Element 1
Teachers know their subject content and how to teach that content to their students.
I believe, as a teacher, that it is essential for me to be committed to exploring and knowing my subject content. I cannot expect to walk in an expert on every concept, but I have the expectation of myself that I will have thoroughly thought through how that content should be taught to my students. I believe that students learn content through engaging and meaningful learning experiences that build on their prior knowledge. I believe that it is essential to plan experiences that have a strong pedagogical base that is reflective of the subject area.
I have designed lessons and units of work that have relied on a solid understanding of the subject content. During my third year practicum I developed focused grammar lessons where a strong knowledge and understanding of the key concepts was needed. During this unit I have also gathered information on the students background learning and understanding in this subject. I have taught this content in a way that was structured and sequential, as can be seen through my cooperating teachers’ observations of my planning and teaching. (see appendix ***)
I have also made sure that my teaching practice is carefully underpinned by and linked to the NSW curriculum and syllabus. As seen in the lesson plan (appendix ***), I carefully composed meaningful HSIE lessons (based on the COGS unit `Celebrations') by relying on the syllabus points and the Quality Teaching Framework to shape the lessons. They have been designed around key outcomes & indicators in the hope that students would leave with a clear vision of what the lesson was about.
I will further build up my use of ICT for my own personal use and practice and for the benefit and engagement of my students. I have lacked experience with technology in my lessons in the past through a lack of resources in the classroom and opportunities to use what little was available. I have realised that my previous teaching experiences have lacked this important link to technology and this not only disadvantages myself as a teacher, but also denies my students the opportunities ICT's bring.
I need to seek out ways to explore and utilise ICT's during my upcoming practicum. I need to familiarise myself with some of the available technologies such as Smartboards, and web designing tools. I need to seek design lessons that rely on the use of ICT's and seek my cooperating teachers’ advice and guidance on how to use them successfully in the classroom. My aim is primarily to integrate computers and the internet regularly into my planning but to also experiment with Smartboards, photography and videoing.