Its the beginning of 2018 and Im about to start my very first class in a primary setting. I'll be taking my 22 year old early childhood hat off and putting a brand spanking new primary hat on. To say I'm excited is a bit of an understatement. I can't wait to be a rookie again!
Professional journal
It is a requirement for teachers in Aotearoa (and in my school) to keep a professional journal with evidence of growth and learning. As I have done for many years, I will be setting myself a professional inquiry based on a reflection of the very new "Our Code, Our Standards". I have grappled with various ways to show my professional growth - website, hard copy folder, Google Drive folder. I have come to the conclusion that I will keep this blog and tweak it a bit for evidence of my professional growth. You can see examples of my previous inquiries here, here, here and here.
Reflecting on the "Standards"
Te Tiriti o Waitangi
partnership: Understand and recognise the unique status of tangata whenua in
Aotearoa New Zealand.
- Understand and acknowledge the histories, heritages, languages and cultures
of partners to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
- Practise and develop the use of te reo and tikanga Māori.
Demonstrate commitment to
tangata whenuatanga and Te
Tiriti o Waitangi partnership in
Aotearoa New Zealand.
Reflection
I am privileged to be of Maori descent. My father is a descendant from Ngāpuhi and grew up in Kaikohe and Whangarei. I use Te Reo Maori and practice Tikanga Maori in all of my teaching practice and everyday interactions. This 'standard' is of significance to me professional and personally so I will look at further opportunities to embed this in my everyday practice.
Professional learning: Use inquiry, collaborative problem-solving
and professional learning
to improve professional capability
to impact on the learning and
achievement of all learners.
- Inquire into and reflect on the effectiveness of practice in an ongoing way,
using evidence from a range of sources.
- Critically examine how my own assumptions and beliefs, including cultural
beliefs, impact on practice and the achievement of learners with different
abilities and needs, backgrounds, genders, identities, languages and cultures.
- Engage in professional learning and adaptively apply this learning in practice.
- Be informed by research and innovations related to: content disciplines;
pedagogy; teaching for diverse learners, including learners with disabilities
and learning support needs; and wider education matters.
- Seek and respond to feedback from learners, colleagues and other education
professionals, and engage in collaborative problem solving and learning-focused
collegial discussions.
Reflection
I am addicted to learning, I am an avid reader of professional and personal books and love challenging myself to think outside the box, push boundaries and make a difference to those I teach and work with. My recent experience overseas (international teaching) was a great opportunity for me to engage with a range of people from around the world. This was a really good opportunity for me to really critique my own assumptions and beliefs about children's learning.
My recent shift from early childhood to primary education is a great example of my commitment to ongoing learning and growth. I have lots to learn with regard to 'assessment' in primary but am very much looking forward to the journey.
Professional relationships: Establish and maintain professional
relationships and behaviours
focused on the learning and
wellbeing of each learner.
- Engage in reciprocal, collaborative learning-focused relationships with:
– learners, families and whānau
– teaching colleagues, support staff and other professionals
– agencies, groups and individuals in the community.
- Communicate effectively with others.
- Actively contribute, and work collegially, in the pursuit of improving my own
and organisational practice, showing leadership, particularly in areas of
responsibility.
- Communicate clear and accurate assessment for learning and achievement
information.
Reflection
This is perhaps my strength and main area of interest. So much so, I run workshops on ways to create positive team culture for teachers in the Manukau area. I believe 'professional relationships' is vital to the success of any team, and in my experience, time invested in the culture of a team pays of two-fold. High trust, knowing your people, whats the purpose are essential for ensuring that collaboration is at an all time high.
Naku te rourou nau te rourou ka ora ai te iwi
With your basket and my basket the people will live
Again referring to co-operation and the combination of resources to get ahead.
Learning-focused culture: Develop a culture that is focused
on learning, and is characterised
by respect, inclusion, empathy,
collaboration and safety.
- Develop learning-focused relationships with learners, enabling them to
be active participants in the process of learning, sharing ownership and
responsibility for learning.
- Foster trust, respect and cooperation with and among learners so that they
experience an environment in which it is safe to take risks.
- Demonstrate high expectations for the learning outcomes of all learners,
including for those learners with disabilities or learning support needs.
- Manage the learning setting to ensure access to learning for all and to
maximise learners’ physical, social, cultural and emotional safety.
- Create an environment where learners can be confident in their identities,
languages, cultures and abilities.
- Develop an environment where the diversity and uniqueness of all learners
are accepted and valued.Meet relevant regulatory, statutory and professional requirements.
Reflection
My career in education was born at the same time as Te Whariki (Ministry of Education, 1996). I have been privileged to work with a curriculum that values holistic development. Again, I have enjoyed the work in an International Baccalaureate where the Learner Profile underpins the curriculum. As I move into the primary sector, I am looking forward to using the Key Competencies to drive the learning that happens in my classroom.
I am particularly interested this year in exploring the Kinetic Scale and Executive Function with my 5-6 year olds.
Design for learning: Design learning based on curriculum
and pedagogical knowledge,
assessment information and an
understanding of each learner’s
strengths, interests, needs, identities,
languages and cultures.
- Select teaching approaches, resources, and learning and assessment activities
based on a thorough knowledge of curriculum content, pedagogy, progressions
in learning and the learners.
- Gather, analyse and use appropriate assessment information, identifying
progress and needs of learners to design clear next steps in learning and to
identify additional supports or adaptations that may be required.
- Design and plan culturally responsive, evidence-based approaches that reflect
the local community and Te Tiriti o Waitangi partnership in New Zealand.
- Harness the rich capital that learners bring by providing culturally responsive
and engaging contexts for learners.
- Design learning that is informed by national policies and priorities.
Reflection
This is perhaps my biggest challenge and area of opportunity, I am definitely in need of digging deeper into assessment in primary e.g. BUT, JAM, CAP, LID - what do these all mean? As I am the Mutukaroa coordinator at my new school, it is essential that I get my head around assessment in the primary setting.
Teaching: Teach and respond to learners in a
knowledgeable and adaptive way
to progress their learning at an
appropriate depth and pace.
- Teach in ways that ensure all learners are making sufficient progress, and
monitor the extent and pace of learning, focusing on equity and excellence for
all.
- Specifically support the educational aspirations for Māori learners, taking
shared responsibility for these learners to achieve educational success as
Māori.
- Use an increasing repertoire of teaching strategies, approaches, learning
activities, technologies and assessment for learning strategies and modify
these in response to the needs of individuals and groups of learners.
- Provide opportunities and support for learners to engage with, practise and
apply learning to different contexts and make connections with prior learning.
- Teach in ways that enable learners to learn from one another, to collaborate, to
self-regulate and to develop agency over their learning.
- Ensure learners receive ongoing feedback and assessment information and
support them to use this information to guide further learning.
Reflection
I am very keen to bring play-based learning to my new setting and perhaps emphasise some of the soft skills that are required for life in general and not just reading, writing and math. There is an opportunity here with National Standards no longer in effect to ensure that arts, music, social competence are present in our children's lives.
