Initial expectations and final outcomes of PIV
I have learned many things during Practicum IV. Now I'm going to explain them to you. But first... do you remember which were my expectations before starting?
● To experience the Catalan school
This was an expectation that I knew I was going to achieve. Experience is experience; it does not matter if it is bad or good. Thankfully, in my case it has been very good!
I saw Catalan school traits especially when we were preparing Saint Jorge’s feast. Every class presented two giant flowers to decorate the lobby. Then we also put the books created by the students in a table. The school looks very beautiful now. This does not happen in other places because Saint Jorge is a feast that we only celebrate in Catalonia.
I saw Catalan school traits especially when we were preparing Saint Jorge’s feast. Every class presented two giant flowers to decorate the lobby. Then we also put the books created by the students in a table. The school looks very beautiful now. This does not happen in other places because Saint Jorge is a feast that we only celebrate in Catalonia.
Moreover, I noticed some aspects regarding the culture. Comparing my experience in this school with the one I had in Saint Mary Magdalen’s School in Richmond-upon-Thames (U.K), I have felt the unpunctuality of people from the South: in this school the ring bell plays music 5 minutes before changing the activity. It is like a warning for people to go to the toilet, drink water, etc. There have been times that we have started the following lesson 10-15 minutes late. This never happened during my Richmond practicum, because in their culture they are very educated regarding the punctuality and the discipline.
Another example is that my tutor teacher of 2nd A sneezes often, and when she does, she always does 3 or 4 sneezes. Some pupils in the class have fun counting aloud how many sneezes does she do, and as she is busy in that moment, she cannot tell them off. She does not consider this as a misbehaviour attitude, but again, comparing it with the British school that I experienced, this was something inconceivable!
Another example is that my tutor teacher of 2nd A sneezes often, and when she does, she always does 3 or 4 sneezes. Some pupils in the class have fun counting aloud how many sneezes does she do, and as she is busy in that moment, she cannot tell them off. She does not consider this as a misbehaviour attitude, but again, comparing it with the British school that I experienced, this was something inconceivable!
● To get ideas and resources to use in my future classroom
I think I have my teacher’s backpack bigger now. From the class and my tutor in the school I get the idea of working with base groups, which helps to foster responsibilities and real team work. I also get how they start projects: the “What do we want to know?” display. I was there the day that they did the questions’ brainstorming for the human body and I loved how the teacher managed the class! At first, she wrote down all the questions in the chalkboard (thought previously by groups), then she asked students to classify them (using colour stickers). They created the display in a big paper and if they didn’t know how to classify it, they left that question in the “Others” section until they discovered the answer.
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I have also taken ideas on how to work arts & crafts: we have been doing “aiguades”, stamps…
Finally, I get one idea that fosters the good environment in the classroom and it helps with the oral communication competence. It is the “I want to share” (“Vull compartir”). Children gather around in a circle and they share what they have done during the weekend or anything they want to share (but the condition is that they have prepared it before speaking). They can also bring pictures or tickets of the activities they explain and the teacher hangs it on the wall.
Finally, I get one idea that fosters the good environment in the classroom and it helps with the oral communication competence. It is the “I want to share” (“Vull compartir”). Children gather around in a circle and they share what they have done during the weekend or anything they want to share (but the condition is that they have prepared it before speaking). They can also bring pictures or tickets of the activities they explain and the teacher hangs it on the wall.
● To get inspired by different ways of teaching
This is one of the learnings that height the most during my Practicum: the ways of teaching.
Starting with Maths, it is amazing the whole philosophy behind, and how this is shown in the materials and mathematic vocabulary that they use. It is a way of teaching that is no longer from the symbolic learning only, but it starts by the manipulative learning, then goes to the graphic and finally children are prepared to step forward on the symbolic one.
Anyway, I have seen that this is not possible to do it only in a class, but the whole school needs to agree, otherwise it would be a mess for the students.
Starting with Maths, it is amazing the whole philosophy behind, and how this is shown in the materials and mathematic vocabulary that they use. It is a way of teaching that is no longer from the symbolic learning only, but it starts by the manipulative learning, then goes to the graphic and finally children are prepared to step forward on the symbolic one.
Anyway, I have seen that this is not possible to do it only in a class, but the whole school needs to agree, otherwise it would be a mess for the students.
I also liked the alphabet they use. It is a sounds alphabet; which means that the letters are ordered taking into account how they sound. For example, in this alphabet there are two “C”, one for “casa” and the other one for “cèrvol”. They are written the same but they sound very different. This alphabet also includes the graphical symbols, because they are two letters that only make one sound. Some examples of graphical symbols are “ix”, “ig”, “ss”, “ny”. This way of teaching also has to be followed by the rest of the teachers, because otherwise it would be a mess for the little children.
