Following from my last post, the biggest let down of my year was poor mentoring and I have been asked a good question about what others in the same situation as me could do in the future.
This is a very hard topic for any student to get over and in the end led to my failing - but is there anything that can be done about it?
When I was going through it, I felt like there was simply nobody to talk to - after all as a student what did I really know? Who was going to believe a student complaining about a fully qualified teacher who has been picked as a mentor due to the trust the school already has in them.
In the end I took the opinion to keep my head down, work through it and hope for the best. That plan failed!
Looking back I wish I had done something sooner and at least tried to make a difference. I made notes during this period of when I had felt let down but I kept them to myself, instead I should have taken this as evidence to a more senior teacher as a concern. I will never know if it would have been taken seriously but at least I could have looked back knowing I had tried.
It is important to add that if you are thinking of doing this, you should have evidence to back it up - such as examples of when you have been let down. That way you have substance to your complaint and are more likely to be taken seriously.
I believe this though is simply making the best of a bad situation, I think the actual answer lies at the responsibility of the university. A process should be put in place and largely advertised to help with the student-mentor relationship.
Whether it be the mentor's fault, the student's fault, or simply if the two just don't get on, there should be a way to have a change of mentor. Now I'm not saying it is the answer to every problem - a lot should just be worked through, however if this has been tried and not worked then there needs to be a quick way to get a new mentor,
Just to finish, I reported back my issues to the course leader with the hope that others don't have to go through the same mentors as me - I just hope this was taken on board and new mentors put in place for the following year's intake.
Sunday, 13 September 2015
My story - 3 years on
It has taken me three years to tell this but reading about the latest intake of PGCE students has inspired me to tell what happened on my course and why this blog has gone quiet for three years.
I have so much respect for every teacher out there and anyone who is going along that career path, all of whom I hope has a lot better experience than what I went through below.
As you may have gathered by now, my PGCE finished in an awful fashion - I was let down by my school and mentors, all of which led to me leaving what could have been my dream career in tears.
It all ended so quickly at the end of my second teaching practice (TP2) which was based at a partner school, a school with no character and a very hypocritical mentor who seemingly had no interest or time for me.
After two weeks of my TP2, all seemed to be going fine (if not enjoyable), we broke up for February half-term and on that last day had a long discussion with my mentor who was ticking off all the traits I had shown in those two weeks - nearly all of the necessary teaching points were covered and at the end of the discussion there was just a couple that needed to be completed in the final week when we returned from the holiday - all usual stuff.
That half-term was spend working everyday so I could finish successfully and finally wave goodbye to my partner school. However everything changed the first day back.
I was greeted by my mentor from my main school (who wasn't much better), she pulled me aside and her tone changed, from having been passing all the points prior to half-term, the bombshell came out that in fact she thought I hadn't even done enough to pass and raised me as a cause for concern - even making out she was doing me a favour by extending my TP by a week to give a chance to pass.
If that change in tone wasn't enough of a shock to me, the worst aspect was the points she was bringing up that I was failing on. The biggest of which was her reference to me having not provided work for a statemented child in my class for English and Maths. This was a child who was so low was taken away every lesson for one-on-one time with the TA and was never part of my class. I had never been told that I had to create work for him at any point, and even when I was shadowing - no part of it was ever with him as I was told that he gets on with his own stuff. If I was simply told I needed to provide work then I would have.
I drove home in tears and back to school the next day crying in the car thinking what was I going to do (I never cry!). The career I had fought so hard for was getting away from me and I had a decision to make. Do I carry on, battling in the vain hope that the vast amounts of work they told to do on top of my original workload would pay off, or do I admit defeat and look elsewhere.
It was one of the hardest decisions I have made and the reasoning why I took it may not be what upcoming PGCE students want to hear - but the whole point of this blog is honesty.
The honest answer is that the crazy workload simply didn't outweigh the small amount of reward that you get from helping the children.
I signed up to a PGCE and teaching due to having worked with children before and the tremendous amount of joy that can be gained from helping them achieve, however I found that the PGCE zapped all of this reward out of the job and turned the role into a constant monitoring to ensure you have ticked every lesson box, rather than do what is right for the children.
By this, I mean things like ensuring a 'warm up' challenge was precisely 5 minutes, every 15 minute or so the whole class had to be stopped for an 'appraisal' again the ending had to be 5 minutes - no less, no more. Gone was the option to go with what was working - the class could be really involved in their work but it still had to be stopped just so you were ticking a box in an observation.
