2999EDN Script:
SLIDE 1: This critical analysis provides an opportunity for the reflection on my recent
professional experience placement. I was able to observe and teach a class of 24
Prep students in a semi- rural state school. Reflecting on my experience, I will
analyse four specific scenarios, focusing on their links to the Australian Professional
Standards for Teachers, theory and legislation.
SLIDE 2: Inside of the Prep classroom, I was able to make a variety of observations,
one specifically where a student was extremely avoidant of completing any
classwork. This student would repeatedly disengage from the lesson to go to the
bathroom. The process of getting up, going to a teacher to ask permission, going to
the toilet, and re-entering the classroom caused a disturbance to the whole class.
These behaviours were challenging to manage, as we didn’t want to refuse a student
use of the bathroom.
SLIDE 3: This observation links to the Australian Professional Standard 4.3,
‘Demonstrate knowledge of practical approaches to manage challenging behaviour’.
Throughout the duration of my practical, my supervising teacher and I decided to
implement a routine with the student, where they would be allowed to go to the
bathroom at the beginning, middle and end of every session. This gave the student a
constant knowledge of times where they were allowed to safely exit the classroom to
go to the bathroom. The management of this behaviour is a direct representation of
the Student Learning and Wellbeing Framework, as my supervising teacher ensured
optimal learning of the student, through the creation of a new schedule for them.
This schedule shows my supervising teachers implementation of the Student
Discipline Procedure. The student’s behaviour history was taken into account as my
supervising teacher and I created a learning plan for this student, to allow them to
continue to interact with their learning. Overall, the handling of this situation by my
supervising teacher was a direct example of how to respond to challenging
behaviours within the classroom, and therefore taught me ways to implement this
inside of my future classroom.
SLIDE 4: In regard to Scenario 2, I observed a Prep student bring a phone into the
classroom and use it during class time. During a rotation activity, this student pulled
their phone out of their pocket and begin to use it with the students at that rotation.
The permanent teacher aide was the first staff member to notice this student had
their phone out and had to notify my supervising teacher of the unethical use of ICT
within the classroom. My supervising teacher then had to confiscate the phone, as
per the school’s phone policy, and send it to be held at the office until the end of the
school day. In addition to following school policy, my supervising teacher also called
that students parents to inform them of the students phone use, and to let them know
that they would need to collect the phone from the office after school.
SLIDE 5: This observation reflects the Australian Professional Standard 4.5, ‘Use
ICT safely, responsibly, and ethically’, as my supervising teacher had to ensure that
that student was being safe on their device, regardless of whether or not the use of
the phone was allowed within the classroom. The student code of conduct for my
placement school states that students that bring a mobile device to school, “…must
hand the device in to the School Office each morning upon their arrival to school.”
This was clearly not followed by the student, as they are in Prep and cannot handle
that responsibility themselves, although their parents should uphold the code of
conduct and follow through with these rules. The ICT Acceptable Use Policy states
that schools have the right to, “..restrict [the] access of personally-owned mobile
devices to ensure the integrity of the network.”. In confiscating the phone from the
student, my supervising teacher upheld the Code of Conduct and the ICT Acceptable
Use Policy to ensure the safe use of ICT within the Prep classroom.
SLIDE 6: Scenario 6 is central to supporting the needs of all students across the full
range of abilities. A student in my class was diagnosed with high-functioning autism.
This student had a stutter and needed constant one-on-one support to complete
classroom tasks. Throughout my practical, this student demonstrated a wide range
of abilities, but lacked the personal confidence to complete classwork without any
aide. Due to this, the classroom had a permanent teacher aide, responsible for
keeping that student on task, and motivated to finish their classwork.
