The Networked Professional
It took me to ask other students to break down what professional networking was before I could discuss it. I realised in all professions it happens. To start with my profession, in my school alone we have to meet weekly for a 'business meeting' where everything that is happening around the school is discussed from health and safety to birthdays. all of the information of what is going on goes onto the 'fronter' so everyone can access this and get into contact with colleges on this. All teachers around the borough meet up for courses, meetings or moderation etc. They use websites to engage in others practises and know what schoools are doing.
Recently I have been going to a zumba class and I am really interested in it. The instructor put on her facebook the other day about training so I contacted her and she informed me about training days and what it can be used for ect. Immediatly I sent a message out on facebook to pe co ordinater of the school which then ment he could inform who needs to know.
My school do a thing called Commenus. These are trips abroad. Unfortunatly I have not been lucky enough to go yet but I have been asked to the next one which is in Hungary! These trips consist of teachers from several schools all around the world and they visit one school together. They are able to learn through each others practise. They then do a presentation to the other colleges back at school and they use this to share with the others on the trips. Its a reall good way to see how different other practises are through a networking event.
Many practisioners use networking as an advantage to either sell or show their work. I have attended a business networking event which I spoke about in task1. They filmed it all and put it on youtube for others to see. It was a chance for other businesses to meet others and help eachother. My boyfriend attends a business meeting weekly where all different people who run businesses meet and sell there bussness. They contact eachother through emails and can promote anything they want by just sending to all there links. Others people use facebook or twitter to share their work. People who perform uploads images or videos to want people to like or comment on it. Chickenshed uses the internet all the time to network to others what is on.
Events, issues, statements, shows, celebs are always spoken about verbally or through sites on the internet. Before you know it everyone knows if you want them too. Networking is very imprtant to many professions and is key to success.
Wednesday, 9 May 2012
Wednesday, 2 May 2012
Task 2d
When i started to ready through this task I first questioned myself on themes I thought had come up throughout my blogging experience and was stuck.. I read through my blogs and thought I'll get back to it which I then thought once i had answered all the questions it told me then..........
What in your daily practise gets you enthusiastic to find out more? Who do you admire who also works with what makes you enthusiastic?
I like nothing more than seeing children proud of what they have acheived, seeing them happy by doing that makes me want to be at work and want to come in the following day. As being with the same children day in day out you get to know them as individuals which all these children are. Many children I work with come from diprived backgrounds and nothing beats watching them smile all day. It makes my job worthwile and wanting to be a key part of their lives. I learn so much with my class teacher who has been teaching for many years now and has taught me all what I know in reception. She works wonders with every class she has. I have been in other classes worked alongside other teachers by to me this one teacher is exactly what I would love to be as a teacher. I do admire her as a person and I definitley believe I am learning from the best.
What gets you angry or sad? Who do you admire who shares your feelings or has found a way to work around the sadness of anger?
One of two things that make me very angry and sad is that the children i work with are only 4 and 5 and I feel they are expected to do far too much academecly. I know it is school but these children well at least a quarter of them come in with no schooling, so they're social skills are not there. Many children don't even know what playing is as these days many of it is about playstaions or laptops etc. Yet these children are all expected to learn how to read and write so early yet some of them don't even know how to talk with there friends. EYFS..... The bane of my job, yes it is a great way to follow the childrens learning journey but it also puts too much of an expectation of them.This time of year us as the teachers have to work very quickly to get the childrens 'scores' whre they 'need' to be ready for year 1. This is all down to statistics as it alls gets put onto a grid and that's that yet all year we've had to get these children to do things some are scared of and we forget about the rest of there learning... playing!! My second issue that makes me angry is SEN children, what a big bubble this is. As i may have said before I studied at chickenshed for 4 years and i learnt all about inclusion. I admire chickenshed for being able to be where and how they are with such a subject that alot of people avoid. I grew up with my mum who worked at 2 special needs schools, I have done work experience for a school for autistic children. But what angers me is that many people who work with or around children with certain needs haven't had the taining or experience to be doing what they do. And it upsets me to see them being so uninvolved in what goes on, almost like it's the norm so it just carries on. Many children i have witnessed them daily being taken out of classes because they're 'too much of a disstraction'. It is totally unexpectable!!
What do you love about what you do? Who do you admire who also seems to love this or as an example of what you love?