The kids learning seemed to be of secondary importance in any grading, with those kind of steps above the deciding factor between satisfactory/good/outstanding lesson.
I have decided to reopen this blog and write more about my experiences as I feel it will be of use to a lot of you out there battling through the workload and thinking why I am doing this.
Take this ending as you want but my view is that I wish teaching was what it should be in terms of a rewarding role and a lifestyle to be proud of. However the happiest part of my whole PGCE year was the day after I quit as all the stress had been lifted and looking back it was the best thing that could have happened to me.
I now am lucky to have worked my way up into a job where I work less hours and get paid more so I can spend more time with my family, which for me is a lot more rewarding than all those hours in a classroom.
I have so much respect for every teacher out there and anyone who is going along that career path, all of whom I hope has a lot better experience than what I went through below.
As you may have gathered by now, my PGCE finished in an awful fashion - I was let down by my school and mentors, all of which led to me leaving what could have been my dream career in tears.
It all ended so quickly at the end of my second teaching practice (TP2) which was based at a partner school, a school with no character and a very hypocritical mentor who seemingly had no interest or time for me.
After two weeks of my TP2, all seemed to be going fine (if not enjoyable), we broke up for February half-term and on that last day had a long discussion with my mentor who was ticking off all the traits I had shown in those two weeks - nearly all of the necessary teaching points were covered and at the end of the discussion there was just a couple that needed to be completed in the final week when we returned from the holiday - all usual stuff.
That half-term was spend working everyday so I could finish successfully and finally wave goodbye to my partner school. However everything changed the first day back.
I was greeted by my mentor from my main school (who wasn't much better), she pulled me aside and her tone changed, from having been passing all the points prior to half-term, the bombshell came out that in fact she thought I hadn't even done enough to pass and raised me as a cause for concern - even making out she was doing me a favour by extending my TP by a week to give a chance to pass.
If that change in tone wasn't enough of a shock to me, the worst aspect was the points she was bringing up that I was failing on. The biggest of which was her reference to me having not provided work for a statemented child in my class for English and Maths. This was a child who was so low was taken away every lesson for one-on-one time with the TA and was never part of my class. I had never been told that I had to create work for him at any point, and even when I was shadowing - no part of it was ever with him as I was told that he gets on with his own stuff. If I was simply told I needed to provide work then I would have.
I drove home in tears and back to school the next day crying in the car thinking what was I going to do (I never cry!). The career I had fought so hard for was getting away from me and I had a decision to make. Do I carry on, battling in the vain hope that the vast amounts of work they told to do on top of my original workload would pay off, or do I admit defeat and look elsewhere.
It was one of the hardest decisions I have made and the reasoning why I took it may not be what upcoming PGCE students want to hear - but the whole point of this blog is honesty.
The honest answer is that the crazy workload simply didn't outweigh the small amount of reward that you get from helping the children.
I signed up to a PGCE and teaching due to having worked with children before and the tremendous amount of joy that can be gained from helping them achieve, however I found that the PGCE zapped all of this reward out of the job and turned the role into a constant monitoring to ensure you have ticked every lesson box, rather than do what is right for the children.
By this, I mean things like ensuring a 'warm up' challenge was precisely 5 minutes, every 15 minute or so the whole class had to be stopped for an 'appraisal' again the ending had to be 5 minutes - no less, no more. Gone was the option to go with what was working - the class could be really involved in their work but it still had to be stopped just so you were ticking a box in an observation.
The kids learning seemed to be of secondary importance in any grading, with those kind of steps above the deciding factor between satisfactory/good/outstanding lesson.
I have decided to reopen this blog and write more about my experiences as I feel it will be of use to a lot of you out there battling through the workload and thinking why I am doing this.
Take this ending as you want but my view is that I wish teaching was what it should be in terms of a rewarding role and a lifestyle to be proud of. However the happiest part of my whole PGCE year was the day after I quit as all the stress had been lifted and looking back it was the best thing that could have happened to me.
I now am lucky to have worked my way up into a job where I work less hours and get paid more so I can spend more time with my family, which for me is a lot more rewarding than all those hours in a classroom.
Tuesday, 20 December 2011
The bad feeling when you find lots more work to do ...
After a week long break from anything to do with my PGCE I have been struck down by the discovery of a whole host of reading I did not realise I had to do.
I actually missed doing work so I thought I would make a quick head start on some of the work next term but little did I realise how hard this would be.
I decided that I wanted to use the break to look at the future assignments I have, both of which count towards masters credits, only this has now scared me.