Finally, it also caught my attention the fact of experiencing on my skin what is it to work by projects. I have always heard this, but I never experienced that much. They really put the students in the middle of their education, and it provides meaningful and contextualized learning. As my school teacher says: “During their lives they are going to find all mixed up, it won’t be splitted into areas… so this is how we should teach”.
The teaching methodology of the projects can be worked as an individual in a class.
The teaching methodology of the projects can be worked as an individual in a class.
● To learn how to manage time
This semester was challenging because I had all the work from the school, delivers for the University, TFG and particular lessons 4 times a week.
But to sum up, I am very happy about how I managed my time. I think I have been able to organize myself in advance most of the times. I have been aware of what was my availability. I did not always succeed because some days I stayed awake until late finishing all the work, but in general I have improved comparing it with my old me. I have seen that it is important to have resources under the sleeve, because teaching is very flexible and not always is as it’s planned. Having things ready before you need them allows you to be more confident and do not stress out in front of unexpected circumstances. |
● To learn how to adapt the content in a CLIL T.U.
I think I have also achieved this expectation. At the beginning I was so stressed out because I saw that I needed to implement in English with pupils that barely understood me.
As the days pass by, I realised that they understood more than what I thought, and some knowledge regarding how to adapt the content arouse from my previous knowledge and surprised me in how to plan my T.U.
My tutor of the school helped me to highlight the main important aspects of science that we expected from the children, and the English teacher also oriented me on which was the level of English of my class. This was very helpful for me because it helped me to define my T.U.
Moreover the examples of the UAB meetings on how to create CLIL material also gave me ideas for my implementation.
As the days pass by, I realised that they understood more than what I thought, and some knowledge regarding how to adapt the content arouse from my previous knowledge and surprised me in how to plan my T.U.
My tutor of the school helped me to highlight the main important aspects of science that we expected from the children, and the English teacher also oriented me on which was the level of English of my class. This was very helpful for me because it helped me to define my T.U.
Moreover the examples of the UAB meetings on how to create CLIL material also gave me ideas for my implementation.
Do you feel competent to become a teacher?
I feel that this Practicum has been the formal education experience where I have learned the most. To start with, because it is the longest one I have done and to continue, because I was very lucky that my tutor in the school was very nice. She treated me as a teacher (in fact, she called me like this in front of the students). She took into account my suggestions and she asked for my opinion when she was trying new things in the class. Having a mentor like this allows you to take the most of you, and makes you feel comfortable during you internship period. The teacher also shared with me anecdotes of the students that helped me to understand how they are.
So, having this into account as a positive learning, I can say that I feel more competent now that the year before. Anyway, I do not feel confident enough to be the main teacher in charge of a whole group class during a whole year.
I would like to know more about how to adapt CLIL T.U, because right now I have known how to do it with help, but in the future maybe I do not have help. In this last year of the degree, students of the English mention have been working on this, but as I was in an Erasmus I did not take this subject. For this reason I am thinking about taking the CLIL postgraduate studies.
Nevertheless, I believe that teachers learn from experience and from teacher peers, and this happens when you take the lead and starting working in a school although you do not feel 100% confident. So I think that I do feel competent to become a teacher, but this can always be improved.
So, having this into account as a positive learning, I can say that I feel more competent now that the year before. Anyway, I do not feel confident enough to be the main teacher in charge of a whole group class during a whole year.
I would like to know more about how to adapt CLIL T.U, because right now I have known how to do it with help, but in the future maybe I do not have help. In this last year of the degree, students of the English mention have been working on this, but as I was in an Erasmus I did not take this subject. For this reason I am thinking about taking the CLIL postgraduate studies.
Nevertheless, I believe that teachers learn from experience and from teacher peers, and this happens when you take the lead and starting working in a school although you do not feel 100% confident. So I think that I do feel competent to become a teacher, but this can always be improved.
The competence that I have developed the most during this Practicum has been to let students work on their “learn how to learn" competence.
I have learned to not correct the students directly, but to ask them key questions so they can realize which are their mistakes.
I have also learned to have my eyes open: open to what’s happening in the classroom in general and to each pupil individually. I have developed my awareness regarding the students’ performance, so I can act on time to help this student do not be left behind.
I have also been inspired by very cool teaching methods like the way this school works Mathematics and the sounds alphabet. I think these are methodologies worth spreading because they can not be done only by one teacher. The whole school needs to agree on teaching in this way.
I think that I still need to learn how to assess in a meaningful and complete way. And later these days I have discovered that all teachers in the school create their own rubric to assess the pupils by observation. Moreover they have a general rubric as a center to assess their projects. One day at the end of the term they have meetings to share their projects and also this rubric with which they have self-assessed them. I think it is a very powerful tool to be aware of the own work and improve it for the next time.
