JB Secondary College

Background Information

JB Secondary College is a new Independent Public School that opened at the start of 2015
school. The school is located in the suburb Banksia Grove, approximately 27 km from the
Perth CBD. The school accepted students into Years 7 and 8 in February 2015 and a further
intake of Year 9 students from 2016, catering for Years 10 to 12 by 2019.

The vision of the school is to create a vibrant culture of excellence, opportunity and success
for students and staff. The focus is on quality teaching and provision of the widest range of
opportunities for individual achievement and learning success. The goal is to develop the
school as a centre for best practice in teacher development and student attainment through
professional conversation and shared practice.

The aim is to provide students with multiple opportunities to excel throughout their
secondary education, with access to quality programs, both within the curriculum and extra
curricular. The programs range from support initiatives through to extension and challenge
for students who are academically talented. There are sporting programs to cater for student
interest along with a strong focus on the creative and performing arts.

The schools vision is based on discovery through learning, and a school focussed on
specialist programs like science and mathematics is appropriate. Learning at JB Secondary
College will be adventurous. Teachers will find ways to ignite curiosity; all the while
challenging students to exceed expectations, and everyone will practice education for life.
Student population:

Total Secondary
Male 603 Y07

Female 486 Y08

Y09
Total 1089
Y10
Y11
Y12
USE
Total
Full Time
336
267
258
228

1089

Ethnic mix

Indigenous students 3%

Language background other than English 12%

Staff ratio:

Administration No FTE ABL

Staff
Principals 1 1.0 0
Vice Principals 1 1.0 0
Deputy Principals 3 3.0 0
Program Coordinators 7 7.0 0
Total Administration Staff 12 12.0 0

Teaching Staff
Level 3 Teachers 4 3.1 0
Other Teaching 63 61.7 0
Staff
Total Teaching Staff 67 64.8 0
School Support Staff
Clerical / Administrative 14 12.3 0
Gardening / 2 2.0 0
Maintenance
Instructional 1 1.0 1
Other Non-Teaching Staff 15 13.2 0
Total School Support Staff 32 28.5 1

Total 111 105.3 1

Teaching Philosophy

My philosophy for effective teaching and learning is to encourage independent and creative
learning through the innovative teaching. Willing to take a risk to encourage and entice
effective learning.

Firstly, and probably the most important part of teaching is planning for success by setting
clear and concise learning objectives is paramount in producing an effective learning
environment, having transparent goals for the students to aim for and know where their
learning journey taking them.

Secondly, pupil engagement and inclusion. The basis for effective learning during a lesson is
pupil engagement and motivation. An effective teacher who initiates effective learning will
be able to engage the students at the earliest opportunity and then sustain this level of
engagement for the duration of the lesson. For example, making use of a starter task at the
beginning of a lesson sets this precedence and should be used to capture pupils interest
and motivate them (Kennewell, et al. 2003). I like to use the starter activity to induce a class
discussion which I believe adds huge value to the students learning process.

I firmly believe in the 4 part lesson structure. This consists of a starter activity, introduction,
main activity and concluding with a plenary (Capel, et al. 2009). The introduction should be
used to set clear learning objectives. It should provide students with an overview of what
they are going to learn and what will be expected of them in the lesson. The main activity is
where the students will apply what they have learned. This will be structured to build upon
existing knowledge with new ideas that can be applied, tested and evaluated during the
task. This can take many forms such as individual tasks like a work-sheet or group work such
as presentations. The plenary allows the teacher to review what pupils have learned from
the work (Kennewell, et al. 2007). It allows students to reflect, review and consolidate
what has been learned (Kennewell, et al. 2003).

Thirdly, assessment for learning which has been defined as any assessment for which the
first priority is to serve the purpose of promoting students learning (Black et al. 2003:2).
This assessment strategy can therefore be used to improve the learning outcomes of the
student and also to actively involve students in their own learning. If students are able to
see how their peers are completing similar tasks, then this will surely provide a positive
impact on students learning.

My philosophy also recognises that achieving effective teaching and learning is a continuous
process and will require me to consistently reflect on my use of these factors throughout my
training and teaching career.

References:

Black, P., Harrison, C., Lee, C., Marshall, B. and Wiliam, D. (2003), Assessment for Learning:
Putting it into Practice, Maidenhead: Open University Press.

Capel, S., Leask, M., and Turner, T. (2009), Learning to teach in the secondary school. London:
Routledge.

