Week Three: Facebook Isn’t Cool Anymore

Introduction

After meeting a few of my PGCE colleagues at the weekend, I was eager to start on Monday. Still buzzing from the excitement of primary placement and desperate to start work in schools, I was eagerly anticipating the week ahead and finding out in more detail about how the PGCE is going to work.

EPS, Sub & Placements

The course itself is split into three parts: EPS (Educational and Professional Studies – the ‘core’ teaching theory that is applicable to every PGCE student), Sub (the subject you will be teaching, obviously English in my case) and school placements. We have two weeks of initial university work before going to our first placement school on the fifth week.

I am equally nervous and excited for my first official placement in a secondary English classroom, especially when I found out I would be teaching a lesson or part of a lesson by the end of this placement. Will I be able to put into practice all I have learned and said I could do? What will my lesson be about? Will it be something I am confident in or will I have to learn something new myself in preparation? How much support will I be given? What will my class be like? What age group will I be teaching? Will I know any of the students through the volunteering I have done in this city before?

Teacher Standards

In order to be seen as a competent teacher, there are certain standards one has to meet. These standards are used throughout a whole teaching career, and the way you meet them develops as you gain more experience. The standards are:

Part one:

Set high expectations which inspire, motivate and challenge pupils.
Promote pupil progress and outcomes.
Demonstrate good subject and curriculum knowledge.
Plan and teach well-structured lessons.
Adapt teaching to respond to the strengths and needs of all pupils.
Make accurate and productive use of assessment.
Manage behaviour effectively.
Fulfil wider professional responsibilities.

Part two:

Appropriate behaviour in and out of school.
Treating pupils with dignity and observing proper boundaries.
Safeguarding pupils’ well-being.
Showing tolerance and respect for the rights of others
Not undermining fundamental British values.
Proper rear for ethos of school – including high standards of punctuality and attendance.
Awareness of, and act within, statutory frameworks that apply to teachers.

The fact that gaining QTS (qualified teacher status) relies so heavily on these standards made me panic a little at first – what if I can’t meet all of them? Or what if I know I can but can’t provide sufficient evidence? However, after rationalising my thoughts, I completely understand why these standards are in place – teachers are such respected members of society and there are many ways that we have to safeguard ourselves as well as the young people we teach. I am confident that I will be able to meet each one of these standards with amples of experience and, hopefully, this time next year I will have my own classes in my NQT (newly qualified teacher) year.

Taking on a Tutor Role

Our first guest speaker of the year was an experienced Deputy Head teacher, who came to talk to us about the pastoral side of teaching. It was interesting to have the role of a tutor put before us so early in our teacher training – nevertheless I agree with how important this role is.

It got me thinking about my own potential tutor classes, and how I would go about being in a pastoral role. He told us all that teachers should ‘generate the sort of adult we would be happy to live next to when we are old.’ That is it. That is what, as a teacher, my ultimate goal would be. Yes getting students to achieve their target grades or higher would be an amazing feeling but at the end of the day, school is such a minute part of a persons life and the different experiences a teenager may face during this time will ultimately shape them as a person, regardless of socioeconomic background.

Interestingly, he noted that ‘parental income is the biggest hurdle to overcome for pupil progress’. As well as this he suggested that children with illiterate parents or even potential refugees will struggle more in schools simply because they don’t have the extra support at home. This highlighted to me how important it is to get to know my students individually to ensure that nobody is struggling just because of their life outside of school.

Ultimately, I feel as if the guest speaker was trying to say that it’s not just in your lessons that you may find yourself caring for these students. It is important to acknowledge them as individuals and to give them appropriate support as and when they need it – whether that be in the classroom, tutor time or on your breaks. You never stop being their teacher and even the the little things you may say to a child could resonate with them for a lifetime.

Online Safety & Safeguarding

Facebook isn’t cool anymore… Instagram and Snapchat are the social media sites that today’s young people are using more regularly. Not only now are we the generation of ‘A*-U GCSE’s’ but we are now the generation of Facebook. Apparently the biggest group of people joining Facebook at the moment are women over 40, whereas young people are more concerned with keeping their ‘snap streak’ with their best friends as high as possible.

