Domain 1: Professional Knowledge
Belief Statement
I believe that professional knowledge relating to understanding students and how they learn is crucial to my ability as a teacher, ensuring I meet the needs of the diverse classroom full of students from numerous backgrounds (Australian Institute of Teaching and School Leadership [AITSL], 2017). Understanding my students as well as harbouring an ever-developing knowledge of my teaching areas are both key to meeting both Standard 1 – know students and how they learn, and Standard 2 – know the content and how to teach it (AITSL, 2017) from Domain 1.
As a successful teacher I will achieve this by building reciprocal relationships with my students, encouraging learning that facilitates positive relationships to foster further development of each student in the classroom (Carrington & MacArthur, 2012). This, in turn, will increase their motivation and persistence with tasks (Barkoukis, Chanal, Ntoumanis, & Taylor, 2014). Knowing the content is vital to transfer knowledge to my students but knowing how to teach it successfully in a way that makes it relatable to their 21st Century experiences is equally important – due to The Australian Curriculum prioritising the skills necessary for students’ future working life in a globalised environment (Matters & Masters, 2014) where both of my subject areas (English and Japanese) are of great benefit.
1.2 Understand how students learn
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of research into how students learn and the implications for teaching.
1.3 Students with diverse linguistic, cultural, religious and socioeconomic backgrounds
Demonstrate knowledge of teaching strategies that are responsive to the learning strengths and needs of students from diverse linguistic, cultural, religious and socioeconomic backgrounds.
1.5 Differentiate teaching to meet the specific learning needs of students across the full range of abilities
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of strategies for differentiating teaching to meet the specific learning needs of students across the full range of abilities.
I demonstrated Standard 1: Know Students and How They Learn by participating in the Graduate Teacher Performance Assessment [GTPA], in which I created a unit for a Year 11 Japanese class based on a knowledge gap discovered during diagnostic assessment (Example 1). The class unit was technology and travel and through diagnostic data (Artefact 1a) I determined through transforming the quantitative and qualitative data (Jackson & Mandinach, 2012) that students were lacking ability to recognise grammatical patterns and kanji. This became the basis for my unit which I delivered with observed preferred learning styles in mind (1.2), English/Additional Dialect students (1.3) and differentiated to student ability as some students were new to Japanese or had significant behavioural issues (Artefact 1b) and were reliant on romaji and hiragana (Artefact 1c) (1.5).
Whilst I did use worksheets I included a range of kinaesthetic activities as it was the students’ preference and aided engagement (1.2). As not all students learn the same way, it was vital to include strategies that catered for the full range of students (Gardiner, 2011) (1.2, 1.3, 1.5). It allowed EAL/D students to learn Japanese without the English barrier (Artefact 1e) (1.3). One student in particular was low-level and one of the GTPA focus students. I initially created a standard level worksheet but upon collecting it and seeing her responses, I differentiated by including sample sentences and a word bank on the flip side so students could choose which level they wanted to work at (1.2, 1.5). This helped my student significantly (Artefact 1f). The student went from refusing my attempts to help her in the classroom to actively participating once I begun to differentiate for the class and include annotated exemplars of the necessary work (1.5).
The diagnostic data that I obtained allowed me to create a unit of work tailored to the needs of EAL/D students (1.3), necessary differentiation (1.5) and knowing students and how they learn (AITSL, 2017) made the lessons engaging (1.2) and further developed rapport with them so that I could help them succeed. Differentiation was utilised successfully which ultimately let to the improvement of all students regardless of knowledge level (Artefact 1g).
2.1 Content and teaching strategies of the teaching area
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the concepts, substance and structure of the content and teaching strategies of the teaching area.
2.2 Content selection and organisation
Organise content into an effective learning and teaching sequence.
2.5 Literacy and numeracy strategies
Know and understand literacy and numeracy teaching strategies and their application in teaching areas.
2.6 Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
Implement teaching strategies for using ICT to expand curriculum learning opportunities for students.
I demonstrated Standard 2: Know The Content and How To Teach It (AITSL, 2017) throughout EDS4250 Assignment Two in which I constructed a unit plan, lesson plan and a critical reflection for a Year 9 Japanese class (Example 2) using the Japanese F-10 Australian Curriculum (“F-10 Australian Curriculum Japanese”, 2019). The unit consisted of a sequence of activities (2.2) that scaffolded learning (2.1), taught literacies and numeracy strategies (2.5) and incorporated ICT (2.6).
The assignment was based on the previous assignment, in which I was tasked with the construction of a summative assessment (Artefact 2a) in which I employed the Backwards Design model (Wiggins & McTighe, 2011). This created a unit that provided opportunity for students to develop content knowledge and skills to complete the summative piece (2.1, 2.2). As the summative task required students to write two journal entries in Japanese, I sequenced learning activities that equipped students with the necessary skills; plain form, past tense, relevant vocabulary, kanji as well as literacy and numeracy concepts; such as how to write a journal entry and writing the date in Japanese (Artefact 2b). Learning experience six (2.1) had students move from constructing knowledge to transforming (2.2), as they used ICT capabilities (2.6) to talk to a high school class in Japan using the language that they learnt through the unit (Artefact 2c). This allowed them to experience a real-life situation to encourage engagement with the class content (Francis, 2013). The development of ICT capabilities was a theme throughout the unit as learning experience eight included the development of a Twitter hashtag that students used to converse to one another in Japanese (Artefact 2d), as well as interactions with their own devices, online educational games and quizzes, videos, songs and other engaging media (2.6). I incorporated the Multiliteracies Pedagogy (Hepple, Sockhill, Tan & Alford, 2014) through creative means such as the Twitter ICT usage but also through kinaesthetic activities such as using kinetic sand to construct kanji as opposed to just writing it out in their books, developing student agency as students are more likely to be engaged when the learning is enjoyable (Francis, 2013) (Artefact 2e).
The result of this assessment was that I understood how to develop a well developed and sequenced unit plan that incorporated a range of learning strategies that encompassed literacy, numeracy and ICT skills (2,1, 2.2, 2.5, 2.6). My final grade for the assessment was 52.50 / 60.00 (Artefact 2f), which clearly illustrates I have excellent content knowledge which is necessary in a language class where the teacher generally is the sole facilitator of content knowledge. I have also demonstrated a thorough understanding of the Australian Curriculum that I can then use in my future career to create a unit for students that is rich with experiences that are engaging, connected to real life experiences and successfully expand on student understanding.
EDC4000 E-Portfolio 