The start of my teaching philosophy

Standards:

S1, S2, S9, S10

A few weeks ago I started my journey on the PCET not knowing exactly what to expect. I can honestly say that I could not have hoped for better classmates or better teachers. The last few weeks have been very rocky for me personally with challenges thrown at me from both my personal life and the PCET course.

A positive outcome from these challenges is that it has given me a chance to reflect upon my values and what I believe the students deserve from me.

To start with I had no idea what my teaching philosophy was but had a rough idea of what, I believe, worked for me when learning in the classroom. I carried this idea with me to my placement with GCSE English Language students. The first thing I noticed was that the students were shy, and they still were not used to the teacher or their new environment. The lesson started with a video which relaxed the students and allowed them to settle in. After the video was over the students were then asked for their opinion on what had taken place as there was no speaking in the video. The students were shy to start with, but one student eventually raised his hand and started to share his views on what had happened. Suddenly, the class burst into life with students falling over each other to give their own opinion. This was the start of my teaching philosophy.

From what we have learned so far you can clearly see that there are many approaches to learning that have many positive outcomes. However, from my experiences in the classroom, limited as they were, I saw the need for the student to be actively involved in their own learning. I believe that the students were always more interested, and absorbed a lot more of the information when they were allowed to add parts of themselves to the learning process. Students were always highly alert and enthusiastic when it came to peer discussion, bouncing ideas off each other whilst the teacher kept the fire burning with leading questions. This is not to say that the students did not learn anything from written tasks but the spark was not the same.

I came away from the placement with a clearer vision of my philosophy but did not know the theory behind it. I started doing research into the constructivist learning theory. Even though it was a theory, it clearly captured the essence of what I was seeing in the classroom. The constructivist learning theory puts forward that people construct their own understanding and knowledge of the world by their own experiences, therefore, applying the knowledge that they already have to something completely new, always adding to it. Constructivist learning theory talks about engaging with others to further our own knowledge (Harisam, 2012).

Even though my teaching philosophy is still being moulded I have a clear connection with the constructivist approach. I like the idea of having the student take control and be the centre of their own learning. It is by no means the only way to approach learning but it allows the students to be creative, expressive and collaborative which is extremely important, not only in the English Language field but in the student’s development.

References:

Harasim, L, 2012. Learning Theory and Online Technologies. 1st ed. Abingdon: Routledge

 

 

What blogging has taught me

Standards:

S1, S2, S8, S10

I have definitely learnt a lot from blogging about my experiences. It has taught me not only how to reflect upon my teaching but also how to plan for the next step.

Whilst blogging I have found that it has helped me to think clearly and organise my own thoughts. It has helped give me the confidence to move forward with new ideas and strategies that I was unsure of to start with. Reading other blogs to help with my own has helped me connect with teachers all around the world. As a teacher, this give us a whole set of tools and ideas at our disposal. Sharing blogs with the other students in my PCET class has also opened up room for helpful feedback which helps me grow as a teacher.

Whilst blogging I have found a treasure chest of blogs and articles from well-respected, experienced teachers. From hard-hitting no-nonsense teacher Thomas Starkey to the informative yet entertaining Joe Kirby. I have read inspiring blogs from experienced teachers on the front line of innovation and creativity in the classroom. Lessons learned from these writers have taught me not to be afraid to try new things. They have also humbled me as I realised I have a long way to go before finding my feet.

Blogging has helped me understand my teaching method and reflect on the needs of my students whilst improving their experience. An example of this was the blog on my experience at Star College. Whilst writing my blog I realised just how much seeing the staff and students there had affected me. I felt that I still hadn’t done enough to cater to all my students. After writing about my experiences I looked into more effective methods of helping my SEN students. I took another detailed look at how lesson plans should be adapted to suit the needs of all learners. I found that I wasn’t being detailed enough in my own plans so I included students initials to show individualised teaching in my own plans. I have also started providing a separate but equally detailed plan for the Teaching Assistants.

