Category Archives: Professional Studies

Enquiring Practitioner

3 Replies

Menter et al (2001) defined practitioner enquiry as a ‘finding out’ or an investigation with a rationale and approach that can be explained or defended. Practitioner enquiry is most commonly undertaken within the practitioners own practice however, it can also be collaboratively undertaken with peers. Being an enquiring practitioner you must reflect and evaluate all your work, especially lesson plans as this enhances not only your personal development as a teacher but the development of the pupils within your class and potentially your peers. Having the mind-set of an enquiring practitioner will allow you to think critically about your teaching and how to improve your teaching. Being critically reflective is not negative as it allows you to question old assumptions, look at things from new and various perspectives and develop your practice by ensuring you can make reflective decisions. Being an enquiring practitioner you should consistently ask critical questions about your professional development such as why and how am I doing this and who and how will this benefit.

There are many benefits of being an enquiring practitioner:

  • Allows teachers to challenge and transform education systems which benefits the pupils learning.
  • Allows teachers to monitor their own personal development and learning.
  • Allows teachers to work collaboratively on plans to develop pupils learning.
  • Has a lasting impact on professional development for the practitioner.
  • Allows teachers to increase their knowledge base and allows for more professional judgements to be made, which gives the practitioner a chance to build on self-esteem and professional identity.

However, there are also challenges of being an enquiring practitioner:

  • Challenges the traditional way of teaching which some teachers may find difficult if they are stuck in old habits and routines.
  • Different practices and techniques require different skills which can be challenging.
  • Some teacher may find it difficult to challenge their own assumptions or be critical.
  • It can seem like a long slow process with no end goal for some teachers.
  • It can be an overwhelming process for some teachers.

As a student teacher I feel like learning about how to become and enquiring practitioner is highly beneficial not only for my professional practice but for my journey throughout university. I feel that it is essential to learn how to critically evaluate and reflect on situations, which is a skill I need to work upon. However, I feel that learning this throughout my next for years will allow for me to have a critical approach and question what I do throughout my career. Learning about how to become an enquiring practitioner throughout university will benefit my career as I will have the knowledge base of what is expected of me and how to achieve this. Whilst out on my professional practice this will be highly beneficial as I can have discussions with other members of staff about my progress and how to improve upon my learning. I personally feel that being an enquiring practitioner is a positive development as it is not only about my personal development as a teacher but also the progress of the pupils I am teaching. I am a strong believer in the sense that you never stop learning and you are never too old to learn therefore I will develop myself into an enquiring practitioner who learns throughout my career.

žGTCS (no date) Practitioner Enquiry. Available online at: http://www.gtcs.org.uk/professional-update/practitioner-enquiry/practitioner-enquiry.aspx [Accessed 28/10/15)

Professionalism

Leave a reply

Oxford Dictionaries definitions (no date) states integrity means:

“The quality of being honest and having strong moral principles.”

I believe a teacher must show integrity as they are trusted by many parents/carers to not only teach their child but also to look after and care for their child during school hours. A teacher with strong morals is likely to pass these on to children who look up to them and see them as a role model (which they may not have at home). I believe if a teacher is not honest with themselves or others around them then this makes them unprofessional and untrustworthy.

The term patience means:

“The capacity to accept or tolerate delay, problems, or suffering without becoming annoyed or anxious.” (Oxford Dictionaries definitions, no date)

Being in the teaching profession it is essential that you have patience, children will not always follow your instruction however, being a professional you must remain calm and handle the situation. Parents/carers may also test a teacher’s patience it is crucial that you remain professional and explain situations to parents without seeming aggressive.

Oxford Dictionaries definitions (no date) states tolerance means:

“The ability or willingness to tolerate the existence of opinions or behaviour that one dislikes or disagrees with.”

Tolerance for a teacher is a significant part of their role, teachers must tolerate children’s behaviours (even when they are challenging) and understand that each child may not come from a stable home environment. Teachers have to be tolerant in regards to parents/carers as they may disagree with your choices and challenge you upon this, teachers must remain professional and defend their decision in a professional format.

The term fairness means:

“Impartial and just treatment or behaviour without favouritism or discrimination.” (Oxford Dictionaries definitions, no date)

It is essential that teachers are fair in all decisions they make, teachers must not stereotype the children or classify them in regards to gender, ethnicity or class. Teachers must avoid having favourites and treat all children the same regardless of their abilities or background.

Oxford Dictionaries definitions (no date) states empathy means:

“The ability to understand and share the feelings of another.”

Teachers must have empathy in regards to understanding that children all come from different home lives. Teachers must be approachable and allow children to express their feeling freely without judgement. Teachers should let the children know that if they have concerns that this information must be passed on however if not it will be kept confidential.

 

References

Oxford Dictionaries definitions (English) (no date) in Oxford Dictionary. Available at : http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/ (Accessed 13 October 2015).

 

 

Professionalism and the Online World

Leave a reply

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

I think in the profession of teaching you need to be extremely careful about how you act in the online world. Teachers are human and are entitled to have a life out with the classroom, which GTC Scotland recognise. However, teachers must also remember that what they post online can affect their career and that anything posted online is there for life even if you delete it from your account. There are various challenges teachers will come across with social media such as students/parents trying to add you as a friend and your own friends becoming unhappy that you are unwilling to let them tag you in a photo or status. I personally believe having just one account for both personal and professional life is much healthier as there is no confusion of which account you should be posting certain aspects of your life on. However, I believe teachers should make all aspects of their social media sites private and explain to friends that you have to protect your career so there are certain things which cannot be broadcasted to the online world. I believe that parents or even colleagues may question your decision to be using social media within the classroom as a teaching aide for children. However, as a teacher you need to be able to explain and justify the reasons why you are using these resources. Although some teachers may become sceptical of using their personal social media sites and expressing their opinions, I believe as long as it is done in a professional manner that is polite then this is acceptable.

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

The media has a greater role to play now than it ever has before, it can affect many professionals lives including those of teachers. The media grasp onto aspects of individuals lives and can interpret situations to be more extreme than what they are. There are many cases of teachers having inappropriate relationships with either pupils or colleagues, which all make the news headlines. However, we never see the healthy relationships between teachers and pupils in newspapers or online. This in my opinion shows how cruel the media can be to tear apart an individual’s life, I certainly do not agree with inappropriate relationships between teachers and pupils, but I do believe the media should focus on the healthy aspects of school life and promote a positive view of teachers rather than a negative one.

When I become a qualified teacher I would like to use technology within the classroom as I believe technology has vast amounts to teach children as well as myself. Children are growing up with technology from birth and this needs to be seen as an advantage for them rather than a negative effect that it will affect their learning, when in truth if used properly it can enhance their learning. I believe strongly that if you teach children about how to be safe on the internet then there should be no harm in using it to aide learning.

Although it is a hard task to achieve I believe people need to change their perception of social media and the online world understanding that this could enhance learning for all generations and see the internet as a positive place to learn.

Most Important Skills/Qualities/Attributes for Successful Academic Study.

Leave a reply

Personally I believe there are several skills, qualities and attributes to become successful within academic study such as organisation, time keeping, self-reflection, forward planning, self-discipline and balancing academic and social life.

In my opinion having self-discipline is a major skill for academic studies as this allows you to set time aside where you can study or do assignments. I also feel that having self-discipline this will go on to help in my future career.

I believe that time keeping is an essential skill to have to become academically successful, Having good time keeping skills will allows you suitable time for completion of assignments before due dates and will ensure that all assignments are handed in on time. I also believe that good time keeping for lectures/workshops is essential as this shows professionalism and understanding of the job we will be entering.