Early career Archives

Observations in the ‘Mother Country’

Sally Saunders compares lesson observation practice between her NSW and UK experiences and concludes we are well ahead…

Not so long ago, teaching was a private affair which largely took place between one large person (the teacher) and 30 smaller people (the students). In more recent years, the collective doors of classrooms in so-called developed countries have opened and vast declarations have been made about the importance of instructional leadership, instructional rounds, walk throughs and many more.

My year of experience in Yorkshire, in the United Kingdom, left me to conclude that the current practice for lesson observation as described in NSW’s Performance and Development Framework (PDF) is superior to practices built around the Ofsted system of our ‘motherland’.

What follows is a comparison written from the perspective of an experienced teacher, who has always been, and remains, enthusiastic about improving her teaching practice and understanding of effective pedagogy. The paper concludes with an outline of a more positive school-based research and observation experience, which, I argue, points towards a foundation for enhanced collegiality and reflection which may be a useful complement for faculties and stages in NSW public schools.

Lesson observations in NSW schools

Every teacher in NSW completes a plan within the PDF and lesson observations are also part of this framework. This plan includes goals that the teacher wants to work towards in the school year. The goals are negotiated between the teacher and their supervisor. Within this plan, teachers are also required to have two lesson observations. The lesson observations are negotiated between the teacher and the supervisor. The teacher can choose whom they wish to observe them, when and for what purpose.

The goal of this lesson observation is to engage teachers in professional learning and help the teacher with a specific aspect of their teaching. Feedback occurs soon after the observation. The type of feedback that occurs is again up to the supervisor and the teacher. In this way, a safe environment is created. This process provides many opportunities for a teacher to improve their teaching practice and develop leadership capabilities.

My UK experience

In the UK, lesson observations were used to appraise teachers and ensure that they were meeting the required teacher standards. There were five ‘walk ins’ a year. In my experience, teachers were unaware of when a ‘walk in’ would occur, although were aware of the week they occur in. The ‘walk-in’ was completed by an executive member of the school or a member of the faculty. If there was a meeting after the ‘walk-in’, that was because there was an aspect of the lesson that the executive member felt needed improvement. If not, teachers were to assume that everything was fine.

There was also one formal observation. In this observation, a member of your faculty and an executive member observed your lesson with a class of their choosing. The teacher must submit an elaborate lesson plan that details the lesson procedures, outcomes for the lesson and the differing needs of all the students in the class and how they will support those students and their needs. You are told that you should not do anything that you would not normally do. However, you are also told to make sure you have several things prepared. Soon after the lesson the team give you feedback. In this feedback you are given a report that shows you have or have not met the teacher standards for the lesson and you are also given three goals to work on for next time.

My response to the UK procedure was mostly fear and worry.

I felt quite anxious throughout the entire process, and this was common amongst other teachers in my faculty. I was told I had to meet all the teacher standards otherwise I would have to be observed again. I enjoyed the feedback component as it is not very common that someone praises you on your classroom practice and found their feedback quite helpful. However, the sense that you are being ‘checked on’ created a negative atmosphere and put everyone on edge for the week that the observations were taking place.

Further, teacher observations were linked to salary progression, books were checked within the classroom to make sure that the teacher was marking books to the school standard and assessment marking was also checked. It felt that there was little trust between the executive and their teachers. As a result, you spent a large amount of time preparing for the observations, ensuring that everything was accurate and that nothing could go wrong, as opposed to developing challenging lessons or trying new strategies.

Whilst conducting my research, I discovered that both main UK teacher unions (there are a few), the NEU and NASUWT, both provided information about specific myths about the processes that Ofsted go through when evaluating schools in an attempt to prevent some of the unnecessary burdens experienced by teachers. However, regardless of the advice from the unions, schools continued to have more observations than were required, excessive marking of books was required, and assessments were frequently checked by the executive.

Action research project

A positive and very different experience of lesson observations for me in the UK was my involvement in an action research project. Here, the topic of research was decided by the faculty (for example, whilst I was there we were looking at teaching writing explicitly) and involved members of the faculty conducting research on different teaching strategies and then sharing that with the group. In the next process, teachers observed each other teaching these new strategies and provide feedback to the group about the observation and how the students responded. In this observation process, the focus was on developing new teacher strategies and, as a result, there was no anxiety around the observation as the goal was not to check on the teacher but to learn from the teacher, and to develop new teaching strategies, therefore developing leadership.

Conclusions

My experience found that lesson observations should only be used to develop teacher practice, not to ‘check-up’ on teachers. For me, conducting lesson observations to appraise teachers did not develop quality teachers or leaders. However, using lesson observations as NSW does, within the Performance and Development Framework and within the research project I described, would likely develop quality teachers that are confident within their teaching, but also feel confident to ask their leaders for advice and help.

References:

NSW Teachers Federation, https://www.www.nswtf.org.au/performance-development-framework.html
NASUWT Classroom Observation Protocol https://www.nasuwt.org.uk/uploads/assets/uploaded/ac0a7235-fd25-4b8a-9959068b9c65f454.pdf
National Education Union: Appraisal and Classroom Observation, https://www.teachers.org.uk/edufacts/appraisal

Sally is a History and Drama teacher in the Illawarra. In June 2017, she was on a teacher exchange to Yorkshire, England for twelve months. During this time she was immersed in the English teaching system and upon return from her exchange, Sally brought back with her a new perspective on classroom observation practices.

Recognising Good Teaching: My Journey to Proficient Teacher

Lucille Flegg remembers good times at school and thinks Teaching Standards should reflect our high-quality, high-status profession…

My favourite teachers

When I look back at some of the key experiences I had as a student in the NSW public education system, it is with fondness that I remember the teachers who really made a difference to me. Below are some special memories:

Year 6
The teacher brought in Cynthia Voigt’s Homecoming. I remember how she pulled me aside before lunch and carefully gifted me the volume and explained she wanted to extend me beyond the novels in the classroom; it was to become my favourite book for a time.

Year 8
Mathematical concepts suddenly made sense! I distinctly recall how proud I felt when I realised I could actually succeed in Mathematics across Year 8 and Year 9, and it was the teacher’s explanations which made a difference for me.

Year 10
The teachers spent days and nights preparing for and making possible my cherished opportunities to perform scenes from Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing and A Midsummer Night’s Dream at my school’s annual Shakespeare Day and Shakespeare Night events.

We know there has always been good teaching in NSW.

My experiences above, and many more, were made possible by the dedication of just a few of the intellectual, hard-working educators in our state. This article emphasises an approach to teacher accreditation that recognises the holistic nature of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (the Standards), and suggests that they should always be utilised with one goal in mind: quality teaching for every child in every classroom.

What’s in a Standard?

For the majority of my schooling, there were no published teaching standards in NSW, and my teachers did not have any accreditation requirements to meet. So, if I remember such good experiences as a student prior to accreditation requirements, what is the purpose of the Standards?

When I look back, the good teaching I can remember so clearly aligns with the Standards that have become second nature to me now. The Standards are a public statement of what constitutes quality teaching. There is power in having such a thing written down. Closer to home, at the beginning of each year, many people write down with pen and paper their new year’s resolutions. The familiar act of seeing goals on the page makes them concrete, and we often feel more accountable in meeting them.

without the mystery of a ‘feeling’ or ‘instinct’ of what some good practices might be

In reading each of the thirty-seven Standard Descriptors for the Proficient Teacher career stage (the required level of accreditation all NSW teachers must reach), it becomes clear that what is intended is a holistic description of high-quality practitioners; just like the ones I had when I was a child, without the mystery of a ‘feeling’ or ‘instinct’ of what some good practices might be.

Becoming a teacher

I decided to become a teacher when I was completing my HSC. I wanted to provide to others what my teachers had provided for me. I became passionate about my content areas in large part because of some key teachers in high school. When I made the choice to study teaching, I didn’t think about the Standards at all, but they came to be an intrinsic part of the journey ahead.

As a teacher, I found that I used the Standards more and more as I developed my practice. When I was working towards my accreditation, my goal was not about finishing it, but it was always about becoming a better teacher for my students. This goal remained unchanged after I achieved my Proficient Teacher accreditation (or Professional Competence as it was then).

In working towards my goal of becoming a better teacher, I observed my more experienced colleagues and learnt from them. I self-reflected when assessing student progress and allowed this to inform future decisions. When I wasn’t sure how to adapt my practice, I asked for help. When things didn’t go well, I asked myself, ‘what should I do now?’. I changed my approach to programming over time to allow for more meaningful, long-term learning experiences for my students. I sought professional development as a matter of course and applied what I learned.