Kennewell, S., Parkinson, J., and Tanner, H. (2003), Learning to teach ICT in the secondary
school. London: Routledge

Kennewell, S., Connell, A., Edwards, A., Hammond, M., Wickens, C. (2007), A practical guide
to teaching ICT in secondary school. London: Routledge
Professional Standards:

Professional Knowledge

Standard 1 Know the students and how they learn

Discussion/Reflection

Reflecting on my practice I really tried to implement strategies at the start of the placement
to win over the students. I used welcoming at the door strategies and giving them
instructions throughout my placement before they entered the room. Starter activities were
either handed to them at the door or instructions were detailed on the board i.e. Say what
you see activity. I have regularly monitored students with learning difficulties and
supported regularly moved around using proximity and checking for student understanding.
As evidence from my mentor has shown (lesson feedbacks) students appear engaged with
the majority completing the work set. I have demonstrated knowledge and understanding
of physical, social, and intellectual development and characteristics of students and how
these may affect learning by building rapport and getting to know what really interests them
to increase engagement. I have also used IEPs and general student records to adjust where
necessary. I have also used different questioning techniques to enable students to access
lower and higher order thinking within class discussions.

In regard to how students learn, I have used both formative and summative assessment to
check for understanding levels of the students. I have also used data from the assessments
to help to frame learning activities that can be used to follow on from the summative
assessments. Having been a teacher in the UK I believe that my knowledge base regarding
assessment has enabled me to travel through the assessment tasks with confidence and I
have also shared this with my colleagues Perhaps a way for improvement going forward
would be to give students more attention who have the IEPs in the classroom by providing
more modification on top of what I have already done.

I have also worked on an attendance plan for one of the Aboriginal students and modified
tasks to suit the students interests. I have also taught indigenous culture in various lessons
especially around the Stolen Generations and civil rights movements in Australia. In regards
differentiation, I have worked closely with students with IEPs and considered, added, and
modified strategies. These have included creating differentiated levels of worksheets,
identifying different learning intention levels and providing support tools (red and green
help cards) in the class room to identify students who require assistance.

I have used seating plans and classroom helpers (students in class) to help students who
have physical disabilities in class. This has helped student engagement and participation in
classroom activities.

This practice has had limited opportunities for me to build on my previous practice
experience in dealing with students with diverse linguistic, cultural, religious and socio
economic backgrounds where I interacted and taught students from 57 countries and 53
languages and employed teaching strategies that indicated my knowledge of strategies
which are responsive to their learning needs.

Evidence:

SAO
Seating plan
Water cycle differentiated worksheets
Identified students list
Lesson plans
Evaluation reports

Standard 2 Know the content and how to teach it

Discussion/Reflection

This was the first experience of teaching the Australian Geography curriculum, and therefore
I felt a little concerned with my limited experience of this subject area. As the school had a
pre-agreed curriculum program and content, I always made sure that I had revised the
content before I taught it, in order to make sure I had a complete understanding. The
students required clarification regarding many geographical or historical concepts depending
on the age group. This was seen especially in the Year 10 Rights and Freedom topics in
particular the Aboriginal Freedom rides and the humanitarian and land rights issues of the
past in Australia. In the future I will look to improve this by producing summary information
sheets to share/make available at the end of the lesson. I also used Ambassador roles in the
classroom to help to elevate the amount of questions I would receive about what I had just
taught that a more able student could answer.

The basis for effective teaching and learning during a lesson is pupil engagement including
those with disabilities. An effective teacher will be able to engage the students at the
earliest opportunity and then sustain this level of engagement for the duration of the lesson.
Making use of a starter task at the beginning of a lesson sets this precedence and should be
used to capture pupils interest and motivate them (Kennewell, et al. 2003).

I have found that starter tasks have proved effective in grabbing the students attention and
engaging them in the lesson content in preparation for its delivery. I have used my prior
teaching experiences to use regular hooks ant the start of lessons and exit tickets at the
end of lessons to enable the students to recap previous content knowledge. I have used a
three part lesson structure to my lessons which really focuses on starter, main tasks, and
plenary, which has enabled me to keep track of timings throughout the lessons and focus
on pace and challenge in their learning. I have used pictures, diagrams, worksheets, say
what you see activities to focus students attention onto the lessons learning intentions and
success criteria.

