Pre-Service Teacher Bachelor of Education (Primary)
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ALL THINGS EDUCATION
Australian pre-service teacher studying a Bachelor of Education (Primary).
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EDFD452 - AT2
Standard 1: Know Students and How They Learn
Critical Reflection:
Geoff Masters, Chief Executive of the Australian Council for Educational Research, contends that the essence of teaching includes many necessities, however above all is “tailoring teaching to the needs of individual learners” (n.p.). To successfully teach children teachers must understand how they learn and be able to apply different strategies to aid learning (Australian Institute of Teaching and School Leadership, 2018). In addition, teachers must know their students by having an in-depth understanding of the characteristics of their students including; their developmental characteristics; diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds; health and wellbeing characteristics.
Having an understanding of students, teachers can gain information about students through working in partnership with parents and other stakeholders like Allied Health Professionals and School Leadership to identify how teaching can be tailored to support students learning. An example of this can be creating Personalised Learning Plans (referred to as PLP) which are designed to aid the physical, social, emotional and intellectual development of children (Department of Education, 2021).
Multilingual education is an educational approach that incorporates multiple languages into lesson activities (Walsh, Durrant, & Simpson, 2015). When integrating this method of instruction educators must have the knowledge and awareness of the cultural identities of their students to ensure that topics are “culturally safe” and respectful (Reconciliation Australia, 2016, n.d.).
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Artefact 1
Focus Area:
1.1 Physical, social and intellectual development and characteristics of students
Descriptor:
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of physical, social and intellectual development and characteristics of students and how these may affect learning.
Figure 1: Excerpt from a Personalised Learning Plan from EDFX343
Related Focus Areas:
3.7, 4.1, 7.3, 7.4
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Figure 4: Aboriginal Words of Australia Novel
Resource - A book that can be used as a dictionary to translate and define Aboriginal words. Can be used by upper primary students or with scaffolding for lower primary.
This PLP was developed to support a grade three student who has Autism-Spectrum Disorder. The PLP focuses on the social and emotional development of this student highlighting certain areas that require improvements and recommendations for adjustments. Contributing to the development of this PLP emphasised the importance of teachers having awareness and knowledge of the specific physical, social, and intellectual characteristics of students to best support their learning. Furthermore, as seen in the PLP there are contact details from different health professionals and this student’s parents who have provided information and guidance on ways that the school can make accommodations for the student that align with supporting the student's health and developmental outcomes.
Artefact 2
Focus Area:
1.4 Strategies for teaching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students
Descriptor:
Demonstrate broad knowledge and understanding of the impact of culture, cultural identity and linguistic background on the education of students from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgrounds.
Resource: This school website has excellent information about the importance of collaborating with different services as guided by allied health professionals in the educational programs while at school to support students.
Figures 2 and 3: Photographs of a Yarning Circle and resources used during EDFX343 Placement.
Related Focus Areas:
1.1, 2.4, 3.5, 4.1
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Figure 5: AITSL video
Resource: Alternative Yarning Circle – This is something I would really be interested in incorporating into my classroom.
As part of my placement, I regularly created yarning circles that incorporated Woiwurrung Languages into a community conversation within the classroom. I felt that this was an important classroom practice to support Indigenous students within the classroom as it provided a culturally safe and respectful opportunity for students to share stories and information about their Indigenous culture.
References:
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Australian Institute of Teaching and School Leadership. (2018). Australian Professional Standards for Teachers. https://www.aitsl.edu.au/docs/default-source/national-policy-framework/australian-professional-standards-for-teachers.pdf
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Department of Education. (2021). Individual Education Plans (IEPs). https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/individual-education-plans-ieps/policy
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Masters, G. (2014, December 4). Essential Teaching Practices – do they exist? Teacher Magazine, ACER. https://teacher.acer.edu.au/columnists/geoff-masters/do-essential-teaching-practices-exist
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Reconciliation Australia. (2016). Cultural Safety and Respect in the Classroom. https://www.narragunnawali.org.au/professional-learning/90/cultural-safety-and-respect-in-the-classroom
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Walsh, M., Durrant, C., & Simpson, A. (2015). Moving in a Multimodal Landscape: Examining 21st Century Pedagogy for Multicultural and Multilingual Students. English in Australia, 50(1), 67–76. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eue&AN=103281796&site=ehost-live