The first assignment has a 10 page pack just to explain what to do and has about 70 pages of quick reading to do before getting started. I then need to research theories in a lot more detail and link this to my school experience.
Now is a good time to point out that theories are something I really struggle with as I am a practical learner and so find it hard to understand theories from the likes of Piaget and Bruner.
Still it looks like my Christmas will now be dominated by those names as I make a start on understanding what they have to say. My theory being it will be a lot easier to do this now than during my teaching practice next term.
I actually missed doing work so I thought I would make a quick head start on some of the work next term but little did I realise how hard this would be.
I decided that I wanted to use the break to look at the future assignments I have, both of which count towards masters credits, only this has now scared me.
The first assignment has a 10 page pack just to explain what to do and has about 70 pages of quick reading to do before getting started. I then need to research theories in a lot more detail and link this to my school experience.
Now is a good time to point out that theories are something I really struggle with as I am a practical learner and so find it hard to understand theories from the likes of Piaget and Bruner.
Still it looks like my Christmas will now be dominated by those names as I make a start on understanding what they have to say. My theory being it will be a lot easier to do this now than during my teaching practice next term.
Tuesday, 13 December 2011
Blogs are back up and running :)
After a week of internet troubles I have finally got everything fixed and can blog again! And what's even better is that it is now the Christmas holidays on my course so I am getting the reward of all the hard work during the term.
It has no doubt been the hardest couple of months I have ever had but I feel like I have come out of it a much improved teacher and so all the long days seem to have paid off.
The big news from the past week is that I have officially passed TP1 and assignment three! I had my review day yesterday and didn't get any cause for concerns which is a massive worry off my back. I didn't think I was failing but with 33 QTS skills I wasn't sure if I would be on task on every single one of them. I also had a positive evaluation with lots of constructive ways for me to improve, which I will be taking forward into my next placement in January.
But as for now, it is a hard-earnt three weeks break for me with just light reading to complete before I return to school in the first week of next year.
Well done to everyone on a PGCE who has got this far and I would just like to wish good luck to all those who have reviews and hand-ins this week.
Tuesday, 6 December 2011
The home stretch
It really does feel like the home stretch now - I have nearly made it through term 1!
It has been a hard slog but all the tough work is now over and it is putting everything together, ready for my review day on Monday.
I only have one more observed lesson to get through (which is already planned) and two days of observing Year 1 and I can completely relax and enjoy Christmas.
The really nice thing is that the workload is almost non-existant over the holidays, which is a huge reward for what has been put in this term.
It will mean I can use the time firstly to relax but also to look up educational books which I believe will actually help me, rather than being told which course books to read. Now all I have to do is get on Amazon and order some for holiday reading.
The main book I am after is one of PE as that will be my specialist subject and I want to read up a lot more on it. If anybody has any suggestions that would be great!
It has been a hard slog but all the tough work is now over and it is putting everything together, ready for my review day on Monday.
I only have one more observed lesson to get through (which is already planned) and two days of observing Year 1 and I can completely relax and enjoy Christmas.
The really nice thing is that the workload is almost non-existant over the holidays, which is a huge reward for what has been put in this term.
It will mean I can use the time firstly to relax but also to look up educational books which I believe will actually help me, rather than being told which course books to read. Now all I have to do is get on Amazon and order some for holiday reading.
The main book I am after is one of PE as that will be my specialist subject and I want to read up a lot more on it. If anybody has any suggestions that would be great!
Thursday, 1 December 2011
Catching up with the work
After weeks of hanging on in there I feel like I am slowly beginning to make headway in the stacks of work we have to do.
I have just handing in a draft of my assignment three and completed an observed lesson - two massive worries I have had all week.
Now all I have to do is get through another observation tomorrow and it is relatively plain sailing.
I still need to catch up on weeks of reading but compared to the last few weeks that should be a walk in the park
I have just handing in a draft of my assignment three and completed an observed lesson - two massive worries I have had all week.
Now all I have to do is get through another observation tomorrow and it is relatively plain sailing.
I still need to catch up on weeks of reading but compared to the last few weeks that should be a walk in the park
Wednesday, 30 November 2011
Strike day as a student
For those of you who don't know, PGCE students have no say in whether to strike or not as we are not employed members of staff and so for us it is a normal working day.
Well I say normal, my reading day has had to be switched to today so I don't miss out on a day at school so for me it means the hard work continues.
