Context of teaching:
I have completed two placements, in a primary school environment. The first placement was one day a week over 15 weeks in a year 1/2 classroom, and required observing a class and participating in lessons that occurred over the day. The second placement was a 17 day block placement in a year 5/6 classroom, and included observing and teaching lessons, up to half of the teaching load.
I completed the first placement at Lithgow Public School. Lithgow Public School is a low socio-economic school which caters for K-6 students, including a special education unit (ACARA, 2016).
There is a high level of community involvement within and outside the school (Lithgow Public School, n.d.). Many classes visit the local public library regularly, where librarians read to students and allow classes to borrow books to take back to the school.
I was in a year 1-2 classroom, consisting of students who were struggling with literacy and numeracy. A number of these students had learning disabilities, and as such there were two full time teachers in the classroom, as well as a teacher's aid for the morning. The classroom was set up in an open fashion, and did not include the traditional 'desk' setting.
While undertaking this placement, I was given the opportunity to interact with the students (see attachment) in various ways. I was often able to read to the students, as they had a class book they focused on each week. I was also allowed to work with small groups of students, as they did reading groups, literacy and numeracy activities. Finally, I was able to assist with music lessons that the students participated in, including playing the piano for them and having them sing.
I completed my second placement at Kandos Public School. Kandos Public School is a low-socio economic school (ACARA, 2016) with 156 enrolled students, and an Indigenous population of 13% (ACARA, 2016). The school supports the PBL system, and provides a breakfast club each morning before school for students to attend (Tito, J, personal reference).
While on this placement, I was able to observe, participate in and teach a number of activities. My class was 22 students, including 1 student with autism and 2 students with ADHD. I was able to observe the classroom teacher completing full days of teaching with the students, and which classroom management techniques were effective within the class. One effective method was their 'angels chart' which rewarded students for positive behaviour. Students who moved up on the 'angel chart' were often giving five minutes of free time just before pack up at the conclusion of the day.
I had the opportunity to teach a wide range of lessons, including ICT based lessons in the computer lab. I taught across a range of subjects, and was also able to complete small practical activities with students relevant to Creative Arts, English and Science. The school had a grandparents day while I was completing my placement, and I was able to participate in this as well. I was able to interact with community members who came to the classroom, as well as assisting with running the sound/technology for the student assembly.
These placements have helped me begin to develop my teaching skills, as well as skills in interacting with a local school community.
References:
ACARA. (2016). My School. Available at: http://www.myschool.edu.au/SchoolProfile/Index/84396/LithgowPublicSchool/43003/2014
Lithgow Public School. (n.d). Lithgow Public School. Available at: http://www.lithgow-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/
I completed the first placement at Lithgow Public School. Lithgow Public School is a low socio-economic school which caters for K-6 students, including a special education unit (ACARA, 2016).
There is a high level of community involvement within and outside the school (Lithgow Public School, n.d.). Many classes visit the local public library regularly, where librarians read to students and allow classes to borrow books to take back to the school.
I was in a year 1-2 classroom, consisting of students who were struggling with literacy and numeracy. A number of these students had learning disabilities, and as such there were two full time teachers in the classroom, as well as a teacher's aid for the morning. The classroom was set up in an open fashion, and did not include the traditional 'desk' setting.
While undertaking this placement, I was given the opportunity to interact with the students (see attachment) in various ways. I was often able to read to the students, as they had a class book they focused on each week. I was also allowed to work with small groups of students, as they did reading groups, literacy and numeracy activities. Finally, I was able to assist with music lessons that the students participated in, including playing the piano for them and having them sing.
I completed my second placement at Kandos Public School. Kandos Public School is a low-socio economic school (ACARA, 2016) with 156 enrolled students, and an Indigenous population of 13% (ACARA, 2016). The school supports the PBL system, and provides a breakfast club each morning before school for students to attend (Tito, J, personal reference).
While on this placement, I was able to observe, participate in and teach a number of activities. My class was 22 students, including 1 student with autism and 2 students with ADHD. I was able to observe the classroom teacher completing full days of teaching with the students, and which classroom management techniques were effective within the class. One effective method was their 'angels chart' which rewarded students for positive behaviour. Students who moved up on the 'angel chart' were often giving five minutes of free time just before pack up at the conclusion of the day.
I had the opportunity to teach a wide range of lessons, including ICT based lessons in the computer lab. I taught across a range of subjects, and was also able to complete small practical activities with students relevant to Creative Arts, English and Science. The school had a grandparents day while I was completing my placement, and I was able to participate in this as well. I was able to interact with community members who came to the classroom, as well as assisting with running the sound/technology for the student assembly.
These placements have helped me begin to develop my teaching skills, as well as skills in interacting with a local school community.
References:
ACARA. (2016). My School. Available at: http://www.myschool.edu.au/SchoolProfile/Index/84396/LithgowPublicSchool/43003/2014
Lithgow Public School. (n.d). Lithgow Public School. Available at: http://www.lithgow-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/
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placement_timesheets.pdf | |
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Goals:
After considering my previous experiences, I have developed three learning goals that I wish to achieve when undertaking my next professional placement. These goals can be found in the attachment below:
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teaching_goals.docx | |
File Size: | 18 kb |
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ept218_goals.docx | |
File Size: | 14 kb |
File Type: | docx |