Writing these blogs has impacted me in ways that I cannot fully explain. It has been a very pleasant experience which I will carry on long after the course has finished. Writing my thoughts and beliefs down has been a very enlightening process. Blogging has helped me analyse my thoughts and actions in a much more effective way that simply reflecting on the day in my own mind. Simply put, I believe that writing down my experiences has helped me become a better teacher and even more importantly has benefited the students who rely on me to help them on their learning journey.

References:

Pragmatic Education. 2017. Pragmatic Education | *Ideas are the currency of the 21st century*. [ONLINE] Available at: https://pragmaticreform.wordpress.com/. [Accessed 10 March 2017].

Stack of Marking. 2017. Stack of Marking | Where the world comes to learn about me and my fabulous teaching.. [ONLINE] Available at: https://stackofmarking.wordpress.com/. [Accessed 10 March 2017].

Where I am now

Standards:

S1, S2, S4, S8, S9, S10

Five months ago I wrote a blog about my teaching philosophy at the time. Little did I know how much that would change with experience and building of solid relationships with students. I found that whenever I thought something was working another challenge would appear and change my entire perspective.

In my original philosophy, I thought about the experiences that students have and how that would help them build upon their previous knowledge. I was very interested in the Constructivism approach. I loved Bruner’s Idea that the learner draws from their past experiences and existing knowledge which helps them discover new facts and truths (Bruner, 1961). I noticed that students were always more engaged in the topic when it allowed them to share their own experiences. The problem I found with this theory, later on, was that even though it worked with some students, most would not share their own experiences. I still believe that this theory is relevant but I have also been leaning towards some of the humanistic approaches to learning.

Recently I have been looking into Keller’s ARCS Model of Motivational Design which is the theory that there are four steps for promoting and sustaining motivation in the learning process: Attention, Relevance, Confidence and Satisfaction (Keller, 2009). What I didn’t notice at first was that I was already using these steps in my teaching approach but not in the most effective way. Keller tells us that we should make our lessons fun by using a small amount of humour and use hands-on activities to get the learner involved (Learning-theories.com, 2017). A valuable lesson that I learnt from this theory was to make sure there was a certain amount of variability to make sure that all learning styles were being catered for. I found that Keller’s ideas of creating activities that were relevant to the students and have real life applications were very close to my own. Most importantly I found that giving the students confidence in their own ability and satisfaction by the means of constructive feedback were extremely important in my own philosophy. These steps would help me when planning for and teaching SEN students who usually lacked self-confidence and needed the boost of encouragement and feedback to move forward and grow.

I have found that over the months my teaching philosophy has changed with experience. I could not predict, however, that rather than agreeing on one learning theory, that I would find multiple theories that I would agree with some element of. These elements would come together to shape my current teaching philosophy. As I have grown as a teacher so has my philosophy. What I didn’t understand five months ago was that the students personalities and learning abilities would be the biggest influence on me rather than the other way around.

References:

Bruner, J. S. (1961). The act of discovery. Harvard educational review.

Keller, J. M. (2009). Motivational design for learning and performance: The ARCS model approach. Springer Science & Business Media.

Learning-theories.com. 2017. ARCS MODEL OF MOTIVATIONAL DESIGN THEORIES (KELLER). [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.learning-theories.com/kellers-arcs-model-of-motivational-design.html. [Accessed 6 March 2017].

 

 

What observing my mentor has taught me

Standards:

S1, S2, S4, S8, S9, S10, S14

For the past few months, I have had the pleasure of observing my mentor in many lessons. It has opened my eyes to what can be achieved after just two years of teaching practice. My mentor came through the same process as myself and this benefits me greatly as they have walked in my shoes and know what I am going through. This type of learning is linked to Bandura’s Social Learning Theory that “Most human behaviour is learned observationally through modelling: from observing others, one forms an idea of how new behaviours are performed, and on later occasions, this coded information serves as a guide for action”(Bandura, 1977). Another benefit of this is that my mentor knows what standards should be hit and how best to approach them. It is well known today that observing other teachers is a form of collaborative professional development. Teachers observing each other can yield its greatest benefits when used as a means of sharing techniques that work, rather than scrutinising one another (educationworld.com, 2017).

