4. Create and maintain supportive and safe learning environments
4.1. Support student participation
Identify strategies to support inclusive student participation and engagement in classroom activities
An integral part of having a supportive and safe learning environment is having students engaged and participating with their peers in classroom activities. I believe that the most important thing you can do to foster this environment is to have a positive relationship with your students. As a student teacher on practicum and as a tutor I have always strived to be warm, kind, supportive, to listen to them, give them encouragement, constructive and positive feedback, and to make learning seem interesting and relevant to their needs. In both these roles I have had students eager to share things about their lives with me, thank me for helping them, give me gifts such as drawings that they have done, and it is the best feeling to know that I have made a positive impact on them.
To facilitate student participation I believe that you need to not only ask students that have their hands up but those who do not. I also give students time to think before I ask them for an answer and have often utilised the method of think, pair share, as students are often more inclined to participate if they have had time to think. A great way to make sure that all students are engaged and participating is group work. In order to promote equal participation I will ensure that each student in the group has a designated role.
4.2. Manage classroom activities
Demonstrate the capacity to organise classroom activities and provide clear directions
My ability to provide clear and concise instruction has improved throughout my practicums. During my practicum last year in particular I consciously worked towards improving my ability in this area. My very first lesson delivered in my practicum last year fell apart when it came to giving the instructions for the students group work. I realised immediately that I needed assistance in this area and worked diligently with my mentor teacher in improving my technique. At the beginning of the lesson I would ensure that the students knew what the learning intention was and what my expectations of them were. During my practicum I also had the chance to witness and implement a number of other strategies that assist in managing classroom activities. Having set rituals and routines were key to how the classroom operated, at the beginning of the day the students were told what subjects were on and when, this was available for them to view throughout the day as it was posted on the board. If the routine changed for the day because of a special activity some students, especially those with Autism could get quite distressed so it was helpful for them to be forewarned. There were also routines for how the students entered and exited the classroom, and transitioned between activities. I also made sure to move around the classroom to offer assistance and manage behaviour and safety.
4.3. Manage challenging behaviour
Demonstrate knowledge of practical approaches to manage challenging behaviour
During my practicums I have had the chance to experiment with different methods to manage challenging behaviour. I believe that the most important thing I need in order to manage challenging behaviour is to have a positive relationship with my students, and if a student has negative behaviour I need to understand the cause of that behaviour in order to effectively manage the situation. I have also picked up many strategies from completing the unit EDU3ECM. In all of the schools I have been in there have been school rules and classroom rules. In my future classroom I would like to focus on fostering students’ responsibility (personal and communal) and their knowledge of their rights. In my class there will be no rules but instead rights and responsibilities that all students know and have such as all students have the right to learn and to be safe. I will also use what I have learnt from EDU3ECM about Ramon Lewis’ Developments Management Approach.
4.4. Maintain student safety
Describe strategies that support students’ wellbeing and safely working within school and/or system, curriculum and legislative requirements
It is part of a teacher’s duty of care to make sure that their students are safe. There are procedures and school policies that make sure students safety and wellbeing is maintained. During all of my practicums I was on yard duty with my mentor teacher. There are specific procedures to follow if you witness any misconduct in the yard. There are also school policies about what to do in the case of a fire or other emergency. There are also procedures and policies for taking students on camps and excursions.
Teachers also need to be aware about students with allergies and other conditions that may affect their wellbeing and require special attention. At some schools teachers are required to keep up to date with their first aid certification.
It is important to make sure that the classrooms are safe and that rooms and equipment are maintained and stored properly. I have seen that in schools there are regular checks to make sure that things are safe.
This year on practicum I also discussed mandatory reporting with my mentor teacher. It is important that not only are your students safe at school but at home as well and we discussed what to do if as a teacher you suspect that one of your students is not in an ideal situation at home.
Student wellbeing was a big part of the curriculum at my placement school last year. The school placed a big emphasis on this area and so they were involved in the 'You Can Do It' program which developed skills in resilience, confidence, persistence, organisation, and getting along.
4.5. Use ICT safely, responsibly and ethically
Demonstrate an understanding of the relevant issues and the strategies available to support the safe, responsible and ethical use of ICT in learning and teaching
ICT is very common in today’s society. ICT is used not only in schools, but in homes and the workplace and so it is vitally important that teachers are able to guide their students to use these technologies safely, responsibly and ethically.
As a teacher I am aware of the benefits of using ICT as well as the key issues behind using ICT. The issues regarding the use of ICT are: cyberbullying, being safe online, privacy of personal information, etiquette, effective online communication, and respecting the work of others and being aware of copyright laws.
I have had the chance to see students participating in Skype chats with students from other schools and writing on their classroom blog. In this classroom I watched as the teacher explained to the students the proper way of interacting with others and writing online. She made it clear to her students what their roles were as digital citizens and how to conduct themselves properly online.
Last year on placement students were doing a project in pairs on a country that was participating in the Olympic Games. There were a specific list of questions or details that the students had to find information on. I noticed that some groups of students were searching really general terms such as ‘Greece information’ rather than more specific terms such as ‘Greek population’ so I took the time to explain to these students how to effectively use Google to search. Even though these students were in grade 5 and used laptops frequently in class this was still an area in which they struggled.
