Category Archives: 3.4 Prof. Reflection & Commitment

First Day in a French Primary School

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I was both anxious and excited going into my first day of placement. Arriving at the school was surreal, I couldn’t quite believe I was going to be teaching English in a French primary school. After entering the school with my host Nina, I was given a very warm welcome by both staff and my host teacher Amélie. I was very happy to find out that she was fluent in English as the language barrier was something that I feared going into the placement. Although I have basic French and studied the language when I was in high school, I am not very confident. It was good to find out that I was with a teacher that I could converse within in my mother tongue as well as someone that could help me improve my French speaking skills.

The Language Barrier

I realised very early on in the day how difficult it was to try and understand native French speakers. The children in my class were all very excited about me being in their classroom and attempted to ask me question after question, in French. At this point I panicked a bit as I realised my level of French was not going to cut it. Throughout the day I tried to pay attention to everything both the teacher and children were saying. I could pick out various words, but the fluency along with the speed was too much to keep up with. This made me realise that during my time in France I would like to improve my conversational French. The language barrier was also an issue in the staff room at lunchtime. I was sitting at a table with teachers talking at what seemed like a hundred miles an hour. This also made me realise how long a two-hour lunch actually is. It seemed like an eternity sitting in silence not understanding what anyone was saying. I knew it was going to be difficult going into a primary school setting where English wasn’t their native language, this is something I believe I will get used to over time. I hope that being submerged in the French language will allow me to improve.

My Role

I was already aware going into the placement that my role within the classroom was going to be helping as a language assistant. As this was only my first day I spent a lot of the time observing various lessons. However, when it was time for the children to begin their English lesson, I was given the opportunity to stand up in front of the class while the children asked me questions in English and I answered them in English. This was v

ery good as it allowed the children to get to know me better and ask me questions about both myself and my country. They were very excited to find out that I was from Scotland. I had to ensure that I spoke slowly and clearly to allow them to understand the English along with my Scottish accent. Having this small input in the class allowed me to gain an idea of the level of English the children had as well as the kind of activities I will be doing during my time in school.

Lesson Structure

Although I have only been in the school for one day it was clear to see that the French school system is very structured. Mathematics and French are always taught in the morning and are kept to a strict time limit. I did not see any expressive arts classes today as they focused on literacy and numeracy. In France I believe that they teach the subjects that are considered more important and more creative subjects take a back seat. This is something very different from Scotland as we ensure there is always time for expressive and creative subjects. Because the children have three breaks throughout the course of the day, this is the time where they can unwind and have fun. This may be why there is a lot less play within the four walls of the classroom. However, I have only experienced one day of work, so I cannot confirm that this is the way in which every day will be structured.

Behaviour

It was great to see the high level of respect the children have for the teacher and vice versa. The children are all very polite and eager to learn and participate in lessons. From the beginning of the day the children were positive and equipped for learning. The children all arrive within the necessary equipment needed for the day ahead, they don’t rely on the teacher to provide stationary as some students do in Scottish primary schools. When a lesson begins, the children all sit very quietly and get on with their work. There was not one person in the class that was disruptive or not getting on with their work. Something else that I noticed was that every member of the class would put their hand up when the teacher asked a question. They all wanted to be involved in their learning and would get excited if they were to be picked to answer a question. This is something I have never seen before in Scottish primary schools. Often, it’s the same children who put their hands up whilst others sit back and don’t offer an answer. This was very refreshing seeing children so enthusiastic about their studies.

Overall, I had a great experience during my first day in a French primary school setting. I got to know the children whilst having my first insight into the French education system. It was challenging at times due to the language barrier, but this is something I look forward to improving throughout my time in France. The first day allowed me to realise how lucky I am to be spending the learning from life placement in France.

Reflection on Experiences

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Prior to the learning from life placement I have had one professional practice placement. This took place in a Scottish primary school. I was in my first year of the MA (Hons) Education course and it was my first experience of teaching in a Scottish primary school. I had the best experience on my first professional placement. It was this that confirmed I was in the correct field and teaching was my passion.

