Professional Goals and Reflection on Placement

Protected: Serial Day Tasks

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Protected: Learning Log: Week 10 – Community Project

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Protected: Community Project

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Protected: Visual Arts and Drama (06/11/18)

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Protected: Integrated Arts Week 6 – 16/10/18

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Integrated Arts Week 4

From my learning in the previous 3 weeks of this module it appears to me that in many schools and local authorities education within the arts is minimal and sometimes … Continue reading →

From my learning in the previous 3 weeks of this module it appears to me that in many schools and local authorities education within the arts is minimal and sometimes incidental – by this I mean it only happens as a result of something else being taught such as a piece of art work being completed to reflect the topic being studied by the class. The arts are reflected in many walks of life such as advertising, films and television, video games and stage shows. If these subjects are not embraced in primary school will they eventually be eradicated from our society completely?

Our lecture today gave an insight into the once unique pedagogical methods employed by Caol Primary School in Fort William. Here, the development of Room 13 has opened the door to young people by giving them a place to explore their artistic side. The young people of the school have developed this space into a business. They employ an artist in residence and make all of the decisions surrounding the day to day operations of the studio. It is their space for them to use in their own individual way. Some of the young artists from the studio have had their work displayed in galleries such at the Tate Modern Gallery and many prizes have been won by the studio and individuals attached to it. Provided that their class work is complete, the young people are allowed to leave their classroom to go and work in the studio. This flexible approach to art education is reducing the anxiety that often surrounds young people in their art lessons and providing them with a freedom of expression. The freedom of room 13 is also beneficial to the teachers of these young people. Instead of being restricted to textbook teaching methods, room 13 allows teachers to provide learners with the opportunity to explore their own capacity for achievement in both the short term and the long term (Gibb, 2012). I have enjoyed hearing about the improved learning experiences brought about by room 13. I appreciate this extreme approach to flexible and integrated learning through the arts. Drawing on the experiences of the young people involved in room 13 can help to improve my pedagogical style and improve the learning experience for all in my classroom.

Our music session today surrounded Charanga. This website provides teachers with music resources and lessons to complete with their classes every week. This type of resource is beneficial to teachers. Not only does this resource save teachers time with lesson planning it is also accessible for all, no matter the musical ability of the teacher or the learners. Much of the music that children will study and learn will be recognisable to them which may encourage encourage engagement in their learning. Charanga also provides teachers with seasonal and topic based songs that can be used in the school and incorporated into assemblies. This musical engagement will bring benefits to other areas of learning for a young person. A connection exists between musical experiences and language ability. Early exposure to music allows for the brain to develop an understanding of linguistic sounds (Hallam, 2010). Allowing for frequent engagement with resources such as Charanga can therefore be beneficial to a young persons learning away from music. This resource is used within East Ayrshire primary schools. I have recently discovered that this is the local authority where I will begin my placement soon. I hope to have the opportunity to see this resource in action.

References

Gibb, C. (2012) Room 13: The Movement and International Network. International Journal of Art & Design Education. Vol.31(3), pp.237-244.

Hallam, S. (2010) The power of music: Its impact on the intellectual, social and personal development of children and young people. International Journal of Music Education. Vol.28(3), pp.269-289.

Protected: Using a Stimulus to Engage with the Arts (25/09/18)

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October Placement

Approaching my school placement in October I am looking forward to having the opportunity of experiencing life as a teacher. I am eager to observe certain techniques that teachers may use throughout lessons and how they approach certain situations, also taking part in lessons and getting to know the pupils that I will be helping over those two weeks. Although I welcome the idea of going on placement I am aware that I may be presented with challenges and it will be interesting to monitor how I cope with these situations. I believe that using this resource will benefit me over the next four years as I will be able to look back on my progress and development.

Placement Reflection

My first ever school placement experience was everything i imagined it could have been. I enjoyed every single minute of it. It was fun, rewarding, energetic and also some parts were challenging. It was interesting to see how teachers and other school staff members dealt and coped with challenging behaviours and situations. This really helped … Continue reading Placement Reflection →

For this first week, i was placed in primary 1. This was amazing. The children were a delight and the class teacher was so helpful. Throughout my week in this class, i was on hand helping the children with their daily tasks. It was such a good feeling when a child would ask you to help them and when they finally understood what to do. I felt confident as soon as i stepped into the classroom. Even though, running up to my placement, i was very nervous.

I got some great feedback from my experience in primary one. I found it very easy to bond with the children and make little friendships with them in a short space of time. After every class, i went home really happy, that i managed to help a young child with their numeracy and literacy skills. It made me feel so good about myself and my ability to teach.

The second week, i was placed in primary 6. This was a much more challenging class. I would say, it was a real eye opener. By this, i mean it was a shock at first to see how many children today, live with additional support needs. Each day, i would help the children with the ongoing problem solving task that was set out for them to do. This was really beneficial for myself as well because i really got to see how children’s mind work and how they can find out different answers uses the same strategies or how they used a variety of different methods to what i would use.

The teacher of primary 6 asked me to work with two boys who were both still at early level. Both of these boys struggled to read and also count to 20. For two mornings, i worked with these two boys by reading a passage to them and asking them questions on what they have heard. I also helped them to do number charts and how to add numbers together to make 10 or 20. I felt as if i really did help these boys. Afterwards, one of them said to me “Miss Grady, I really understand numbers now”. Just hearing someone say that is wonderful and it made me very happy.

This experience really did help boost my confidence not only in my work but also within myself, I have lacked a large amount of confidence in myself for a while now but my placement really helped to identify myself.

Teaching is honestly the most rewarding job and i cannot wait to get back out on placements in second year.

Placement Experience

During my two week block placement, I was based in one of two P6 classes. The class was at full capacity with 33 pupils, which gave me an insight into the difficulties that this can bring to a teacher. I’m definitely glad I got to experience this early on in my journey to becoming a teacher, and hopefully this means I will be more equipped to deal with big class sizes in years to come. It was also evident to me that due to the needs in the class, the teacher had to take on more of a nurturing role than she would normally. This also gave me a great insight into the complexities of a large group of children and how to cope with varying needs in the classroom. I am keen to develop my knowledge of Additional Support Needs in the classroom and how to support pupils in the appropriate way. I am also glad I got to witness days that didn’t go 100% smoothly, as this happens often in reality, and how teachers coped with hic-ups in a calm and collected manner – a skill that is crucial in being a primary teacher.

I spent the first week in the P6 class, getting to know the pupils and familiarising myself with their class routines. I got the opportunity to have some responsibility of the class and small groups, i.e. taking their spelling assessment, bringing in the lines in the morning and after break/lunch, leading a group in practically working out a problem solving question with hula hoops. My second week was spent getting a taste of other stages in the school – I got the chance to work with nearly every stage. This gave me a real understanding of the different teaching styles needed for different levels within a school. It was genuinely interesting to see different approaches of teachers from class to class, and I hope to take these inspirations on board to develop my own professional teaching style.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my time on placement: it allowed me to put the theory I have learned so far into practice and gave me a context for my future learning. I think it will be easier to understand new concepts as I can relate it back to a realistic setting.