The online safety lecture we had with a retired police officer was honestly one of the most interesting lectures I have ever had. Filled with statistics, like the previous paragraph, he told us about the good and bad sides of the internet. It is not the technology itself that is bad but rather the behaviour of the humans using it.

The recent Fortnite craze also posed some questions regarding he safety of using it’s online mode – many parents have been setting up a closed group for their children so they can only talk to the people they actually know. We were also warned to have plenty of parents asking us about how to get them off video games!

We also looked at the slightly darker area of the web – and I warn you not to read this paragraph if you are sensitive to issues with children and sex. Sex education is in place in most schools, but according to this speaker not many schools tackle the issues of online sex education. Apparently the average age of a child accessing porn is 11 and there are many ways in that children are groomed and abused online. Sexting is also an issue that is not explained properly to the children – how are they to know that sending or receiving a pornographic picture of an underage person is a criminal offence even if they are underage themselves or if it’s their photo they are sending. One key thing to focus on is scalability, durability and audience. Any photo sent online – regardless of the platform it is shared on – has the potential to be seen globally by any type of person and will be on the internet forever.

I believe it is important that we as a society talk about these issues. Keeping a taboo on these subjects only discourages children to come forth with any issues they may have, and that could have a detrimental effect on some of these young people’s lives.

This leads nicely onto the safeguarding lecture we had following this. A DSL (designated safeguarding lead) from a local school came in to train us in safeguarding. I am not going to dwell too long on the safeguarding aspects – I have had regular training since I first started working with children a decade ago – but it is still important to talk about.

Talking to people outside of university, it surprises me how some schools will have people in their settings without telling them basic healthy and safety rules – including their DSL.

I can’t think of anything more important than the basic safeguarding rule of just pass it on. If you have any concerns, no matter how small: whether it’s something you see; something someone tells you or just a gut feeling… it should not be kept to yourself! If a child is disclosing you something use TED questions – Tell, Explain Describe and always tell them you have to pass it on if it concerns you, write it up and get you both to sign at the front and also next to the last sentence.

It is all very well and good saying it won’t happen where I work, not at this school. I cannot think like that, we all should never think like that. I already know too many people in my personal life that have experienced abuse, a few of them when they were minors. It needs to stop. Acting in loco parentis puts the responsibility of these young people into our hands as teachers and I strongly feel that by committing to a teaching career we have to do anything in our power to keep these young people as safe as possible.

What is the Role of an English Teacher?

This is the question we have been looking at all week in our ‘sub’ sessions. We have had many a heated debate, looked at different theories about the origins of English as a subject alongside the differences in the precious national curriculum and the 2014 model. One of the most interesting to me has been Cox’s five models of English teaching: Personal Growth; Cross Curricular; Adult Needs; Cultural Heritage and Cultural Analysis.

At the end of the week we had the opportunity to work in small groups to create a short video depicting the roles of an English teacher. We chose to make a mockumentary starring ‘Louise’ Theroux… it was a lot of fun to make and I offered to edit it over the weekend.

One of my favourite things about the course so far is that the English subject tutors have been showing us different ways of teaching by getting us to carry out the activities. This has been extremely useful and has helped me to think ‘outside of the box’ when it comes to lesson planning.

Some of the key ideas we came up with for the role of an English teacher are:

Teaching the SPAG (spelling, punctuation and grammar) basics
Teaching both canonical texts alongside other forms, i.e. media, non-fiction etc.
Carrying out formal assessments to check progress
Facilitating work
Build skills necessary for the outside world
Ensure wellbeing
Differentiate between learners
Encourage creativity and personal growth

Transferable Techniques

Drama starter – get the students to organise themselves without talking
‘Diamond 9’ tasks – where the most salient point is at the top and least salient at the bottom
iPad work – creating a short film about a certain topic
Counting down to regain the attention of the class
Checking that the task is understood by asking someone to repeat it back to you before starting

Currently Reading

Contemporary Poetry: Poets and Poetry since 1990 – Ian Brinton

Ok I have to admit, I didn’t read the amazon description fully and I presumed this was an anthology of contemporary poetry. This is actually a companion to contemporary literature which has actually proved to be rather useful. I am currently half way through the first chapter ‘approaching contemporary poetry’ which so far has offered an interesting insight into the beginnings of the contemporary movement, however, I am looking forward to reading the texts later on in the book!

