Cassandra Varricchio-Teaching Portfolio
EVIDENCE SET 1
Know Students and How They Learn
CONTEXT
Knowing your students and how they learn is essential for becoming a successful and influential teacher. A teacher's ability to form and maintain close connections with their students, school staff, and parents is critical for creating a successful learning environment. The capacity to form such relationships is the most significant asset a teacher may possess (Varga, 2017). Knowing your students affects their engagement, learning, and trust. It also enables us as teachers to provide content that is relevant to our students' interests and likes (Duchesne & McMaugh, 2019). This allows me to cater to individual learner profiles as well as their own strengths and experiences, resulting in a strong student-teacher relationship. This demonstrates the connection to my personal teaching philosophy, in which I put the learner at the centre of the teaching and learning process.
My final teaching placement whilst in my degree at university, was in a year 6 class of 21 students in Adelaide's northern suburbs, in a low socioeconomic area. Except for two students, everyone had low readiness and were working at a year 4 level. There was a mix of students with One Plans, 2 students with a formal diagnosis of ASD, 2 ATSI students, 4 EALD students, and little to no extra intervention for these students' behaviour; however, students at the school made it clear that education was not valued, resulting in low attendance rates and engagement that was minimal prior to my teaching. Throughout my placement, I ensured that the content was relevant to my students, allowing them to make real-world connections between their personal and academic lives. This was achievable because of the strong teacher-student relationships I was able to establish. I created a calm, safe, and welcoming environment for learning that reflected my cohort of students and their diversity. This helps to instil a feeling of belonging in the classroom, engage students, increase their value of education, and foster a growth mindset in their learning.
ACTION
1. Building Relationships
During my planning days of my final placement, I would sit with a different group of students in a chair were a child was absent. This was a great technique in being able to chat to every student in the classroom and also gave me a chance to get to know around 3-4 students each day and their likes and interests through questionings. After every planning day I would then write in my reflection journal particularly jotting down students interests and likes for future planning (Figure 1.1). When in the classroom I displayed, a respectful, calm and cheerful nature with an enthusiasm for learning and reflecting which assisted in the development of relationship with staff, parents, and students in particular (Figure 1.2). I found by seeking conversation with students and showing general interest and concern, students were more then willing to share and loved being listened too. I created a classroom detectives’ resource and used our time during our literacy rotations in the first week of my teaching block to sit with 2-3 students and complete this task (Figure 1.3). I had explained this task to the whole class before the first round of literacy rotations. I explained to students that I would be using this information and making it into ‘Miss Cassandra’s Fun Facts” movement break slides for our English unit. I showed them the slides I had done with my fun facts which would be used in the first week of my teaching so that the students could get to know me (Figure 1.4 & 1.5). During the first week of my teaching block, I was also able to send home my meet the teacher letter, this I also displayed on my very first PowerPoint slide to my students (Figure 1.6).
2. Teaching for Inclusion and Behaviour Management
During the planning days of my placement, I obtained student profiles which allowed me to further develop my inclusive teaching strategies to ensure I was catering to all needs of my students. My mentor showed me several student One Plans and described the different students' learning needs and how some work best with visuals, which she also noted helps the entire class significantly. I was also thankful that we had National Sorry Day when I was on placement. I was eager to engage in whole-school activities, so I took it upon myself, with my mentor's permission, to lead the afternoon classes on this topic that day, completing activities that would later be shown on our National Sorry Day display, which I planned and completed (Figure 1.7). This was an excellent opportunity as I was able to draw on the knowledge my students already had on this topic and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in my class felt comfortable enough to share their perspectives about it. I was excited that my mentor during my teaching block had decided to implement a new behaviour management strategy. Along with my recommendations, we devised a point and reward system for the students, in which they could earn class points, table points, and individual points. I was able to explain to them that they may redeem their points for an item every Friday. The lowest priced item is worth 20 points, while the most priced one is worth 100 points. We reviewed products that students might enjoy with my mentor and asked the students ahead of time for ideas or items we could add to the class store. The students loved this as they could refer to the visual point board and had the visual incentive there to behave accordingly (Figure 1.8). As I observed, most of my kids responded well to rewards; this method performed successfully, and by week two, undesired behaviour was virtually non-existent. As I noticed most of my students worked well with incentive this system worked excellently and around week two unwanted behaviours were essentially nil. With the point system I also implemented a check for understanding with thumbs up/ down after every lesson was explained and before students started their task. This was a completely new concept to my students however they often mentioned how they liked this as it allowed extra time for explanation of questioning and also reduced unwanted behaviours due to children not understanding what needs to be done. Enforcing this ensured that all students may ask for clarification and would be confident in finishing the task at hand. On my Power Point, I would also have a check for understanding slide with a thumbs up to convey to the students that we had reached the conclusion of the explicit explanation and I was about to check their understanding (Figure 1.9).
RESULTS
My strengths in developing positive and supportive relationships with students, parents, and staff have been commented on by many, along with the positive impact this has had on my teaching [Figures 2, 2.1, 2.2]. Students often commented on my ability to explain lessons in an ‘easy and clear way’ and enjoyed the time I took to explain calmly [Figure 2.3]. I believe this reflects my ability to know my students and how they learn and use my knowledge to implement this into the content taught and how I explained the content to be best suited to the needs of my students. Due to building such strong relationships with my students throughout my placement, I was overwhelmed with loving crafts, flowers, cards, and gifts on my final day. Perhaps the most memorable is the card I received, in which all students wrote a small message or signed [Figures 2.4 & 2.5]. This overwhelming gesture from students who did not like to read or write or complete tasks just showed the growth these students had made during my time with them.