I absolutley love to see change in a childs life. Children can have such horrific up bringings and such bad home lives and just feel genwinley sad at such a young age. But making a difference to a child is so rewarding. It can be as small as giving a child a dressing up costume or as big as taking a child on a trip. My role in their journey is something I love, as being 5 is a key age to their lives like i said legally it's their first schooling year. When i do certain activities with children and they do really good work I can feel how proud they are and to be honest I think I feel more happy than them as it's what i love watching children get enjoyment out of what they do independently. I admire those who love doing what I do and doing it for the right reasons. I've come across people in my past who do not love working with children and just get by but people I work with daily, other teachers i admire as they d whats best for the children. I especially admire those who run courses in what they admire!
What do you feel you don't understand? Who do you admire who does sseem to understnad it or who has found a way of making not understanding it interesting or beautiful, or has asked the same questions as you?
This may kind of be repeating myself but i just do not unstand inclusion in schools. I do not understand how the 'SEN' chilldren of classes get what they need. I do not get how they are different, I donot get why people are so anti special need schools. My opinion is that every child is an individual and yes some children have different needs therefore some children get a better education being in a school where they have more support and some don't. I think it will be an on going task for schools to ever get it right. I just do not get why many people in the profession do not have a clue what they are doing with children that have any sort of needs. I admire people who involve the whole class so that means not teaching 29 children and the 30th child is outside with his one to one support. I admire childcare that gives families the support they need. But to me something I will never forget and never ever not admire chickenshed that tactle these isssues and make this understnading of inclusion known to the public and know it is possible.
What in your daily practise gets you enthusiastic to find out more? Who do you admire who also works with what makes you enthusiastic?
I like nothing more than seeing children proud of what they have acheived, seeing them happy by doing that makes me want to be at work and want to come in the following day. As being with the same children day in day out you get to know them as individuals which all these children are. Many children I work with come from diprived backgrounds and nothing beats watching them smile all day. It makes my job worthwile and wanting to be a key part of their lives. I learn so much with my class teacher who has been teaching for many years now and has taught me all what I know in reception. She works wonders with every class she has. I have been in other classes worked alongside other teachers by to me this one teacher is exactly what I would love to be as a teacher. I do admire her as a person and I definitley believe I am learning from the best.
What gets you angry or sad? Who do you admire who shares your feelings or has found a way to work around the sadness of anger?
One of two things that make me very angry and sad is that the children i work with are only 4 and 5 and I feel they are expected to do far too much academecly. I know it is school but these children well at least a quarter of them come in with no schooling, so they're social skills are not there. Many children don't even know what playing is as these days many of it is about playstaions or laptops etc. Yet these children are all expected to learn how to read and write so early yet some of them don't even know how to talk with there friends. EYFS..... The bane of my job, yes it is a great way to follow the childrens learning journey but it also puts too much of an expectation of them.This time of year us as the teachers have to work very quickly to get the childrens 'scores' whre they 'need' to be ready for year 1. This is all down to statistics as it alls gets put onto a grid and that's that yet all year we've had to get these children to do things some are scared of and we forget about the rest of there learning... playing!! My second issue that makes me angry is SEN children, what a big bubble this is. As i may have said before I studied at chickenshed for 4 years and i learnt all about inclusion. I admire chickenshed for being able to be where and how they are with such a subject that alot of people avoid. I grew up with my mum who worked at 2 special needs schools, I have done work experience for a school for autistic children. But what angers me is that many people who work with or around children with certain needs haven't had the taining or experience to be doing what they do. And it upsets me to see them being so uninvolved in what goes on, almost like it's the norm so it just carries on. Many children i have witnessed them daily being taken out of classes because they're 'too much of a disstraction'. It is totally unexpectable!!
What do you love about what you do? Who do you admire who also seems to love this or as an example of what you love?
I absolutley love to see change in a childs life. Children can have such horrific up bringings and such bad home lives and just feel genwinley sad at such a young age. But making a difference to a child is so rewarding. It can be as small as giving a child a dressing up costume or as big as taking a child on a trip. My role in their journey is something I love, as being 5 is a key age to their lives like i said legally it's their first schooling year. When i do certain activities with children and they do really good work I can feel how proud they are and to be honest I think I feel more happy than them as it's what i love watching children get enjoyment out of what they do independently. I admire those who love doing what I do and doing it for the right reasons. I've come across people in my past who do not love working with children and just get by but people I work with daily, other teachers i admire as they d whats best for the children. I especially admire those who run courses in what they admire!