The Tempest – William Shakespeare

Shakespeare is one of those authors who is inevitably going to come up during my teaching time, I would imagine that his works are taught regularly in every school by pretty much every English teacher in the UK. I first read The Tempest in year 9 and it is the first play that made me fall in love with Shakespeare. I am rereading the text to both refresh my memory of the play and to begin to explore how I may go about teaching Shakespeare.

Mrs Dalloway – Virginia Woolf

I actually started reading this novel earlier on in the year, but lost it! I happened upon it after moving to my university accommodation and decided to continue with it. I was just about half way through with the novel, so I was reluctant to start it again (I quickly reminded myself of the plot… thanks to spark notes!). This is the first Woolf novel I have read, and I can see why she is such a popular author. The character of Mrs Dalloway herself is interesting, I thoroughly dislike her but also I am hooked and am fully interested to find out more about her past and how the rest of the plot is going to unfold. Will she stay with her husband or will she reignite her relationship with Peter? What is going to happen at the party? What role does her daughter play in all of this?

Junk – Melvin Burgess

I have actually yet to start this novel, as I have only just acquired it through the young adult and teen fiction library at university. I have heard a lot about it, it was discussed a few times during my children’s literature module for my undergraduate degree. I am excited to start it this weekend!

Weeks One & Two: Primary School Placement

Introduction

I was lucky enough to have my first placement in a fantastic primary school, where I knew a few of the pupils already. I had been to the school the previous term to have a look around, and it was agreed that I would spend one week in year six, then the following week in year five along, as well as observing English lessons throughout the school. As I am going to teach Secondary English, the main intentions for this placement were to focus on where literacy fits in with the school day and primary-secondary transitions.

The whole school follows a relatively similar timetable. The day begins with ‘early morning maths’, a selection of age-appropriate, challenging maths questions, used to bring focus to the class as soon as they come in the classroom. Mornings are always dedicated to Maths and English, as these form the core of the curriculum, and afternoons are for topic-based work covered through a variety of subjects.

Literacy Experiences and Lessons

English is a crucial part of the Early Years, KS1 and KS2 curriculums, and is also the one thing that every subject has in common, therefore it is natural that primary school English teaching does not just fall into designated English lessons. Throughout the school day, standard English and grammar was emphasised, to an extent, and in some of the discussions that took place, I witnessed literacy development taking place. For example, in a year six RE lesson, extracts were read about creation vs. science and the children had a discussion about the differences between the two. Within this exercise, there was an encouragement of use of terminology, such as ‘genre’, reinforcing their literary knowledge alongside the main lesson.

ERIC (Everyone Reading In Class) is used as a starter throughout the majority of lessons, and each child has a reading log to ensure that they sustain their reading both in and out of school. I believe that one of the main battles for English teachers is getting students to enjoy reading regularly, and this helps to create a reading culture. Comprehension and spelling practice are also completed daily, as well as a focus on phonics in Early Years and KS1.

Before every child starts a new topic in English, they have to write a ‘cold task’ and finish with a ‘hot task’. This a visual way in which they can see how much they have learned and how it has improved their writing. The cold task is not assessed because usually it is not to the highest standard, and the teachers do not want to demoralise work. The students all knew that the hot task was to be their best work, and they all worked very hard to both meet their personal targets and also to impress their teacher.

Key Issues

Primary – Secondary transitions is inevitably going to be stressful for both the students and their parents. From what I have witnessed, and experienced for myself, this is the next biggest transition in a child’s life after starting school as a 4 year old. Primary schools are smaller, they have one teacher who oversees the majority of their lessons during the whole year, it is a less academic, more familial setting – the teachers’ roles as in loco parentis is significant in that the pupils are younger and have totally different needs – particularly in the lower years. I feel as if good communication between the schools, parents and the students themselves will help this transition to go as smoothly as can be.

Another issue that came up was that, as the primary curriculum has become exceedingly more challenging, the students are coming up to secondary already knowing a lot of things taught at KS3. Again, I feel as if communication between the two schools is vital here as how can a secondary teacher teach what is needed if they do not know what each child has already been taught? This school has begun to tackle this issue by inviting year 7 teachers at the feeder secondary school to observe lessons.