Observing my mentor has definitely made me more aware of my own teaching and the techniques I can use that would benefit me in the classroom. A few weeks in I went from observing for my own confidence to asking myself how I could incorporate certain things into my own teaching. A quote from (Borich, 2016) clearly reflects what I was going through:

As you observe in classrooms, you will become aware that the stream of events is not the same in every classroom and that sometimes teachers make decisions simply out of habit. If your observations lead to questions such as “Should I be doing that?””Could that work in my classroom?” or “Would I have done that?”, your observations are beginning to make you more aware of your own teaching.

The first thing I took on into my own teaching was having a more relaxed persona in the classroom. To start with I was quite nervous and formal which then transferred over to the students which made the classroom quite uncomfortable. Watching my mentor not be afraid to get involved in conversations and humour the students, really helped me understand that having a more relaxed persona creates a better environment and more engaged students. As soon as I started getting more comfortable with the students I noticed that teaching became a lot easier. The only downside to this was that students would get too comfortable and start to drift away from the topic. This, however, can be corrected easily by reminding them again what the topic was.

Another great technique that I learned from my mentor was the use of a pre-starter to get the students engaged. My mentor used funny videos or interesting information to get the students ready to learn. I took this information and came up with my own idea of starting the day with brain teaser questions that would get them engaged. When my mentor used the pre-starter in their class I noticed that the SEN students were not feeling included as most students would just shout out an answer or fact. What I learnt from this was to make sure that all students were told to write down their answers which we could then check together. This made sure that the SEN students were comfortable taking part and could contribute to this activity.

My mentor also taught me a valuable lesson on how important student profiles are and made sure that I was building my own group profile as soon as I started teaching. I learnt that I would usually plan according to my teaching style which may not match the learning style of all the students. In our education system today we usually assess students based on memorising information and analysing it. We forget that students may excel in other areas of learning that we haven’t put into our planning. Sternberg’s Triarchaic Theory of Intelligence points out that students who excel in these two abilities will usually get the better grades. But students who are practically oriented and need to know the relevance of what they are doing tend to lose out. He even points out that we teachers are practical learners who will ignore lectures or workshops that we believe do not apply to us. So why should we label our own students in this way (EducationalLeadership, 2017). I have started to use all four ways of teaching in my planning rather than just memory and analysis. I have started to use activities that also allow for creativity and practicality. For example, when writing a letter I advised them that they should write it to an employer or a University, this shows them the real life application of a letter that they will most likely use in the future. Another example is an art student I had that was struggling to write the description of a scene. So I told the student to draw me the scene instead and from that was able to write a very creative description.

Observing my mentor has helped my teaching in many different ways. I feel that it was one of the best experiences so far on the PCET course. I understand now why teachers are encouraged to observe and share ideas with each other. I still believe that my mentor has some habits that I would not include in my teaching but for the most part, I have learned valuable lessons that may have taken me a long time to learn on my own.

References:

Bandura, A. (1977). Social Learning Theory. New York: General Learning Press.

Borich, G D, 2016. Observation Skills for Effective Teaching: Research-Based Practice. 2nd ed. London: Routledge.

Educational Leadership:How Children Learn:What Does It Mean to Be Smart? . 2017. Educational Leadership:How Children Learn:What Does It Mean to Be Smart? . [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/mar97/vol54/num06/What-Does-It-Mean-to-Be-Smart%C2%A2.aspx. [Accessed 03 March 2017].

Education World: Teachers Observing Teachers: A Professional Development Tool for Every School. 2017. Education World: Teachers Observing Teachers: A Professional Development Tool for Every School. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.educationworld.com/a_admin/admin/admin297.shtml. [Accessed 03 March 2017].

John McCarthy. 2017. How Learning Profiles Can Strengthen Your Teaching | Edutopia. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.edutopia.org/blog/learning-profiles-john-mccarthy. [Accessed 03 March 2017].

Marking: Should we be doing it?

