Placement Reflections
I believe that my most recent placement with a grade two class has heavily influenced my pedagogical stance and how I will approach teaching in the classroom as my reflections have led me to gain a better understanding of how to approach teaching as a whole. On my first day in the classroom, my teacher suggested that I spend time getting to know the students and their names. So on day one of placement, I made sure that I went around to each child at least once throughout the day and got their name, I also made sure that I had a meaningful interaction with them, whether this was helping them through an activity or just having a short conversation with them before the next class. Here I could see that teaching is built on a strong relationship between the student and the teacher. As all students are different and have individual learning needs, I believe we as teachers must be able to cater for all children in our class so that everyone is able to experience the same level of knowledge and therefore what matters most is that ‘every student’s personal understanding is moved forward’ (Hinchey 2010, p.42) For example, on one occasion, there was one student who was unable to write a short paragraph on how they constructed a house made of boxes, so instead of making the student feel left out over not being able to complete the task, I altered the activity to suit his learning needs. Here the student verbally told me how he constructed his house and I wrote his sentences out on a piece of paper for him. I then cut up each sentence and he had to stick down the words in the correct order on a separate piece of paper, being aware of capital letters and full stops. Another incident where I had to cater to students different learning abilities was when I taught a lesson on Haiku’s. As the class was split into different ability levels for their literacy groups, I was able to plan lessons that I knew would allow them to engage fully with the lesson content, especially for those who were on the lower end of the literacy groups. Simple modifications such as having pre printed lines on a piece of paper for students to break up their words into syllables, or even using mini whiteboards so that students can ‘trial and error’ their words into syllables to fit the poem was an engaging way for students to still be part of the activity and not feel left out. From this, I recognised that every student is different, coming from diverse backgrounds with distinctive learning needs and as their teacher it is my responsibility to uncover these differences to better understand my students and connect them to have a better understanding of knowledge.
I believe that my most recent placement with a grade two class has heavily influenced my pedagogical stance and how I will approach teaching in the classroom as my reflections have led me to gain a better understanding of how to approach teaching as a whole. On my first day in the classroom, my teacher suggested that I spend time getting to know the students and their names. So on day one of placement, I made sure that I went around to each child at least once throughout the day and got their name, I also made sure that I had a meaningful interaction with them, whether this was helping them through an activity or just having a short conversation with them before the next class. Here I could see that teaching is built on a strong relationship between the student and the teacher. As all students are different and have individual learning needs, I believe we as teachers must be able to cater for all children in our class so that everyone is able to experience the same level of knowledge and therefore what matters most is that ‘every student’s personal understanding is moved forward’ (Hinchey 2010, p.42) For example, on one occasion, there was one student who was unable to write a short paragraph on how they constructed a house made of boxes, so instead of making the student feel left out over not being able to complete the task, I altered the activity to suit his learning needs. Here the student verbally told me how he constructed his house and I wrote his sentences out on a piece of paper for him. I then cut up each sentence and he had to stick down the words in the correct order on a separate piece of paper, being aware of capital letters and full stops. Another incident where I had to cater to students different learning abilities was when I taught a lesson on Haiku’s. As the class was split into different ability levels for their literacy groups, I was able to plan lessons that I knew would allow them to engage fully with the lesson content, especially for those who were on the lower end of the literacy groups. Simple modifications such as having pre printed lines on a piece of paper for students to break up their words into syllables, or even using mini whiteboards so that students can ‘trial and error’ their words into syllables to fit the poem was an engaging way for students to still be part of the activity and not feel left out. From this, I recognised that every student is different, coming from diverse backgrounds with distinctive learning needs and as their teacher it is my responsibility to uncover these differences to better understand my students and connect them to have a better understanding of knowledge.
How my pedagogical position be evident in my teaching
As building positive relations with students is one my key pedagogical beliefs, I believe that a simple activity such as students bringing in a family photo at the start of the year would be a good way for not only the teacher to get to know their students, but also for the rest of the class. This way, the teacher can have a better understanding of each students’ families and gain an insight into what their home life is like.
Another way that my pedagogical will be evident throughout my teaching will be through planning activities that can be completed and presented in multiple ways. For example, some students may love doing activities that require them to write out a story or an essay, whilst others may want to present their work through a role play. I believe that students should have those types of opportunities throughout my classroom.
I also believe that reflective practices forms the foundation of becoming a more effective teacher. By self reflecting on my lessons, I believe that I will be able to help students form a positive relationship with their learning endeavours.
As building positive relations with students is one my key pedagogical beliefs, I believe that a simple activity such as students bringing in a family photo at the start of the year would be a good way for not only the teacher to get to know their students, but also for the rest of the class. This way, the teacher can have a better understanding of each students’ families and gain an insight into what their home life is like.
Another way that my pedagogical will be evident throughout my teaching will be through planning activities that can be completed and presented in multiple ways. For example, some students may love doing activities that require them to write out a story or an essay, whilst others may want to present their work through a role play. I believe that students should have those types of opportunities throughout my classroom.
I also believe that reflective practices forms the foundation of becoming a more effective teacher. By self reflecting on my lessons, I believe that I will be able to help students form a positive relationship with their learning endeavours.