Institute of Education
Secondary PGCE (School Direct)
Initial Teacher Education
Induction Tasks Booklet
2017-18
Name…………………………………………………………………….. Subject …………………………………
AN INTRODUCTION TO LEARNING AND TEACHING
Contents
The aims of the induction period 3
The induction period 3
Figure 1 Pattern of study during induction 3
Expectations 4
The pattern of the placement 4
Figure 2 Allocation of time during induction 4
Observing 5
The outcomes from the induction placement 5
The Tasks and Supporting Resources 6
Useful links 7
Task 1 – Professional Values and Teachers’ Expectations 8
Task 2 – Behaviour and Learning Management 10
Task 3 – Effective Teaching and Learning 14
Task 4 – Emerging Professional Development 16
Figure 1 Pattern of study during induction 3
Figure 2 Allocation of time During induction 4
The aims of the induction period
An introduction to learning and teaching
The tasks in this booklet are designed to help you to use your time in school effectively, to gain a high quality experience, and to begin the process of focusing on the Teachers’ Standards. The purpose of the induction period is to give you an understanding of your school and to provide you with some information to inform your studies as an ‘early professional’. This booklet will be submitted electronically to form the evidence for your first assignment (PSEC3001 – An introduction to learning and teaching).
The induction period
The induction period is a mixture of days in school observing and completing induction tasks and days in University. In the final three weeks you will spend most of your time in school with Mondays in University for subject sessions.
The induction periodWk / w/b / Monday / Tuesday / Wednesday / Thursday / Friday / Days in sch
2 / 04/09 / Sch 1 / Sch1 / Sch1 / Sch1 / Sch1 / 5
3 / 11/09 / PS / S / S / PS / PS / S / PS / Sch1 / S / S / S / 1
4 / 18/09 / S / S / S / S / S / PS / PS / Sch1 / S / S / S / 1
5 / 25/09 / S / S / S / S / S / PS / Sch1 / Sch1 / S / S / S / 2
6 / 02/10 / S / S / S / Sch1 / Sch1 / Sch1 / Sch1 / 3
7 / 09/10 / S / S / S / Sch1 / Sch1 / Sch1 / Sch1 / 3
8 / 16/10 / S / S / S / Sch1 / Sch1 / Sch1 / Sch1 / 3
9 / 23/10 / 0
School / University based Subject session / University based Professional Studies / University based Enhancement Activity / Directed Time
Figure 1 Pattern of study during induction
The school induction programme should support and prepare you for your first. The focus of this initial period in school will be to address the following key themes:
· Safeguarding and pupils’ wellbeing – what does this mean and who is responsible for safeguarding and well-being in your school?
· The school profile: What profile does your school have and how could this data impact on teaching and learning within the school?
· Professional values and attributes: How are high expectations and professional values communicated in the classroom? Are they addressed differently across the Key Stages?
· Meeting individual needs – How are the needs of individuals met including SEND, EAL and G&T.
· Teaching strategies - If Teaching does not equal Learning, how and why might knowledge of a variety of teaching styles be of use to the classroom teacher?
· Behaviour: How do teachers manage the behaviour of pupils? What strategies do they use to motivate pupils?
· The nature of good teaching: What are the characteristics of good lessons in your subject area?
· Subject specific tasks provided by your subject tutor.
To help you during the induction period this booklet provides guidance on the different ways in which you could explore these issues and collect information. Your school may have its own preferred sequence of induction activities and so tasks do not have to be completed in the order that they are set out in this booklet. It is useful to complete a pupil pursuit or trail where you follow a pupil for a day. Speak to your professional mentor about this and see if this can be organised during the induction period.
The key is that you address all tasks and have enough material to be able to prepare you for your teaching placement. The information you collect will inform your writing of assignment 1 (PSEC3001 – Introduction to learning and teaching).
Expectations
It is our hope that you will be treated as a full member of staff as far as is possible, but you must remember that as a School Direct trainee or a School Direct Salaried trainee you are a guest in the school at this point. You arrive as a qualified graduate with expertise to offer, but you should remember that your mentors are the experts in teaching. Assertiveness and tact are really important! Full attendance is compulsory but if for any reason you are absent during the placement you should contact your subject mentor, professional mentor, university tutor and the course administrator (Claire Rowlands – ). Please refer to the course handbook and the code of conduct for further details (both are available on Blackboard – PGCE Sec Course Admin).
The pattern of the placement – based on 25hr weekDates in school / Part of the Course / Collaborative working / Solo teaching / Observation or directed time / Weekly review meetings / School based professional studies. Private Study and preparation
4/09/17 -29/09/17 / Induction period / 0 / 0 / 17 / 1 / 7
2/10/17 – 13/10/17 / Induction period / 2 / 1 / 14 / 1 / 7
16/10/17 – 20/10/17 / Induction period / 4 / 2 / 11 / 1 / 7
30/10/17 – 05/01/18 / School 1: First experience / 6 / 6 / 5 / 1 / 7
Figure 2 Allocation of time during induction
Fig. 2 is taken from the Course Handbook (for trainees) and Partnership Guidance (for mentors) and is an indicative overview of the allocation of time in school. As a general rule you should have 17 hours of teaching experience (shaded grey) either collaborative working, solo teaching or observation/direct time plus a weekly review and school based professional studies programme in any week. The ratio of these parts will vary depending on the part of the course, your own individual needs and issues such as class rotations or assessment periods. In addition, you should have a subject mentor meeting and professional mentor session each week and although it would be helpful if these were on the Friday, it may not be possible due to the mentor’s timetable. In such cases you should be flexible enough to accommodate lunchtime or after school meetings or whatever suits your mentors best.