SLIDE 7: This observation demonstrates the school’s implementation of the
Australian Professional Standard 1.6, ‘Strategies to support full participation of
students with disability,’ as I saw how this student was being accommodated so that
their participation was at the highest level. The Inclusive Education Policy requires
that students of all abilities can, “…achieve academically and socially with
reasonable adjustments and supports tailored to meet their learning needs,” as
demonstrated by my placement school and their distribution of a permanent teacher
aide to my Prep class. In addition to this, the Disability Standards for Education 2005
has the purpose of, “…eliminating discrimination against persons on the ground of
disability in the area of education… and to promote recognition within the community
of the principle that persons with disabilities have the same fundamental rights as the
rest of the community”. These two documents describe how students with disability
should be accommodated within the classroom, so that maximum learning can be
achieved, as proved by my supervising teacher and placement school.
SLIDE 8: At my placement school, parents of Prep students were required to
physically collect their students from the classroom and the end of over school day.
This created an opportunity for my supervising teacher and myself to interact with
parents and keep them up to date with what was happening inside the classroom
and how their students were progressing with their learning. On multiple occasions,
parents would take this opportunity to warn us if their students had had a bad
morning or if something had happened at home, so we could understand why the
student might be behaving differently on that particular day.
SLIDE 9: As per Australian Professional Standard 7.3, ‘Engage with the
parents/carers’, my time on placement showed a variety of ways that educators can
interact with parents and carers on a day-to-day basis. The Advancing Partnerships
Framework dictates that, “Genuine parent engagement exists when there is a
meaningful relationship between parents and teachers with the shared goal of
maximising learning and wellbeing outcomes for students.” I clearly saw these
relationships as my supervising teacher interacted with the parents every day,
keeping them updated with what happened in the classroom that day. Further, the
Education (General Provisions) Act of 2006 supports that parents have a legal right
to be informed of their child’s enrolment, attendance, progress and any welfare
issues. My placement school utilised various methods to interact with parents,
though meeting with them every afternoon within the Prep classrooms seemed the
most effective in keeping parents up to date with student achievement.
SLIDE 10: Across the duration of my placement, I observed a variety of scenarios
that influenced my understanding of the behind the scenes work that occurs within
the classroom. In reflection, the highlight of my practical was getting to interact with
parents in a hands-on way, getting to keep them up to date every afternoon with how
their student fared that day.
Scenario 1:
- Lochie & Toilet
- Student Learning and Wellbeing Framework
- APST 4.3
- Student Discipline Procedure
Scenario 2:
- Caleb & Phone
- ICT Acceptable Use Policy
- Student Code of Conduct
- APST 4.5
Scenario 3:
- Arlo & High-Functioning Autism
- Inclusive Education Policy
- Disability Standards for Education 2005.
- APST 1.6
Scenario 4:
- Parents coming in each afternoon to pick kids up.
- Advancing Partnerships Framework
- Education (General Provisions) Act 2006
- APST 7.3
References:
Australian Government. (2005). Disability standards for education 2005. Federal
Register of Legislation; Australian Government.
[Link]
Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership. (2022). Australian
Professional Standards for Teachers. Australian Institute for Teaching and
School Leadership. [Link]
Department of Education. (2018). Student learning and Wellbeing Framework.
In Student Learning and Wellbeing Framework. Queensland Government.
[Link]
[Link]
Department of Education. (2021). Advancing partnerships - parent and community
engagement framework. Queensland Government.
[Link]
[Link]
Education (General Provisions) Act 2006, 11 (2006).
[Link]
Queensland Government. (2015). Authorised and unauthorised use of ICT services,
facilities and devices guideline. Queensland Government.
[Link]
government-enterprise-architecture-qgea/qgea-directions-and-guidance/qgea-
policies-standards-and-guidelines/authorised-and-unauthorised-use-of-ict-
services-facilities-and-devices-guideline
Queensland Government. (2021a). Inclusive education policy. Policy and Procedure
Register; Queensland Government. [Link]
education-policy
Queensland Government. (2021b). Student discipline procedure. Policy and
Procedure Register. [Link]
procedure