Professional Development Plan
This professional development plan links professional learning through standard six of the AITSL National Standards for teaching. In this plan I will reflect upon my development as an educator, my professional learning in my specialisations, support networks, and areas I want to grow in. This reflection will be in line with the teaching standards and will explain my intended progress from registration to being classed as a proficient teacher according to AITSL National Standards.
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Throughout my course at ACU I have not only developed as a professional but as an individual. The subjects I have taken in my art majors has challenged and motivated me to achieve a higher standard of teaching. I have grown so much in my music development as I am able to now conduct choirs, compose music, and perform on stage, and more importantly, teach students. Even though I have had to go outside of ACU to gain more knowledge through private art and music lessons, I believe that this is not a negative but a positive learning curve as I can now add this gained knowledge to my degree to further improve my skills as a teacher. I was especially motivated in my ARTS235 class where we were required to practice curatorship with a mock exhibition called The Pre-Raphaelites - The Beauty, Pain and Pleasure of Revolution. Lecturer and practicing artist Alasdair Macintyre was a really good role model and mentor to me as a teacher and an artist. Due to this reason I was extremely motivated and happy with this assessment piece, not because I had too, because I wanted too. |
This experience has taught me how to develop as a teacher so I can get my own students to be as inspired as I was, therefore sparking a passion in a specific learning area. I am extremely proud of this assessment even today, and I passionately want my classroom environment to be positive for my students so that they are proud of their work too.
I believe that as a teacher I must accept personal responsibility for my professional growth by implementing reflective practices and ongoing support for lifelong learning. This will enhance my collaborative learning experience as a teacher in a professional learning context. As a graduate teacher I am aware that I will need to continually develop my teaching skills and attributes regarding education. The skills I believe I need to work on are standards 1.4 and 2.4 as I do not have much experience in teaching students from indigenous cultures. My goal in the next 2-3 years is to teach in northern Queensland where there is a large emphasis on professional learning about teaching Indigenous students. What I can do now however is to learn as much as possible while completing my degree, for example I will become more familiar with programs and communities which support teacher learning for Indigenous cultures such as the QLD Government's Indigenous partnerships programs and the Principals Australia Institute: Successful classrooms for Indigenous students. What I can do now however is to learn as much as possible while completing my degree, for example I will become familiar programs and communities that facilitate teacher learning for Indigenous cultures such resources are: the QLD Government's Indigenous partnerships programs and the Principals Australia Institute: Successful classrooms for Indigenous students. The Principals Australia Institute also runs conferences and work programs for teachers to develop skills, attributes and professional strategies for professional growth. Information on these workshops can be found at the Dare to Lead, QLD: The Principals Australia Institute website. I will regularly keep up to date with this site in order to see if there are any PD opportunities for me to attend.
Professional development also relates to gaining further certification in my teaching areas of music and art which is very important to me regarding my teaching philosophy. I believe that the more I know, the more knowledge I can provide to my students. By improving my understanding and knowledge in music and art I will feel more confident in teaching these subjects, therefore improving my teaching pedagogy for the classroom. This can be achieved by gaining further accreditation with AMEB music theory and musicianship and continual art studio workshops. Next year I also plan to audition for a part-time graduate certificate in Opera at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music (Griffith University). With a combination of my passion and thirst for knowledge I believe I would be of high use in the classroom as I will be able to share this with my students, thereby influencing my students in learning and creating music.
As a teacher I am dedicated to continue my development in behaviour management alongside the graduate to proficient level of the teaching standards, as I have not had a lot of experience in dealing with challenging behaviours in the classroom. The way I plan to improve this area of teaching will be at my next practical placement at Burpengary State High School. I will do this by teaching early high school years (years 7 to 9) in order to make sure that I can manage their behaviours in a classroom environment. By teaching these grades it is hoped that I will improve my behaviour management skills. In addition to this, reflective practices and collaborative learning experiences will assist me in developing new strategies to deal with behaviour management. Reflective practice is essential for the professional teacher and is a requirement regarding the National Standards of Teaching. As I teach and continue to learn about dealing with challenging behaviours I will dedicate myself to this professional practice to improve my teaching philosophy, methods and pedagogy so that my students are safe and are able to thrive in my classroom.
