations. Knowing this, my classroom is intentionally designed to be an inquisitive,

supportive, and collaborative space that can nurture growth for all.

Conclusion

Throughout my life, I have gone through cycles of learning and teaching. As I reflect on

my coursework, I am proud of the teacher I have become. I entered the MATC program because

I knew I had the potential to grow into a leader; however, I lacked the confidence to get there on

my own. Each course pushed me to be the best teacher I could be. By growing as an educator, I

have watched my students and colleagues grow alongside me. Even though my time in the

MATC program is coming to an end, my journey is not over. I firmly believe that I am the best

version of myself when I am learning and growing. I pledge to be a lifelong learner and to share

my knowledge with others. It is my hope that someday I will transition into an educational

leadership role that allows me to support educators. By helping more educators grow, I can only

imagine the number of students that will also grow as a result. I am fiercely passionate about

improving the world of education one learner at a time, starting with myself.
 References

Ayers, W. (2016). Teaching with conscience in an imperfect world: An invitation.

Amsterdam University Press.