Today I need to start and finish a 2,500 word assignment and plan two observed lessons (one tomorrow and one Friday). I began work at 9am and am already 1,500 words in so it has been a good start but there is still a hell of a lot more to do.
On the controversial matter of strikes, I have the upmost respect for all of those fighting for the future of the profession and to save the pensions of all teaching. I do not necessarily think striking is the best way to go about it but I think in this situation I can see the logic of joining all the other public sector workers.
In a perfect world I think the boycott should be against things like the added paperwork given by the government, something which takes up as many hours as a days teaching but has less impact on the children.
But in this situation it is power by numbers and so I can see the logic on joining in with one day of mass walkouts.
I just hope the stigma of the profession is not dented and people begin to understand what is at stake for everybody in teaching.
Well I say normal, my reading day has had to be switched to today so I don't miss out on a day at school so for me it means the hard work continues.
Today I need to start and finish a 2,500 word assignment and plan two observed lessons (one tomorrow and one Friday). I began work at 9am and am already 1,500 words in so it has been a good start but there is still a hell of a lot more to do.
On the controversial matter of strikes, I have the upmost respect for all of those fighting for the future of the profession and to save the pensions of all teaching. I do not necessarily think striking is the best way to go about it but I think in this situation I can see the logic of joining all the other public sector workers.
In a perfect world I think the boycott should be against things like the added paperwork given by the government, something which takes up as many hours as a days teaching but has less impact on the children.
But in this situation it is power by numbers and so I can see the logic on joining in with one day of mass walkouts.
I just hope the stigma of the profession is not dented and people begin to understand what is at stake for everybody in teaching.
Tuesday, 29 November 2011
A good start to Year 1
Today was my first day in Year 1 and overall I would say it was a good start.
I still need a lot more practice until I will be as confident with this age as I am with my Year 4s but I can see myself teaching this level - an improvement from a couple of months ago.
The biggest problem I found was keeping their attention, even the class teacher found it hard to get everyone looking at her and she has had years of experience. It just seems at that age it is a near impossible job.
However, spending the day with them and seeing how the lessons are run has given me more confidence about my much feared six week placement next term and that can only be a good thing.
I still need a lot more practice until I will be as confident with this age as I am with my Year 4s but I can see myself teaching this level - an improvement from a couple of months ago.
The biggest problem I found was keeping their attention, even the class teacher found it hard to get everyone looking at her and she has had years of experience. It just seems at that age it is a near impossible job.
However, spending the day with them and seeing how the lessons are run has given me more confidence about my much feared six week placement next term and that can only be a good thing.
Monday, 28 November 2011
Nerves about moving to Year 1
My teaching practice is now officially over so tomorrow I start my time in the alternate Key Stage and I am slightly scared.
It is a big jump and the children seem so young. I am sure I will get used to it and in the end enjoy it but at the moment I am nervous about the transition.
Luckily I will only be observing this week so get a chance to practice adapting how I interact with the children and hopefully by Friday I will be much happier in this age group
It is a big jump and the children seem so young. I am sure I will get used to it and in the end enjoy it but at the moment I am nervous about the transition.
Luckily I will only be observing this week so get a chance to practice adapting how I interact with the children and hopefully by Friday I will be much happier in this age group
Sunday, 27 November 2011
Why is it so hard to work on a Sunday?
Am I the only person who struggles so much to get motivated to work on a Sunday? It seems every week I put it aside to get a start on the huge pile of work I have but always struggle to get myself motivated.
I have been infront of my computer most of the day and have done a fair bit of work but I am sure I could have done a lot more if I settled down better. Instead I seem to be taking it at a leisurely pace, doing about enough but not as much as I had hoped.
For instance, today I have planned two lessons (one observed) and a science experiment for my assignment but I had planned to complete lesson evaluations and started my teaching practice folder as well.
I guess it all means the evenings will be hard again this week :(
I have been infront of my computer most of the day and have done a fair bit of work but I am sure I could have done a lot more if I settled down better. Instead I seem to be taking it at a leisurely pace, doing about enough but not as much as I had hoped.
For instance, today I have planned two lessons (one observed) and a science experiment for my assignment but I had planned to complete lesson evaluations and started my teaching practice folder as well.
I guess it all means the evenings will be hard again this week :(
Thursday, 24 November 2011
The workload is just getting stupid now
I would love to challenge the people who come up with the plan for a PGCE to practice what they preach and complete a whole year of being a trainee on their course.
It has been getting silly for some time but the next two weeks just seem to have tipped over the edge to stupid.
