Reflections from second placement

Final reflection from Nelson Boys College

My second placement at NBC went really well. I had the opportunity to teach Year 9, 10, 11, and 13 Physical Education as well as junior health. I grew up in Nelson so I felt as though it was an awesome opportunity to head back to my home region to undertake some more development. It was also interesting going into a single sex school. Prior to this placement I had attended and worked at only co educational schools therefore I was happy to experience the other type of schooling in New Zealand. The units I had the opportunity to teach were; sports education model, two handed hitting, minor games (juniors), and generation z, getting stuck in, biomechanics and game sense with the seniors. My favourite moment was getting to take a year 10 learning support class to the Abel Tasman, we walked for two days with some lads that had never been on camp before and they had to sleep under tent flies on top of cooking their own dinner. It was an awesome experience and for the most part the weather was stunning.

What did I learn about myself?

I did winder going into this placement how I would go in an all boys environment. But I came out the other end having had an extremely positive time. I love my sport and found it was easy to get the boys motivated to participate in class.

Associates & Liaison

I had two very good associates who helped me with any queries I had. They had plenty of advice to offer and trusted me with their classes pretty much from the get go.  NBC had a good set up where PRT’s and trainee teachers would meet every Thursday for lunch and to discuss progress or any problems they were encountering.

What did I work on?

I worked hard on my differentiation within lessons; this was identified by one of my associates during an observation.

NBC used BODOR statements so I worked hard to fit in around their behaviour management strategies.

Classroom management techniques used

I used wait time, eye contact, BODOR, group work, reminding classes to put hand up when they had something to say, I sent a student out of class for a couple of minutes.

Reflection on goals

1.       Learn students’ names within first two weeks.

I achieved this goal, I used Kamar print outs to research the students I would be teaching.

2.       Get involved in co curricular activities.

I struggled to get involved with this as much as I would have liked. The winter sports were well into their seasons and had coaches/managers sorted so I sat in on a couple of junior basketball practices and watched some sevens rugby. I also went on a three day camp with the learning support class and went skiing with the year 11s.

3.       Use a variety of levels of questioning within the classroom.

This was a goal that I worked really hard towards, I felt as though I used different methods to orchestrate discussion in classes and it worked well. I still need to improve on developing discussion points within class that can test students at the excellence level as well as engaging students at an achieve level.

4.       Be well prepared for each lesson I teach.

I think I was successful with this goal. I spent a lot of time preparing for each lesson. My associate also discussed this with me looking towards the future. He said he spent the first couple of years teaching putting in a lot of prep work. I will continue to do this as I develop as a teacher.

5.       Make a good impression!

I definitely achieved this, I stepped up to help in situations where the department needed help and I felt as though I became a full member of their team.

6.       Develop my classroom management strategies.

 I continued to back myself to create positive relationships with students. I followed the procedures which were at the school using BODOR statements, so I now have this type of strategy up my sleeve for future use.

Technology used

I had no access to computers with the classes so the boys did a lot of work in booklets. I had the chance to use some software called Silicone Coach for a year 13 unit and I found it an extremely useful tool for analysing golf swings.

Use of Te Reo

I had the opportunity to teach a traditional Maori game to a couple of classes (Ki O Rahi) which was a lot of fun. I also included Te Reo words while talking about welling in health. (Taha Tinana, Taha Wairua, Taha Hinengaro and Taha Whanau)

Summary

Overall, had an amazing time on section, I had the chance to go on camp, go skiing and teach a variety of classes. I had really helpful associates and I developed as a teacher. I am looking forward to starting work next year and continuing to develop.