Category Archives: 1 Prof. Values & Personal Commitment

1 Prof. Values & Personal Commitment, 3.4 Prof. Reflection & Commitment, edushare

Inspiration from other professionals

November 3, 2015 Amy Lorimer Leave a comment

After watching an episode of One Born Every Minute on BoB, I feel like I have a better understanding of what it means to be a professional. Although a career as a teacher is vastly different from a midwife, it is still vitally important to act in a professional manner in every aspect of the career.

Throughout the programme, the midwives who worked in the ward, acted in a professional manner by making their patients feel comfortable throughout a very distressing time and talked them through the process, with a calm and comforting demeanor.

It was important for them to ‘let their hair down’ during their break times by chatting to each other and dancing and generally having fun. This, however did not influence their roles on the ward at all as they still acted professional at all times with their patients.

The midwives in the hospital all had uniforms that they had to wear, mostly for cleanliness but also so that they are all equal. This is very different from a teacher’s dress code, as teachers will wear their own clothes, but must remember to be professional and dress accordingly.

I think, as midwives, the best way to learn would be work based learning and practical skills such as role play as every birth could be vastly different and they never know what to expect until they actually have to deal with the situation, which I think is something extremely challenging and in my opinion, something that would terrify me.

From the programme, I have learned that professionalism really is something that is vitally important in my career and without it, I don’t think my job could be done properly and the children in my classroom would not get the best education possible. I feel that over the course of my degree, I will gain a deeper understanding of what professionalism really is and how to pursue these skills in order to be the best professional I can be.

1 Prof. Values & Personal Commitment, 3.4 Prof. Reflection & Commitment, edushare, Uncategorized

Reflecting on Professionalism

Link November 3, 2015 Amy Lorimer Leave a comment

After watching the Youtube videos, I began to reflect on what it really means to be a professional in education. In the first video, there were many similarities between teachers and doctors and how being professional is so important in both of these fields of work. In the video, the teachers involved also spoke about what it means to be an exceptional teacher. some of these were; team work, enthusiastic, dedicated and those who keep up their own professional development. i very much agree with all of these attributes and believe that these are vital in order to pursue a career in teaching.

In the video, there was a very inspirational woman who went above and beyond what was expected of her in her role of a teacher. She set up support groups for fellow teachers in order to develop each others’ skills and to inform one another of their own teaching methods in order to continue their own personal development. I think this is something that all teachers and student teachers should be involved in, in order to learn from one another and find the best methods that work for them and how to get the best of their teaching career.

In the second video, many teachers spoke about their thoughts on professionalism which was very interesting to hear different points of view. One of the teachers thought there is now more focus on professionalism of teachers in society as many are now benchmarked and are ‘ranked’ on how well their pupils are doing. This can provide some stress for teachers if they feel like they are constantly being compared to others, instead of working together with other colleagues.

Another teacher spoke about how important it is to be a role model, which is something I agree with entirely. Speaking and acting professionally in the classroom, and having attitudes that are appropriate will influence children in a positive way and will hopefully encourage children to model their behaviour around what you have been displaying.

1 Prof. Values & Personal Commitment, edushare

What it means to be an enquiring practitioner

October 27, 2015 Amy Lorimer 4 Comments

An enquiring practitioner is one that finds out or investigates in order to enhance their own practice. It is important to be reflective and evaluate your own practice to further ideas and experiences. I feel that it is important to be an enquiring practitioner as it is beneficial to further your knowledge both independently and by working collaboratively as part of a team.

Practitioner enquiry is beneficial to teachers as it encourages teachers to transform education and the way they teach which i feel is very important as teachers should make their teaching their own and make their classes fun and interesting. Also, being an enquiring practitioner allows teachers to expand their knowledge and also helps them to monitor and develop their practice.

Being an enquiring practitioner should lead to transformative learning and should allow you to critically think about their own values, assumptions and educational beliefs, which may change regularly depending on who you work with collaboratively, as opinions may be influenced.

1 Prof. Values & Personal Commitment, edushare, My educational philosophy

5 virtues of teaching

October 21, 2015 Amy Lorimer Leave a comment

I believe that I am a very compassionate individual and feel that it is important to be caring and sympathetic towards those who need it. I am lucky enough to have always helped in schools where the children have come from good upbringings, but unfortunately I know that in placements or in future workplaces, there may be many children who are not so lucky, and I feel that as a professional, it will be my role to make sure all children feel valued and safe in their environment by showing some compassion and care to them.

I feel that as a professional, it is crucial to have respect for others. Respecting others’ beliefs and opinions is important in creating positive relationships and makes others feel valued in their surroundings. Building a mutual respect is something, which I believe to be very important, and enforcing this in the classroom allows children to feel safe and secure in their learning environment.

It is important to have tolerance as a professional, as there will often be times when others’ views and values differ from your own, however it is important to show respect even if you do not agree. Tolerance is something that, as teachers, we should be telling our pupils about in order for them to grow up with a respectful attitude and tolerance of others.

Fairness, of course, is essential in the classroom as all children should be treated equally. No child should feel left out or unwanted as this can seriously affect their learning and development throughout school. Being fair allows for a secure learning environment as all children will feel equal and will not think of themselves as any less than any of their peers. It is important as a teacher to have ground rules for the classroom in order so that everyone knows how to conform.

Displaying integrity is equally important as a professional, and in personal life. It is important to be honest and open with others, as this creates a respectful relationship but also allows everyone’s opinions to be heard. It is important to be professional when others have different thoughts that perhaps not everyone agrees with.

1 Prof. Values & Personal Commitment, 2.2 Education Systems & Prof. Responsibilities, edushare

Personal and professional presence on social media

October 19, 2015 Amy Lorimer Leave a comment

What challenges do teachers face when attempting to marry the personal versus professional presence on social media?

On social media, teachers may face challenges of coming across their pupils on popular sites. In this instance, teachers should ensure that their accounts are private so that no child/parent could access any of their personal details. On social media sites such as Twitter or Facebook, where many people give their opinion on current events, that they are professional and do not post anything that is inappropriate.

In my opinion, I would create separate accounts for professional and personal purposes in order to keep my personal life private and also to engage with issues that would relate to my professional life.

The GTCS has specific guidelines for social media and how to behave appropriately on social media. It is important to stick to these guidelines in order to be professional and to keep safe online.

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

Many of the older generation have a negative viewpoint of social media and believe that social media should not be involved in the classroom, as it may be distracting. In my classroom, I will use social media in a positive and fun way to create a variety of interesting lessons. It is important to educate children on the dangers they may face when using social media and show them how to keep themselves safe by using sites such as NSPCC and Share Aware.

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