When I was working towards my accreditation, my goal was not about finishing it, but it was always about becoming a better teacher for my students.

While doing these (and other) things, I also kept items that I thought might be useful for accreditation. Then, when I reflected on the Standards and thought I was ready, I began the process with my Head Teacher of selecting the items from my collection which gave an overall snapshot of my practice.

The journey was not about the accreditation requirements, but about becoming a better teacher over time. The Standards defined what this looked like; they allowed me to pinpoint the effective teaching I observed in others. Having the Standards documented as a reference for what exemplary teaching looks like was helpful to me. It meant that I could more readily define what I needed to work on, and improve accordingly.

This constant refinement may have happened naturally over time, yet without the Standards as an authoritative guide, my development may have been more challenging, taken significantly longer, and possibly become misguided or vulnerable to educational fads.

Better together

Significantly, the process of developing my practice against the Standards and becoming accredited gave me scheduled opportunities to work with my supervisor. Structured conversations around my practice helped immensely in reflecting on how I was going, and what I needed to work on. For my early career colleagues, the Standards guarantee these valuable conversations occur as part of our induction to the profession.

Having had this experience also aided me when supervising others later in my career. The Standards provide an anchor to frame professional discussions, facilitating meaningful feedback for professional growth. I also learned some fantastic practices from those I supervised in how to meet the Standards in different ways which I could bring to my own classroom.

Thus, meeting the Standards is not a static goal but an ongoing one. The Standard Descriptors remain crucial to me, and the conversations I have with teachers now who are working towards Proficient Teacher accreditation continue to centre on refining practice against the Standards to maximise student learning outcomes.

Tips for your accreditation

To all the teachers out there working towards Proficient Teacher accreditation, my best advice is to approach the journey as an opportunity to develop your teaching practice over time with the structured support that all professionals need and deserve when starting a career. This is the main purpose of accreditation, and the majority of your timeframe will involve developing your practice against the Standards. If you start with a focus on your practice and the Standards, the rest will follow. Other suggestions include:

Talk to your supervisor early in the process so that you are both on the same page and so that you have ample time to receive and apply feedback from them to continually refine your practice. Also, remember that you can draw upon other colleagues around you for feedback and advice on how you are going.
Be aware of the requirements for accreditation, so that you have a clear understanding of what you are working towards. All the information you need is on the NESA website, and you should read this carefully before you begin the process of finalising your accreditation. You should also be aware of any employer-based requirements around accreditation, and speak to your supervisor or principal if you are unsure.
Remember that the evidence needed to become accredited at Proficient Teacher will occur naturally as you do the day-to-day activities that come with being a teacher. The items of documentary evidence used for accreditation should be a genuine reflection of your practice, so hold onto items after you have used them, for example, program excerpts with your adjustments noted throughout and student work samples including your feedback. Also, remember to utilise the resources available on the NESA website, including the Evidence Guide for the Proficient Teacher Standards.
Start with your practice when selecting your final evidence. When you know you are meeting Standards, select items of evidence that demonstrate this. This will put you in better stead to write meaningful annotations that explain how the evidence you have selected demonstrates the Standard Descriptors.

Most importantly, do not be afraid to ask for help or advice from those around you, or from NESA. The accreditation process is about inducting the newest members of our profession with the support of others, and with the support of the Standards so that you know how to recognise good teaching practices, can improve your own teaching, and confidently join our important profession.

Lucille Flegg is a Policy Officer at the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA). Her role focuses on quality assurance processes for teacher accreditation at Proficient Teacher. Lucille also supports schools, principals and teachers to implement NESA’s teacher accreditation policies. Lucille is committed to quality teaching against the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers and the provision of opportunities for the continual growth of teachers over the course of their careers. Lucille has been a Modern History, Ancient History and Society and Culture teacher and a Relieving Head Teacher in south western Sydney. She has experience mentoring early career teachers through their first years of teaching and has delivered professional development within her local community of schools.

Contact NESA for enquiries about accreditation by emailing PTenquiry@nesa.nsw.edu.au or calling 1300 739 338.

Getting Better at Assessment

Emma Finlayson reflects on what quality assessment is really about…

I am a middle career teacher. I have made it past the notorious ‘7 year quit’ and I have taught the full range of students across schools with student numbers between 300 and 1300. My experience has taught me that regardless of context, at the end of the lesson, school day, course, or term, all of our students will need to be assessed somehow.

This article is a guide to what I have learned about assessment; like all the best lessons, much of my wisdom has come from failure-ridden endeavours. These have often been of my own tragic making and have mostly involved me making a fool of myself at school.

What does good assessment entail?

It is so obvious when you are an early career teacher to simply re-use past examinations. And like many before me, I did!

I was Year 8 Science Co-ordinator when I used a past examination. One of the questions was:

(Description of Debbie Strauss’s work) Debbie Strauss is a zoologist. Describe what her daily job might entail.

What I did not notice then, and what I always look out for now, is that the choice of verb ensured the question was out of the reach of at least 60 percent of our students, 90 percent of whom were EAL/D.

It was not that the students struggled to describe what they thought a zoologist might do, day to day. It was that they did not understand what ‘entail’ meant and so they tended to leave the question blank.

I have since written similar questions, but now I ask:

Describe what Debbie Strauss might study in a normal work day as a zoologist.

Take home message

It is easy to forget that a question which seems straightforward in your own mind could be interpreted in a myriad of ways by students, all of whom are nervous and looking to achieve. Look at the wording of your question closely and ask: Is it pitched at an appropriate level for my students?

Incidentally, be aware when re-using or borrowing past assessments. If you use directly without modifying, it is very likely you have not considered the potential problems that may be lurking within.

Why did I come here?

We are all human. And that means that we are all fallible.

I tend to argue that my examinations are like Celtic art: I deliberately include an error so as not to challenge the perfection of the creator. Ahem. Maybe not.

While this might work the first time, it can wear thin quickly with your students.

When I started teaching, I was horrified by the prospects of making a mistake in an examination paper. I remain vigilant for errors and remember fondly watching a past colleague absolutely own his mistake.

My colleague was called to an examination owing to queries about a question. When he arrived, the students immediately started excoriating him because he had included a question on content that had not yet been covered. He argued, they argued, and then, in the end, my colleague dropped his head and muttered with a groan:

Why did I come here?

The students burst into laughter.

What did I learn from this? That when the same thing happened to me, I announced:

Great news! Your paper will be out of 95, not 100! By the way, cross out Question 30b.

The students cheered!

Take home message

It is okay to make mistakes, as long as you acknowledge them. Students know you are human. If we insist on infallibility, the effect is to teach our students to doubt themselves and their knowledge, to freeze up in examinations and become anxious around what might be included in formal assessment. There have been mistakes, even in the HSC. Very few, but still, it happens. It is what we do in the moment that matters and how we reassure our students and plan to avoid errors when it comes to the next task that can make a difference.

Question 27 is fantastic!

We know we are smart, right? We are teachers! Sometimes this thinking can lead to awkward situations.

Long, long ago, in an education system far, far away, there was a beast called the School Certificate, which was essentially, centralised examinations for Year 10.

A call came through to the staffroom:

We think there’s an error in Question 27! Can someone come and look at it?

Well, I was the only one in the staffroom. I was also in my first year of teaching, and determined to save the day. So, I ran to the school hall (yes, I ran), grabbed the paper and announced:

Could all students please put down their pens and turn to Question 27. If you read the question, you will see that…

Then I read the question. Then, and only then, did I realise it was asking students to correct mistakes in the question. What could I do? I just kept talking:

You will see that Question 27 is a great question. Isn’t it fantastic? Best of luck, Year 10!

Some of the students saw straight through me and were giggling, most assumed I was new and overeager. Needless to say, I beat a fairly hasty retreat.

Take home message

I am still blushing over this one. With the benefit of hindsight, I might conclude it is important to act with our hearts in the right place. Possibly, it is wise to first stop, understand the situation, consult with a colleague and, if we are to act (or react), to tread lightly.

Assessment is more than examination

The above are some things I have learned through failure. Along the way I have also learned much about effective assessment. It is important to see the point of assessment as more than a final examination or even the HSC.

Yes, good assessment entails questions that are meaningful and relevant. Yes, when it comes to formal and summative assessment we should be testing only that which we have already taught. Yes, we should work together to reflect on our pedagogy, and we should talk together about what matters and what we are trying to achieve before we act.

