Notes on Reader 7 (Noted in Journal 17th January 2013)

 From Reader 7 I came across quotes that I found useful and would like to post on my blog to remember.

On Research: “The sources you have found and used to develop your inquiry are also an important element in analysing your findings” Page 3

On our Journals: This analytical process therefore require the inquirer to explore the internal, external, social and institutional processes that combine to form a particular event, and take a logical approach to see how those processes could expect to contribute to the behaviour of those involved” Page 10

The Process: The professional inquiry process is one that could be repeated at different stages in your career as a means of developing evidence from which work-related decisions might be based. Page 11

2013... all systems go!

Hi everybody, I just wanted to touch base as feel out of touch with my blogging. Since Module 2 I have taken on the role of a maternity cover dance teacher in a huge secondary school in Rochester Kent. I have stepped right into the deep end and joined the students right before their BTEC/GCSE deadlines and if I’m honest feel a little out of my depth.  I have also recently extended my after school clubs to not just a Saturday but a Thursday and luckily had a successful opening day last week.

So its been relentless to say the least, but things have started to settle a tad and I feel eager to get back blogging and keeping touch with everyone.

Over the last month or so I have been in regular contact with my SIG who have been supportive offering advice so thank you for that.

I also managed to have an interview that I recorded with a social worker about boundaries in schools and I even managed to write a few literature reviews (all of which will follow shortly).

I am now going to look back through my journal at the summaries I made of reader 7 back in January and my thoughts along the way of my new job role and journey. Hopefully some of these thought processes will be worthy of blogging. Looking forward to some feedback and advice from you all.

Discipline Images

Literature Review.

“How to Survive your First year in Teaching” Sue Cowley 2003.

I found this book very interesting, as it is all about the teacher and how they can cope with their career choice. There wasn’t too much about how the lessons should be productive ensuring the students are gaining the best education that they can.

Below are some notes that I picked up on that were to benefit the students.

On Lesson planning Cowley wrote “Until you meet your students and get to know them a little, it is hard to anticipate their needs and interests” Pg 4

On behaviour: “Start of by being as hard as possible, you can always relax, but you can never get a class back once you’ve lost them” Pg 7

 Cowley also talks about creating games and rewards to control behaviour on page 7-11

“Take into account the weather, time dates and previous activities and respond to the mood and reactions of the children” Pg 23

“Engage students to starve of boredom” Pg 27

On Boundaries: “Boundaries should be fair, realistic and achievable”

“Setting boundaries is a matter of personal taste and opinion, it also depends a great deal on the type of students you have to teach” Pg 10

On self-evaluation: “Think about what works and what doesn’t and take notes” Pg 14

Cowley gives a concise list of tactics to control a class:

·      Have a “Deadly” stare

·      Don’t talk till they are silent

·      Negotiate with them

·      Respond to the mood of the class

·      Show them you’re human

·      Put yourself in their shoes

·      Avoid confrontation

·      Build a barrier (as a teacher); don’t take things personally, Choose sympathy over anger, reason to the situation.

·      Praise one and encourage all.

Over the following weeks I will put some of these techniques into practice and see who benefits more from these strategies, teacher, student or both. I will blog my findings

Notes on Module 3

From the reader I can see that Module 3 is all about the Professional inquiry. 

• The inquiry is a summary of our findings, and we have to bring together all of our work from the previous modules. 
• Continue to interact and engage with others.
• Professional inquiry must show knowledge and understanding and is a professional arfifact.
• Mark is based on 100% coursework,we have to refer to Reader 7, review Module 2, complete task 7A and continue to use all inquiry tools (Interview, focus group, survey, observation,. literature review) 
• Inquiry needs to be a written set of findings, an analysis of data.
• Reflections of inquiry need to be blogged and written in our learning journal.
• Ethical issues an safeguards still need to be in place.
• We should use our journal for private learning and reflection.
• We need to submit, a Critical Review, Professional Artifact (evaluative summary included) and Oral Presentation.

                                                                            

Critical Reflection on Professional Practitioner Inquiry

Looking back at Module 2 there has been a lot of reflecting on my current   to day practice. I have been observing classes I already teach and inquiring how to make them better aswell as asking myself questions as to why I do certain things.

I started by thinking that I wanted my inquiry to be about the relevance of Drama in our education but looking closer and more specifically at my work, and what I do, I have decided to investigate the topic of ‘boundaries’. Boundaries are a universal topic and apply to many practices not just drama teaching.

We started by developing lines for our professional enquiry, looking at practitioners around us, asking them questions and creating S.I.G groups. We then developed our questions and decided on an award title, these exercises taught me that your opinion and own experience only tell you so much on a topic. It is surprising to see how views change depending on circumstance. Gaining as many views as possible gives you a much clearer insight and therefore encourages you to research further using literature, the press and the internet.

I have learnt that it’s hard to be unbiased as we are passionate about our chosen subjects, and in pursuing research I have to word my questions carefully in order to not ask leading questions.

We then moved on to looking at ethics, focusing on ethics in the workplace and what the codes of practice are. After reading the task reader I looked at my own professionalism and tried to see what improvements I could make. I also had to ensure that I was ethical when conducting the enquiry by not making people feel they had to take part and always respecting their view. Reading about Ethics taught me a lot about how ‘teachers’ are perceived and we have a job that holds a lot of responsibility. We must respect that and keep the students trust. A safe learning environment is of the upmost importance. I also saw ethics change from school to school and compared ethics in a Saturday school to a secondary school. I observed how rules differ and priorities change, as does my role as a teacher.

I then moved on to looking at the tools we could use for our professional enquiry. They were; Survey, interview, focus group and observation. I conducted pilots of each and then decided which tool was best for my line of inquiry. I reflected on which was the most truthful and less biased method, who’s voice was heard and which technique used less time to gain the most information and opinions. I decided as a teacher researching teaching techniques to run a focus group with other teachers, hand out a survey to parents and observe students in class. My pilot observations taught me lots about my inquiry and I could improve certain techniques used in teaching, which I will carry forward to Module 3. 

In summary during this module I spent a lot of time gaining information from others. I looked at different methods of inquiry and tried to perfect the art of writing questions in an ethical, unbiased way. In reflection I feel the research I conducted generated a broad but very honest view on boundaries and why they are set in schools.

Inquiry Proposal Module 2

Proposed titles:

·      Should the type of syllabus effect boundaries set in class?

·      Are boundaries in place for students or teachers needs?

·      Times are constantly changing-should school syllabus’ reflect this?

·      Should school syllabus change depending on environment, and likewise boundaries?

Context of inquiry:

Important , education is the future.

Benefits, students, teachers, parents, society.

Inquiry questions/objectives:

·      Gain better understanding into productive classes/sessions.

·      Improve learning/productivity in class

·      Ensure all students get a fair chance

·      Treat all students the same and ensure they are being heard.

·      Create a new way of learning

·      Develop new skills in students and teachers.