Monthly Archives: September 2015

Gender: Did it affect me?

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I spent my time at Primary school switching from being a ‘girly’ girl to being heavily involved in sports – back and forth. In Primary 3 I started to play football with the boys. They were happy for me to play and didn’t care about my ability – it didn’t seem as if this was obscure to them and I was really happy to play. I would often play football with them right up until I left Primary school. I remember one lunch time in Primary 3, a playground assistant came up to me and said “Get away from the boys playing football; you’re getting in the way!” I told her that I was involved in this game and she was very shocked, however she let me play with them. Maybe this was one time when my gender affected me?

As I grew older, I started to play with the girls more – nothing unsurprising. We would play games where we would pretend we had babies or create fictional worlds that we would live out at break and lunchtime. Every now and again though, the boys and girls in my class would come together and play games such as Granny (with a tennis ball and a wall) or jungle’s on fire. I personally had the most fun at these times because we all got along and it was like one huge friends group.

Looking back now, I realise there may have been some slight ways in which my gender was taken into account. Like on sports day – they would split the boys and girls up in each class when it was time to do the races. Or even at the start of the day, when the bell would ring we would line up in two separate lines according to our gender. Or what about when the girls got to pack up 5 minutes early because we had been the best behaved that day – had we really been the best behaved? I never realised this when I was at Primary school, it just seemed like the ‘normal’ thing to do.

I honestly do not think that the way in which my gender was taken into account at Primary school affected me nor do I think it has affected the person I have become today. Having a niece and nephew of Primary school age, it was really lovely to hear my nephew say his best friend was a girl in his class and when I attended my niece’s sports day earlier this year it was wonderful to see the class was mixed together at the races, for example the egg and spoon race and one legged race – the boys and girls often paired up in races they needed to be in pairs for. This was a far cry to the sports days I had experienced when I was in Primary school – even if I only left 7 years ago.

Managing My Learning

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Activity 1

Complete the table below to identify and reflect on those factors and plan actions for each.

Recognition/ Reflection Action
What helps my learning? How can I utilise this?
Example: “Discussing the topic with others” ·         Set up a study group of like-minded peers·         Engage with the online community
 Prioritising tasks
  •  Make a to-do list in order of importance/when the work is due
 Making my own notes
  •  After lectures, I should look over lecture notes to ensure I have understood everything and not missed anything out
  • Do further reading to expand on points made in lectures so that my notes are in depth
 Colour
  •  Create mind maps/ diagrams/notes in lots of colour
  • Use highlighters and different coloured pens
Working in a quiet space
  •  Make use of the library’s silent section
  • Stay clear of music and television whilst completing work
 Being tidy
  •  Have a pile of work that is still to be done and work that is completed
  • Have one place to keep all my books so I can access them when I need to
  • Keep notes in separate folders for each module

 

 

Recognition/Reflection Action
What hinders my learning? How can I address this factor?
Example: “I’m easily distracted” ·         Study in a place where distractions are minimal·         Read lecture notes before the lecture and then take notes lectures to keep me focused
 Phone
  •  Turn off my phone when I’m trying to do work
  • Only check phone when I am having a break
 I lose focus if I have to read lots
  •  Read a small section at a time
  • Take time to understand what I am reading
  • Don’t read late at night
 Putting off doing work
  •  Give myself a treat for completing work e.g. allow myself to watch Eastenders if I complete however many pieces of work
  • Make time every day and night to do work and outwith that time I can do things that I want to do 
 Getting myself stressed out
  • Believe in myself
  • Give myself plenty of time to do tasks
  • Take breaks when I feel like I’m becoming stressed

Why did I choose teaching?

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Teaching is a profession I have considered since a very young age. I remember creating a year book in Primary 4 and I had stated that my “dream job” was to be a Primary teacher. Throughout the rest of my school education – both Primary and Secondary – teaching has been a profession that has always been at the back of my mind, even when I was more interested in other professions.

 

So why teaching?

Like I have previously stated, I have been interested in teaching for as long as I can remember. My earliest memory of wanting to become a teacher is when I would pretend to be a teacher to an imaginary class either in my bedroom or in the garden. I would be lost in my own little teaching world for hours as I taught the imaginary children – often repeating the fun lessons I had experienced in school that day. Sometimes, after completing my homework, I would double check my work to ensure it was correct and I would take that opportunity to pretend I was marking one of my pupil’s work.

Primary teaching became more of my ideal job due to my Primary 7 teacher. He interacted with the class so well and made the lessons fun – essentially he was on the children’s level. He took interest in our lives and the things we wanted to tell him. He was very approachable and everyone felt comfortable asking for help or needing advice about problems. There was no awkwardness and I also looked forward to going into school the following day. His lessons were very fun and somewhat different to ways we had learned before. One lesson that stands out to me was the time he gave us all a picture and asked us to write a story using the characters or the setting in that picture. It let my imagination run wild as there was no limits – I could write about whatever I wanted as long as I used that picture as a basis for the story. I also remember his enthusiasm for every aspect of education and the way he wanted the best for his pupils. He even introduced a head boy and head girl into my Primary school (I was proudly elected head girl.) So seeing the way he taught and his enthusiasm for all his pupils to be the best they possibly can be, inspired me to become a teacher.

Before I could be accepted onto this course, I spent some time in a Primary school in order to gain some experience in a teaching environment. It made me feel very humble seeing how excited the children would get when I would walk into the class and how much they would appreciate my help. There was nothing better than seeing their faces light up when they finally understood what they were being taught or how excited they were to tell you about the marks they got on their spelling test. That was when I finally knew I had picked the right profession for me.

 

Now I am studying to be a teacher, I’d like to become a teacher who is fun and very interactive with her pupils. Someone who takes the time and compassion for every single member of her class. I want to be the type of teacher that keeps the pupils interested and makes them hungry to discover more about a certain topic. I want my pupils to look forward to coming to school every day and for them to know that no matter the size of the problem I will always be there to help them. I would like to be a teacher that’s only ever strict at the appropriate times. I want my lessons to be fun and exciting so nobody becomes bored when at school and make them enthusiastic to complete their work in school and their homework. I aspire to be the best teacher I possibly can be to help my pupils become the best they possibly can be.

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llSocQj6r5k

 

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