What do you feel you don't understand? Who do you admire who does sseem to understnad it or who has found a way of making not understanding it interesting or beautiful, or has asked the same questions as you?
This may kind of be repeating myself but i just do not unstand inclusion in schools. I do not understand how the 'SEN' chilldren of classes get what they need. I do not get how they are different, I donot get why people are so anti special need schools. My opinion is that every child is an individual and yes some children have different needs therefore some children get a better education being in a school where they have more support and some don't. I think it will be an on going task for schools to ever get it right. I just do not get why many people in the profession do not have a clue what they are doing with children that have any sort of needs. I admire people who involve the whole class so that means not teaching 29 children and the 30th child is outside with his one to one support. I admire childcare that gives families the support they need. But to me something I will never forget and never ever not admire chickenshed that tactle these isssues and make this understnading of inclusion known to the public and know it is possible.
Wednesday, 25 April 2012
Task 2c
Reflective........... Reflective theory, reflective practive..... reflective!! I was very unsure how i was going to tackle this question and how the hell i would make it benefit my learning, how I would talk about this is detail with knowledge and understanding. Which is when i realised surely I have just processed through my mind what I was going to and I needed to reflect on the word reflect!! so let me give it go.......
I researched into the four practisioners listed in the handbook the first one being... John dewey. He believed the as education is and the way people learn is from what i understood long! Learning from a text book or worksheet is not beneficial but learning through experience is. He said students should be involved in real life task and challenges. There are many ways in which I agree with this, children i have to teach are only 4 and 5 they are expected to write a sentence about a plant growing but surely these children get more from actually going outside and planting that seed and growing the plant... Yes indeed they do as this is a task we carried out. Children learn by doing, as they can relate to it more if they have experienced it just like me or you! Last night I watched a documentary on autistic children, which i may add was very interesting and inspiring. Many of them were in their teens and were approching the 'real world' soon. Their school which was in america had fake shops and sorting offices for the pupils to role play in. This is so key to any child but espeically the less fortunate who may need support in later life. It meant they could go to the shops alone and buy their own shopping. They had tasks like to add up the money of the items get the money out. I was so pleased to see this. From experience of being in setting where children are made to follow the national curriculm and students falling so behind as there not interested or do not understand it , seeing that documentary was such an eye opener. Life skills is what we all need and learning through experience is key to the journey we all make. John Dewey also beleieved that learning through the arts is a great method. I again strongly agree, I spent 4 years at Chickenshed Theatre and many of that i spent learning through the arts, it is so accessible to many people and lets you become the learning material! It can be very hard to always use this in my work for timing and planning purposes but I do always try to as much as I can. Recently the children had to learn a story, their favourite one. Many of them struggled to remember the key moments so i took groups at a time and asked them to role play their story and already they had thought of their key moments.
Whilst researching Kolb I came the diagram which I thought I would try out. When first looking at the diagram it look very familiar to a way I work at school. In the handbook you asked if im aware if I use it in my work,... No i was not but yes I am now. Every week we have to observe children, we have to note down anything they do which meets the Early years foundation stage we then think of activitues to move them on which I never knew is reflecting. I had to reflect on what I observed to get my next stage from the child. Here is a picture of the diagram I tried out.....
After doing that diagram it does make the term reflection seem simple. I have and do all four of them everyday and proabably more than once. But actually writting it down is completly different it puts your own throught process down on a paper.
I looked briefly at Schon who talks about reflecting in the middle of doing something and reflecting when looking back on something. At work at the moment we are currently trying out new ways of pushing the childrens learning on. We have to observe what the child is doing, ie throwning a ball through a hoop, us as a teacher moving that childs learing on there and then has to thing of a next step, ie can you count how many times you get the ball through the hoop. This is Schon's 'IN the middle of' practise. Also the way we presently are doing it is we observe a child ie she was role playing being at the doctors. So then a week later we would reflect on this and have to think back and think how to foward the childs learning ie get child to draw surgery and label. Activities do have to change they may not work or ay not be liked therefore we have to think on the spot, there and then and change it prompto!
Lastly I will just mention Jennifer Moon who I believe is one of the lastest to go into reflection. as i was researching her the term 'learning journal stood out to me. this is because all of our children have these and that is what there called. It a chance for the 'childs voice'. It's their work they choose they they talk about what they have done... This is a diagram that we use to help the childs though process, which i lead to believe they are reflecting on....