I am dedicated to improving and developing my communication with community bodies, parents and fellow professionals. I have already begun to engage professions through my practical placements, community vocal programs for children (Junior Squids) and through my involvement with community theatre. I believe it is essential to develop positive partnerships with community members and fellow music enthusiasts where we all perform and communicate ideas, concepts and create support networks with each other (some of which are fellow teachers whom have similar passions with music). For example, during The Phantom of the Opera I engaged with music and opera professionals whom were also practicing teachers. I believe that our communication and ideas for teaching can support each other in our musical endeavours for years to come while we continue our musical professional development by continuing to be involved in the community with theatre.
Professional learning and healthy practice can also occur through work shadowing, external workshops, conversations with colleagues and support networks. Support networks that I would draw on is ASPAH, which is the Australian Society for Performing Arts Healthcare. I believe this is a great support network to become a member of as it not only provides support for performing artists but educators as well. This website is a fantastic support network resource for practicing teachers in the arts. This website links health and art practices as they are heavily linked to each other in relation to teaching positive and effective methods in the classroom. Support networks would also include the school that I am employed at, for example, I could have a mentor and seek opportunities to gain more knowledge through educational conferences and workshops that the school may be aware of, or organise. Some other supporting programs and websites I will use would be the: AITSL website (especially the teacher toolkit), the DETE induction government website, Education Queensland, the Learning Place, and the Beginning and Establishing Teachers Association.
Further attributes I need to develop by the end of the year are: My teacher presence, knowledge of musical and artistic games, my professionalism in regards to how I address students and challenging behaviours, my artistic knowledge of new and upcoming mediums, how to teach students from Indigenous cultures, engaging in colleague feedback, and engaging with parents.
To be able to move from a graduate level to the proficient level with the National Standards of teaching I will need to achieve my goals for my Professional Development practices (written above) and move up to 'the next level' from 'demonstrating' to 'implementing, designing and developing.' This can be seen for example in standard 1.3 Graduate Level to Proficient level where the teacher changes from 'Demonstrating knowledge of teaching strategies' (Graduate) to 'Designing and implement teaching strategies' (Proficient).
I believe that as a teacher I must accept personal responsibility for my professional growth by implementing reflective practices and ongoing support for lifelong learning. This will enhance my collaborative learning experience as a teacher in a professional learning context. As a graduate teacher I am aware that I will need to continually develop my teaching skills and attributes regarding education. The skills I believe I need to work on are standards 1.4 and 2.4 as I do not have much experience in teaching students from indigenous cultures. My goal in the next 2-3 years is to teach in northern Queensland where there is a large emphasis on professional learning about teaching Indigenous students. What I can do now however is to learn as much as possible while completing my degree, for example I will become more familiar with programs and communities which support teacher learning for Indigenous cultures such as the QLD Government's Indigenous partnerships programs and the Principals Australia Institute: Successful classrooms for Indigenous students. What I can do now however is to learn as much as possible while completing my degree, for example I will become familiar programs and communities that facilitate teacher learning for Indigenous cultures such resources are: the QLD Government's Indigenous partnerships programs and the Principals Australia Institute: Successful classrooms for Indigenous students. The Principals Australia Institute also runs conferences and work programs for teachers to develop skills, attributes and professional strategies for professional growth. Information on these workshops can be found at the Dare to Lead, QLD: The Principals Australia Institute website. I will regularly keep up to date with this site in order to see if there are any PD opportunities for me to attend.
Professional development also relates to gaining further certification in my teaching areas of music and art which is very important to me regarding my teaching philosophy. I believe that the more I know, the more knowledge I can provide to my students. By improving my understanding and knowledge in music and art I will feel more confident in teaching these subjects, therefore improving my teaching pedagogy for the classroom. This can be achieved by gaining further accreditation with AMEB music theory and musicianship and continual art studio workshops. Next year I also plan to audition for a part-time graduate certificate in Opera at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music (Griffith University). With a combination of my passion and thirst for knowledge I believe I would be of high use in the classroom as I will be able to share this with my students, thereby influencing my students in learning and creating music.