We should also remember to start as well as finish with assessment. Assessment is the initial insights into where our students are and where we will take them next. It is checking in during the lesson and taking time to reteach that which has not been understood before moving on.

Good assessment comes from knowing what is required and understanding why. It is about knowing what will help our students to learn more and how to allow them to demonstrate their best achievements. A starting point to improve your assessment practices for K-10 is the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) Advice on Assessment. For Years 11-12, NESA’s Stage 6 Assessment and 11-12 Assessment Advice are important reading.

Final thoughts

There will always be days when we could have done better. This article seeks to help you avoid the mistakes I have made. If we begin with our hearts in the right place and with a strong understanding of what is necessary and why some approaches can be effective, we can be well placed to assess in ways which are best and most wise for both ourselves and our students.

Emma Finlayson is a senior chemistry teacher at Concord High School. She has a special interest in EAL/D education in science and is an experienced teacher of GAT students. She has contributed to the creation of a range of resources for the new Stage 6 syllabus, including for a major publishing company. She also delivers workshops around classroom management for beginning teachers.

Toolbox for a Good Day at School

Lloyd Bowen packs his toolbox for moving between classrooms and keeping the focus on learning…

Teaching feels just right when our students are engaged in learning and we feel we are inspiring young people to develop a lifelong love of learning. Seeing those ‘light bulb’ moments of understanding makes being a teacher a vocation that is deeply satisfying. Maximising learning time and ensuring the focus of all lessons is on learning is pivotal to achieving these magical moments. Of course, achieving this requires us to draw on the myriad of skills that only we, as teachers, possess. There are, however, a few simple organisational tricks that can allow us to focus on the learning rather than distractions.

A most useful tool is a teacher’s toolbox. This is particularly true if you find yourself timetabled into several rooms every day, where every room is set up differently and some are well resourced whilst others are not so much. The sheer confidence that comes with knowing where your resources are is liberating for both you and your students. I would be lost without my toolbox. I always carry it with me. Yes, literally, a toolbox.

Teaching can be stressful particularly if we are caught short and underprepared. Small issues can compound into large ones yet can be fixed easily or avoided entirely if we are prepared. We tend to plan our lessons carefully to include a multitude of learning strategies and resources. Yet, sometimes our best prepared and most engaging lessons can end in disaster or disappointment. The toolbox is all about minimising the chances of a well prepared lesson escaping due to practical barriers.

Make it personal

Your toolbox will be tailored to your needs. I am an Industrial Arts teacher and my toolbox includes some subject specific objects that can be in short supply, such as drill bits, masking tape, a spare screw driver, coping saw blades and more. Your toolbox should also include other resources useful in any classroom such as pens and pencils, post-it notes, scissors, glue, a stapler, USBs and so on.

We all have students who come to school without a pen. We should encourage all students to be prepared and see the personal benefits that come from being well-organised. But sometimes they are not there yet. Your handy toolbox pens and pencils will allow all students to engage in learning with the rest of the class immediately rather than cause distraction as they hunt around their peers for a pen.

Cut transition problems

Every item in your tool box will help transition students between learning activities. Worksheets can cause a transition nightmare as students scramble to borrow the class’s only glue stick. Your handy toolbox glue sticks and scissors will make this transition both easier and smoother. Other items might include seating plans (or a seating order if you move from room to room), printed rolls and laminated class rules.

Plan to make a note

Many students are very adept at getting us to do their work for them. A student who is not sure what to do or is not feeling confident will often need our support. Post-it notes allow us to explain and direct learning concisely. Their small size forces us to give the student enough explanation to start but not too much so as to take the joy of learning away from them. This strategy allows students to feel supported and to build their confidence so as to develop their own solutions.

Know your school

A toolbox is not the Tardis from science fiction’s Dr. Who. Whilst we cannot fit in everything there are some key school specific items that are often helpful especially when we are new in a school. A copy of bell times will allow us to know when to draw a good lesson to an end, ensuring learning time is maximised. Having merit awards on hand allows us to immediately reward a student’s good work and school policy documents such as ‘out of class passes’ are incredibly useful.

Many readers may be thinking ‘these items are all in my room’. And that is entirely the point. The toolbox is simply a portable teachers’ drawer for those who work in many classrooms. A teacher’s toolbox can be one achievable, organisational aid to assist in maximising learning time and your credibility with your class by limiting unnecessary barriers to a successful lesson and a good day at school.

Lloyd Bowen is a TAS teacher and Head Teacher – Teaching and Learning working at a comprehensive high school is southern Sydney. He has been teaching for over 10 years and has experience working as a Teacher Mentor in the Mount Druitt area where he had the good fortune of learning from dozens of expert teachers. He applies many of these hints and tips in his classroom practice and in his current role.

Helping teachers – Helping students – Some considerations for teaching students with disability

Claudia Vera has crafted this clear and comprehensive advice for teachers with students with disability …

All of us are teaching students with varying abilities, including those with disabilities, in our mainstream classes or in specialist settings. This reality has its challenges but we keep at the core of our tale the protagonists of this story – our students, their hopes and needs, their families and their teachers.

Our search for some support begins with the words of Michael Wehemeyer who observes:

“We have taught people with disabilities that they are the problem”.

So we address our shared issues from a point of view of not trying to ‘fix’ the person but instead focusing on their strengths, necessary supports, the surrounding environment and the individual’s interaction with it.

1. Congratulations! Teaching students with disability is a life changing opportunity

School is the prime, consistent environment to provide opportunities for students with disability to develop fundamental life skills, access rigorous and interesting learning experiences, be afforded opportunities to develop and express self-determination, learn about others and themselves and establish relationships.

Whilst this rings true for all young people, as a teacher of a young person with disability you will need to be much more deliberate in ensuring you and the school community create the context, expectations and provide the scaffolds for this to happen. As a result, your actions today will become part of a cumulative pressure, pushing open the floodgates to future experiences and success that will add to the quality of that person’s life.

As a teacher, you will be enriched by developing the capacity to cater instruction for your students, create enabling environments, address and celebrate diversity and be creative and flexible in your approach to teaching.

You matter immensely in their lives and their futures.

2. Personalisation: Your student is the starting point, the path and the destination

“Personalisation is about prizing the person. Personalisation is about knowing the person deeply, having the courage to offer honouring relationships, holding an affirming vision of their life, knowing what is required to make things happen” (Lorna Hanahan, 2013).

The key to realising this personalisation is to know your student and in doing so, aim to understand them. Having knowledge about their disability is helpful but what carries greater value is knowing the person. What holds their attention? What opens their curiosity and excites them? What do they choose to do in their leisure time? What worries them, frustrates them, turns them off? What do they want to know more about, do differently and do better? What matters to them, what talents do they want to share and what bores them?

Try to make sure you not only begin with these questions but re-visit them at various points and be mindful and responsive to changes. This is an important understanding of any individual but its significance for students with disability lies in the limited opportunities they may have in explicitly expressing these nuances about themselves, if they are not actively sought.

Personalisation combines and extends beyond differentiation and individualisation. For a comprehensive explanation of personalisation and how to make this happen in your classroom, read A step-by-step guide to personalize learning. The Complex learning difficulties and disabilities research project website also provides information on developing meaningful pathways to personalised learning, including briefing packs on various disorders, conditions and disabilities.

3. Early investment and meaningful planning pays off

To achieve personalisation in a genuine, dignified and fruitful manner takes time. Why not then give yourself licence to invest time early to build rapport with your student, establish a solid relationship with the student’s family, refine goals, customise instruction, establish routines, seek broader support and create rich, connected learning experiences. Allow yourself to experiment with your teaching ideas but ensure these are based on what you have learnt about your student, syllabus requirements, good practice and what is manageable in the context of your entire class.

Consider Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and use its principles to guide your planning so that adjustments are embedded into a framework that is flexible enough to ensure equality of opportunity for all learners. Inclusive practice is facilitated by UDL, as it allows you to adapt your whole class program for all learners, rather than doing separate plans. Access the Universal Design for Learning: Theory & Practice website for further information on and practicing UDL. Examples and resources for UDL can be found here. The Department has also developed a web based tool to assist teachers and learning and support teams in profiling the educational needs of students who may benefit from personalised learning and support. The tool is called the Personalised Learning and Support Signposting Tool (PLASST) and information on the tool can be accessed via the Department’s portal by scrolling down to P in the My Applications section.

