Throughout my time at university and on placement, I have learnt the importance of setting high expectations which inspire, motivate and challenge pupils.
Taking part in the relevant safeguarding training prior to starting placement prepared me to deal with any situations that may arise by making me aware of who I needed to contact and the appropriate actions in doing so. It also helped me to understand the importance of completing additional CPD during my time at university, especially when it concerns the safety and wellbeing of staff and pupils. By producing displays that include the work of a variety of pupils, I have contributed to a stimulating learning environment that is both informative and appealing to look at. Including work of a high standard in terms of content and structure demonstrated the high expectations I had for all of the class by providing model examples that the children could work from. I also created resources, such as writing checklists, that could be accessed by all pupils in order to highlight how every child could be stretched and challenged in their learning if given the means necessary to do so. Then, through marking their work, I was able to see which pupils had utilised the resources and how it had contributed to the overall standard. With both of my placements being at faith schools (both Catholic and Church of England) I have had to show adaptability in demonstrating the positive attitudes, values and behaviours which are expected of pupils. This was something I initially felt nervous about as I am non-religious, however through taking part in the various festivals, traditions and activities belonging to each religion, I now feel confident in my ability to engage in a variety of practices.
Throughout my time at university and on placement, I have learnt the importance of promoting good progress and outcomes by pupils.
By taking on the role of the class teacher, I was automatically accountable for all pupils’ attainment, progress and outcomes. I spent a good part of the initial weeks of my placements getting to know the children through liaising with the class teacher about their current capabilities and prior learning experiences in order for my teaching to build on these as demonstrated throughout my planning. Pupils were guided to reflect on the progress they had made through responding to marking and addressing their ‘Next Step’ targets at the beginning of each day. Ensuring that time was made for children to reflect on their progress at the start of each day was important to me as it encourages them to take responsibility for their own learning. Similarly, by providing examples for pupils such as WAGOLLs in English, children were encouraged to take a conscientious attitude to their own work to reach the expected standard. As a result of this, the children’s work was of a higher quality than usual as they had received the appropriate support. I demonstrated an understanding of how pupils learn and how this impacts teaching as evidenced through providing additional resources for pupils that needed support which impacted the pace, structure and organisation of the overall lesson. Another way this was achieved was through using a variety of teaching styles to keep learners engaged, through team-teaching and using a combination of teaching approaches (reading, discussions and video clips) to strengthen childrens’ understanding in my lessons.
Throughout my time at university and on placement, I have learnt the importance of demonstrating good subject and curriculum knowledge.
In order to secure my subject knowledge, I made an effort to read the books the pupils had studied prior to and during my placement to ensure that I was capable of planning sessions that acknowledged their prior knowledge as well as future learning objectives. By attending staff meetings, CPD sessions and taking part in an INSET day, I’ve been active conscientious in understanding the current developments in all subject areas, specifically within my major and minor specialisms. Through consistent modelling of spoken and written English in all lessons, as commented on by my mentor, I have promoted high standards of literacy throughout the curriculum. With regards to teaching early reading, I attended an SSP refresher course in preparation for placement as there was a possibility I would’ve been placed in KS1. I then requested to observe the teaching of phonics in order to see what I had learnt about in a real-life context, which was invaluable experience. As most of my experience is within a KS2 setting, my experience with teaching early mathematics is quite limited. I lead the mental maths starter activities during my initial placement in a Year 2 class which was beneficial as it allowed me to explore different ways this could be employed, which was often through games such as ‘Think, Pair, Share.’ I look forward to gaining more experience with teaching phonics and early mathematics in KS1 on my consolidation placement.
Throughout my time at university and on placement, I have learnt the importance of planning and teaching well structured lessons.
Through the organisation of my lessons (as evidenced in my planning) I ensure that there is enough time within each lesson to recap the pupils’ prior knowledge, teach the new content and consolidate this learning through asking key questions during discussions in order to keep children engaged. I actively promote a love of learning within children through providing them with hands-on learning experiences that encourage their curiosity by enabling them to explore new and exciting concepts. I’ve made use of any opportunity to take part in out-of-class activities such as school trips to extend pupils’ knowledge and understanding, as evidenced throughout the trip to Moss Farm Fisheries. To ensure my reflections were systematic, I spent time typing up my written notes each day after placement. This consisted of collating any observations I’d made, reflecting on the success of lessons and analysing the effectiveness of the teaching approaches I’d used. Towards the end of my developmental placement, I contributed to the design and provision of an engaging curriculum in English by planning and teaching three weeks of medium-term plans based on ‘The Secret Garden.’ In contrast to this, when teaching Maths I used a scheme that the whole school used which didn’t allow much room for me to contribute to the design of the maths curriculum. I look forward to contributing to the design of the Maths curriculum on my consolidation placement.
