Jacklynn Preston

Identity Paper
I think that in order to understand what my central values are of
education and as a teacher and why they are central to me, it is
important to first consider: who I was and am as a learner, what
privileges I was or wasnt afforded as a child, the privileges that I am
afforded now, and their implications as a teacher and with regards to
other social locations. Only then will my central values reflect who I am
and will it be evident of why they are central to me.

As a Learner
As a young learner I was extremely introverted. I could be
described as quiet, polite and friendly, but definitely on the shy side. I
was very studious and could always be seen focused on my work. I was
very eager to please and really strived for perfection, so much so, I
often took longer to complete my work. Although, I always showed
persistence in completing my work, I used to struggle in asking for help
when I was unsure of how to proceed. I would have preferred to not ask
or answer a question then appear stupid as I was labeled as smart
and/or the straight A student and felt that I had this reputation to
uphold, not to mention the embarrassment I would have potentially
underwent had the question been silly or the answer wrong. It turned
out the more I was teased, the more I became self-conscious.

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As a learner now I am still fairly quiet, but I would say less shy
then I was. I am still very studious, and dedicated to my studies. I am
still very much a perfectionist as far as my work goes; I cannot leave
anything incomplete, and any work that is complete has to meet my
high standards. As a result, I have extremely high expectations of
myself, sometimes too high, and often struggle to accept anything
less. I still struggle in being perceived as the smart student, but
instead of changing my behaviour I have chosen to surround myself
with those that support me. While I may appear to be a bit hesitant to
contribute to class discussions, its not because I dont have anything to
say, I just usually prefer discussions in smaller groups. I find that when
I am in a room full of strong personalities I am less willing to
participate, yet when I am surrounded by more passive personalities, I
am more able to express and share my thoughts and ideas
comfortably.

Privileges, Then and Now

I had quite the different experience growing up as the youngest
child in a family of seven than the experiences I am being afforded now
with a husband and son of my own. As a child I had no other choice
than to share my bedroom with at least one sibling at all times, I had
the displeasure of wearing hand-me-downs for most of my childhood,
we rarely ever enjoyed meals out as a family, and our holidays only
ever consisted of family camping trips within our province as opposed
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to vacations to Disneyland and the like. While most can be attributed

to living on just one income, I am sure the size of our family only
compounded matters. Unfortunately, my situation only got worse when
I was about 10 years old when my parents went through the process of
separation. As a result, I was forced to move around a lot with my
mom, and ultimately lost all connections to my childhood when we
moved three hours west of the town I knew as home.
From there I learned to direct all my attention into my schoolwork
as I quickly learned that that would be where I would receive
acknowledgment, for not only my efforts, but also as an individual. I
found that focusing on my schoolwork also enabled me to forget about
how invisible I felt at home. Too often my parents were busy securing
new relationships than spending any time with me. During my final
year of high school I decided to take ownership of my life, and opted to
move out. Although I still had to attend high school and work fulltime in
order to pay rent, I was supporting myself. You could say that these
years are what are responsible for shaping who I have become today.
This was when I realized that I had become self-sufficient, and that I no
longer depended on anyone else, well until I met my husband.
The experiences that I am being afforded now, are largely thanks
to my extremely supportive husband. Without him, I am afraid I would
be knee deep in student loan debt, still renting a house, driving around
in my beat up Mazda 323, and probably working some minimum wage

Jacklynn Preston

job. Instead, we have managed to mostly take care of my tuition over

the years, own our own home, own both a 09 Toyota Tacoma and a 97
Toyota 4Runner and although I still work at a job thats practically
minimum wage, it wont be for much longer. With the support of my
husband I have been incredibly fortunate to be able to attend
university for some years now. Without him, I wouldnt have been able
to make the possibility of ever becoming a teacher happen.

Impact on Other Social Locations

Growing up in a broken home and of a low socioeconomic status,
I was fortunate to somehow manage to surmount to something greater.
Overcoming these challenges has great implications for me as a
teacher. I can relate to and understand students coming from a similar
situation and will be able to provide them with the support needed. I
also hope that I will be able to encourage students through the tough
times and/or to break the cycle of poverty that I did. On a more subtle
level, I hope that I can help lessen the gap by ensuring that my
students have, to best of my ability, equal access to healthy meals
before and during school, participation in field trips and other school
programs, etc.
Being the spouse of a police officer also has huge implications for
me as a teacher. While I am afraid that the experiences that my
husband sometimes shares with me are what have caused him to
make, sometimes, rash generalizations of the general public, I am even
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more afraid that my knowledge of these experiences will cloud my