It is not the hard work I am complaining about but the logical thought in how it is set up.
There is 11 school days before, as a course, we break up for our reading week, followed by Christmas. Two of these are reading days and one is my final TP day and one is a review day leaving seven days. In these seven days I need to spend five in the alternate Key Stage, leaving two in my home class, which again seems fine. That is until they decided to cram three more observed lessons into these two days (which are split throughout the two weeks). So what that means is I will be going into the class, effectively clueless about how each lesson fits into what they have been doing and it will be so hard to follow their learning on lesson by lesson.
So I ask why the need for these three more observed lessons, they are hardly going to improve the teaching when they are scattered about so badly.
Also add on top of this an assignment that is 'conveniently' due in before our reading week and the timetable simply looks bizarre.
If a lecturer is reading this, please give me a reason to put me out of my misery as to why it is a good idea to structure it like this.
Because to me the logical thing would be to extend TP1 or include more observed lessons during TP1, have a full week, or two weeks in Key Stage 1 and have the assignment hand in AFTER the reading week!
It has been getting silly for some time but the next two weeks just seem to have tipped over the edge to stupid.
It is not the hard work I am complaining about but the logical thought in how it is set up.
There is 11 school days before, as a course, we break up for our reading week, followed by Christmas. Two of these are reading days and one is my final TP day and one is a review day leaving seven days. In these seven days I need to spend five in the alternate Key Stage, leaving two in my home class, which again seems fine. That is until they decided to cram three more observed lessons into these two days (which are split throughout the two weeks). So what that means is I will be going into the class, effectively clueless about how each lesson fits into what they have been doing and it will be so hard to follow their learning on lesson by lesson.
So I ask why the need for these three more observed lessons, they are hardly going to improve the teaching when they are scattered about so badly.
Also add on top of this an assignment that is 'conveniently' due in before our reading week and the timetable simply looks bizarre.
If a lecturer is reading this, please give me a reason to put me out of my misery as to why it is a good idea to structure it like this.
Because to me the logical thing would be to extend TP1 or include more observed lessons during TP1, have a full week, or two weeks in Key Stage 1 and have the assignment hand in AFTER the reading week!
Tuesday, 22 November 2011
Drowning in work
This week the work has just hit me and I have ended up spending nearly every waking hour planning, evaluating and making resources.
It is only Tuesday and I am absolutely exhausted so for that reason this blog will be really short and to the point.
My observed lesson on Monday went really well and will blog about this at a later point when I have more time.
I am loving being in charge of the class and feel the children are seeing me as a joint teacher rather than a teacher who steps in occasionally to take a lesson.
The pages and pages of plans are getting disheartening but I am battling through them.
And finally evaluation forms seem to be flooding out of my ears, I have done seven already this week and still have a couple more to do but I realise they are important on improving as a teacher so am putting the work into making sure I think about where the lessons have gone well and bad.
Now just roll on the weekend!
It is only Tuesday and I am absolutely exhausted so for that reason this blog will be really short and to the point.
My observed lesson on Monday went really well and will blog about this at a later point when I have more time.
I am loving being in charge of the class and feel the children are seeing me as a joint teacher rather than a teacher who steps in occasionally to take a lesson.
The pages and pages of plans are getting disheartening but I am battling through them.
And finally evaluation forms seem to be flooding out of my ears, I have done seven already this week and still have a couple more to do but I realise they are important on improving as a teacher so am putting the work into making sure I think about where the lessons have gone well and bad.
Now just roll on the weekend!
Saturday, 19 November 2011
Half way through TP1
Half of TP1 is now over and so far it has been a massively worthwhile experience.
In the four days of teaching I have felt myself grow and develop as a teacher and have thoroughly enjoyed being the one in charge.
I have had the chance to lead whole mornings without my mentor in the room, giving me the freedom to express myself more and be that more dominant figure in the classroom. I often find I feel second rank when the class teacher is in as it is always her in ultimate charge but when I was left to my own devices it forced me to come out of my shell.
This will be tested even more next week as I take control for two full days (one of which my mentor isn't in school at all for).
But despite the positive first week, I know the hard bit is still to come. Due to having an INSET day and a lack of cover I haven't had any formally observed lessons, meaning I have three next week! These are how my TP1 will be marked so it's fair to say I am feeling slightly nervous at this point.
To help I have once again designated this as a working weekend and have already done most of the planning I can at this point, leaving me tomorrow to spend good time planning for Monday's observed lesson.
