6.1 Identify and plan professional learning needs
Demonstrate an understanding of the role of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers in identifying professional learning needs.
6.3 Engage with colleagues and improve practice
Seek and apply constructive feedback from supervisors and teachers to improve teaching practices.
During a professional experience placement in March of 2023, I undertook the teaching of year 8 drama class at a large high school in a medium socio-economic area. During this placement I engaged with my mentor teacher both during and after the lessons I taught students. My mentor teacher provided me with respectful and constructive feedback that not only improved teaching practice but also improved my professional learning.
At this school I took several 70 minutes lessons teaching solo with supervision from my mentor teacher. Across my 3 weeks at this school, I undertook 6 lessons of this class. Article 6 in impact for learning shows feedback I was supplied with after my 3rd lesson teaching. This feedback supplied me with the means to improve my teaching in not only the area of drama across the remainder of my time teaching this class, but also allowed me to transfer effective practices into future classes of different year levels and my other teaching area of history. The feedback provided worked as a positive piece of collegial engagement that focused on improving specific areas of the lesson and school procedures.
Collegial engagement that is positive and constructive as this provides beginning teachers with the means to vastly improve practice and build competency as a teacher (Shah, 2012). Throughout this feedback process and with the receiving of further feedback both from this mentor teacher and others, I was able to put into practice effective teaching to build quality teaching in the classroom. This feedback practice allowed for further reflection as well, as after lessons this mentor teacher and I would debrief regarding what went well, what didn’t go as well and what could be improved in the next lessons. This would lead me to take on guidance and advice I was given and apply it to future practice as well as further building the professional relationships this mentor teacher and I established over my short time at the school. These positive interactions built professional engagement throughout my time on placement and meant that I was able to feel supported as a beginning teacher (Queensland Government Department of Education, 2021).
Throughout my time at this school, I found myself building positive relationships with the school staff and students around me. As a result of this I felt both respected and supported in my learning and that both my strengths and weaknesses were being identified to allow me to professionally reflect on my teaching practice.
Queensland Government Department of Education. (2021). Professional Relationships. Department of Education. https://qed.qld.gov.au/workingwithus/induction/queenslandstateschools/teachers/schools/Pages/professionalrelationships.aspx.
Shah, M. (2012). The Importance and Benefits of Teacher Collegiality in Schools – A Literature Review. Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, Volume 46, pp. 1242-1246.