What if I am on my own? If for any reason you do not have a subject partner who is following one of the PGCE routes, your subject mentor will work with you more closely in the completion of the subject tasks. Very rarely you may be the only University of Worcester trainee teacher in a school. In this case we will support you and your school in developing an individual programme for this first experience. Your subject tutor will support you with this task.
Observing
Observing entails listening, watching, asking questions and interacting with people. These are important skills in themselves and it will be good for you to develop these at the start of your training career. Making observations in a place like a school is not always easy; there is so much happening that it is sometimes difficult to pick out salient points unless you have a clear focus.
When completing general observations the following eight questions will help you to focus on the learning.
1. How well does the structure of the lesson, as evident in both planning and teaching, promote learning?
2. Are pupils sufficiently challenged and engaged given their prior skills, knowledge and understanding?
3. Do pupils understand what they are being asked to do in every stage of the lesson?
4. Do pupils have opportunities and means to indicate their understanding (or lack) of the concepts being introduced?
5. Do pupils improve their understanding as a result of detailed and accurate feedback on their learning?
6. Are pupils who are having difficulty supported to help them understand?
7. How well is pupils’ subject knowledge developed in terms of knowledge, skills and understanding?
8. Is the management of the pupils’ behaviour effective to ensure that they make progress in a safe and secure environment?
Having a clear focus for your observations is important and the tasks in this booklet are designed to help with that. Your induction experience is not governed by these tasks alone; you have not finished observing once tasks are completed. Sometimes you will be observing teachers but most of the time you will be observing pupils – during the course you will come to understand that it is the observation of the pupils that provides the key information about the success of a lesson. It is good to be as actively involved as possible and you should discuss the ways in which you might be involved during a lesson with the class teacher beforehand.
You will also need to make notes; both those indicated by the tasks, and others. As a matter of courtesy you should explain to the teacher concerned what you are doing; it can be very disconcerting to have someone making notes whilst you teach! Teachers are usually happy to discuss lessons, and their comments will add to your observation notes. In completing these tasks you must remember that they are open documents. Be discreet in your comments and show respect for the school’s staff, pupils and procedures.
The outcomes from the induction placement
By the end of the induction period in school, you will have completed a range of activities that will enable you to plan for your first phase of teaching. It is hoped that the tasks will strengthen your early learning at university and help you to make sense of some of the initial reading you have undertaken about education.
2
The Tasks and Supporting Resources
This booklet has been provided as a hard copy so that you can take it into lessons and make notes as you are observing. You may be able to make notes on several tasks during one lesson or you may wish to focus on one lesson at a time. You will need to submit these tasks as the appendices for assignment 1 using the assignment 1 template available on Blackboard. The key is that you address all tasks and have enough material to be able to prepare you for your teaching placement and the assignment.
Further information about the assessment criteria for assignment 1 can be found in the Assignment Guidance booklet and on Blackboard (PGCE Sec Course Admin for Trainees – Assignments). The guidance should be read in conjunction with this booklet. There are also a series of Movies to explain the assignment and related tasks in more detail. These can be found on Blackboard PGCE Sec Professional Studies for Trainees.
You will be required to use literature to support your views for assignment 1. As a starting point you might find the following useful:
The set text – A good starting point for your reading is Capel, S. Leask, M. and Younie, S. (eds.) Learning to Teach in the Secondary School. A companion to school experience. 7th edition. Abingdon, Routledge. The template for each task includes references to the relevant chapters in the book.
Blackboard – The Blackboard organisation PGCE Sec Professional Studies for Trainees provides a range of resources and reading materials from university sessions. These are updated following every new session so keep checking the organisation.
Reading Lists - You automatically become members of the library on registering, and normally receive an ID/library card.
You can find your reading list for this assignment on Blackboard (PGCE Sec Course Admin – Assignments – Assignment 1). Please note that you are not expeted to read all of the books on the lists. The list is indicative and you are encouraged to ‘question the given’ when engaging in any reading materials whether printed or digital.
The Hive, situated next to City Campus, has an extensive collection of books. We also have a growing collection of e-books, available to read online (accessible through Library Search). You will need your student ID card to borrow material from the library, and loan periods include Short Loan (2-day), High Demand (2-week) and Open (3-week). You can borrow up to 12 x High Demand, up to 12 x Open loans and up to 3 x Short Loans at any one time.
The library holds a range of print journals of relevance to education, on Level 4 of the Hive. However, many of our journals are accessible solely online (through Library Search) making them more accessible to you when you not on campus or in the library building. You will be expected to carry out online research.
The university has a system of ethical consideration that applies where trainees undertake work with children and other members of the community. Please ensure anonymity for pupils and staff in your writing. This means redacting names and obvious references to the school before submitting your work for assessment. This also applies to any material added to an appendix.