I planned the Freedom and Rights Year 10 course, together with the Year 10 WWII Rise of
Evil course and designed new assessment activities, topic tests and source analysis
examinations. In preparation for this I marked previous work to gauge what the students
knew in order to create a summative assessment, which was both challenging, but
achievable. I also developed several pre and post tests for year students to determine
student progress. I have also created Quizizz online tests to engage students and test them
on prior learning, which has helped expand curriculum learning opportunities for these
students.
I have really enjoyed my experiences of teaching students about the various aboriginal and
non aboriginal perspectives of Australia Day. I have also taught several lessons on Rights and
Freedom issues that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have faced since the
invasion of Australia by the British. This has indeed led to very deep and meaningful
learning by the students, and sparked a real interest into original and post subject thoughts
on these issues.

Evidence:

SAO
WWII Scheme of Work/Programme of study
WWII Assessment Outline
CAB MAPS Source analysis concepts/templates
Lesson PowerPoints
Quizizz

Standard 3 - Plan for and implement effective teaching and learning

Discussion/Reflection

For effective learning arrangements should be made by the teacher to establish and
maintain an environment in which learning can therefore occur; for example, Duchesne
(2016) refers the following five areas when defining classroom management: Supportive and
caring relationships, organising instruction, group management, social skills and self-
regulation, interventions to manage classroom behaviours. Duchesne also identifies School
wide issues as being equally important when creating an effective learning environment, in
particular, managing conflict and bullying, and safe schools.

Therefore, classroom management I would consider to be the key factor to effective

teaching and learning. Focusing on pupil engagement, inclusion, planning, structure and
pace. The basis for effective learning during a lesson is pupil engagement and motivation. An
effective teacher who initiates effective learning will be able to engage the students at the
earliest opportunity and then sustain this level of engagement for the duration of the lessonI
felt that my planning for lessons was completed well. I always completed my lesson plans in
advance of the lesson and handed them in to my mentor. Using the whiteboard to detail the
learning intentions, has been the priority in relaying what the focus of the lesson is. I have
also used the strategy of not putting the learning intentions up and getting the students to
identify the learning intentions at different parts of the lesson. This again has worked well.

I always allowed for flexibility in the lesson structure to make sure I had more than enough
activities within the lesson and could chop and change depending on how engagement to
the activity was being received. By doing this I was able to improve the transitions in the
class.

I used strategies to promote student engagement and achievement, such as explicit

teaching, peer learning, collaborative learning, market place activities, the fishbone, think
pair share, placemat, round the table which gave students the opportunity to experience
different learning strategies. The students also used their Ipads to enhance the learning
experience. I have also used the Dice strategy which encourages students to recap on key
information in an interactive way. Potts dollars have also been created and used in the
classroom to incentivise students and to make sure the tasks are completed with pace and
the correct amount of detail in order to earn the Potts dollar

I have used both verbal and non-verbal techniques to remain effective and control the
classroom environment. I have used proximity, hands up, and just a look, to focus students
and make sure they remain on task. I have also used verbal techniques, such as reminding
students about consequences for their behaviours, and counting down strategies, buzzers
and music to focus back on me.
I have attended and provided input into curriculum development meetings with the
Humanities and Social Sciences department. I have produced resources, lesson plans, and
sequences of lessons to provide a new curriculum for the teaching of Term 4 Economics and
Business beyond my current teaching practice.

I have attended and provided input into student and parent meetings, produced an
introductory letter to parent and an email to all parents regarding student equipment. I
have also followed up behaviour and success stories with phone calls home to parents.

Evidence:

Pictures
Lesson plan
Letters
Email to parents

References:

Duchesne, S, and McMaugh A. (2016), Educational Psychology for Learning and Teaching 5th
Edition, Cengage Learning, Victoria Australia

Standard 4 Create and maintain supportive and safe learning environments

Discussion/Reflection
Students were notified throughout my lessons of the expectations and learning intentions
before and on entering the classroom. Some students who were not ready to enter the
room because of behaviour, uniform or eating needed to wait outside until corrected and
then a consequence would be communicated to them i.e. payback, letter duty. I also used a
strategy of having a team captain on the desks who would collect in all work and folders at
the end of the lesson. Seating plans were created for all classes with the students
considered at educational risk, or on a behaviour plan seated at the front of the class. These
were adjusted and monitored over a period of time.

The use of regular and sustained movement around the classroom together with using
praise when reviewing progress helped to maintain a positive and constructive learning
environment.

