Monthly Archives: October 2015

What it means to be an Enquiring Practitioner

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Being an enquiring practitioner is extremely important when being a teacher. It means being open to so many new ideas and being willing to change teaching and learning styles which is so important as during your career you will meet so many different types of pupils who may choose to learn in a different style to other pupils. A benefit to it is that it will make us as student teachers, and professional teachers in four years time, question our own educational beliefs which will allow us to think outside of the box and be  a positive influence on our pupils because we will want to challenge and help change education.

However, a challenge of this may be that teachers who have been in the profession may not be willing to continually change their ideas whenever the curriculum changes.

Being an enquiring practitioner is so important when being a student. We need to understand that there are so many different learning styles and learn how we can adapt the one we feel most comformtable with. It will also allow us to also increase our knowledge of learning too.

Therefore, being an enquiring practitioner means to be open to new ideas and willing to continue to learn which is extremely beneficial in the role of being a teacher.

Managing My Learning- Critical Reading Activity

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The author is trying to tell us about her experience of being in a primary school and how she thought the children were being taught.

What the writer could do differently to improve the register of the prose:

  • Instead of using the word ‘kids’ use ‘children’
  • When using words such as ‘don’t’ use the full word (do not.)
  • Try to use professional language rather than colloquial language

Three points of advise to the writer in exemplar A:

  • Say what you saw and learnt, not what you do not remember or did not see.
  • Prove how this made you want to be a teacher and how the experience enhanced your understanding of the job.

Tell us more about the experience the children had through play.

Exemplar B:

This writer refers straight to the current curriculum which helps us understand the use of play and children in primary schools. They also use references, this is helpful as it successfully backs up the point the writer is saying. This person uses professional language, which allows their piece to be put across very easily and gives a very good impression of the writer. Finally, the word count of this piece is a lot higher than the first piece, which helps show a deeper understanding of the subject.

Therefore, exemplar B is a more acceptable piece due to its language, the use of references and a larger word count. The writer in part A should take note from this piece in order for their piece to be accepted as piece of academic, critically analytical writing.

The Virtues of Teaching

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I feel that the five most important virtues of teaching are:

  • Fairness
  • Empathy
  • Patience
  • Kindness
  • Respect

Fairness

Fairness is extremely important in a primary school. I feel that no pupils should be singled out and certain ones given advantages, so they should not be treated any differently

Empathy

Empathy is also important. As a teacher you should get on the same level as the pupils and help them understand the issue they’re having, no matter how big or small.

Patience

As a teacher, I understand that patience is a huge attribute to have. You have to understand that every pupil is different, so each will take longer to grasp certain things than others. But, having this patience will allow the ‘eureka’ moment to feel incredible when the pupil grasps what they are doing.

Kindness

Teachers must be kind in order for them to be approachable for the pupils. Children should not feel anxious when coming to me when they need help with something, so kindness is very important.

Respect

Pupils should have respect for me, but I should also respect them. I should also have respect for anyone who is in my classroom: from the cleaner to the head teacher. Anyone who is in my classroom are there to help me, so I will give them all my respect.

Social Media- Personal vs Professional

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  • What challenges/opportunities you may be faced with when marrying the personal vs the professional presence on social media?

I feel that the challenges I will face as a teacher, and a keen user of social media, on sites such as Facebook and Twitter will be very varied. I feel that I will have to be careful in not only what I post, but in what others tag me in. What I share about my social and personal life will have to be kept closer to myself. I will make my accounts as private as possible in order for my social life to be shared with only those I have as friends so I can keep my personal and professional life separate.

However, the use of social media in the marrying of personal vs professional practice does not have to be filled with so much negativity the media often make out to be. The use of twitter is a wonderful way to connect with all things education globally. But, it is a very successful way for people to keep up with notices in a primary school. For example, I am from a town called Arbroath and two of the primary schools, Hayshead and Inverbrothock, have Twitter accounts. These accounts allow parents and those interested in the goings-on of the school to be kept updated as often as possible. I feel this highlights the positive aspects of social media within education. Therefore, it shows that it is possible to have a personal twitter account, on private settings, but a professional one too.

  • How are the challenges/opportunities afforded by social media framed? How will you frame things – positive or deficit viewpoint?

The media will highlight the negative aspects of social media a lot more than they will highlight the benefits. I want to frame social media in a positive viewpoint as I know how beneficial it is, not only in education, but in a way of gaining information quickly.

Therefore, I feel that social media plays a huge part in personal and professional life. As professionals, we must be careful in what we post, but this does not mean that we have to delete these accounts all together. There are many ways in which we can make them private. Social media is so helpful in professional aspects, so we should use this opportunity and put it to good use.