For those teaching students in support classes in mainstream schools or Schools for Specific Purposes (SSPs), the Individual Education Plan development process is a vehicle for personalised learning. Information to assist this process can be found via the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority – Individual Education Plan website. The Queensland Department of Education has published a booklet outlining the process and developed a presentation to support the writing of Specific Measurable Attainable Relevant Time bound (SMART) goals. Access information on Learning Plans in NSW government schools – Attachment 1

Seek to be systematic in establishing a cycle of implementation and evaluation but exercise flexibility to adapt where necessary. Once you have clarity and direction, find a way to record this planning that makes sense and is workable to you but can also be picked up and understood by others. Teaching plans that read well but do not translate to meaningful learning are not worth the files they are saved in. If your programming aids your practice and evaluation, then you are on to a winner – there is no place or need for elaborate fluff. Will this documentation/planning practice help my student learn and help me teach my student? If not, discard.

4. Genuine collaboration and positive relationships are vital

Do a quick relationship audit:

a) Have you fostered a positive relationship with your student? Have you provided the context, tools and opportunities for your student to develop good social and learning relationships?

The importance of positive relationships in any human interaction is no revolutionary concept. It becomes more significant when you consider the amount of time, access, power, influence and presence a teacher has within a student’s existence.

b) Who else has significant knowledge and understanding of your student? How do you access, communicate and collaborate with these individuals?

Under the Disability Discrimination Act, 1992 via the Disability Standards for Education, 2005 there is a legislated requirement to consult the student, or an associate of the student before making an adjustment. More often than not this will involve the student’s parent/carer.

The work of researcher and University of Vermont professor, Michael Giangreco, has a focus on how to plan, adapt, coordinate, implement, and evaluate educational programs and services for students with disabilities. He co-authored a guide to educational planning for students with disabilities Choosing Outcomes and Accommodations of Children (available with CD-Rom via the Teachers Federation Library), which is based on 25 years of research. Access an interview of the COACH authors where they address the question of How do you build an educational plan that reflects family priorities and optimizes learning outcomes?

We can learn a wealth of information from those people who know and interact with the student beyond the classroom. Value opportunities for the participation of others and remember that as the teacher you are only one part of the equation of that student’s life. Your priorities and goals for the student may not be those of the student or their family. Establishing mutually convenient forums for collaboration, with clear understanding and expectations and shared authority, can strengthen the student’s learning, the teacher’s instruction, the family’s wellbeing and support positive home-school interaction.

5. You are not alone: accessing expertise, resources and services

As the teacher, you are not solely responsible for meeting the needs of your student with disability. It can be a complex and challenging task, particularly when you have the additional needs of multiple students to respond to and you might not have expertise and/or experience in teaching students with disability. Even in the most ideal of scenarios, it is important for teachers to know who they can turn to and where they can access support.

There are the obvious people and structures:

your supervisor;
other colleagues (including the student’s prior teacher);
School Learning Support Officer (role statement can be found in the Department’s Special Education Handbook, which also includes information on the role of the School Counsellor and Learning Support Team);
your principal;
the Learning and Support Team (the Department has developed professional learning modules under Every Student, Every School of which Module 2 is on Learning and Support Teams. The files (zipped and individual) for this module can be accessed via the Department’s intranet under Disability Programs > Every Student, Every School);
The Learning and Support Teacher and Assistant Principal Learning and Support (further information can be found on the Every Student, Every School section of the Department’s website).

Extend your network to include:

relevant specialist teachers (e.g. ESL teacher, teachers at a nearby School for Specific Purpose);
the School Counsellor ;
Learning and Wellbeing Advisors and Officers in your network (you can access their contact details by logging in to the Department’s staff portal and clicking on the Educational Services Contacts Application);
Community Liaison Officers;
the Department’s Disability, Learning and Support and Work, Health and Safety Directorate (can be accessed via the A-Z on the Department’s intranet);
other Department resources, policies and procedures (listed on their public site under policies) including areas such as Access and Equity and Wellbeing.
make sure to visit the Department’s new Wellbeing for Schools website, which supports the Wellbeing Framework and has a section dedicated specifically to supporting students with disability via the ‘Succeed’ tab.

Also consider:

the Department’s Every Student, Every School professional learning resources (modules accessible via the Department’s intranet under Disability Programs > Every Student, Every School and their supported online learning courses for teachers and schools via OnLine Training);
the Classroom Teacher Program (DEC Intranet Home > A-Z of Directorates > Professional Learning and Leadership Development > Teacher Learning > Classroom Teacher Program);
Learning and Support Scholarships ;
the NSW Teachers Federation, their Centre for Professional Learning and their library;
academics at local Universities;
The Jill Sherlock Memorial Learning Assistance Library ;
The Australian Association of Special Education (AASE) ,and,
other sources of information and professional development, including overseas materials such as Training materials for teachers of learners with profound and complex learning difficulties.

6. Customise instruction, aim high and celebrate often

As teachers we are constantly and sometimes subconsciously adapting our teaching for a diversity of learners – their needs, learning styles, personalities and interests. Students with disability are a very diverse group within themselves and this diversity extends to what extent instruction, content, assessment, equipment and the environment needs to be customised by way of adjustment.

The Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards (BOSTES) and the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) have excellent, user-friendly resources – accessible via their respective websites – to navigate the personalisation of curriculum, teaching and assessment by way of adjustments for students with disability.

Link to the following resources:

DEC Curriculum Policy Standards ;
NSW syllabuses for the Australian curriculum – Special education needs: Curriculum Requirements ;
NSW syllabuses for the Australian curriculum – Supporting students with special education needs ;
BOSTES — Making Adjustments: What can I do and where can I find resources? ;
Student Diversity and the Australian Curriculum: Advice for principals, schools and teachers ;
Australian Curriculum – Students with Disability, which includes video Illustrations of personalised learning .

Resources from other government education departments:
SA DEC Educational Support Matrix ;
QLD DET Managing Learning for Diversity – Education Adjustments .

Customising teaching and learning experiences should not however be viewed as synonymous with setting low, limited expectations. Remember that making adjustments is about making learning accessible, relevant and ensuring that assessment is a true reflection of what your student knows.

In planning for instruction it is good practice to ensure that goals are specific, measurable, time-bound and so on. This does not however, eliminate the need to ensure students are encouraged and expected to progress and excel against their own potential. It also does not mean that a student’s strengths and weaknesses in one curriculum area are the same across the entire curriculum. This is particularly important when making decisions about whether or not a student should be accessing a Life Skills syllabus. A student may be unable to meet all mainstream outcomes in one subject area, need minimal adjustments in another area and not require any adjustments in another subject. The most appropriate curriculum options and adjustments should be determined by undertaking a process of collaborative curriculum planning.

Differentiating instruction often involves a process of breaking down the steps needed to reach a particular outcome and addressing each step more explicitly and with greater supports. In light of this, it is important to ensure that successes are acknowledged and celebrated, as it may take a student with disability longer to achieve particular outcomes in comparison to some peers. Be mindful of how often you acknowledge problem behaviour in comparison to positive behaviour, achievements and attempts to improve.

7. Rights and responsibilities: Understanding, protecting and actioning their purpose

Looking at the history of disability legislation in Australia and more broadly, that of anti-discrimination, an important progression from segregation to diversity in relation to people with disability is evident. Anti-discrimination is considered an important driver in promoting equitable access and participation for all. It is critical that rights, as reflected in legislation – such as the Disability Discrimination Act, 1992 (DDA) — are exercised and protected all the way down to your classroom.

Failing this makes your student vulnerable to discrimination, which may manifest as seemingly insignificant incidents that amount to exclusionary practice and denial of rights over time. More importantly, ignoring or passively addressing student rights could lead to missed opportunities for students to improve the quality and control of their own lives. This is highlighted in the area of curriculum access, in an article of the online publication The Conversation, which deals with the issue of a Separate curriculum for students with disability no good for anyone .

The Department and its schools are considered to be education providers under the Disability Standards for Education, 2005 and as such are required by law to adhere to these standards as minimum standards of practice.

It is important that teachers have a working knowledge of these standards to ensure they are embedding these in their own practice and to actively monitor their implementation by others.

On the Australian Human Rights Commission’s website there is information on Education and disability and a DDA guide: Getting an education.

