News from Director of Teacher Effectiveness and Development
One’s efficacy improves each time we gain experience in that environment. Hence, the catch-cry, “Practice makes perfect”. An education at A.B. Paterson College is not just about academic learning. The College ensures that students are exposed to multiple environments (classroom, outdoor education facilities, sports fields, rehearsal rooms, public speaking venues and the wider community). Last week we saw the Year 12s experience going to a ball, dressing in formal attire and practising introducing their partners to the host. When the time comes in the future that our students need to be effective in a formal setting, they will be able to draw on the experience they had at school. Needless to say, perhaps our students need a few more ‘formals’ to become au fait with the expectations. Many high heels were discarded within the first hour and neckties had been loosened. Effectiveness improves with experience. Practice makes perfect.
As the Director of Teacher Effectiveness and Development, it is my role to work with teachers to improve their effectiveness. I work closely with the Director of Positive Education and Leadership to ensure that research on students’ well-being needs is actively met by our teachers. As such, the teachers are currently working through the research of John Hattie, Robert Mazarno, Tina Blythe and Martin Seligman, and determining the Positive Psychology Interventions that they can adopt in their Prep – 12 classrooms. The research tells us clear lesson goals, knowing our students, movement and mindfulness practices, regular and on-going feedback and engaging lessons all improve student outcomes. After reading and discussing the research in small groups, we set ourselves goals to try new practices and share these strategies within our teacher groups. By semester 2, after professional discussion and practice, the College will undertake Growth Reviews and use the national bench marks (AITSL Standards) to evaluate their areas for development. Like the students, a growth mindset is essential for development.
Over the last two weeks, I have had the privilege of seeing students at work in their classes from Prep to Year 12. I’m thoroughly impressed with the digital skills of all students (especially with OneNote, Teams and Stream). Throughout the year, teachers will be engaging in training with our new Head of Digital Literacy & STEAM, Beth Claydon, to ensure we continue to develop our effectiveness and knowledge of these platforms. While our students are keen to jump in and explore the digital world, it is through the design of rich and deep learning tasks that students are able to broaden their on-line repertoire of skills in a range of environments.
All the best for the culminating performances that are due over the next few weeks. If you or your child are discussing the assessments, ensure you revisit the learning goals for each lesson, use mindfulness strategies so you are truly focussed when studying and incorporate teacher feedback into your work. Grit outweighs talent so make sure you have thought carefully about the strategies you are adopting for revision. After that, persevere with your successful strategies and reject those that are not working for you.
Good for the end of term.
Sue Walduck
Director of Teacher Effectiveness and Development