I researched into the four practisioners listed in the handbook the first one being... John dewey. He believed the as education is and the way people learn is from what i understood long! Learning from a text book or worksheet is not beneficial but learning through experience is. He said students should be involved in real life task and challenges. There are many ways in which I agree with this, children i have to teach are only 4 and 5 they are expected to write a sentence about a plant growing but surely these children get more from actually going outside and planting that seed and growing the plant... Yes indeed they do as this is a task we carried out. Children learn by doing, as they can relate to it more if they have experienced it just like me or you! Last night I watched a documentary on autistic children, which i may add was very interesting and inspiring. Many of them were in their teens and were approching the 'real world' soon. Their school which was in america had fake shops and sorting offices for the pupils to role play in. This is so key to any child but espeically the less fortunate who may need support in later life. It meant they could go to the shops alone and buy their own shopping. They had tasks like to add up the money of the items get the money out. I was so pleased to see this. From experience of being in setting where children are made to follow the national curriculm and students falling so behind as there not interested or do not understand it , seeing that documentary was such an eye opener. Life skills is what we all need and learning through experience is key to the journey we all make. John Dewey also beleieved that learning through the arts is a great method. I again strongly agree, I spent 4 years at Chickenshed Theatre and many of that i spent learning through the arts, it is so accessible to many people and lets you become the learning material! It can be very hard to always use this in my work for timing and planning purposes but I do always try to as much as I can. Recently the children had to learn a story, their favourite one. Many of them struggled to remember the key moments so i took groups at a time and asked them to role play their story and already they had thought of their key moments.
Whilst researching Kolb I came the diagram which I thought I would try out. When first looking at the diagram it look very familiar to a way I work at school. In the handbook you asked if im aware if I use it in my work,... No i was not but yes I am now. Every week we have to observe children, we have to note down anything they do which meets the Early years foundation stage we then think of activitues to move them on which I never knew is reflecting. I had to reflect on what I observed to get my next stage from the child. Here is a picture of the diagram I tried out.....
I looked briefly at Schon who talks about reflecting in the middle of doing something and reflecting when looking back on something. At work at the moment we are currently trying out new ways of pushing the childrens learning on. We have to observe what the child is doing, ie throwning a ball through a hoop, us as a teacher moving that childs learing on there and then has to thing of a next step, ie can you count how many times you get the ball through the hoop. This is Schon's 'IN the middle of' practise. Also the way we presently are doing it is we observe a child ie she was role playing being at the doctors. So then a week later we would reflect on this and have to think back and think how to foward the childs learning ie get child to draw surgery and label. Activities do have to change they may not work or ay not be liked therefore we have to think on the spot, there and then and change it prompto!
Lastly I will just mention Jennifer Moon who I believe is one of the lastest to go into reflection. as i was researching her the term 'learning journal stood out to me. this is because all of our children have these and that is what there called. It a chance for the 'childs voice'. It's their work they choose they they talk about what they have done... This is a diagram that we use to help the childs though process, which i lead to believe they are reflecting on....
Tuesday, 10 April 2012
Task 2b
Reflective Writing....... Dance Club
Dance Club took place every Thursday after school for an hour and a half for 4 weeks. The dance was choregraphed by Natalia and bought into the school I work with my children. The dance was Price Tag and the aim was to teach this and take the performance to Millfield theatre at the end. I enjoyed every session of this and made me really think about my career path. Before the first session i was terribly nervous and dreaded it, i felt there was alot of pressure on me as my school expected something good and it was almost another job interview for me. Therefore I knew I needed to make them proud. After every club i used to go home and really sit and thing, this is what i want to do. Even though I didn't come up with the choreography i confidently was able to chip in and do extra rehearsals with them. Id come out feeling great and positive about the next session and think I can do this. I got so much out of it, it was so rewarding to see how much the children enjoyed it and how proud the other teachers were of the children, it made me proud of them. I enjoyed giving the children credit for what they had acheived. I would love to know how people build up the confidence, the journey to doing this on a bigger scale, more children etc. I am very glad I had Natalia to work with on this as she is alot more confident and capable than me but we do work very well as a team too. A key thinkg that got me through this process was having faith that they will pull it off and learn the material. I learnt alot about myself through the process and want people to remember that i under estimate and panic what I am capable of. The routine as a whole went very well and I collected the children everyday in the last week for half an hour rehearsal time which worked well and helped me individually.This made me have the time to use my teaching skills and again just do the school proud. I also learnt i feed off of people better than doing something alone but i suppose I haven't done this thing alone before and I am sure one day I shall. I dicovered I do have a passion for teaching and having an outcome with what I teach. Interestingly Natalia is doing this course and has wrote about this aswell, it really interests me that we both will have a different style of talking about this and what we have wrote. I suppose this links to reflection in that every persons thought process throughout something is so different. As you can see I used grid in the handbook to help me write this, which was needed for me. I must say it amazes me how certain methods can make you think so deeply. Some of the answers i wrote I wouldn't have wuite matched with certain open questions.