It is learning the six times table so tonight's job is to make a counting stick - a task which can easily fit in with Saturday night TV.
For those wondering about the workload there is a hell of a lot but I am still yet to work late into the night. My days have generally consisted of leaving for school at 7.30am, getting home about 6-6.30pm and then working through until around 9pm - apart from Friday, that was a well deserved night off!
In the four days of teaching I have felt myself grow and develop as a teacher and have thoroughly enjoyed being the one in charge.
I have had the chance to lead whole mornings without my mentor in the room, giving me the freedom to express myself more and be that more dominant figure in the classroom. I often find I feel second rank when the class teacher is in as it is always her in ultimate charge but when I was left to my own devices it forced me to come out of my shell.
This will be tested even more next week as I take control for two full days (one of which my mentor isn't in school at all for).
But despite the positive first week, I know the hard bit is still to come. Due to having an INSET day and a lack of cover I haven't had any formally observed lessons, meaning I have three next week! These are how my TP1 will be marked so it's fair to say I am feeling slightly nervous at this point.
To help I have once again designated this as a working weekend and have already done most of the planning I can at this point, leaving me tomorrow to spend good time planning for Monday's observed lesson.
It is learning the six times table so tonight's job is to make a counting stick - a task which can easily fit in with Saturday night TV.
For those wondering about the workload there is a hell of a lot but I am still yet to work late into the night. My days have generally consisted of leaving for school at 7.30am, getting home about 6-6.30pm and then working through until around 9pm - apart from Friday, that was a well deserved night off!
Wednesday, 16 November 2011
The joys of PPA
I sit here tonight happily blogging away knowing that I have planned all of tomorrows lesson and marked all my books, all before 8.30pm and it is all thanks to PPA.
As part of my teaching practice I am entitled three half days of PPA, one of which I had today and managed to get so much done.
All the marking was completed, I evaluated my two lessons of the day and planned one for tomorrow.
It meant that after a long staff meeting, all I had to do was plan a single lesson for tomorrow and then put my feet up.
It is a treasured rest and I am enjoying every minute of it as I sit here in the comfort of my own bed.
As part of my teaching practice I am entitled three half days of PPA, one of which I had today and managed to get so much done.
All the marking was completed, I evaluated my two lessons of the day and planned one for tomorrow.
It meant that after a long staff meeting, all I had to do was plan a single lesson for tomorrow and then put my feet up.
It is a treasured rest and I am enjoying every minute of it as I sit here in the comfort of my own bed.
The start of teaching practice
As you can probably tell from this post being written at 7am, time is a very valuable thing during teaching practice and there isn't much of it that goes spare.
However after day 1 I have been able to fit all of the necessary work into the waking day and have not had to stay up late at night to plan which is a definite bonus.
It means I am still waking up refreshed and ready for the day ahead.
As for the lessons, it was a mixed bag again - which is fast becoming the story of my PGCE.
Maths was pitched too high for them and they really struggled to understand the concept, meaning my timing went out of the window and the lesson didn't go particularly well. This thought was followed up by my mentor explaining it was probably a good job that wasn't an observed lesson.
But then literacy in the ICT room went better, not perfect, but better. Children stayed on task and apart from a couple of exceptions all managed to get the work completed on time.
Today is a little easier, I only have guided reading and a topic lesson (again in the ICT room) but my aim of the teaching practice is to improve each day so it means I will be putting just as much effort into the shorter space of time.
Also very much looking forward to my PPA time to get a head start on tomorrow's planning!
However after day 1 I have been able to fit all of the necessary work into the waking day and have not had to stay up late at night to plan which is a definite bonus.
It means I am still waking up refreshed and ready for the day ahead.
As for the lessons, it was a mixed bag again - which is fast becoming the story of my PGCE.
Maths was pitched too high for them and they really struggled to understand the concept, meaning my timing went out of the window and the lesson didn't go particularly well. This thought was followed up by my mentor explaining it was probably a good job that wasn't an observed lesson.
But then literacy in the ICT room went better, not perfect, but better. Children stayed on task and apart from a couple of exceptions all managed to get the work completed on time.
Today is a little easier, I only have guided reading and a topic lesson (again in the ICT room) but my aim of the teaching practice is to improve each day so it means I will be putting just as much effort into the shorter space of time.
Also very much looking forward to my PPA time to get a head start on tomorrow's planning!
Saturday, 12 November 2011
Preparing for teaching practice
With my teaching practice (TP) coming up this week I was worried that I would have so much to do this weekend that I just wouldn't fit it in but so far I am pleased to say that is not the case.