Standards:

S1, S2, S4, S8, S9, S10

One of the first things I noticed when heading up to the staff room on my first day of teaching was the stack of books that my mentor was frustratingly marking. I have talked with my mentor about the amount of time she takes out of her day just to mark books on many occasions. The answer is always “too long”, the problem we face as teachers is a constant reminder of the extra effort that could be put into our lessons with this time. As a teacher in training, I am finding myself spending 30 minutes marking work for every hour lesson that I teach. According to research done by Canvas the cloud-based learning management platform for academic institutions and companies worldwide, “one in six (17%) teachers in the UK are spending more than 11 hours a week on marking and assessments”(Canvas, 2016).

As I have continued teaching and gained some experience, developing more personal relationships with the students, I have found that they seem to prefer verbal constructive feedback. I have found that I would rather spend the time that I would be marking, sitting one to one with that particular student finding out what they need to do to get themselves where they want to be rather than another number on a paper. I also believe that as a teacher I should give the student an opportunity to stretch themselves and find their own way with a bit of guidance here and there. This links in with Perrys’ cognitive constructivism where learning is something that the student builds upon with guidance. But also that every student dependent on their background will approach learning in a different way (Perry, 1999).

I also felt like it was taking too much time to get students their feedback and giving them a marked book in the following week’s lesson was not soon enough to keep it fresh in their minds. I started reading teachers blogs to get an idea of any effective ways to give fresh feedback and stumbled upon a quote from Kirbys (2015) blog entitled ‘Marking is a Hornet’ in the blog he talks about how slow and ineffective he believes plain marking is. One quote that stood out to me was his take on fresh feedback:

“Our feedback maximises the responsibility pupils take for self-checking, correcting, editing and redrafting their work. It maximises preemptive teaching, preventing frequent errors and common misconceptions; it minimises laborious, slow, reactive written comments.”

 Kirby talks about the shift from marking to the no marking at all policy that the school has undergone. He talks about saving more than 20,000 hours every year between 100 teachers and what they can do with that time. He doesn’t talk about marking being a bad thing but good leaders will stop a good thing so that teachers can focus on better things (Kirby, 2015). I believe that the concept of no marking at all may be a drastic one but maybe Kirby has a point about reducing the amount of marking so that teachers are better rested and can do more constructive things with the time they have. I also think that more trust and flexibility needs to be given back the teacher. So the idea that you will not have somebody pouring over your marking to make sure all is well is a comforting one. I think that without the looming cloud of book checking teachers can focus on the students’ needs.

I still have a long way to go before I figure out what particular style of feedback works best for the students, but I have learned a few things along the way. For instance, that getting feedback to them as soon as possible so what we have learned and what they need to improve is fresh in their minds. I have also learned that allowing students to mark each other’s work or their own work is a good way to get them thinking about ways in which they can improve themselves. I believe that this is a valuable life skill that can be transferred to many aspects of their lives. Because the desire for one to improve themselves not just academically will take them further in life than any one teacher could.

 

References:

Perry, William G. (1999). Forms of Ethical and Intellectual Development in the College Years. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Cognitive Constructivism | GSI Teaching & Resource Center. 2017. Cognitive Constructivism | GSI Teaching & Resource Center. [ONLINE] Available at: http://gsi.berkeley.edu/gsi-guide-contents/learning-theory-research/cognitive-constructivism/. [Accessed 26 February 2017].

Pragmatic Education. 2017. Marking is a hornet | Pragmatic Education. [ONLINE] Available at: https://pragmaticreform.wordpress.com/2015/10/31/marking-is-a-hornet/. [Accessed 26 February 2017].

Perry’s Scheme – Understanding the Intellectual Development of College-Age Students | The Innovative Instructor. 2017. Perry’s Scheme – Understanding the Intellectual Development of College-Age Students | The Innovative Instructor. [ONLINE] Available at: http://ii.library.jhu.edu/2013/12/13/perrys-scheme-understanding-the-intellectual-development-of-college-age-students/. [Accessed 26 February 2017].

 

 

Are students being prepared for life?