As a teacher I am dedicated to continue my development in behaviour management alongside the graduate to proficient level of the teaching standards, as I have not had a lot of experience in dealing with challenging behaviours in the classroom. The way I plan to improve this area of teaching will be at my next practical placement at Burpengary State High School. I will do this by teaching early high school years (years 7 to 9) in order to make sure that I can manage their behaviours in a classroom environment. By teaching these grades it is hoped that I will improve my behaviour management skills. In addition to this, reflective practices and collaborative learning experiences will assist me in developing new strategies to deal with behaviour management. Reflective practice is essential for the professional teacher and is a requirement regarding the National Standards of Teaching. As I teach and continue to learn about dealing with challenging behaviours I will dedicate myself to this professional practice to improve my teaching philosophy, methods and pedagogy so that my students are safe and are able to thrive in my classroom.
I am dedicated to improving and developing my communication with community bodies, parents and fellow professionals. I have already begun to engage professions through my practical placements, community vocal programs for children (Junior Squids) and through my involvement with community theatre. I believe it is essential to develop positive partnerships with community members and fellow music enthusiasts where we all perform and communicate ideas, concepts and create support networks with each other (some of which are fellow teachers whom have similar passions with music). For example, during The Phantom of the Opera I engaged with music and opera professionals whom were also practicing teachers. I believe that our communication and ideas for teaching can support each other in our musical endeavours for years to come while we continue our musical professional development by continuing to be involved in the community with theatre.
Professional learning and healthy practice can also occur through work shadowing, external workshops, conversations with colleagues and support networks. Support networks that I would draw on is ASPAH, which is the Australian Society for Performing Arts Healthcare. I believe this is a great support network to become a member of as it not only provides support for performing artists but educators as well. This website is a fantastic support network resource for practicing teachers in the arts. This website links health and art practices as they are heavily linked to each other in relation to teaching positive and effective methods in the classroom. Support networks would also include the school that I am employed at, for example, I could have a mentor and seek opportunities to gain more knowledge through educational conferences and workshops that the school may be aware of, or organise. Some other supporting programs and websites I will use would be the: AITSL website (especially the teacher toolkit), the DETE induction government website, Education Queensland, the Learning Place, and the Beginning and Establishing Teachers Association.
Further attributes I need to develop by the end of the year are: My teacher presence, knowledge of musical and artistic games, my professionalism in regards to how I address students and challenging behaviours, my artistic knowledge of new and upcoming mediums, how to teach students from Indigenous cultures, engaging in colleague feedback, and engaging with parents.
To be able to move from a graduate level to the proficient level with the National Standards of teaching I will need to achieve my goals for my Professional Development practices (written above) and move up to 'the next level' from 'demonstrating' to 'implementing, designing and developing.' This can be seen for example in standard 1.3 Graduate Level to Proficient level where the teacher changes from 'Demonstrating knowledge of teaching strategies' (Graduate) to 'Designing and implement teaching strategies' (Proficient).
graduate levelFocus area 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. |
proficient levelFocus area 1.3Students with diverse linguistic, cultural, religious and socioeconomic backgrounds.
Students with diverse linguistic, cultural, religious and socioeconomic backgrounds Design and implement teaching strategies that are responsive to the learning strengths and needs of students from diverse linguistic, cultural, religious and socioeconomic backgrounds. |
In conclusion, I understand that to develop as a professional in teaching practice I will continually need to reflect, plan, seek professional learning, be aware of support networks, be involved in the community and create professional goals. This will not be the end of the Professional Development plan as I will continue to use it as a reflective process in order to continue my professional development as a teacher.
AITSL. (2012). Australian Professional Standards for Teachers, Graduate teachers. Retrieved from http://www.teacherstandards.aitsl.edu.au/