Teacher familiarity with policy and procedure generally is important to understand the rights and responsibilities your role carries and determining where your role begins and ends. The Department’s policies relating to disability, learning and support clearly state that they adhere to disability legislation. In following Departmental policy, you are meeting your obligations under the DDA. Online training from the University of Canberra is currently available to further enhance your understanding of this legislation and how it applies to your teaching.

Link to the following resources:

NSW Department of Education and Communities – Disability Support (this site links to Learning and Support/specialist disability programs, the Department’s services locator to find schools with special classes and the Every Student, Every School initiative) ;
NSW DEC Schools policies and procedures – Disabilities (including the Assisted School Travel Program for School Students with Disability Policy, Assisted School Travel Program Guidelines, Assisting Students with Learning Difficulties Policy, Learning and Support Program, People with Disabilities – Statement of Commitment and the NSW DEC Disability Action Plan 2011-2015) ;
Students with Disabilities in Regular Classes ;
Nationally Consistent Collection of Data – School Students with Disability .

8. Take stock of your views and practice: Education, disability and your role

Teaching students with disability may challenge the way you view the purpose, outcomes and processes of teaching and education. When you cross paths with individuals whose ability to lead independent and fulfilling lives in their post-school careers, is so closely and evidently connected to what you do as their teacher today, then the significance and power of education is undeniable. In many ways you become the bastion of hope for that child’s potential to be realised and their humanity and dreams to be expressed. There is a certain urgency in teaching a child with disability because of the need for so many foundations to be laid, skills developed and opportunities afforded before they leave the consistency and security of their schooling years.

It is why collaboration is essential, transitions are critical and aspiration is vital. Your practice should also fall under scrutiny; if every minute at school is valuable, they must not be wasted on practices that are ill-conceived fads or Band-Aid solutions lacking in any evidence base (see the Macquarie University Centre for Special Education – MUSEC – Briefings for reviews of interventions for students with disabilities). In so far as they take time away from effective intervention, inappropriate practice could go as far as being harmful to your student.

Improving your ability to teach students with disability automatically broadens your capacity to better facilitate learning for all students. Recognise, reflect and refine. Be thankful for those students with disability who enter your classroom, as they may be your best teacher of all.

Having been a teacher in a School for Specific Purposes, it has been my personal and professional privilege to have taught and learned from our students with disability. I hope that you too are challenged, inspired and developed by your experiences.

Claudia Vera is a Special Education teacher. Having graduated from the University of Technology in Special Education (Hons) Claudia taught at Mary Brooksbank SSP in southwest Sydney. She currently works for the NSW Teachers Federation where she has statewide responsibility for Special Education matters.

Programming: Some Simple Things to Remember

Kathryn Bellach offers some initial reflections to assist teachers in developing clear, simple and practical teaching programs …

Programming is one of the keys to engaged students who are learning at their level while meeting Syllabus requirements. There are a few key questions to ask yourself while programming that will make it meaningful and effective.

What do I want my students to learn?
Why does it matter?
What evidence will I collect to demonstrate their learning?
What am I going to get them to do?
How will I differentiate the learning so all students can achieve at their level?

These questions are vital and should always form the basis of your program along with the syllabus outcomes. Make sure the focus is not just on the content being taught but also the skills for the students to become lifelong learners.

After looking at the syllabus for the outcomes that need to covered there are a few other aspects to consider:

Try to program around your own and your students’ passions/interests. This will ensure the students are engaged and willing to participate in the learning. Try things like incorporating football scores or ladders during Maths lessons or a love of cooking into literacy lessons;
When programming it is important to focus on an outcomes-based yet student-directed approach. Let the students guide their own learning. This will encourage self-regulation and enquiry-based research into your classroom;
Only program around a few quality up to date resources. We could spend our whole lives as teachers searching the internet for the perfect resource or idea. Find a few websites that you trust and can always use and start with those. There is no point reinventing the wheel each time;
Always incorporate assessment and work backwards – start with the end in mind. Decide based on the syllabus what is the expected end point. What will it look like? How will students demonstrate their understanding? Then work backwards from there and scaffold the students each step through the unit of work so they have the possibility of reaching that end point and maybe a few small assessments along the way;
Plan time to allow for self/peer/teacher feedback. We as teachers know the value of feedback for students. Ensure through your programming that there is enough time to facilitate the various types of feedback and that it becomes a valuable part of all lessons;
Sequence lessons and units of work around your timetable and term planner. We all know that throughout any day or week at school there are likely to be various interruptions. Try and program around events that you know about in advance like sporting carnivals, assemblies and excursions. this will ensure you are not rushing at the end and your students will be able to achieve their goals;
Your program is an important communication tool. It should be able to be picked up by anyone and understood. You never know when someone is going to have to take over from you and they need to know what has been covered and where the class are up to;
Programming relates to Standard 3 within the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers. This means that we all need to, as professionals, write and implement quality teaching and learning programs to ensure all our students’ needs are being met;

Programming is an important aspect of teaching and one that does get easier over time but just remember that you are writing a program to make your life easier – not harder.

Kathryn Bellach is an Assistant Principal at Guildford West PS. She has been a Teacher Mentor and a presenter at many teacher training courses including those for the Centre for Professional Learning.

Assessing Assessment K-10

Jenny Williams guides us through the elements of wise assessment practice for all teachers K-10 …

Assessing Assessment K-10

NSW Syllabus for the Australian Curriculum, English K-10, page 181.

This might sound sad but I love the assessment section of our new syllabus documents! The graphic in each of the syllabuses is easy to read and understand and clearly draws our attention to three critical aspects of assessment.

Assessment for learning and assessment of learning we have known about for a long time and assessment as learning helps us connect the learner to the learning process and addresses those aspects of learning that are so significant for 21^st century learners.

However let me share a couple of overheard scenarios that have made me pause these last few weeks:

Scenario 1:

A teacher mentor working with a beginning teacher on a stage three class asked about assessment for learning completed at the start of the year. The beginning teacher handed over a class list with a number beside each student’s name. All the students have been ‘tested’ on two standardised tests, by someone else, not the class teacher and the two numbers were added together in order to rank the class.

I admit that I struggled with statistics at university but even I am questioning the validity of using two very old, unrelated standardised tests and adding the numbers together. I am sure that is statistically invalid and I am not even asking about copyright issues or the usefulness of the assessment done by someone other than the class teacher.

Scenario 2:

A group of teachers from stage two met with their supervisor to look at a baseline piece of writing every student had completed at the beginning of the year. The teachers had used a rubric, downloaded from somewhere and assessed each student against the rubric. The rubric took an entire A4 page and had five grades and seven criteria. The criteria had not been given to students before the task. The supervisor wondered what the wording meant that differentiated between a 4 or a 5 on one criteria. The teachers remarked that they didn’t understand the difference … but they had all used it to assess their classes.

I am sure these are isolated incidents that are not typical of most schools but it has led me to think that now might be a good time to take an audit of the assessment tools used across a school. The BOSTES Advice on Assessment is an easy read and provides a great guide against which to judge the usefulness of our assessment tools. Start with a simple checklist drawn from the BOSTES advice. Here is an example.

1. Checklist for assessment tasks
Part of whole school approach Reflects purpose: Assessment for learning Assessment as learning Assessment of learning



Links to syllabus outcomes that have been taught
Includes criteria so students understand what is being assessed
Enables all students to demonstrate learning and is fair
Time efficient, manageable and informs future teaching
Values teacher judgement

Engaging in a whole school discussion around what assessment should look like is a worthwhile starting place. Next, designing assessments to address other aspects of assessment can become the challenge.

2. Checklist for assessment tasks
Promotes deep understanding of what has been taught
Engages the learner
Provides a measure of choice and openness
Includes opportunities for teacher/peer feedback
Includes student reflection on learning
Addresses a range of outcomes in one task
Provides an opportunity for critical thinking activities
Allows for connections to be made between the concepts students have learnt and real life

I am positive that worthwhile discussion will result from this exercise at a grade, stage and whole school level. Such discussion will ensure a deeper understanding of effective assessment across a whole school.

References:

BOSTES, English Years K–10: Support materials on Programming

BOSTES, English Years K–10, Advice on Assessment

Jenny Williams has extensive experience teaching in public schools, including at senior levels, and now works training teachers at the Centre for Professional Learning and as part of the team at trioprofessional. Jenny can be contacted at trioprofessionallearning.com.au

Programming: Keeping it Simple and Useful

Judy King provides the essence of straightforward and purposeful programming …

Teachers in NSW teachers are fortunate to have access to detailed syllabuses for both the K-6 and the 7-12 curriculums.

