Mindlab Week 17 - My Reflective Practice

With my current reflective practice I find myself critically reflecting by note take and conversing with colleagues. As the team leader, I often have opportunities to investigate their practice with a more critical eye to ensure that they are meeting the school’s expectations and to encouraging them use the “Teaching as Inquiry” model. During my journey into Mindlab, I have gleaned information from research to make evidence-based decisions on my own practice.

I feel that my reflections have been very haphazard and I am not doing myself any favours. I know that I am inquiring into my practice with colleagues and have thought about ‘how’ and ’why’ to making learning more responsive for my learners. My plans often change daily and usually to the cues come from what the children are inquiring into. But the recording of my thinking is not always evident.

What have I learnt? In light of the research, by creating a reflective journal (Larrivee (2000) as part of the Mindlab requirement will ensure time is set aside for deep and regular reflection. I am looking forward for this being a way for me to be more critical of my own practice by analysing the good, bad and the ugly of what is happening in the classroom, for me and my learners. I am beginning to understand how a reflective journal is an important evaluative learning tool as a learner and as a professional. By making regular time to reflect, it will become habit forming as well so that as time moves on I will not find reflective writing a ’chore’ but a ‘way of being’.

Where to next? – the Zeichner and Liston’s Five Levels of Reflection (1996) have given me food for thought on how I need to take my reflection to the next level. I need to be more systematic and sustain my thoughts over time. This will be more achievable as I begin my TAI, where I can put into practice research, re- theorizing and reformulating my ideas and that of others, be they academics or colleagues.

To enhance the quality of my reflective practice, I will be using a model similar to the 3 steps of reflection ( Jay and Johnson’s 2002 reflective model) to help structure my reflective journal entries. The questions I will asking myself are: What have I learnt? Where to next? What am I uneasy about?

What am I uneasy about? The things that are making me feel uneasy are, how will I find time to make my reflective journal thorough that shows enough depth and complexity to what I am trying to achieve as I am not a ‘wordsmith’ and find recording a challenge. What sort of comments will I receive? I am hoping they will question my practice, but can I cope with that. When commenting on other’s reflections, will I be able to give them feed forward that will assist them to go beyond what they are currently doing, or will I discourage them to share.

So here we go...

References

Finlay, L. (2009). Reflecting on reflective practice. Practice-based Professional Learning Centre, Open University. Retrieved from http://www.open.ac.uk/opencetl/sites/www.open.ac.uk.opencetl/files/files/ecms/web-content/Finlay-(2008)-Reflecting-on-reflective-practice-PBPL-paper-52.pdf

Jay, J.K. and Johnson, K.L. (2002). Capturing complexity: a typology of reflective practice for teacher education. Teaching and Teacher Education, 18, 73-85.

Larrivee, B. (2000).Transforming teaching practice: becoming the critically reflective teacher. Reflective Practice, 1(3), 293-307

Zeichner, K. M., & Liston, D. P. (1996). Reflective teaching: An Introduction. Makwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Inc. Publishes, New Jersey

Using iPads and digital technology

Today I decided to start work on using my 'green' screen to make headers for the children's published writing wall. I thought that it would be a great idea to use the iPad as a 'carrot' to get the children to complete their work on time. The task was to copy a piece of modelled writing into their new books, use their best handwriting, first onto a piece of refill then once approved into their books.

There were 3 distinctive outcomes:

1. Self managing children had no trouble finishing their work and were able to verbalise how they were to get their pen licence. 2 children who have learning difficulties were supported with help from the Teacher Aide and therefore were able to get their work completed.
2. Most children needed to be refocussed to get their work completed within the set timeframe but were unable to have time to use the iPads
3. A number of children still need to transfer the writing into their books to complete the task.

What have I learnt?

That my laggards need loads of support, I need to work on their self belief and how they feel about their learning. 

Where to next?
Loads of praise when they done get what they are s'pose to get done. Maybe buddy them up with another more capable child in the class so that they feel they can achieve.

What am I uneasy about?

That my more-capable children will feel like that they are always supporting those who can't.