4.1. Support student participation
Identify strategies to support inclusive student participation and engagement in classroom activities
An integral part of having a supportive and safe learning environment is having students engaged and participating with their peers in classroom activities. I believe that the most important thing you can do to foster this environment is to have a positive relationship with your students. As a student teacher on practicum and as a tutor I have always strived to be warm, kind, supportive, to listen to them, give them encouragement, constructive and positive feedback, and to make learning seem interesting and relevant to their needs. In both these roles I have had students eager to share things about their lives with me, thank me for helping them, give me gifts such as drawings that they have done, and it is the best feeling to know that I have made a positive impact on them.
To facilitate student participation I believe that you need to not only ask students that have their hands up but those who do not. I also give students time to think before I ask them for an answer and have often utilised the method of think, pair share, as students are often more inclined to participate if they have had time to think. A great way to make sure that all students are engaged and participating is group work. In order to promote equal participation I will ensure that each student in the group has a designated role.
4.2. Manage classroom activities
Demonstrate the capacity to organise classroom activities and provide clear directions
My ability to provide clear and concise instruction has improved throughout my practicums. During my practicum last year in particular I consciously worked towards improving my ability in this area. My very first lesson delivered in my practicum last year fell apart when it came to giving the instructions for the students group work. I realised immediately that I needed assistance in this area and worked diligently with my mentor teacher in improving my technique. At the beginning of the lesson I would ensure that the students knew what the learning intention was and what my expectations of them were. During my practicum I also had the chance to witness and implement a number of other strategies that assist in managing classroom activities. Having set rituals and routines were key to how the classroom operated, at the beginning of the day the students were told what subjects were on and when, this was available for them to view throughout the day as it was posted on the board. If the routine changed for the day because of a special activity some students, especially those with Autism could get quite distressed so it was helpful for them to be forewarned. There were also routines for how the students entered and exited the classroom, and transitioned between activities. I also made sure to move around the classroom to offer assistance and manage behaviour and safety.
4.3. Manage challenging behaviour
Demonstrate knowledge of practical approaches to manage challenging behaviour
During my practicums I have had the chance to experiment with different methods to manage challenging behaviour. I believe that the most important thing I need in order to manage challenging behaviour is to have a positive relationship with my students, and if a student has negative behaviour I need to understand the cause of that behaviour in order to effectively manage the situation. I have also picked up many strategies from completing the unit EDU3ECM. In all of the schools I have been in there have been school rules and classroom rules. In my future classroom I would like to focus on fostering students’ responsibility (personal and communal) and their knowledge of their rights. In my class there will be no rules but instead rights and responsibilities that all students know and have such as all students have the right to learn and to be safe. I will also use what I have learnt from EDU3ECM about Ramon Lewis’ Developments Management Approach.
4.4. Maintain student safety
Describe strategies that support students’ wellbeing and safely working within school and/or system, curriculum and legislative requirements
It is part of a teacher’s duty of care to make sure that their students are safe. There are procedures and school policies that make sure students safety and wellbeing is maintained. During all of my practicums I was on yard duty with my mentor teacher. There are specific procedures to follow if you witness any misconduct in the yard. There are also school policies about what to do in the case of a fire or other emergency. There are also procedures and policies for taking students on camps and excursions.
Teachers also need to be aware about students with allergies and other conditions that may affect their wellbeing and require special attention. At some schools teachers are required to keep up to date with their first aid certification.
It is important to make sure that the classrooms are safe and that rooms and equipment are maintained and stored properly. I have seen that in schools there are regular checks to make sure that things are safe.
This year on practicum I also discussed mandatory reporting with my mentor teacher. It is important that not only are your students safe at school but at home as well and we discussed what to do if as a teacher you suspect that one of your students is not in an ideal situation at home.
Student wellbeing was a big part of the curriculum at my placement school last year. The school placed a big emphasis on this area and so they were involved in the 'You Can Do It' program which developed skills in resilience, confidence, persistence, organisation, and getting along.
4.5. Use ICT safely, responsibly and ethically
Demonstrate an understanding of the relevant issues and the strategies available to support the safe, responsible and ethical use of ICT in learning and teaching
ICT is very common in today’s society. ICT is used not only in schools, but in homes and the workplace and so it is vitally important that teachers are able to guide their students to use these technologies safely, responsibly and ethically.
As a teacher I am aware of the benefits of using ICT as well as the key issues behind using ICT. The issues regarding the use of ICT are: cyberbullying, being safe online, privacy of personal information, etiquette, effective online communication, and respecting the work of others and being aware of copyright laws.
I have had the chance to see students participating in Skype chats with students from other schools and writing on their classroom blog. In this classroom I watched as the teacher explained to the students the proper way of interacting with others and writing online. She made it clear to her students what their roles were as digital citizens and how to conduct themselves properly online.
Last year on placement students were doing a project in pairs on a country that was participating in the Olympic Games. There were a specific list of questions or details that the students had to find information on. I noticed that some groups of students were searching really general terms such as ‘Greece information’ rather than more specific terms such as ‘Greek population’ so I took the time to explain to these students how to effectively use Google to search. Even though these students were in grade 5 and used laptops frequently in class this was still an area in which they struggled.