I have looked into individuals preferred learning style, their progress, backgrounds, physical
characteristics and how to engage the individual whilst delivering the curriculum/lesson
content. I have identified that if the delivery of the learning is not tailored to engage the
learner then this may affect concentration and the students ability to learn. As a
consequence, the student may become detached from the lesson and become disruptive. I
have focused my attention on the type of delivery of information and learning as this can
reduce the capacity for some students to engage with the learning, for example is it a chalk
and talk style lesson where the teacher writes information on the whiteboard and talks to
the class relaying the learning information. This may appeal to some learners but not others
like kinesthetic learners who would much rather be carrying out an activity to help their
learning journey. How the teacher engages the learners is paramount to the successful
learning experience of the individual learner. Abraham Maslow (1954) developed the
Hierarchy of Needs model. Indeed, Maslow's ideas surrounding the Hierarchy of Needs
concerning the responsibility of the teacher to provide an environment that encourages and
enables employees/learners to fulfil their own unique potential (self-actualization) are today
more relevant than ever.

Outside of the classroom I have also attended and produced fieldwork information
guidelines for staff to use in order to maintain student safety.

Evidence:

SAO
Video feedback student
Fieldwork information sheet
Pictures
Standard 5 Assess provide feedback and report on student learning

Discussion/Reflection

I have been able to provide positive verbal feedback to students during class discussions and
reporting back situations.

I have also assessed across all the age groups a range of assessments. These have been
formal and informal and formative and summative approaches. I have used facebook update
exit tickets, TAP templates. I have also provided report comments for students that have
been assessed in order to keep accurate and reliable records of achievement.

Moving further with these actions I became aware of the importance that is placed on
developing the independent learner. Students are encouraged to take ownership of their
learning, be aware of their strengths and weaknesses and regularly review their progress.
There is much evidence to support this shift in assessment opportunities towards the pupil,
in improving not only student self-esteem and motivation but also attainment. Black et al
(1998) argue that pupils who partake in self-assessment are more motivated, as they can see
their own progress and identify the areas that they need to improve upon in the future. Ross
(2006) agrees, stating that pupils who are trained in the use of self-assessment develop a
better understanding of their own abilities, are able to identify their strengths, which in turn
builds confidence. McDonald and Boud (2003) also found that pupils trained in self-
assessment performed better in examinations.

At this placement I looked at developing the independent learner not only within the HASS
subject areas but also through the CCPs and GCs. In one particular lesson, the students
were completing a self-evaluation post its, covering what they had learnt, the aspects they
had been good at and reflecting on their overall progress. I immediately recognised how
transferable this was and the benefits it could have with all my lessons, particularly in
reflecting on and taking responsibility for their learning prior to an examination. Having
discovered the potential value of self-assessment and how it seemed to be fit for my
purpose, I developed the Learning Card and Ask Timothy lesson square summary
template.

In my initial lesson, I distributed the learning cards to all of the students during the plenary
and asked them to complete it based on todays lesson. I immediately noticed that many of
the students struggled to recall what they had actually learnt. In particular, the group of
lower ability students had great difficulty in completing the card, even though as a group
they were able to articulate what they had learnt to me. They did however find the traffic
light system easier to interpret and I was able to encourage them to reflect further by asking
them why have you ticked red/amber/green? In terms of the group of higher ability
students, they were able to complete the Learning Card, but were quick to question its
purpose. As the higher ability students were grouped together for the lesson, I noticed them
chatting to each other about what the point of the Learning Card is. However, it was these
students who produced the most informative Learning Cards, which illustrated to me that
they understood what they had to do, but perhaps more importantly, did not understand
why they were doing it. Comments on their cards such as revised knowledge rather than
learning more, indicated to me that they had reflected on the lesson in terms of their
ongoing revision but also that they may require further extension material if we were to re-
visit the topic for the benefit of the rest of the class.

Following this lesson, I discussed the use of the Learning Cards with my mentor and how I
felt that the students had not gained as much as I had thought from the process. My mentor
felt that due to the template being new to the students, an explanation of its purpose and
how it is to be completed would be beneficial. Also, incorporating the objectives of the
lesson into the template would help to structure the students reflection, particularly for the
group of lower ability students. Supporting this idea, Black et al (2003) states that it is very
difficult for students to achieve a learning goal unless they understand that goal and can
assess what they need to do to reach it (p.49). Similarly, pupils will improve most if they
understand the aim of their learning, where they are in relation to this aim and how they
can achieve the aim.

Evidence:

Learning cards
Lesson square summary
History source analysis exam paper
WWII Pre test
Facebook feedback template
Post it notes
TAP template
Year 13 report comments

References:

Black P., Harrison, C., Lee, C., Marshal, B., and Wiliam, D. (2003). Assessment for
Learning: Putting it into Practice. Berkshire, Open University Press
McDonald, B. and Boud, D. (2003). The impact of self-assessment on achievement:
the effects of self-assessment training on performance in external examinations.
Assessment in Education. Vol 10 no2. P 209 -220
Ross, J. (2006). The Reliability, Validity and utility of Self Assessment. Practical
assessment, research and evaluation Journal. Vol. 11 No. 10
Professional Engagement

Standard 6 Engage in professional learning

I have spent time around the different department areas to build up an understanding of the
whole Australian curriculum across these subject areas.