Standards:

S1, S2, S4, S8, S9, S10, S14

Whilst teaching recently we had to take nearly two weeks out of the term so students could prepare and deliver a presentation. What bothered me the most about this presentation was that it would not affect the grades they were given at the end of the year. So the obvious question on all the students’ lips was: why are we doing it? I thought about the answer to this long and hard before responding. Other teachers around me told them that they could do it with just them and the teacher sitting in the classroom and if they didn’t want to that was fine, but surely that was not the point. I thought to myself that this type of attitude towards a student, who usually has no problem speaking out in class, would have a negative impact on their future.

At some point in the student’s life, they are going to have an interview that on most occasions will be with more than one person. This type of assessment would have prepared them for this, giving them the confidence to speak publically. Reflecting on this I came to the conclusion that students were not being pushed to learn valuable life skills but were told you can do it if you want to but if there is no grade then there is no value. It made me look deeper into the curriculum and find out whether enough is being done to prepare students for the next step in life. Things like Maths and English have become compulsory for any student under 18 but are they really enough?

Maths is an extremely important skill especially in today’s world of technological advancement. According to the nationalnumeracy.org website “Right now around 90% of new graduate jobs require a high level of digital skills (Race Online 2012), and digital skills are built on numeracy”. This statistic was from back in 2012 and I believe we are continuing to request an even higher level of digital skill today. English language also plays into this field as companies are requesting students who have high literacy skills so that they are able to write grammatically correct and effective emails and posts. As a nation, we have gone far beyond the realm of handwriting everything and looking at a board. It surprises me that computer coding has been introduced to the curriculum of children in primary school yet nothing has been done to keep this going throughout high school and college. Michael Gove introduced that

“From 5, children will learn to code and program, with algorithms, sequencing, selection and repetition; from 11, how to use at least 2 programming languages to solve computational problems”(DOE, 2014)

I believe that as teachers we should incorporate more technology use into our teaching I myself have started to allow the students to see mobile phones as a tool to use in the classroom rather than taking it from them at the door. I will ask students to research information or ideas using their mobile phones and the internet. However, this will happen under strict supervision to make sure they are using it only for work. I also believe that more lessons should be transferred to a computer room. For example, we have just taught a lesson on the structure and language used in letters, reviews and articles. Even though all of these things are done mostly through the use of computers, students are still writing it down on paper. I don’t believe that all lessons should be done on computers but there should be a balance between the two. Teaching students how to structure emails write blogs, reviews and articles on a computer are definitely valuable skills that employers will look for.

Another skill that needs to be used more is the encouragement of teamwork. I know that some teachers really do try their best to incorporate it into lessons but I believe this needs to be a big part of every lesson plan. An example of teamwork not being encouraged is when I sat and observed a teacher that had a class of only 5 students. The students were all sitting in different corners of the room as far away from each other as possible. The teacher had activities that even stated that they were to be done as a group but this was ignored and they all did it on their own. In this case, the students needed to be told why working as a team would help them in the future, therefore encouraging them and giving them the motivation to work together. This links to Kellers ARCS Model of Motivational Design, relevance is the second of four steps used to sustain motivation in the learning process (Keller, 2009). The three points that stood out to me taken from the (learning-theories.com, 2017) website in this step were:

• Experience – Tell the learners how the new learning will use their existing skills. We best learn by building upon our preset knowledge or skills.
• Present Worth – What will the subject matter do for me today?
• Future Usefulness – What will the subject matter do for me tomorrow?

In conclusion, it is pretty simple. Students need more than just Maths and English skills to succeed in today’s world. Students need to be taught that things such as teamwork, contributing to class discussions, IT skills and even public speaking are all very important skills. Students of today need new skills for the coming century that will make them ready to collaborate with others on a global level. Whatever they do, we can expect their work to include finding creative solutions to emerging challenges (Willis, 2014).

References:

Education World: Five Ways to Better Prepare Students for Careers. 2017. Education World: Five Ways to Better Prepare Students for Careers. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/five-ways-to-better-prepare-students-for-careers.shtml. [Accessed 15 February 2017].

Gov.uk. 2017. Michael Gove speaks about computing and education technology – GOV.UK. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/michael-gove-speaks-about-computing-and-education-technology [Accessed 15 February 2017].

