28/8: PD - Student Advisory Panel

PD: Student Advisory Panel

28th August 2017

As a part of today's Staff PD we had a group of students from various year levels who are members of our Student Advisory Panel present to us. After students from Kaipara College came and presented on what student led initiatives they were running throughout their school, staff and students alike were inspired to start here at King's College. As a result a Student Advisory Panel was created and approached one of our Senior Leadership staff to come and talk to staff about Student-Teacher Relationships. Throughout this presentation students covered the importance of; getting to know your students, feeling comfortable enough to ask questions,  getting to know your teacher on a more personal level, rapport in the classroom & staff participation in school or house activities.

Hotene started by giving us some background as to how the Student Advisory Panel was formed, who is represented and their inspiration. After the creation of the Panel they decided to discuss things that they all valued and what messages they wanted to portray. Key points that were highlighted were; students knowing that any mistake is fixable, feeling comfortable to ask for help and knowing teachers will approach you if you are stuck. He then introduced the students who would be speaking in today's session and what topics they will be addressing.


Importance of getting to know your students

• Students who learnt more felt more comfortable in their environment
• 4 main results due to having a student-teacher relationship:
• academic success
• less behaviour management by developing a relationship with disruptive students as no student wants to fail, instead you just need to find out what makes them click 
• development of self worth
• more productive environment
• How to develop:
• knowledge of names & pronunciation, ethnicity/cultural background, day student vs boarder
• Showing interest in students life outside of school - how was your day/weekend?
• Students felt that a stronger relationship with teacher resulted in better classroom environment, homework handed in on time and students felt they listened more in class

The importance of feeling comfortable to ask questions

• This particular Year 11 student felt like since she was new to the College that she wasn't up to speed. She included that she felt behind in regards to relationships with teachers and other students & teaching styles and platforms. This resulted in her feeling left behind and judged for having to ask questions
• She explained that since she was new people were more lenient in regards to certain aspects of school life such as handing in homework was late. This made her feel confused as she liked the extra help but also felt it was unfair that it was not being offered to the whole class and felt uncomfortable about her special treatment
• Another key message of hers was he importance of being open to allow all students to ask questions. E.g. don't single out new students, expect questions from everyone and specify when extra help is available outside of class (can students email, ask for help, have extra time, extra sessions etc.)

The importance of knowing your teacher on a more personal level

• This speaker addressed the importance of his teachers opening up about their personal life as he feels that he is able to develop more respect for his teachers and sees them as more of a mentor in their life
• Although stories may not be relevant to what they are learning they helped develop respect
• Sharing information about themselves on the first day helps to break the ice and show that we are all human
• Using personal experiences to help show practical examples
• Spending one on one time with students - sharing personal information/connection with students to help them through

The importance of rapport in the classroom

• Strengthen general collective respect for the teacher, individual rapport through conversations, have an environment in which
• Finding a common ground, maintaining eye contact throughout conversations

The importance of teacher participation in house/school activities

• Teacher involvement in school activities such as swimming sports & athletics
• Teachers showing interest in student lives outside of class

The idea is not to tell us what to teach, since we already know that but they are showing us how they like to learn

The aim of this session was for students to feel valued and get there points and feelings across on certain points. They stressed the importance that this session was not for them to tell us what to teach them as we know better. Rather, they were hoping to show us how they like to learn and feel in the classroom.

Some points really stood out from this session for me. An example is the idea that the more you give of yourself to your students, the more you are likely to receive back from them. I also liked the reminder that no student likes to be seen as disruptive or naughty and they don't purposely fail. Instead it is our job to try and connect with our students, to build a relationship and find the style of learning that works best for them.

Link to blog post regarding Student Agency from Kaipara College students found here.

18/8: PRT Meeting Focussing on PTC 3 & 10

Reflection: PRT Meeting Focussing on PTC 3 & 10

18th August 2017

During last weeks meeting Melissa & I recognised that as registration looms closer and closer we may want to focus on certain PTC criteria in future meetings. We decided to use our next meeting to target PTC 3 & 10. This is because I feel like I have less evidence on these criteria in comparison to the rest.

Below are some of the conversation points I had with Melissa on PTC 3 & 10. Some of these points are reflecting on what I am already doing in my practice and others are what I want to focus on.

PTC 3: Demonstrate commitment to bicultural partnership in Aotearoa New Zealand

·      Cultural determinant of health

o   Year 9 & 10 – learning of the different determinants of health and how they can impact ones life. Looking into how different Cultures can view different topics e.g. Drugs

o   Year 11 - Dark Horse movie. Students are identifying different ways cultural determinants of health impact the main characters in the movie

·      Students own experiences & cultures being allowed and utilized in the classroom

·      Mentions of praise (warm fuzzies) – postcards & emails

·      Correct pronunciation of student names & Māori words

·      Emails & calls to Sanjida & Xela around Term 1 and repots etc, Kapa Haka

·      Cultural Games unit in Year 10 Physical Education

·      Hauora model in Health – emphasis on the Māori names for each dimension rather than just the English & relating back to the Whare Tapa Whā model

