Jessica Newbury (2159162) Professional Experience 4: Reynella East College

TPA 1 – Self-assess and Plan your Professional Learning

From Domain 1 my previous placement has stated that I am halfway between emerging and
graduate level for both standard 1 and 2. I am confident in developing relationships with students as
students are usually comfortable around me due to my calm personality and approachability. I like
to try and memorise my students’ names from week 1 using class attendance lists and photos, and
be accepting of all students no matter their zone of development, gender, or heritage. I am
confident in applying current research into my curriculum planning to cater for diversity. I am very
confident planning units of work and lessons, and mostly confident planning summative
assessments. I need to continuously develop my knowledge of the Australian curriculum, and I can
do this by re-reading it every year. I feel I have become very confident in teaching students that are
highly gifted, but I need to learn how to teach and break down content for those students who are
low level learners or have a learning disability. An area I think I need to improve on is knowing when
it is appropriate to include indigenous culture into my lessons. I am fairly confident teaching literacy
and numeracy strategies, and extremely confident in incorporating ICT into my lessons.

From Domain 2 my previous placement has stated that I am nearly at graduate level for standard 3,
above emerging for standard 4, and between emerging and graduate level for standard 5. I am
confident in planning units of work and structuring learning programs, that my pedagogy is
supportive of student learning, and my behaviour management is getting better with the more
experience I gain. Maintaining student safety in the lab is something I need to work on with
reminding students to keep safety glasses on their heads, etc. but I know this will come with
practice. I need to learn how to use SEQTA more efficiently as in the past I have only used Daymap. I
am confident in keeping records of student achievement, but have never reported it before in an
end of term report.

From Domain 3 my previous placement has stated that I am near graduate level for standard 6 and
between emerging and graduate level for standard 7. I am very confident in participating in staff
meetings and professional development, and enjoy learning about new things to keep my pedagogy
up to date. I welcome any feedback given to me and keep a growth and reflective mindset when my
teaching is being criticized. I am not confident dealing and communicating with parents as I have not
had the opportunity to do this as yet. So to build my confidence I will start with direct messages, and
build up to phone conversations and face to face contact as my confidence increases.

Discussion

1. How can the standards be used as a learning tool not just an assessment tool?

The standards can be used as a learning tool by using them to reflect on pedagogy and to remind
yourself as a teacher to continuously grow and refine aspects of your teaching as a professional
educator.

2. What is the meaning of each focus area?

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Jessica Newbury (2159162) Professional Experience 4: Reynella East College

1.5 – Be able to use different teaching strategies for differentiation in the classroom.
1.6 – Be able to support students with disabilities in the classroom inclusively.
2.1 – Be able to apply teaching strategies and have comprehensive knowledge of the teaching
area.
2.2 – Be able to systematically organise content in a unit so it flows from one subject to the
next.
2.3 – Be able to design learning sequences and lesson plans using assessment to adjust for
students’ zones of proximal development.
2.4 – Have a thorough understanding of Aboriginal culture, history and language through
understanding and respect.
2.5 – Know and understand literacy and numeracy strategies and implement them to support
student learning.
2.6 – Use ICT in teaching strategies to support student learning and relevance.

3.1 – Using zone of proximal development strategies challenge students to reach their next stage of
learning by setting higher learning goals.

3.2 – Plan and implement engaging structured learning programs or lesson sequences to promote
learning.

3.3 – Use a range of relevant teaching strategies to challenge and develop student learning in skill
development, problem solving, and critical and creative thinking.

3.4 – Use a range of sources to engage student learning.

3.5 – Demonstrate verbal and non-verbal communication methods to support engagement in the
classroom, understanding, participation, and achievement.

3.6 – Use student feedback and assessment data as evidence to evaluate pedagogy and programs.

3.7 – Know and implement opportunities that are relevant for parents/carers to be involved.

4.1 – Come up with strategies to include all students in classroom activities to promote positive
behaviour and leaning.

4.2 – Demonstrate ability to give clear directions and have orderly classroom activities to support
student engagement.

4.3 – Demonstrate a range of good behaviour management techniques by establishing expectations

4.4 – Be able to ensure students well-being and safety in the school by working with and
implementing school, curriculum and legislative requirements.

4.5 – Understand and use strategies promoting good ICT skills in regards to safety, responsibility, and
ethics in teaching and learning.

5.1 – Use pre-assessment, formal assessment and summative assessment to assess student learning.

5.2 – Give students supportive feedback in a reasonable amount of time on how to improve their
learning.

5.3 – Understand assessment moderation and how it is applied to support consistency and
comparability of student learning.

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Jessica Newbury (2159162) Professional Experience 4: Reynella East College

5.4 – Use student assessment data to evaluate learning and improve pedagogy.

5.5 – Demonstrate a range of strategies for reporting to students and parents/carers about student
achievement, academic and personal, and the importance of using accurate and reliable records.

6.1 – Understanding that the Australian Professional Standards can be used to identify areas of
improvement in pedagogy for professional development.

6.2 – Participate in professional development to keep pedagogy up to date.

6.3 – Seek and apply feedback from those in higher positions and peers to improve teaching
practices and knowledge.

6.4 – Understand the importance on continually improving oneself in their career and practices, so
that it can reflect on the ability to do so for students as well.

7.1 – Understand and meet codes of ethics and conduct for the teaching profession, to protect
yourself and your students.

7.2 – Understand implications and consequences, and comply with legislation, administrative and
organizational policies and processes for teachers.

7.3 – Understand and establish strategic collaboration, to work effectively sensitively with
parents/carers maintaining confidentiality regarding student learning.

7.4 – Understand the importance of the roles external professionals and community representatives
can have on professional practice, and participate to improve teaching pedagogy.

3. What types of actions could I take and evidence could demonstrate achievement of my
goals?

 Going over the Australian Curriculum to familiarize myself with any changes.
 Practice breaking down content for lower level learners.
 Participate in opportunities related to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture, identity,
and language.
 Remember to check student safety during experiments and demonstrations not just at the
start.
 Participate in activities involving SEQTA and other administration tools.
 Start communicating with parents via direct message and build up to phone calls and face to
face conversations.

4. What opportunities exist to demonstrate the required evidence and make a meaningful
contribution to the school/classroom and individual students?

 Sports day
 Parent – teacher conferences
 Extracurricular activities
 After school tutoring
 Professional development
 Marking assignments and providing feedback verbally and on SEQTA
 Snapshots
 Student and mentor feedback
 Creating and implementing units and lesson plans on SEQTA

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