Judy Willis MD. 2017. Preparing Your Students for the Challenges of Tomorrow | Edutopia. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.edutopia.org/blog/prepare-students-challenges-of-tomorrow-judy-willis. [Accessed 15 February 2017].

Learning-theories.com. 2017. ARCS MODEL OF MOTIVATIONAL DESIGN THEORIES (KELLER). [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.learning-theories.com/kellers-arcs-model-of-motivational-design.html. [Accessed 15 February 2017].

National Numeracy. 2017. Why is numeracy important?. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.nationalnumeracy.org.uk/why-numeracy-important. [Accessed 15 February 2017].

 

 

 

 

 

My experience at Star College

Standards:

S1, S2, S4, S10, S14

Recently the PCET group visited Star College on the outskirts of Cheltenham. I was shocked to find that I had never heard of this place and the amazing work that they are doing there. We were greeted right away by a friendly receptionist and a great atmosphere. Star College’s aim is to “enable people with disabilities to realize their potential through personalised learning, transition and destination services”(NationalStar, 2017).  They are at the forefront challenging stereotypes and helping people with disabilities find something they excel at and help them grow in many ways. My mind was completely blown by the facilities that they had including a moving kitchen so they could reach places they normally couldn’t. They also had sensory rooms that helped severely disabled students express themselves in ways they couldn’t do in a regular environment.

I found myself fascinated by what they did and the effort they put into every lesson. We had the pleasure of meeting some of the teachers who talked about how they would have to plan for every students needs as some of the students would have 1 to 2 carers each. I started reflecting upon the problems that I was having planning for just two SEN students and the effort and extra materials that were needed. We were then shown some lesson plans which were very detailed and even had sections so the TA’s knew what they were doing and sections for each individual student. I took an immediate liking to the layout and detail that went into their everyday planning. I started to implement the use of including the TA’s in my planning which would help get the best out of my SEN students.

When I got back from the college I immediately looked up their latest OFSTED report and the findings also astounded me. OFSTED found that students were making outstanding progress in the development of their independent living skills and personal effectiveness. OFSTED also talked about how the students were growing and that their ability to communicate with others was significantly improving (OFSTED, 2012). Another thing that I took away from Star College was the thought that went into every lesson making it as stimulating and exciting for the students as possible to keep them engaged. I thought that if I could bring even a small amount of that enthusiasm to my lessons it would significantly help keep students engaged.

I have to say, however, that the most valuable thing I took away from Star College was the confidence that they instilled in their students. This helped me look at my SEN students in a totally different way. I believe that one student in particular who has Selective Mutism would highly benefit from this. Giving the student the confidence to interact with me by positive reinforcement and creating anxiety free activities (Kervett, 2016). This was something I started to look into after seeing the results they were having at Star College. I started creating activities where students could write down their answers rather than just call them out and making sure that the student was always able to take part in some small way.

I have to say my experience at Star College was an eye-opener, to say the least. It helped me see that despite the disabilities and SEN there is always a way to take a student further and reach their goal. Whether that goal is to pass a test or even communicate better with others, it is all positive progress that should be recognised.

References:

National Star. 2017. Our Vision and Mission | National Star. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.nationalstar.org/us/vision-mission/. [Accessed 13 February 2017].

Ofsted | National Star College. 2017. Ofsted | National Star College. [ONLINE] Available at: https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/inspection-reports/find-inspection-report/provider/ELS/131944. [Accessed 13 February 2017].

Kervett. 2016. Classroom Strategies for Teachers of Selectively Mute Children. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.selectivemutism.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Classroom-Strategies-for-Teachers-of-Selectively-Mute-Children.pdf. [Accessed 13 February 2017].

 

Using SEN teaching assistants effectively: My experience

Standards:

S1, S2, S4, S9, S10, S14

Since starting the PCET course one of the most challenging things I have found is how to manage my Teaching Assistants efficiently and make sure that they are doing what’s best for the lesson but also for the SEN student that they have been assigned to. My problem first started when I realised that I would sometimes be outnumbered by TA’s and they were all looking to me for guidance. An example of this would be the occasion where I taught a class of ten students with five TA’s, this means there was one TA per two students which didn’t leave me much room to help students myself. According to recent figures from the Department Of Education,  in primary schools, TA’s actually outnumber teachers by 257,300 compared to 242,300 (Morrison, 2014). This is a scary figure and it meant that obviously TA’s were very important and that I needed to change my lesson strategy quickly to utilise them in the most beneficial way to the students.

