Learning and Teaching Experience
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Date
Learning and Teaching Experience
A3: Assess and Give Feedback to Learners
I employ formative and summative assessments to determine the extent to which students comprehended specific subject matters, theoretical frameworks, novel concepts, and achieve the ILOs. Besides, to give feedback to students in a raft of formats, key among them being electronic, written and face-to-face. This is important because giving feedback encourages them to think critically about their efforts and have a reflection on how they need to improve. Moreover, it improves self-awareness and enthusiasm for learning (Wanner and Palmer, 2018). For individual and group assignments submitted by students in electronic format (K4), I predominantly employ electronic formats such as e-mail for feedback. For class discussions, I utilized face-to-face feedback to point out key areas where a student needed to make improvements or even compliment the student. Lastly, I utilize written feedbacks for written assignments to highlight the mistakes made by students in their assignments (Nicol, 2010). I use these different approaches because they enable efficient reporting on concerns about teaching, assessment tasks, and the quality of teaching techniques and resources. My student’s response to these different formats is positive, entailing the effectiveness of the different approaches applied.
I apply several techniques to evaluate the quality of student learning, which in this context denotes several key factors, key among them being the student’s ability to apply theoretical concepts into practice, analytical and critical thinking skills and their overall grasp of key concepts learned at the classroom level (Woolfson, 2018). To begin with, I use formal assessment approaches such as tests, exams, essays, and term papers to measure the extent to which students understand critical concepts. Moreover, the formal assessments approach allowed me to evaluate the analytical and critical thinking skills of the students. Second, I gave the students practical work to evaluate their overall ability to apply key theoretical frameworks highlighted in-class readings in the real-world environment. I also carried out coaching sessions, individual appraisals and mentoring to not only assess the progress of students but also give them guidance throughout their learning experiences. Consequently, the effectiveness of the assessment is evidence of consistency of the students’ scores, through reliable and consistent results (Periera, et al, 2016). The assessment is valid, measuring the content that was taught, and then it reflects the skills and content reinstated when teaching the course. Moreover, there is an absence of bias among the students, having grades flow from their mastery of the anticipated goals instead of from the quizzes themselves.
References
Nicol, D. (2010). From monologue to dialogue: improving written feedback processes in mass higher education. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education 35(5), 501–517.
Pereira, D., Flores, M. A., Simão, A. M. V., & Barros, A. (2016). Effectiveness and relevance of feedback in Higher Education: A study of undergraduate students. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 49, 7-14.
Wanner, T., & Palmer, E. (2018). Formative self-and peer assessment for improved student learning: the crucial factors of design, teacher participation and feedback. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 43(7), 1032-1047.
Woolfson, L. (2018). Beyond formal assessment: the complex relationship between teacher beliefs and teaching. The Psychology of Education Review, 42(2), 28-32.
A4: Developing Effective Learning Environments and Approaches to Student Support and Guidance
As a tutor, I am well aware that a student’s learning environment remains critical to their ability to learn and participate in in-class activities. Throughout my teaching experience, I seek to optimize the formal learning environment in various ways. To begin with, I endeavoured to manage the students’ virtual learning and physical environments to ensure that they suited the learning needs of the students (Campbell, 2020). Concerning the physical environment, I arranged the students based on their preferences for group discussion partners. As such, the overall classroom set up featured clusters of students who belonged to the same discussion groups. This allowed for more meaningful discussions among students and allowed students to seek clarifications from fellow students if they failed to comprehend certain concepts.
About the virtual learning environment, I ensured that all students participated in online discussions. I also sought to answer outstanding questions presented by students on the online platform and ensured the availability of online learning resources in the online platform (Miranda and Morais, 2019). Second, I sought to incorporate aspects of work practice into the physical learning environment. Ideally, this entailed simulating professional practice environments and asking students to assume different roles and responsibilities. This enabled students to gain insights into the practical applications of key theoretical concepts learned in the classroom environment. To cater to the needs of all learners, I also sought to work with other teaching staff and curriculum developers. In so doing, I gave my views on the best ways through which the needs of disabled students could be taken into account within the curriculum framework. Optimizing an ideal learning environment enables the students to ask more questions, ideas come from divergent sources, and the learning habits are steadily modelled throughout the course (Heick, 2018).
References
Alves, P., Miranda, L., & Morais, C. (2019). The Importance of Virtual Learning Environments in Higher Education. In Computer-Assisted Language Learning: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 109-131). IGI Global.
Campbell, L. (2020). Teaching in an Inspiring Learning Space: an investigation of the extent to which one school’s innovative learning environment has impacted on teachers’ pedagogy and practice. Research Papers in Education, 35(2), 185-204.
Terry Heick (2018). 10 Characteristics Of A Highly Effective Learning Environment. (2018). Retrieved 10 July 2020, from https://www.teachthought.com/learning/10-characteristics-of-a-highly-effective-learning-environment/
A5: Engage in continuing professional development in subjects/disciplines and their pedagogy, incorporating research, scholarship and the evaluation of professional practices
As a teacher, I consider professional development to be a critical facet of career advancement. As such, I have participated in a raft of professional development programs over the years. One such program includes a credit-bearing program under the auspices of HE education. In essence, the programs have been beneficial to me in various ways (Barnes, 2017). First, taking professional development programs has allowed me to comprehend the critical aspects of contemporary educational theories. Second, the programs have enabled me to reflect and make recollections about critical aspects of my teaching capabilities that have allowed me to improve the learning experiences of my students, as well as the capabilities which necessitate a raft of improvements on my part. More fundamentally, the reflection enabled me to become cognizant of overarching challenges in the realm of teaching and adapt accordingly. One such challenge includes teaching students drawn from diverse cultural backgrounds and tailoring my teaching approach to suit their unique learning needs (Crawford, 2016). In a bid to engage in continuous professional development in my area of specialization, I have also sought to invite feedback, as well as observation of my practice from my peers and other professionals (K5, K6). This has allowed me to establish key areas where I need to make adjustments and improvements. Moreover, the feedback has enabled me to take stock of my strengths, and leverage them accordingly (Sharma and Pandher, 2018). Third, a key element of my professional development has included participation in annual professional development appraisal discussions concerning my teaching development. In essence, these discussions have helped me to compare my teaching development with that of other teachers and thus make necessary adjustments. Lastly, I regularly participate in development events associated with student learning in my discipline. The events give me crucial insights into the most effective teaching approaches in my discipline.
References
Barnes, G. (2017). Co-teaching: The importance of professional development (Doctoral dissertation, University of La Verne).
Mike Crawford (2016) Retrieved 10 July 2020, from https://www.bizjournals.com/bizjournals/how-to/growth-strategies/2016/09/professional-development-matters-success-company.html#:~:text=Professional%20development%20helps%20employees%20continue,relevant%20and%20up%20to%20date.
Sharma, P., & Pandher, J. S. (2018). Teachers’ professional development through teachers’ professional activities. Journal of Workplace Learning.