Teachers and curriculum leaders in schools design effective teaching and learning programs which are stage appropriate, based on knowledge and skills outcomes from the relevant syllabus documents.

A good teaching program should be realistic and achievable in the timeframe determined by the school and the school timetable. There is no expectation that every dot point of every outcome in the syllabus documents will be taught in detail or included in all teaching programs.

The teaching and learning programs should include:

selected syllabus outcomes including knowledge and understanding and skills achievable in an allocated time for a set number of lessons;
outcomes which are ideally the same as those listed in your half-yearly and yearly reports;
scope and sequence statements clearly listing each unit of work in the program (for the year or stage);
an assessment overview;
an evidence of learning column– “product” of students’ work to be assessed, formally or informally — product could include, for example, a metalwork project, research, a report, a class test, questions answered from various sources, a performance, a collage, a poster, detailed design folio, a constructed garment, whatever is realistic and achievable in the timeframe and related to what was taught;
essential vocabulary/concepts to be taught as part of the unit.

Computer-generated program grids such as Program Builder from BOSTES include several more program elements, but use your professional judgement to determine if more sections are essential.

As you design the curriculum to suit the learning needs and aspirations of our students perhaps keep a few key questions in mind:

Will more and more detail add value to your teaching and learning map for the time allocated ?
Do I really need 47 pages (many of them simply downloaded straight from very dense syllabus documents) to outline a unit of work for term 2 year 10 English which has 25 x 80 min lessons in 10 weeks ?
Or can that same unit of work be outlined quite clearly in 4 pages?
Do we really need to list every single teaching/learning activity in each lesson in the program or should they be listed in our day books or teacher’s learning logs/ chronicles?
Do we need to state long lists of syllabus outcomes (usually accompanied by piles of numbers and decimal points) on every page of the program?

There seems to be some confusion about the most recent NSW syllabus documents which incorporate the Australian National Curriculum frameworks and list seven General Capabilities and three Cross- Curriculum Priorities. There is no expectation that each of these would be included specifically in every unit of work completed in any given year or stage in each subject or learning area. All students would be exposed to the Capabilities and Priorities throughout the total years of schooling for K-6 and 7-12. The learning across the curriculum icons should be included where appropriate and not artificially inserted at every turn.

The Preliminary and HSC syllabuses specify in detail what is required for the HSC assessment regime and for the HSC exams. There is far less room for flexibility or interpretation but there certainly is in the K-10 curriculum and teachers and curriculum leaders are best placed to respond to the learning needs and aspirations of their students and plan accordingly.

Judy King has been a classroom teacher, a teacher educator at Macquarie University, a school principal and a History Inspector at the Board of Studies.

Becoming a Better Teacher

Jane Sherlock suggests some practical steps that all teachers might find useful …

We all have memories of our own school days and inspiring teachers. It may have been one of those teachers who provided you with the motivation and model to become a teacher.

We should not underestimate the role, importance and significance of great teachers in our lives and in our society. While passion for teaching cannot be learnt there are other skills and knowledge which can be developed and shared to improve our own classroom landscape and management.

Who remembers a great teacher from school?

There has been some interesting research which reveals the attributes of effective teaching. Experts like Steve Dinham and Wayne Sawyer have identified key characteristics of effective teachers and you will not necessarily be surprised what that reveals:

• They know their subject;
• They are passionate about what they teach;
• They have an extensive repertoire of teaching and learning strategies;
• They respect and like students;
• They have a good sense of humour;
• They work hard;
• They are flexible and fair;
• They work as part of a team.

What is interesting is that when you survey students about what they prefer you find a fascinating correlation. They want:

• Teachers who respect them;
• Teachers who are friendly, approachable and willing to listen;
• Teachers who encourage them and help them to succeed;
• Teachers who are knowledgeable in their teaching areas;
• Lessons delivered with knowledge, interest and organisation;
• Classroom management that is effective and genuine.

So how do we ensure that we are in this category where students will remember us and indeed be inspired to pursue the thrill and joys of learning?

It is important to consider what is effective teaching.

The gauge of effectiveness is when our lessons are successful, worthwhile, valuable, productive, constructive, and indeed we produce the desired or intended result. So ask yourself what is your intended result at the end of each unit and indeed in each lesson? This can be a powerful lens to reflect on our lessons, units of work and relationships with our students.

It is essential that we know what we want to achieve, how we are going to do that and above all, why do we want our students involved in this learning.
If we engage our students there will not only be fewer classroom management challenges but there will be better and more effective teaching happening. We need to engage through our lesson’s content, the range of teaching strategies and resources we use and understanding how we can develop our students’ skills to ensure they can be transferred to non-school environments. If students want to learn and can learn in your classroom this is the first step to successful classroom management where we create a positive learning environment where everything is accessible and transparent.

Above all we want our students to feel valued as students of your teaching and as future citizens and life-long learners.

Let’s not lose sight of the genuine and at times overwhelming challenges of day to day teaching. These range from the number of classes we might have in one day, the size of the class, teaching across varied KLAs, promises of help, too many rooms, the school culture, technology failing, lack of time, disengaged children, keeping up with the administrative tasks and having a life beyond school.

Let’s consider some of the ways we can achieve this …

The three key factors are what you do before you go into the classroom, what you do in the classroom and what happens after.

Organisation, structure and order are not everyone’s natural state but they will help you stay sane and healthy. Above all, students like to think their teacher knows what is going on — they will forgive idiosyncrasies only for a short time and if your lack of organisation impacts on them, your authority will be diminished.

It is important to have your own plan aside from the school calendar and faculty or stage schedule

Consider where you are going for the year. Then look at the semester, the term, the week, the day, the lesson.

This sounds really simple. A plan and an overview will increase your enjoyment of the job, will engage your students and we all know that means fewer classroom management issues. This could be the difference between a great day and let’s find another job! It will also ensure more genuine learning in your classroom. You need to plan every lesson and be organised. Also, you need to plan when you are not in the classroom so that your time just doesn’t disappear and it is another long night or working weekend.

Electronic calendars are valuable but I recommend a wall calendar such as the free one from the Teachers Mutual Bank — a copy in your classroom and one in the staffroom. As soon as you receive the first dates for the next school year insert as many key dates as possible — reports due, athletics carnival, parent interviews, assessment dates. Also include significant personal dates from your own life. Check the calendar before you set tasks for students to submit.

Give yourself a clear run of time so that you don’t have a major class task at the same time as a half yearly exam to mark or an assessment task or stage programs to register when you had planned your birthday celebration. A visual representation of the term and the year will help students see what is ahead.
You will have more control and less stress if you plan. It will also help you to return student work promptly which is a benefit for students and for yourself.

A day book is critical and while some schools and faculties are going paperless, there will always be a place for a day book or chronicle. It is the incidental elements in a teacher’s hectic working life that an electronic system does not capture so well: the quick notes to self, a passing observation of a child who has not had their book for the past week, a few words of praise for some previously recalcitrant students, a reminder what to be doing in your RFF.

One of the critical factors which has a direct correlation to student engagement is our own unit of work tailored to the needs and interests of our own class.

The quality of your units will shape the quality of your lessons which in turn will lead to greater engagement and more effective teaching and thus improved outcomes for your students and you. Students deserve a lesson you would want to have had yourself or want your own child to have.

In the busyness of school the practicalities of what to teach and how to teach often take priority but it is very important not to forget why you are teaching something.

Before designing a unit you need to ask:

• Why is this important?
• Why are we doing this?

This then helps us consider our own beliefs about learning and teaching and what we think are the nature and purpose of our subject in the school curriculum. This will in turn enhance students’ capacity as life-long learners and as creative and confident thinkers.

Engagement is all about being interested and feeling competent and confident, the very preconditions of mastery and achievement.

Before embarking on creating your unit of work consider these two questions:

• What do you want your students to learn, gain, understand or realize throughout this unit and by its end?
• What do your students need to learn, gain, understand or realise throughout this unit and by its end?

Can you see the difference? Once you have decided what your intention and purpose is write a short paragraph or dot points which could become the unit’s focus for the class as introductory notes or a chart or homepage to an electronic document. Revisit this intention throughout the unit and check for mid-point understanding and progress and then reinforce and reward.

Ask yourself:

1. Is this unit culminating in a significant assessment task where specific skills, knowledge or concepts will be assessed?