My first realisation of the negative effect a TA can have in the class if not kept busy was my first lesson teaching a specific GCSE English class with two SEN students that had their own assistants. I noticed that their teaching style was very different from each other; one was quiet and kept to her student we, we will call her TA (1) while the other kept getting involved in discussions and asked questions irrelevant to the topic meeting her own need to get involved, we will call her TA(2). This particular teaching assistant I felt was actually hindering the students learning by diverting their attention away from the topic onto things that interested her rather than concentrating on the SEN student who clearly needed her help. I found that the TA was becoming yet another student that I would have to look after rather than helping me by taking care of the SEN student. I remember feeling this way because of the comment made by the TA when the class was over that she had learned a lot and thanked me for the interesting lesson, yet I felt the SEN student hadn’t received the full attention they were due.

TA(1) who kept to her student was a great help in the classroom and always put the needs of her SEN student first, always making sure that they understood and were caught up with anything that was going on. This presented a whole different set of problems for me. I found myself paying less attention to that particular SEN student because I was certain they were in capable hands and that the TA would help them understand anything they were having trouble with. According to (Webster, 2014) research they made:

“Put together with results from our previous research, which found that students with high-level SEN receiving the most TA support made significantly less academic progress than similar pupils who received little or no TA support, we see a worrying trend: students with statements are negatively affected by the very intervention intended to help them.”

I could see why this was an issue and according to the article, Webster believes that this is mainly due to SEN students not having enough contact with the teachers themselves. Therefore, the SEN students are not receiving the same amount of quality time with a fully trained teacher but are instead spending most of their time with TA’s a lot of whom do not have any form of official qualifications. When reading the article it hit home that this was exactly what I was doing and that I needed to change the way I looked at SEN students and their assistants immediately.

Firstly I needed to tackle the issue of TA(2) who was not spending enough time with her student and was getting over involved in class discussions which was eating away at my lesson time. I decided that I would need to find a way to harness her energy and divert it so that she was focused on the SEN student who needed her help. I was struggling to find a way to do this until we took a PCET class trip to Star College where were looking at the way that teachers planned lessons when they had many assistants. I found that they had a very effective way of utilising the assistants by putting them in the lesson plan itself and giving each of them a goal that they would have to achieve by the end of that lesson. I realised that this would be a perfect way of harnessing TA(2)’s energy and by giving her goals to achieve with her student by the end of her lesson, it would keep her focused and give her the sense of achievement she required.

The issue I was having with TA(1) was much simpler, it was not the teaching assistants issue but mine as a teacher. I needed to be aware that Teaching Assistants are not substitutes for the teacher but were there simply to enhance my teaching and fill in gaps where needed. I realised that I was giving the students that needed the most help the least of my attention when it should be the other way around. So in future, I am making sure to be as involved as possible with these students and make sure they are getting the same amount of quality time with myself as any other student.

My experience with TA’s has been an eye opener to say the least and I have realised just how important they can be when managed correctly but also how distracted they can be if not directed correctly. I have also found that managing TA’s effectively comes with experience as there are no courses that can teach you how to manage different personalities and the challenges that come along with that. In the end, you have to do what is best for your students and you need to work hand in hand with your TA’s to be able to do that.

References:

TES. 2017. Teaching assistants: New revolutionary model for effective use of support staff | News. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.tes.com/news/school-news/breaking-news/teaching-assistants-new-revolutionary-model-effective-use-support. [Accessed 04 January 2017]

The Guardian. 2017. Relying on teaching assistant support for SEN students is a false economy | Teacher Network | The Guardian. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/teacher-blog/2014/apr/17/special-educational-needs-teaching-assistant-support-sen-students. [Accessed 04 Januray 2017].