I have also engaged in professional learning throughout my placement to improve practice. I

have attended all staff and curriculum area meetings. New and old style learning practices
have been discussed and I have also shared my best practices with the department.

Engagement with colleagues to improve practice has been an extremely important factor for
me on this placement. I have carefully taken on board feedback from my mentor and other
teachers to continually develop my teaching skills. Obviously sometimes you may disagree
with feedback points that are made, however I have always embraced the feedback and
continually strived to improve upon this.

Apply professional learning and improve student learning. I have used cooperative strategies
I have picked up in development meetings and the literature provided. These were things
like numbered heads, listening triads, rainbow groups, two to fours, envoys, critical friends,
joint tasks, and jigsaw techniques. For all of these strategies I have adopted two consistent
practices. The first is to give the student a timescale at the start of group work. A time scale
helps students attend to the task or tasks involved, and assist to maintain the pace of the
lesson. The second practice I have picked up is to signal that you will seek feedback about
how well the groups are working. This helps ensure students work cooperatively on task and
provides feedback about task structure, group structure, monitoring that may be necessary
in the future.

Evidence:

Share strategy presentation

Agenda and minutes
Dictogloss literacy and learning strategies info sheet (HASS meeting)
Restorative practice in schools info sheet (Whole staff meeting)
Cooperative group work teaching model
Instructional teaching model
Evaluations
Lesson critique forms
Standard 7 Engage professionally with colleagues, parents/careers and the community
With meeting professional ethics and responsibilities, I have been given the trust of running
classes when my mentor teacher has been away ill. I have also covered lessons on my
previous practice placements where the schools have been happy for me to use my
knowledge and experience to date. I have always been punctual, prepared and polite to all
students and staff.

Comply with legislative, administrative, and organisational requirements, I have carried out
risk assessments and created staff excursion information sheets to act as a guideline for
organising their groups correctly.

Engage with the parents/carers, I have made contact with parents via phone, email and
using the SEQTA communication system.

I have engaged with professional teaching networks and broader communities by way of
facilitating two geography based excursions in the local community and provided feedback
with regards to risk assessment practices. I have also been an active participant in the
Teacher Development Centre Annual Conference and as a result networked with many
agencies which support students and many professional bodies.

Evidence:
 Letter to parents
E-mails to parents
Certificate of participation
Educational visits risk assessments

Action plan

I have created a Professional development plan record sheet (see below) to keep track of
my PD.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN RECORD

Date & Steps to achievement of

Entry No Standard(s) Evidence
Activity competence
What are my next steps?

I will use the Teacher Self Assessment Tool to analyse my development areas this is found
in www.aitsl.edu.au. This is a free interactive resource to help review my practice and plan
going forward. The teacher SAT is based on research and aligns with the Teacher Standards
to best support my development.

Once I have obtained my teacher registration e-number I will also be able to look at relevant
courses that will then map to my teacher SAT results so I can focus on the areas identified as
being most in need and prioritize.

I have identified classroom management strategies as being one of the first courses that I
can look into firstly, which is run by the Department of Education.

Standard 1 Differentiated instruction proven Strategies for Success by www.tta.edu.au

(1.1, 1.5, 2.3, 2.5, 3.1 and 3.2)

Standard 2 Differentiated instruction proven Strategies for Success by www.tta.edu.au

(1.1, 1.5, 2.3, 2.5, 3.1 and 3.2)

Standard 3 Differentiated instruction proven Strategies for Success by www.tta.edu.au

(1.1, 1.5, 2.3, 2.5, 3.1 and 3.2)
Standard 4 Classroom management strategies foundation program by www.det.wa.edu.au
(4.1, 4.4, 4.3, 4.4, 6.1, 6.2, 6.4)

Standard 5 SCSA Seminars and Workshops for Teachers www.wace1516.scsa.wa.edu.au

(5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5)

Standard 6 Classroom management strategies foundation program by www.det.wa.edu.au

(4.1, 4.4, 4.3, 4.4, 6.1, 6.2, 6.4)

Standard 7 TDS EAL/D 7-12 Secondary IEC Conference 2018 by

www.det.wa.edu.au (1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 2.1, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 3.1, 3.6, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 6.2,
6.3, 7.4)