EVALUATION
By taking the time to get to know my students and learn about their likes, passions, backgrounds, dislikes, and interests, I was able to effectively meet their needs while also engaging them due to the relevant content and teaching strategies I had incorporated into my teaching. Using this student-centred approach, I was able to immediately build strong and positive relationships with my students, which assisted in the implementation and effectiveness of the new behaviour management system, as well as their engagement and enthusiasm in engaging in their learning. During my placement, I had the opportunity to work with a diverse cohort of students, which allowed me to improve and adapt my teaching strategies to meet the learning needs of my students. By doing so, I was able to challenge and engage students in their learning, resulting in them completing tasks in every class. I recognise that with this cohort of students, relevant content is essential for engagement, completion of tasks, and the development of the learning process. Also, the role of building positive relationships with students and how this can positively affect the classroom environment and students learning. Throughout my teaching career, I will constantly educate myself on how I may apply and adjust my teaching strategies to fit my students' learning needs and establish an inclusive classroom environment.
AITSL STANDARDS
1.1 Physical, social, and intellectual development and characteristics of students
Through forming professional relationships with students, I was able to build students profiles about their likes, interest, and abilities.
1.2 Understand how students learn
By developing and understanding of how my student learn best through, use of visual, explicit explanation, visual reward systems and movement/ brain breaks.
1.3 Students with diverse linguistic, cultural, religious, and socioeconomic backgrounds
Having a classroom that provided a safe and welcome environment to all with a sense of belonging and activities we completed throughout my teaching. All providing choice to students in competition of tasks, topic of task, and teaching strategies I employed to suit my student’s strengths and learning needs to create and inclusive classroom environment.
1.4 Strategies for teaching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students
I created a respectful and culturally appropriate classroom display and activities to accompany National Sorry Day that incorporated the perspectives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
1.5 Differentiate teaching to meet the specific learning needs of students across the full range of abilities
I was able to create visuals that aided in my teaching for students to be able to understand lesson content, class routines and rewards systems. I was able to teach clearly and explain explicitly what students need to complete for the task and gave clear instructions along with visual aids, as to how this could be achieved.
1.6 Strategies to support full participation of students with disability
This was implemented through the creation of the class reward system I implemented in the classroom that was accessible to and used by all students.
2.1 Content and teaching strategies of the teaching area
I provided content that was relevant to my students lives so they were able to make real-world connections to their learning and engage in learning and content.
2.2 Content selection and organisation
I was able to organise and adapt content clearly and explain it explicitly so all students could understand my teaching and could engage in learning.
2.3 Curriculum, assessment and reporting
I was able to seek feedback from students and colleagues to help inform my future teaching and reflect on my teaching strategies to see what needed to be improved on.
2.4 Understand and respect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to promote reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians
I planned and implemented lessons and activities that all students could completed for National Sorry day, whilst using this time to educate the students about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders people’s history and culture.
2.5 Literacy and numeracy strategies
Created resources to support learning from reflections made on students work. Including the incorporation of relevant examples, visuals and verbal demonstrations.
3.2 Plan, structure and sequence learning programs
Through recording of student’s interest and feedback given on my teaching I was bel to effectively plan and structure content and lesson in a way that best suited the needs of my students.
3.3 Use teaching strategies
I used a variety of teaching strategies such as a check for understanding, use of exit tickets, use of visual and implementation of a behaviour management/ reward system.
3.4 Select and use resources
Using PowerPoints, smartboard and visuals to complete learning tasks and create resources for lessons or visual examples to help aid my teaching.
3.5 Use effective classroom communication
My use of sending a ‘meet the teacher’ letter home to parents introducing myself as well as the many verbal and non-verbal ways I communicated with students which included visual, written, and oral. Through check for understandings, my calm and clear use of voice when explaining tasks and use of ICT with my Power Point slides being used for very lesson I taught.
3.6 Evaluate and improve teaching programs
Through feedback from students and colleagues as well as my reflective daily journal I was able to use this information to evaluate my teaching and improve for future teaching whist using feedback to adapt and adjust my teaching strategies.
4.1 Support student participation
Through the use of accessible visual work that is clearly explained and relevant to enable all students to participate in class activities and movement breaks.
4.2 Manage classroom activities
Through the use of the reward system, check for understandings and clear expectations I had explained to the students throughout my teaching.
4.3 Manage challenging behaviour
This was managed predominantly through the implementation of the reward/ point behaviour management system I introduced into the classroom. Which as you can see mentioned by colleagues the students loved and responded well to. I also attribute the ability to effectively manage behaviours due to the strong and respectful relationships I took the time to build throughout my teaching.
6.3 Engage with colleagues and improve practice
This was achieved through written and verbal feedback given from members of learnership and other school colleagues during their time observing my teaching to help reflect on and improve my teaching practices.
7.3 Engage with the parents/carers
Connecting with parents via sending a ‘meet the teacher’ letter home introducing myself and some interesting facts about me to help them feel confident in coming to visit the class and interacting with me.
References
Duchesne, S. & McMaugh. (2019). Educational Psychology For Learning and Teaching (6th ed.). South Melbourne, Victoria: Cengage Learning Australia.
Varga, M. (2017). The effects of teacher-student relationships on the academic engagement of students.
Teaching Portfolio - Cassandra Varricchio