2. Is this unit a building block to future units in future years or stages?

3. Is this unit part of the school’s assessment and reporting process and will it impact on a student’s class placement or progress report?

Allocate time to the structure and length of each unit. How many lessons in the unit? How many hours in a week? How many weeks? What other school events are scheduled at this time? Where do you want to be by end of week 1, 3, 5?

Be realistic in your planning. Don’t be too ambitious but have high expectations. Within the unit incorporate a range of teaching and learning strategies and a range of student tasks with choices as well as different ways into the content and skills. Deploying variety and surprise to tap into student curiosity is effective. Try to achieve something tangible each lesson. Each lesson should be an entity on its own but part of the wider unit.

Design lessons which deliver the syllabus, suit your class’s interests and their ability levels. Be sure that you are aware of the literacy levels of your students so that you do not lose them because they cannot cope with the demands of the reading or the instructions.

Think of the different paths to the same destination — a quiz, mindmap, review, narrative, analytical critical response, newspaper article, imaginative re-creation, visual representation. Mixing up our lesson structures provides for variety and will address different learning styles. Be sure to recap to the unit’s intention and if there is a significant end point task be mindful of including strategies and processes to ensure your students are prepared and confident for this task.

The content and skills within the formal assessment tasks should not be a surprise (nor a shock) and if you embed them in the unit students will feel comfortable and confident. Have you incorporated a range of resources to tap into the diversity and interests of the children in your class? Is there too much? Have you considered the Quality Teaching program in lessons? Have you embedded opportunities and skills for ICT?

In creating your units consider how you will help your students make connections with the content and the skills of the unit and their own wider world. Connection and significance are keys to engagement.

Research in this area reveals that teachers contributed markedly to student achievement when they:

• incorporated student perspectives into instruction;

• promoted autonomy and responsibility;

• provided instructional opportunities to support higher level thinking;

• applied instruction to real-life applications.

Think about the significance of literature. Human behaviour does not change very much and books and plays and poems and stories give us a window into our behaviour as well as other places and other times. Geography and Science and Mathematics help us understand how the world works. History is vital in helping us to understand why we acted as we did at a particular time and how those actions have impacted on the present and the future. The Arts help us to make sense of ourselves as humans along with our emotions and passions; what gives us pleasure and helps us to make sense of the world in a different way. Practical subjects are always embedded in significance — their project. We often find disengaged students find genuine interest and engagement in the practical subjects.

We so often start our unit with a bang and end with a whimper!

Think about the ending of your unit like a good story or film. It should be satisfying, clear and resolve the key questions. Leave time to link the end of the unit to the beginning. Has there been progress/achievement/enlightenment/ learning? Consider student reflection: Until we looked at WW1, I had no idea…or This reading session today has shown me… or The maths we did today helped to …

Back to the syllabus

Our syllabus is a significant document and we need to consult it in our unit writing to refresh and remind ourselves of content and skills. Do you have your own hard copy of each syllabus you need? A virtual copy is invaluable for cutting and pasting outcomes and content but a quick reference needs a hard copy.

Effective teaching is about what you do in the classroom

Consider the link between effective teaching, engaged students and classroom management? Is it about control? Having power over our students?

Effective teaching is very much about the rigour of our lessons and the relationships we have with our students.

How do your lessons enable as many students as possible learn and achieve? Are you building their capacity and their independence as learners?

Each lesson needs a clear structure and like that good book or film it needs a clear exposition that establishes the direction for the rest of the lesson. The opening of a lesson has a huge impact on the success of the rest of the lesson in classroom management and effective teaching. If your school requires a roll to be marked think about doing that once the class is on task. Have an agenda for the lesson in a public space and consult that agenda not only for your own organisation and pace and for students to see the direction.

It is valuable to have a task for students to do as soon as they arrive. It might be a recap to the previous lesson, a mindmap, a reflection or a short quiz. Be sure to have resources for previously absent students so that you reduce their opportunities to undermine your lesson. Have a folder of task sheets or samples from previous lessons for absentees so that they do not take control of the lesson. Give them a task and tell them you will help them in a few moments and suggest to them how they can catch up via Edmodo, Moodle, folder of tasks or information sheets. This may not be as appropriate for very young children.

Consider the pace and the progress of the lesson midway and later consider if you had a strong and clear ending or did the lesson just suddenly finish because the time was up?

Be sure to build a classroom culture of mutual respect and positive interaction

Thank students both privately and publicly for their contribution, attitude and involvement. It is important that your students know that you have high expectations and that positive behaviour is the culture of your classroom; that praise, reinforcement and celebrating achievement are common features of your classroom regardless of the age and the ability levels of the students.

Don’t wait for the assessment task or test before you reward success. Consider
acknowledging progress or understanding along the path. Share your students’ success with other students, teachers, parents and the wider community.

Scaffolding for end point tasks is crucial and is part of the culture of assessment as learning. There should not be secret teachers’ business or secret markers’ methods. Transparency and consistency should be your mantra. Share with your students ways on how best to succeed. Share the end point task. If you are in practical subjects you can display past projects or if it is an assessment show previous samples. It is like your favourite recipe book — you want your dish to look just like the pictures on your journey to creating it.

Build relationships with your students by being supportive and creating a positive classroom climate. Choose resources to suit your class’s interests and consider a range of resources for variety and also for engagement. Use narrative to engage and illustrate and have a repertoire of management techniques when the wheels fall off. Have plenty of material for every lesson and be prepared to dump what you are doing and move on and mix up the lesson. Expect your students to write frequently but do not feel you must read and correct everything they do. Instead, decide what you are looking for in a specific piece that you could collect and mark so that both you and the students know what you are looking for. Mark their work promptly and return with feedback, awards and positive reinforcement. Collecting work early and often gives you valuable insight to the child’s skills.

Consider the difference between note-taking and note-making and assist students with these skills and be sure to check those notes for progress and clarity. If using Edmodo and Moodle and blogs encourage contribution.

Be sure that your students belong to your classroom. Understanding, acceptance, relationships and connections within the classroom are important in building a positive classroom culture. Know your students and what their interests are and how you can tap into these interests to make connections as they learn. Show interest in a student as a person and try to be positive about some feature of them. Talk to them alone and be genuine in your concern and interest. You are not their friend but be friendly. Smile. Avoid sarcasm. Avoid shouting.

The key is to know the person behind the student. A student presenting with no equipment, books or uniform could be just the tip of many issues. You might be the only one who has provided them with a pen. Or a smile. Indeed, welfare and learning are not separate but part of the whole package so seek help or information from the range of people in your school on the welfare team. Ring home with a genuine interest before the problems escalate.

What you do after the lesson will contribute to effective teaching

Honest reflection of your lessons and sharing successes and failures with your colleagues are important. Seek advice and ideas from your colleagues. Consider the type of feedback you will give to your students at the next lesson.

What counts in my lessons? Do I accomplish what I set out to teach? How do I know? Is it evidenced in the talk of the classroom?

Do I use assessment information to guide my practice? Do I plan for learning opportunities where the purposes for the learning are clear and well-defined?
How do I introduce the main learning goals of the lesson? Is the new learning made explicit? Do I share with students the specific nature of the task, the rationale for learning and its value to their learning?

Do my students “get it”?

Finally:

You cannot control the wider, rigid school environment like bell times, lesson length, assessment schedules, playground duty but you can control what happens in your own classroom. Personalise your classroom environment with your tone, energy and personality. Have some fun, vary the routine.
Vary your lunchtime routine. Seek out some different colleagues or locations, go for a walk, find a quiet place and read or listen to the radio or your favourite music on your iPod. Beware of low -level burnout before it intensifies. Otherwise you lose enthusiasm, energy and fulfillment. Enjoy this wonderful profession.

You can make a world of difference

Jane Sherlock is a highly experienced and enthusiastic teacher having previously been English Head Teacher at Kiama HS. Jane is also a widely published author, a presenter for the Centre for Professional Learning and is project officer for HSC Student Days for the NSW English Teachers’ Association. In 2009, Jane was awarded the Australian College of Educators’ Award for her services to education.

Fads and Miracle Cures in Education

Carly-Jane Boreland delves into some of the most recent fashions in education and wonders if …

Have we got a deal for you!

Early in their career and perhaps for every year thereafter, teachers will be presented with fads, miracle cures and the latest trends in educational fashion. As workers of the intellect, teachers can find this bewildering and occasionally professionally insulting. So how can we distinguish between the substantial and the cosmetic?