In fact I was so conscious of starting TP that I cancelled all my plans for the weekend just to concentrate on planning.
But what I have found is that I have had a fairly relaxing day, taking my work at a slow enjoyable pace and already feel ready for it to begin.
I have basically planned three of the five lessons I can do at this stage, come up with my reward strategy and created the resources to implement them. It means I just have two more lessons to plan tomorrow and it has dramatically reduced my fears of being overworked during the next two weeks.
In fact I was so conscious of starting TP that I cancelled all my plans for the weekend just to concentrate on planning.
But what I have found is that I have had a fairly relaxing day, taking my work at a slow enjoyable pace and already feel ready for it to begin.
I have basically planned three of the five lessons I can do at this stage, come up with my reward strategy and created the resources to implement them. It means I just have two more lessons to plan tomorrow and it has dramatically reduced my fears of being overworked during the next two weeks.
Tuesday, 8 November 2011
Finalised rewards strategy
Firstly, thank you to everybody who contributed to my rewards strategy and all the advice that was given. I have taken it all in, had my idea approved by my mentor and here is the outcome:
I have kept the idea of having points per lesson but after the feedback I have made it much simpler. So now there will be a visual pointer, which will be aimed at either 0,1 or 2 points. Each lesson it will begin at the one point mark but if children begin to go off task, noise levels get unacceptable etc. I will move it down to 0. This will be done after a warning so the children know what it is for. They will then have the opportunity to improve and earn the point back.
Alternatively if the children contribute really well to the lesson and produce excellent ideas then they will move up to two points, or even be awarded a bonus point.
At the end of each lesson the points that they finish to will be added to a visual chart on the wall. This will be going up the wall and the point that they are on will be shown by a rocket (to fit in with the space topic). As they go past certain points (e.g reach 15) they will be have achieved a reward and this reward gets better as they move up the scale.
I will try and include a picture when it is all in place so you can see the visual aspect of it and will blog about whether it worked after my first teaching practice.
I have kept the idea of having points per lesson but after the feedback I have made it much simpler. So now there will be a visual pointer, which will be aimed at either 0,1 or 2 points. Each lesson it will begin at the one point mark but if children begin to go off task, noise levels get unacceptable etc. I will move it down to 0. This will be done after a warning so the children know what it is for. They will then have the opportunity to improve and earn the point back.
Alternatively if the children contribute really well to the lesson and produce excellent ideas then they will move up to two points, or even be awarded a bonus point.
At the end of each lesson the points that they finish to will be added to a visual chart on the wall. This will be going up the wall and the point that they are on will be shown by a rocket (to fit in with the space topic). As they go past certain points (e.g reach 15) they will be have achieved a reward and this reward gets better as they move up the scale.
I will try and include a picture when it is all in place so you can see the visual aspect of it and will blog about whether it worked after my first teaching practice.
A day of two halfs
If ever there was a day to sum up the highs and lows of a PGCE it was today. My maths lesson was simply a lesson from hell, it went absolutely awful and left me wanting to hide away in a ball not speaking to anybody but this was followed up by a literacy lesson, which I think was the best teaching I have ever done and left me proud to be on the path to gaining my QTS.
I had spent hours planning it and getting the classroom set up but it was all worth it as it flowed perfectly and the children were engaged, enjoying it and actively learning.
Having read Shirley Clarke over the weekend I took the decision to ditch my usual regime of explaining the WALT, success criteria, then do 15 minutes input and leave them for 25 minutes on a task.
Instead I got them engaged instantly with an activity linked to the session, explained how it fit in to what they would be learning and then gave them small, 10 minute tasks for the rest of the lesson. The result was a smooth flowing, fast paced lesson where all the children came away with something from the lesson. I also ditched the carpet time and taught it all with the children at their tables.
All this meant that for the first time on the course I had found my teaching style, I was free to walk around the room and use my body language to add to what I was saying. I was able to show the enthusiasm I had kept inside me for too long and really 'put on a show'. I loved it!
Maths on the other hand was another issue, the work was too hard and from a class of 31 children I could not honestly say a single one understood the lesson. But like all things, I have learnt from it, realised I need to create the work to aim it at their level, rather than use prearranged worksheets and I need to be FULLY prepared for everything - it has made me realise being ready is not enough, you have to have covered every possible angle before you can deliver a decent lesson.
I had spent hours planning it and getting the classroom set up but it was all worth it as it flowed perfectly and the children were engaged, enjoying it and actively learning.