Conversely, after discussing Primary school placement with my new PGCE colleagues this week,

Transferable Techniques

Being at the start of the school year, the teachers are still working out the skill levels and the best techniques to use to ensure each child reaches their full potential. Year 5’s have realistic, personalised spelling targets that, if achieved, win them house points. This focus on personal achievement instead of getting full marks really struck me as a way to ensure that the lower ability children are properly motivated.

Another way they achieve personalised learning is through the labelling of their books; the labels are colour coded to represent SEND, underprivileged and forces children, and the position of the label corresponds with the pupil’s academic level in that subject. This allows any adult working with the child to be able to know exactly the needs they may have.

Instant feedback was also a big hit throughout the school, particularly in year 6. This seemed to work fantastically in maths – the students either marked their own work or the adults in the room marked as they went. It was a little harder to do this in English, but they had regular verbal feedback with either their teacher or peers. Obviously this would be harder to implement in secondary, but one thing the year 6 teacher said that really struck me was that the sooner they get feedback the more likely they are to actively engage with the feedback.

Another thing about the marking I liked was that the pupils have to respond to their marking. A few people did not like this idea as they said the pupils might just say what the teacher wants to hear. However, surely that is more useful than them not reading the marking at all? And also, when it comes to SPAG issues, they were asked to re-write out their mistakes correctly underneath rather than just passively read where they were going wrong.

A couple of techniques I particularly liked were:

Sentence Surgery – Where a sentence is put on the board with SPAG errors, differentiated to the abilities of the class, and the students are asked to rewrite the sentence grammatically correct. This is was useful in two ways. Firstly, it was a great, quick, engaging starter and just a different way to teach grammatical structures. As well as this, I noticed it was used later on in the English lesson, when the students were editing their work. The teacher would say to them to ‘make sure to do sentence surgery on your (or a peers) work’ and they would immediately know the sort of things to look for in their work.
‘Dot it don’t dodge it’ – The basis of this was to get the pupils to use more interesting words even if they were not sure of the spelling. They would write a word they weren’t sure how to spell down and dot underneath it. When they had finished their writing, they were encouraged to look up in a dictionary and ask a peer, the teacher or teaching assistant to find out the correct spelling. This I feel will be particularly useful with lower ability pupils in secondary.

Interestingly, coming in as an unfamiliar adult did not seem to affect the pupils in any way other than they were excited to have me in the class. By the end of the fortnight I had been put in a teacher’s role a few times; I assisted with marking, answered literary questions, had the children read to me and, by the end of the fortnight, assisted with the teaching input. The children I worked with engaged well with me and I felt as if I genuinely helped them create some outstanding pieces of work.

Currently Reading:

The Penguin Book of First World War Poetry – Edited by George Walter

Knowing that it is part of the curriculum, I have purchased this book in order to explore different First World War poems. A few that I have particularly enjoyed so far are In the Trenches – Richard Aldington, Bombed Last night – Soldier’s Song and Arms and the Boy – Wilfred Owen.

Blood Brothers – Willy Russell

I completely fell in love with this play. I am somewhat familiar with the story line, but have never read the play itself before. It is easy to follow, has an utterly gripping plot and the protagonists are interesting characters whom you easily empathise with. As it is a musical, I will definitely be on the look out for local performances to be able to fully comprehend what Russell was intending the play to be.

The Diary of a Young Girl – Anne Frank

The Diary of a Young Girl has always been a novel I wanted to read, particular after visiting the annex they hid in in Amsterdam. I feel as if this is an extremely important text for young people to read, as it is fascinating to see a child’s perspective of the war. Being largely set in the annex itself, the reader is immersed in the family life and how isolating it must have been. The heart-wrenching ending really puts it into perspective and reminds the reader that this is actually a non-fiction text – this really happened to her family.

Uglies – Scott Westerfield

Another novel I had heard a lot about but never got round to reading. Uglies is a dystopian novel; everyone is an ‘ugly’ before their sixteenth birthday where they become a ‘pretty’. Tally, the protagonist, ends up leaving her society and going to ‘the smoke’, where a group of uglies live, in order to preserve the history that the government are trying to wipe out. It is an exciting novel with an ingenious plot, would be perfect for students interested in dystopian fiction, or just looking for a gripping novel… I am looking forward to reading the sequel at some point!