I also want to learn how to respect each pupil’s learning path, but at the same time doing the same things with all the students and giving them the same opportunities to learn.
Out of all this, if I have to summarize in one sentence what I have learned in this school during the PIV, it is that being a good teacher requires a lot of extra hours and effort… but it is so worth it. It makes my heart feel happy and satisfied to know that this is what I am meant to be. And I can’t wait to start teaching again.
I have learned to not correct the students directly, but to ask them key questions so they can realize which are their mistakes.
I have also learned to have my eyes open: open to what’s happening in the classroom in general and to each pupil individually. I have developed my awareness regarding the students’ performance, so I can act on time to help this student do not be left behind.
I have also been inspired by very cool teaching methods like the way this school works Mathematics and the sounds alphabet. I think these are methodologies worth spreading because they can not be done only by one teacher. The whole school needs to agree on teaching in this way.
I think that I still need to learn how to assess in a meaningful and complete way. And later these days I have discovered that all teachers in the school create their own rubric to assess the pupils by observation. Moreover they have a general rubric as a center to assess their projects. One day at the end of the term they have meetings to share their projects and also this rubric with which they have self-assessed them. I think it is a very powerful tool to be aware of the own work and improve it for the next time.
I also want to learn how to respect each pupil’s learning path, but at the same time doing the same things with all the students and giving them the same opportunities to learn.
Out of all this, if I have to summarize in one sentence what I have learned in this school during the PIV, it is that being a good teacher requires a lot of extra hours and effort… but it is so worth it. It makes my heart feel happy and satisfied to know that this is what I am meant to be. And I can’t wait to start teaching again.
Usefulness of the school internship and the UAB seminars
As I have explained before, most of the things that I have learned during the Practicum has been in the school internship, so YES, it has been very useful.
Regarding the UAB seminars, they have been extremely helpful. I dare to say that they are in the Top 5 useful formation recieved during the degree.
I felt that they were too short! In fact, I would propose to keep coming to the UAB during April. We see almost the whole week during the compactation of PIV&PV, so it does not change that much to miss Wednesday afternoon.
The seminars were fresh, we took a lot of teaching resources to use in the future (and in the present!!! You can see some of them in this website), and they were fun and engaging. I loved the fact of being only four students: it allowed us to be very involved in the meetings.
Moreover, it helped us to take the most of what we were living in the schools: we were revising our T.U.s, giving feedback, improving the activities… it was very helpful.
Finally, if I had to grade myself, I would consider different aspects. To start with, I think that I have been participating in the seminars although more than once I was the last one to arrive (not because a lack of interest, but because of other reasons). I also did a very bad presentation on the T.U (for which I am a little bit ashamed). I would grade myself with an 8’5.
Regarding my T.U, I think that it was one of those implementations very attractive at the first sight (because the material and the activities were cool) but in terms of usefulness, maybe it could have been better. Seeing the T.U. from a teacher point of view, it was difficult to check if students were following or not. I would grade myself with an 8.
Finally, regarding the tasks delivered in the portfolio and in the web I think they were creative, visual and innovative (at least this is what I tried). I would grade myself with a 9’5.
To sum up the mark… I would grade myself with a 9 of the general practicum process.
Regarding the UAB seminars, they have been extremely helpful. I dare to say that they are in the Top 5 useful formation recieved during the degree.
I felt that they were too short! In fact, I would propose to keep coming to the UAB during April. We see almost the whole week during the compactation of PIV&PV, so it does not change that much to miss Wednesday afternoon.
The seminars were fresh, we took a lot of teaching resources to use in the future (and in the present!!! You can see some of them in this website), and they were fun and engaging. I loved the fact of being only four students: it allowed us to be very involved in the meetings.
Moreover, it helped us to take the most of what we were living in the schools: we were revising our T.U.s, giving feedback, improving the activities… it was very helpful.
Finally, if I had to grade myself, I would consider different aspects. To start with, I think that I have been participating in the seminars although more than once I was the last one to arrive (not because a lack of interest, but because of other reasons). I also did a very bad presentation on the T.U (for which I am a little bit ashamed). I would grade myself with an 8’5.
Regarding my T.U, I think that it was one of those implementations very attractive at the first sight (because the material and the activities were cool) but in terms of usefulness, maybe it could have been better. Seeing the T.U. from a teacher point of view, it was difficult to check if students were following or not. I would grade myself with an 8.
Finally, regarding the tasks delivered in the portfolio and in the web I think they were creative, visual and innovative (at least this is what I tried). I would grade myself with a 9’5.
To sum up the mark… I would grade myself with a 9 of the general practicum process.