Having read Shirley Clarke over the weekend I took the decision to ditch my usual regime of explaining the WALT, success criteria, then do 15 minutes input and leave them for 25 minutes on a task.
Instead I got them engaged instantly with an activity linked to the session, explained how it fit in to what they would be learning and then gave them small, 10 minute tasks for the rest of the lesson. The result was a smooth flowing, fast paced lesson where all the children came away with something from the lesson. I also ditched the carpet time and taught it all with the children at their tables.
All this meant that for the first time on the course I had found my teaching style, I was free to walk around the room and use my body language to add to what I was saying. I was able to show the enthusiasm I had kept inside me for too long and really 'put on a show'. I loved it!
Maths on the other hand was another issue, the work was too hard and from a class of 31 children I could not honestly say a single one understood the lesson. But like all things, I have learnt from it, realised I need to create the work to aim it at their level, rather than use prearranged worksheets and I need to be FULLY prepared for everything - it has made me realise being ready is not enough, you have to have covered every possible angle before you can deliver a decent lesson.
Monday, 7 November 2011
Falling out of love with all the reading
It's nine weeks in and the reading is finally starting to catch-up with me. I am far too often thinking what is the point in reading this? Or there has to be something more useful for me?
I think it has all come about because I have been finding more and more useful books during my independent reading and I am taking my time up with these rather than the course books.
It has resulted in me leaving reading lists unfinished and boxes 'unticked'.
However I am yet to decide if this is a bad thing or just a development of me as a teacher. I have not cut down on the amount of reading I just keep finding more interesting books that I can use.
For example Shirley Clarke is not part of our reading list and yet I got more from her book than I have from the rest of my reading put together.
So now I have found myself at a crossroads, do I spend the time reading to complete a reading list or do I change tactic and read what I feel will benefit me the most?
I'm sure the ideal choice will be read them all, or meet half-way in the middle but I am really struggling to get motivated to read outdated theories at the expense of quality new ideas.
I think it has all come about because I have been finding more and more useful books during my independent reading and I am taking my time up with these rather than the course books.
It has resulted in me leaving reading lists unfinished and boxes 'unticked'.
However I am yet to decide if this is a bad thing or just a development of me as a teacher. I have not cut down on the amount of reading I just keep finding more interesting books that I can use.
For example Shirley Clarke is not part of our reading list and yet I got more from her book than I have from the rest of my reading put together.
So now I have found myself at a crossroads, do I spend the time reading to complete a reading list or do I change tactic and read what I feel will benefit me the most?
I'm sure the ideal choice will be read them all, or meet half-way in the middle but I am really struggling to get motivated to read outdated theories at the expense of quality new ideas.
Sunday, 6 November 2011
Reward strategy idea
As stated on Twitter on Friday I have been given the task of creating a reward strategy to implement during my two week teaching practice coming up and would like feedback from teachers as to whether they think this will work.
My idea is to have a whole class points tally (which will be displayed on a rocket as our topic is space) with the more points the children get, the better their reward. It will be on a continuum with for example 10 points equals an additional fun game, 20 points five mins golden time, 30 points five mins extra play etc and wherever they get to in the two weeks will be their reward.
Points will be given out depending how the class behaves in lessons. My idea was to have a four point scheme per lesson. The whole class would start with three points each session and depending on how they behave will depend how many points they get at the end. If they are really well behaved and put in maximum effort then they will gain an extra point and have four points towards the total. However if there is points in the lesson where they go off task, misbehave etc I will drop them down to two, one or zero points depending on how bad it is. However the important point will be stressed that through good work they can get these points back before the end of the session.
I hope that makes sense and I would love any feedback or improvements that teachers could think of.
My idea is to have a whole class points tally (which will be displayed on a rocket as our topic is space) with the more points the children get, the better their reward. It will be on a continuum with for example 10 points equals an additional fun game, 20 points five mins golden time, 30 points five mins extra play etc and wherever they get to in the two weeks will be their reward.
Points will be given out depending how the class behaves in lessons. My idea was to have a four point scheme per lesson. The whole class would start with three points each session and depending on how they behave will depend how many points they get at the end. If they are really well behaved and put in maximum effort then they will gain an extra point and have four points towards the total. However if there is points in the lesson where they go off task, misbehave etc I will drop them down to two, one or zero points depending on how bad it is. However the important point will be stressed that through good work they can get these points back before the end of the session.
I hope that makes sense and I would love any feedback or improvements that teachers could think of.
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