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Case Study
Professional Knowledge
Teachers know how to engage students in active learning
Teachers know their students
Teachers develop an understanding and respect for their students as
individuals, and are sensitive to their social needs and they was they
interact with others
Professional practice
Teachers create and maintain safe and challenging learning environments
Teachers provide a learning environment that engages and challenges
their students and encourages them to take responsibility for their own
learning.

Practice description
During the first 4 week round of placement I was teaching a year 12 psychology
class. Most of the class was well behaved and there to work, however there was
a group of four girls up the back that continued to talk. While still trying to
define my own teaching style and classroom management plan I simply pointed
out to the girls that there talking was distracting. While this approach worked
for the first few minutes, later on they began to talk again. Having been teaching
this class for a few weeks I knew that these girls were some of the brightest in
the class and were talking because they could afford to. My mentor teacher
suggested I raise my voice more and show them that I am frustrated. At first I
was uncomfortable with having to raise my voice, because I dont think thats the
sort of teaching style I will encompass in the future. However during the next
lesson when the talking continued I did have to show them that I was frustrated.
I began directing some of the classroom questions to them when I noticed them
talking, catching them off guard and forcing them to listen to the class discussion
so they could participate. Finally when I set the class up with an activity I went
over to the group and said that I had been finding their talking distracting and
while they may understand the content, other students dont and they are not
only distracting me from teaching but also the other students from learning. I
asked them to see this as an opportunity to help their peers with the work and
extend their knowledge to the class. While I was grateful for my mentors
suggestion I showed the girls I was frustrated by speaking to them rather than
raising my voice. The girls then apologized and actively participated in class
discussions and activities.

Practice explained
This is a case of student behaviour and engagement. The girls clearly thought
they knew the content and were disengaged from the classroom discussion, not
realizing what they could gain from participation nor realizing how their actions
affected others. This particular case is a distinct memory for me, as I had to think
about my mentors advice and how I wanted to tackle the situation incorporating
my own teaching philosophy. Student engagement and participation in the
classroom is essential, especially in the senior years. Students dont just learn
Bethany Nicholls 37 954 59
from the teacher, discussing concepts and ideas with the class provides new
perspectives for the students and encourages inclusion. The outcome of this case
could have been different and the students could have completely disregarded
what I had said and kept talking, however being in year 12 I knew the girls
understood the importance of actually being in class to learn and were mature
enough to recognize that they were distracting everyone else in the class.


Practice Theorise
The most challenging part of being a teacher is dealing with young people who
cant behave so much of your time and energy is spent dealing with this
behaviour (Pearsall 2012, p. 57). This particular quote has remained with me
throughout my teaching practicum, I believe classroom management is one of my
biggest challenges and Ive quickly learnt that if you dont create a positive
classroom environment, classroom management can be overwhelming. Its
learning how to encompass the challenge of engagement and having positive
relationships with the students, that generates an encouraging learning
environment. I strive to create a learning environment that promotes
independence, interdependence and self-motivation (POLT 2, 2009). Pintrich
and Groot (1990) highlight the importance of self-motivation within the
classroom walls and building confidence in students to allow flow of tasks.
Producing content that students want to engage in is the key to classroom
management, however also the biggest challenge. Marzano and Pickering (2003)
states that effective teaching and learning cannot take place in poorly managed
classroom It takes a good deal of effort to create.


Practice changed
Dealing with senior students about to embark on their adult lives, the
management approach I practiced was well received. I put the behaviour back
on the students and pointed out that their actions werent just affecting them but
everyone around them. Senior students are expected to display more maturity
and I believe if you respect and treat them like adults, they will more likely
respond like an adult. This kind of approach while successful with senior
students might not have the same outcomes with younger year levels. Something
to remember going forward is that not all students demonstrate the same
maturity levels and will need different approaches. However I hope as a teacher
I can build a rapport that allows me to identify each students unique set of needs
and enables me to create and engaging, inclusive environment for all. As
highlighted by Wubbels et al. (2006) building a knowledge base about managing
classrooms to create effective learning environments is essential. My mentors
feedback was positive, however she would like me to focus on presenting my
frustration to the class more. This constructive advice gives me goals for the
future and allows me to build different approaches to classroom management.
Going forward, creating an inclusive classroom where students are motivated
and want to participate is something I will strive to master.