A good starting point is the NSWDEC Centre for Education Statistics and Evaluation’s document ‘Great Teaching Inspired Learning: What does the evidence tell us about effective teaching?’(2013). This article suggests a way that might free educators from some of the seemingly immovable and competing demands upon their time. Through an approach placing current, valid and relevant bodies of research at the centre of professional learning, it aims to assist teachers to better identify fads and educational fashion and consider contemporary key findings about planning and programming for effective teaching. Some practical suggestions for what this might look like in a classroom are also included.

Pedagogy is both the art and science of teaching

We do know, now more than ever before, what makes a good school, what effective teaching looks like and what many effective teachers do. However, the discipline of education research is not without challenge due to the complexity of factors at play in the course of any child’s education. Further, randomised trials and controls are difficult, as educators do not withhold promising interventions from groups of students. The consequences of these difficulties, described by the DEC (2013), is that ‘often, descriptive or anecdotal accounts of practice have been accorded the same status as more rigorous methodologies, meaning that the important distinction between correlation and cause is lost.’ In NSW, an unsophisticated understanding of the science and evidence base, coupled with a propensity towards craft based ideas, and tendentious ideological intervention into teaching, has meant that

“…even research that appears to be rigorous, data-based, and comprehensive, can be subject to criticism and contention, not always in ways that clarify the topic. As a result, the base that does exist has not always made a significant impact on classroom context. Conversely, spurious theories have sometimes attained faddish status with the result that the research literature includes ‘recurrent findings of inadvertent harm’ – evidence that ‘it is possible for teachers – well-intentioned, caring and experienced – to unknowingly have impacts on students that are the direct reverse of what they intended (DEC, 2013).”

What follows are a few suggestions as to how to analyse ideas placed before you throughout your career as teacher:

Questions to ask about research

1. Is evidence presented in a transparent way to inform teachers’ decision making, or, has it been appropriated for political, organisational, or other purposes?

2. Are the researcher/publication/organisation’s qualifications known and trusted and relevant to the field of public education?

3. Is there adequate information to inform decisions about the evidence base, methods, validity, currency and relevance of the research base and the researcher’s conclusions?

4. Is a single study set against other overwhelming evidence being presented?

5. Is the size and nature of sample(s) comparable? For example, what is the school type, location, age of students, number and nature of students/teachers?

Some Terminology

1. Empirical (based on observation and experiment);

2. Meta-analysis (combination of many trial results eg. 800 empirical studies);

3. Qualitative (descriptive, holistic, anecdotal);

4. Quantitative (numerical and statistical analysis);

5. Coding methods (categories for data gathering and analysis).

The current evidence base

The research base for practices and other attributes of effective teachers is strongest. The research base for measures of teacher quality is weakest. There is overwhelming agreement about which practices are effective. In the early stages of a teacher’s career (and beyond) it is wisest to plan and program for:

• Monitoring and Feedback;

• Strong Subject Knowledge;

• Explicit Teaching Techniques.

Planning and Programming for Manageable Monitoring and Feedback

Timperley (2009) points out that many teachers have been trained to use data to label and categorise students, and that a shift is required in order for teachers to use data to guide and direct students, and to reflect upon the effectiveness of their teaching. Such practices might include:

• Establish a method to record qualitative and quantitative data about students;

• Read and comment on student work during engaging independent tasks or oral presentations, focus on a small number of students each lesson if necessary;

• Check, initial and discuss completed work 5 minutes before the end of a lesson;

• Plan a lesson on peer, self and teacher feedback following each assessment task;

• Make time to formally grade assessment and work samples with colleagues and share these with students.

Planning and Programming for Strong Subject Knowledge

Alton-Lee’s synthesis of 72 studies, which analyses the link between professional development and its impact on student outcomes, found that the greatest benefits to student learning were from professional development programs ‘that deepen teachers’ foundation of curricular-specific pedagogical content and assessment knowledge’ because they ‘provided teachers with new theoretical understanding that helped them make informed decisions about their practice’.

• Program to include your passions, interests and expertise;

• Subscribe to subject specific publications such as subject associations, newspapers, journals, e-newsletters;

• Apply for 3-4 subject specific professional learning courses at the beginning of the year;

• Set realistic annual goals for expanding your subject knowledge for each topic you teach, for instance, read one book/chapter/article (not school textbooks), watch a documentary, visit a gallery/site/exhibition/performance.

Planning and Programming for Explicit Teaching Techniques

When dealing with novel information, learners should be explicitly shown what to do and how to do it… [Hattie’s meta-analysis of 800 studies describes explicit teaching techniques:] The teacher decides the learning intentions and success criteria, makes them transparent to the students, demonstrates them by modeling, evaluates if they understand what they have been told by checking for understanding, and retelling them what they have told by tying it all together with closure.

• Plan for finished products the student is proud of each week;

• Skill development, high-order questioning and conceptual understanding in lessons and drill and practise at home;

• Teach the specific skills required for success in a task;

• Modify examples of student work in front of the class;

• Work with colleagues to find and share work samples;

• Save samples to show students what is possible early in a task or assessment;

• Value sharing and perfecting impressive sentences in class and talk about what makes the sentence impressive.

The Big Picture

If you teach in a NSW Public School you are one of over 60,000 educators. We do know, now more than ever before, what makes a good school, what effective teaching often looks like and what many effective teachers do. You also have the opportunity in our system to look beyond your school to find other good practitioners and advice around planning, programming and research.

Carly-Jane Boreland has been a classroom teacher and Head Teacher in NSW government schools. Carly sits on the Quality Teaching Council and the Initial Teacher Education Committee of the BOSTES.

Bibliography and Reading List

Alton-Lee A 2011, ‘(Using) evidence for educational improvement’, Cambridge Journal of Education 41
Black P and Wiliam D 1989, ‘Inside the Black Box: Raising standards through classroom assessment’, Phi Delta Kappa 80
Hattie J and Timperley H 2007, ‘The Power of Feedback’, Review of Educational Research 77
Hattie J 2009, Visible Learning: A synthesis of over 800 meta analyses relating to achievement, Oxon, UK
Ingvarson L and Rowe K 2008, ‘Conceptualising and Evaluating Teacher Quality: Substantive and methodological issues’, Australian Journal of Education 52
Kirshner P, Sweller J and Clarke R 2006, ‘Why Minimal Guidance During Instruction Does Not Work: An analysis of the failure of constructivist, discovery, problem-based, experiential, and enquiry-based teaching’ Educational Psychologist 41
NSWDEC Centre for Education Statistics and Evaluation 2013, ‘Great Teaching Inspired Learning: What does the evidence tell us about effective teaching?’
Strong J 2010, ‘Evaluating What Good Teachers Do: Eight research based standards for assessing excellence’, Eye on Education
Timperley H 2009, ‘Using Assessment Data for Improving Teaching Practice’, Paper Presented at the Australian Council for Educational Research Conference, 16-18 August

Lesson observations in NSW schools

My UK experience

Action research project

Conclusions

My favourite teachers

What’s in a Standard?

Becoming a teacher

Better together

Tips for your accreditation

What does good assessment entail?

Take home message

Why did I come here?

Take home message

Question 27 is fantastic!

Take home message

Assessment is more than examination

Final thoughts

Make it personal

Cut transition problems

Plan to make a note

Know your school

1. Congratulations! Teaching students with disability is a life changing opportunity

2. Personalisation: Your student is the starting point, the path and the destination

3. Early investment and meaningful planning pays off

4. Genuine collaboration and positive relationships are vital

5. You are not alone: accessing expertise, resources and services

6. Customise instruction, aim high and celebrate often

7. Rights and responsibilities: Understanding, protecting and actioning their purpose

8. Take stock of your views and practice: Education, disability and your role

Scenario 1:

Scenario 2:

Who remembers a great teacher from school?

Let’s consider some of the ways we can achieve this …

It is important to have your own plan aside from the school calendar and faculty or stage schedule

We so often start our unit with a bang and end with a whimper!

Back to the syllabus

Effective teaching is about what you do in the classroom

Be sure to build a classroom culture of mutual respect and positive interaction

What you do after the lesson will contribute to effective teaching

Have we got a deal for you!

Pedagogy is both the art and science of teaching

Questions to ask about research

Some Terminology

The current evidence base

Planning and Programming for Manageable Monitoring and Feedback

Planning and Programming for Strong Subject Knowledge

Planning and Programming for Explicit Teaching Techniques

The Big Picture

Bibliography and Reading List

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