Feedback on my teaching 🗒️👂🏼

Maria Sevao, from Ako Mātātupu, came to observe my Y12 class. She gave me great feedback on my teaching. She visited my Y12 class. They are an advanced learning class, so there is no major behavioural issues, but there are issues with getting all the students engaged, and having discussions with the class and their groups.

The Good

Maria highlighted to features that stood out to from her observation of my teaching. Where these match up to Relatioship-based Leaders of Learning Profie (RBLP) it has been highlighted in bold . See the teaching practice guidelines for more specific details.

• Moving around the room. Although I did spend some time at the front of the classroom at the start of the lesson, I also spoke from different points within the room, and I always try to get to work individually or in groups with as many people as possible each lesson.
• My subject knowledge. I love mathematics, and I really enjoyed my time at university. I want students to feel that some passion for the subject that I have, and I like to point out where there are natural progressions to something beyond what we are immediately learning. 5.1, 5.2
• Starting the lesson with well established routines. Hei mahi is on the board at the beginning of a lesson, asking students to start with the Hei Mahi and put devices away. Students who arrive late are asked to start the Hei Mahi. I let the students know when I will be marking the role. 4.1, 4.2
• Having high expectations of students. Maria mentioned that I have high expectations of the students who I am working with. I usually do have high expectations but I have written previously about having naive high expectations. However, I think it is easy to have proper high expectations of these students as they are in the advanced learning class. 3.1, 3.3

The Work-ons

From the observation Maria and myself agreeing that on an ako focus and I used this to write my practice goal

What I have changed so far and what’s next…

While the feedback was related to my Y12 class, I understood that it was something that I’ve struggled with last year and this year with all my classes, therefore the feedback, and my work-ons were no surprise. I have tried to implement some of the feedback in other classes, and I feel like I have had more success with my Y9 class that anything else.

What’s changed

I’ve changed self marking of hei mahi to getting students to the board to mark the hei mahi. I’ve used this extensively with my Y9s and Y10s. My Y9s generally really like the approach, my Y10s are reluctant to come up, but eventually they do. In some lessons I use this approach with my Y12s as well. I try to ask different people to come to the board to answer questions. I think this has two good outcomes in the classroom. Students feel more engaged in the lesson, and it builds self confidence for other times they need to get up in front of the class such as speeches.

What’s next?

• I need to record a lesson for Maria – to see what progress I’ve made towards increasing participation and mathematical discourse in the classroom – I was supposed to do this sometime prior to this post!
• I am arranging a seating plan for my Y12 students in an attempt to increase the amount of discourse. Currently I have a group of Y11 students who seem to talk quite a bit about mathematics, but many students who are silent. They are capable students, and I know they have the ability by the work that they turn in. The idea is two-fold, introduce students to new students they may not have met, and to shift some of the people who are keen on talking to others to tables that are quieter.
• Given my Y12s are doing algebra as the next topic, there may be some open-ended questions that I can pose to elicit discussion of questions. Particularly the excellence questions are not simple to solve, but I need to make sure I’m giving them something that should just push them beyond where they are now.

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