Dance Club took place every Thursday after school for an hour and a half for 4 weeks. The dance was choregraphed by Natalia and bought into the school I work with my children. The dance was Price Tag and the aim was to teach this and take the performance to Millfield theatre at the end. I enjoyed every session of this and made me really think about my career path. Before the first session i was terribly nervous and dreaded it, i felt there was alot of pressure on me as my school expected something good and it was almost another job interview for me. Therefore I knew I needed to make them proud. After every club i used to go home and really sit and thing, this is what i want to do. Even though I didn't come up with the choreography i confidently was able to chip in and do extra rehearsals with them. Id come out feeling great and positive about the next session and think I can do this. I got so much out of it, it was so rewarding to see how much the children enjoyed it and how proud the other teachers were of the children, it made me proud of them. I enjoyed giving the children credit for what they had acheived. I would love to know how people build up the confidence, the journey to doing this on a bigger scale, more children etc. I am very glad I had Natalia to work with on this as she is alot more confident and capable than me but we do work very well as a team too. A key thinkg that got me through this process was having faith that they will pull it off and learn the material. I learnt alot about myself through the process and want people to remember that i under estimate and panic what I am capable of. The routine as a whole went very well and I collected the children everyday in the last week for half an hour rehearsal time which worked well and helped me individually.This made me have the time to use my teaching skills and again just do the school proud. I also learnt i feed off of people better than doing something alone but i suppose I haven't done this thing alone before and I am sure one day I shall. I dicovered I do have a passion for teaching and having an outcome with what I teach. Interestingly Natalia is doing this course and has wrote about this aswell, it really interests me that we both will have a different style of talking about this and what we have wrote. I suppose this links to reflection in that every persons thought process throughout something is so different. As you can see I used grid in the handbook to help me write this, which was needed for me. I must say it amazes me how certain methods can make you think so deeply. Some of the answers i wrote I wouldn't have wuite matched with certain open questions.
Task 2a
I am in the process of writing my journal and want to try new ways of recording things i think and feel. My understanding of reflection is it's all about what you are doing and why you are doing it. It's about having the time after a task or activity throughout your day and thinking about the outcome afterwards.
Reflection is quite a scary subject as I feel it is all about what everyone does daily yet it is never thought about or spoken about. At work I constantly get given tasks by teachers or myself and I then have to see whatthe outcome of the task was and develop it. A childrens learning is all reflected which leads back to one of the images I uploaded on what is called 'assessment for learning' which is about assessing what they have done and showing them practical and pushing it to the next step.
My thought process everyday is different and this id due to the fact that the childs mild is still developing and there thought process csn change by the second. There's not an evening that goes by where i don't tak about my day and a certain childs behaviour or wat that child has learnt in that day, which i suppose is related to reflection and i guess what I have to do is write it all down 'puzzle through' ideas and reflect on my day. So I shall be continuing my journal as much as possible, take time to think!
Reflection is quite a scary subject as I feel it is all about what everyone does daily yet it is never thought about or spoken about. At work I constantly get given tasks by teachers or myself and I then have to see whatthe outcome of the task was and develop it. A childrens learning is all reflected which leads back to one of the images I uploaded on what is called 'assessment for learning' which is about assessing what they have done and showing them practical and pushing it to the next step.
My thought process everyday is different and this id due to the fact that the childs mild is still developing and there thought process csn change by the second. There's not an evening that goes by where i don't tak about my day and a certain childs behaviour or wat that child has learnt in that day, which i suppose is related to reflection and i guess what I have to do is write it all down 'puzzle through' ideas and reflect on my day. So I shall be continuing my journal as much as possible, take time to think!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)