Over the six weeks that I was in the primary school I became more confident in my teaching ability as well as in my organisation and behaviour management skills. I was at a challenging school in a deprived area ad I couldn’t believe how rewarding it was working with the children in primary 5/6. I taught various lessons in all subject areas during my time in school and worked up to having three full days of responsibility. This was a great achievement as it proved that I was capable of taking control of a classroom. I built great relationships with both my host teacher and the pupils and I believe that this was one of the reasons I had such a successful placement. In the class there were some children that had additional support needs as well as behaviour problems. This was something I had never experienced before, and I learned a lot about both autism and ADHD. I had to ensure that I researched these conditions and altered my teaching strategies to ensure that all of the children were learning in the way that was best for them.

I believe that since I had such a good experience during my first placement I will go into my placement in France both prepared and enthusiastic. I have had experience working with challenging children, pupils with additional support needs as well as a large classroom. I believe I can take this experience and progress further during the learning from life placement as I will still be in a school environment. I will be able to reflect upon the differences between the Scottish and French education system as well as the difference between the very different classrooms.

Values Workshop

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This week we had our very first Values workshop. I didn’t really know what to expect going into it as we had never had the experience of a workshop prior to this. When I went in I surrounded myself with familiar faces and assumed that we would be allowed to sit with who we wanted creating a comfortable environment. However we were soon made to step out of our comfort zones and were put into groups with others from the course that we may not know so well. This allowed me to talk to new people and get to know some new faces within the course.

Our group was told that we were to be group one, at this time I didn’t think to much into what number our group had been given. It wasn’t until each group were given a large envelope of resources that I began to notice something strange. Our group had been given countless items including stationary such as pens, pencils, post it notes ect. As I looked around I seen that the other three groups had’t been given nearly as many items. As we sat on pondered over why this might be, we were told that we had to make something out of our materials that would be helpful to a student starting out at university. I soon forgot after my group began to plan and create, how little the other groups had been given t work with. It wasn’t until each group had to present their creation that I noticed the true inequality between groups. Group 4 had a mere post-it note and pen, what could you even make out of that?

When we began presenting I noticed the different ways each group were treated. My group (group1) were given the the highest amount of praise. Encouraging, positive and emotive language was used to describe what we had come up with, however, this wasn’t the case for every group. I noticed especially within group 4 very little eye contact was made during the presentation and Carrie was constantly checking her watch. It was very awkward and uncomfortable to watch. I soon came to the realisation of the meaning behind our first values workshop.

I thought it was a great way to portray inequality within society showing that not only do some people have less but how people can treat them differently because of this. This task allowed me to gain a greater understanding of this concept. Inequality can be seen through something as small as school uniform. There will always be the children who have visibly less than others but that shouldn’t mean they are treated any differently from those who seemingly have a lot. This workshop was extremely effective in addressing this issue within society and allowed me to gain the necessary knowledge needed to confront similar situations in the future.

Why teaching?

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Working with children has always been a passion of mine and the dedication shown by my teachers throughout my school life inspired me to follow in their footsteps.

I first realised I wanted to be a teacher when I was seven years old. That may sound very young, but, it was in fact my primary three teacher who was and always will be my biggest inspiration. She was a role model who played a significant part in shaping me into the person I am today. Throughout the process of applying to study Education she was always in the back of my mind. I hope that one day I will have a similar affect on my pupils.

I believe that the importance of teachers can, at times be understated. I can’t think of anything more rewarding than helping to shape a child’s future. Primary school children are of an age where the people they associate with are extremely influential in both their personal and academic life.

I truly understood the importance of the role of a teacher when I helped out in my local primary school. I was able to witness how each child is an individual and how the teacher would tackle challenging situations. This allowed me to see that although teaching is a rewarding profession it doesn’t come with out hard work, perseverance and most importantly patience.

I knew after my year of work experience that I definitely wanted to become a teacher. I was ready for the challenges university would bring and excited to face them head on. I believe that through my experience as both a pupil and a student helper I have gained the attributes needed to succeed and hopefully one day become the teacher and role model my students look up to.