judgment of people. Although it may seem unfair to mention, the fact
of the matter is that the vast majority of whom police officers attend to
tend to be either First Nations and/or Caucasians of the lower
socioeconomic status. If I am to teach these demographics, I know I
will have to consciously make an effort to prevent this fear from
interfering with my teaching. This means I will be sensitive to all
students, yet hold each accountable for their own learning, and set
high expectations for all: achievable but challenging. Having said that,
I think that the most important implication that my being a spouse of a
police officer is that I will be fortunate to be able to give my students
first hand exposure of just what police officers do and help foster their
trust in an especially important community helper. I envision having
my husband be an active part within my classroom, so that students
will be able to form positive relationship with police officers.
Being a mother also has huge implications for me as a teacher. It
has been the single best resource in allowing me to make connections
between home and the classroom. I often notice myself reflecting on
my practice in the classroom based on what I know from parenting. I
understand the implications that reading with your children has on
their literacy development. I know that a childs routine at home is
probably the best indication of their preparedness to learn in the
classroom. I recognize and can empathize with children who come from

Jacklynn Preston

anything less than the ideal home environment. I understand the

importance of developing self-regulation and other social skills and the
difficulties that arise when children dont come to school equipped with
them. I acknowledge that not every child is capable of sitting for long
periods of time, and that some children, like my son, need
opportunities to expend excess energy.

Central Values of Education and as a Teacher

I believe that the purpose of education is to help children build
positive identities, promote curiousity and a desire for learning, create
social awareness, and ultimately prepare them to become fulfilled,
critical thinking members of society.
I value the importance of building a sense of community within
the classroom at the start of, and throughout, each school year. I hope
that by taking the time to build relationships with each of my students
and encouraging them to do the same with each other, my class will
have a greater sense of connectedness and trust. By creating a
cohesive classroom, it is my hope that students will be able to learn in
an environment free from discrimination, harassment, and ridicule.
Having said that, I will try to come to class each and every day with an
open mind, ready and willing to take any challenges or obstacles that
that day has to offer, and turn them into learning experiences for both
my students and myself. I believe that how I respond to any disruption

Jacklynn Preston

in my classroom will greatly influence my students learning

environment, and so I will choose to make those moments teachable.
Where I value the importance and benefits of collaboration, I will
also encourage each student to think for him or herself. Although, I will
mainly arrange my classroom into table groups, at times, I will expect
my students to work individually. I will also push my students to strive
for their personal best, not only in terms of academic achievement, but
also as members of a society. I believe that assessment is an essential
part of an effective teaching and learning process, where its central
purpose is to support and enhance student learning. Assessment is
about carefully planning and then adjusting lessons so that they will
guide and support students as they acquire knowledge and learn new
skills. With regular daily assessment, I will be able to not only change
either the pace of my instruction and/or modify the way in which I am
presenting the given information, but also focus on each student's
strengths and weaknesses separately.
I will demonstrate use of effective teaching practices and
pedagogy in my classroom, with a particular emphasis on my students
different learning styles. By knowing my students on an individual
level, I will be able to make lessons specific to their learning
preferences and/or requirements. Also by incorporating students own
interests into my lessons, I believe I will make learning more relevant
and meaningful for them by enabling them to make connections

Jacklynn Preston

beyond the classroom into their real lives. As a teacher, I will strive to
transform my students learning experience from simply completing
mandatory assignments to generating excitement about learning. I
intend on making learning fun and engaging by incorporating
technology and kinesthetic activities whenever and wherever possible.
I will also help reduce the monotony of any daily-prescribed
worksheets/activities by limiting their frequency as much as possible
and/or changing the way in which they are presented.
It is also important to embrace the diversity of students
backgrounds and appreciate their differing perspectives. I believe that
culture needs to play a larger role within the classroom, and that it is
my responsibility to teach within all of the cultures, not just about
culture. This means that rather than simply focusing on culture as a
whole, I will completely transform my classroom, and immerse my
students in many different cultures over the course of a school year.
This also means that I will expose students to a cultures language, art,
music, and cuisine with exciting lessons that students can participate
in.
I value the importance of the community and will embrace their
involvement in my classroom where it will deepen my students
learning. I will regularly invite guest speakers into my classroom to not
only share their experiences, but also help narrow the gap between
theory in the classroom and practice in the real world. I also welcome

Jacklynn Preston

and encourage the involvement of parents and guardians. I will be

open to discuss any concerns, questions or suggestions that a parent
or guardian may have regarding their child's education, and respect
that these conversations shall remain confidential unless they pertain
to child protection issues.
The purpose of education is to help children build positive
identities, promote curiousity and a desire for learning, create social
awareness, and ultimately prepare them to become fulfilled, critical
thinking members of society. This will be accomplished by building a
sense of community within in the classroom, developing relationships,
pushing students to strive for their personal best, combining students
learning needs and/or requirements, their personal interests, and any
connections to real world into fun, engaging lessons, and using
assessment to support and enhance students learning.