·      Traditions & history while teaching Ki-O-Rahi

·      Cultural traditions  - ensuring I know about them and if I’m enforcing them or not e.g. touching of the head, sitting on desks

·      Creation of pepeha – reflection from PENZ with presenters introducing themselves at the start of a presentation. Makes me want to create my own

PTC 10: Work effectively within the bicultural context of Aotearoa New Zealand

·      Use of language

·      Cultural protocols e.g. sitting on desks, shared treats at mentor & shared meals to celebrate

·      Postcards & emails acknowledging positive behaviours

·      Acknowledgement & are aware of wanting to learn pepeha

·      Wally’s help with pronunciation & learning new words

After today’s meeting I feel a bit better about PTC 3 & 10. I felt worried that I wasn’t doing enough in my own teaching practice, hence the reason why I was lacking in evidence. After targeting these criteria and looking into what possible evidence could be I realised that I am already doing a lot in my own practice but may not have reflected on it for evidence.

Where to from here? Alex has mentioned about a reading that she has on Culturally Responsive Pedagogy. She suggested that if I read this I will be able to identify what I am already doing in my own teaching practice and identify areas I would like to work on.

30/6: Health Reflections Pt 2

Year 11 Boys Health Reflections Pt 2

30th June 2016

After a few more attempts at creating effective Health lessons for my Year 11 boys class I asked for help from Alex.

Alex's Advice:

• Ensure that I am at the class before all students arrive. This then allows the 5 minute bell for me to write an outline of the learning activities, instructions and discussion questions up on the board before the students arrive
• As the second bell goes in which class is meant to start address the students with an instruction before they enter the class
• Make sure to spend time developing relationships with the kids e.g. greet every individual student as they enter the class, double check on instructions for those who might need clarification, little reminders such as phones away etc
• Don't use Health as a time to work on PE booklets - crossing between subjects can be confusing
• OVER PLAN - plan 4-5 different activities that only are about 5-10 minutes each. Can be structured; individual activity (3-4 mins), peer activity, group activity, class activity. By spending a short amount of time on each activity it stops students from getting bored

After a few lessons of following this procedure, especially the over planning, I have found them to be effective. Below are a few notes reflecting on the points above:

• I have found that due to having PE classes beforehand that I am not always able to make it up to the Health class before the 5 minute bell. This means that my notes aren't always up before the class arrives and I make sure to write these up while students are completing the first activity
• I have still been starting Health lessons with students completing their PE logs. They know that this is their 'Do Now' activity as soon as they enter the classroom and have become familiar with this routine. Students know this is always their first task in which they are able to listen to music etc. I make sure to use this time to chat to students about their work and finish writing up the lesson outline
• As student don't always arrive to class at the same time I allow students to enter when they get to the class. I make sure to acknowledge them and greet them as they enter
• I have found that planning lots of smaller activities have helped them to keep focussed and on task for longer

14/4: Cultural Awareness PD

Cultural Awareness PD 

14th April 2016

2x PD sessions on cultural awareness - held by Lincoln Savage

-focussed on Maori culture

Notes in links below:

Session #1:

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B8SyJqn0M1mhT2JHRUQ3bDRYdTg 

Session #2:

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B8SyJqn0M1mhRkFfWU1SYXM0ZWM

Possible PTC Evidence

Mallory Bish Practicing Teacher Criteria: Possible Evidence

PTC	Evidence:
Criterion #1: establish and maintain effective professional relationships focused on the learning and well-being of ākonga	-Leading rec swimming group -Attending all assemblies and meetings, keeping accurate attendance records and following up concerns with relevant people -Professional relationships with staff from different areas within the school e.g. Taylor Housemaster & Mentor teachers, Jim & Marcel for swimming, PE department, inquiry group, new staff catch ups, provisional staff meetings, attending staff events
Criterion #2: demonstrate commitment to promote the well-being of all ākonga	-Leading mentor group -Providing safe classroom environments
Criterion #3: demonstrate commitment to bicultural partnership in Aotearoa New Zealand	-Cultural sensitivity within classrooms -Help students to create cultural groups? -Incorporate te reo in class
Criterion #4: demonstrate commitment to ongoing professional learning and development of professional practice	-Meetings with Alex, department -PD/ inquiry group -Reflections
Criterion #5: show leadership that contributes to effective teaching and learning
Criterion #6: conceptulise, plan and implement an appropriate learning programme	-Unit plans/lesson outlines -Lesson plans -Working on questioning (questioning blog) -Learning intentions at the start of each lesson – what did they learn blog
Criterion #7: promote a collaborative inclusive and supportive learning environment	-Management strategies to engage and motivate students
Criterion #8: demonstrate in practice their knowledge and understanding of how ākonga learn	-Students can create links between prior and current learning
Criterion #9: respond effectively to the diverse language and cultural experiences, and the needs of individuals and groups of ākonga
Criterion #10: work effectively within the bicultural context of Aotearoa New Zealand
Criterion #11: analyse and appropriately use information which has been gathered formally and informally	-Year 9 unit -Year 11 unit
Criterion #12: use critical inquiry and problem-solving effectively in their professional practice	-Inquiry readings and reflections -Observations from Alex