Throughout my time at university and on placement, I have learnt the importance of adapting teaching to respond to the strengths and needs of all pupils.
Taking part in pupil progress meetings (regarding English provision) allowed me to know when and how to differentiate appropriately and which pupils’ would benefit the most from this. I plan my lessons to meet the needs of a range of learning styles by implementing up to date pedagogies, as evidenced through my use of questioning during class discussions, a variety of media/visual literacy and practical/hands-on activities. I have a secure understanding of how a range of factors can inhibit pupils’ ability to learn, and how best to overcome these and am able to articulate the needs of different pupil groups such as those with SEN and G&T children as evidenced through my PED2019 and PED2020 assignment. I have demonstrated an awareness of the physical, social and intellectual development of children and know how to adapt teaching to support pupils’ education at different stages of development. When engaging in conversation with the pupils, I have shown a sensitivity to their social background, ethnicity and religious beliefs. I also kept a working document that focused in on another pupil which enabled me to adapt my planning and teaching according to their needs, for example, creating more opportunities for pair and group work to build on the pupil’s confidence in Maths Liaising with the class teacher and inclusion team regarding a child with medical needs developed my awareness of how to adapt my teaching to support their education. I look forward differentiating appropriately on my consolidation placement.
Throughout my time at university and on placement, I have learnt the importance of making accurate and productive use of assessment.
I know and understand how to assess the relevant subject and curriculum areas after a discussion with the class teacher where she explained how the school uses data (particularly within the core subjects) as well as observation of assessment week during my developmental placement, which I played an active role in supporting. I have made use of formative assessment to secure pupils’ progress as evidenced through my consistent use of questioning during lessons. With regards to summative assessment, I made use of the data from formative assessments carried out by the class teacher during assessment week to inform my own planning and teaching. I have used relevant data such as the pupils’ current reading age, previous Maths assessments and my own subject-specific trackers to monitor pupil progress, set targets and plan subsequent lessons. I gave pupils regular feedback, both orally and through accurate marking, and encourage pupils to respond to feedback via the use of ‘Next Step’ marking which allowed pupils to rectify their mistakes and provided challenges to extend the learning of those making substantial progress. I look forward to identifying where intervention may be needed in the future as well as working with learners to target further improvement in other areas of the curriculum.
Throughout my time at university and on placement, I have learnt the importance of managing behaviour effectively to ensure a good and safe learning environment.
I have established clear rules and routines for behaviour in classrooms and taken responsibility for promoting good and courteous behaviour both in classrooms and around the school through adhering to the school’s behaviour policy and using their behaviour system (Class Dojo) to reinforce positive behaviour. In order to manage classes effectively, I’ve used appropriate techniques and approaches that I have learnt about from behaviour management-focused CPD sessions hosted by Lisa Miller. These include the rhythmic clapping pattern, three-part instruction and praising the behaviour of the pupils that were displaying the correct behaviour to capture the attention of those misbehaving. I have also effectively deployed support staff to work one to one with pupils that display challenging behaviours during my teaching to improve the pacing of my lessons. During my initial and developmental placements, I maintained good relationships with pupils by celebrating their achievements to help promote a sense of achievement and encourage others to participate. Low-level behaviour issues were addressed appropriately through quick and consistent techniques as commented on by my mentor. I look forward to actively seeking additional support in addressing the needs of pupils where significant behaviour is demonstrated on my consolidation placement.
Throughout my time at university and on placement, I have learnt the importance of fulfilling wider professional behaviours.
Through attending the art club after school, I was able to make a contribution to the wider life and ethos of the school as it created opportunities to work with another year group and form relationships with pupils outside of my class. I attended every staff meeting in order to develop effective professional relationships with colleagues, particularly the Year 5 teachers and support staff. I’ve used these opportunities to ask for advice when needed and was directed to the specialist staff for support which I utilised which took the form of observations and discussions. One of the staff meetings focused on the deployment of support staff within the school as the SLT wanted to create a shared understanding of the role of the TA. We discussed the key features of an effective TA and how there were differing expectations among the staff. It was particularly useful to see this in a real-life context and provided me with lots of ideas of how to deploy support staff effectively. I also carried out lots of academic reading and research surrounding the deployment of support staff for my PED2019 assignment. I took responsibility for improving my teaching as evidenced by how I responded to advice and feedback from colleagues. Taking part in observing the lessons of specialist teachers in specific subjects such as Maths and English where guidance was needed enabled me to employ new strategies and techniques learnt. I look forward to communicating effectively with parents with regard to pupils’ achievements and well-being on my consolidation placement.