Professional Practice and Portfolio 2

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2015:

255 hours

Full-time employment as a teacher with a 0.8 teaching load

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry.

The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

The Professional Practice and Portfolio subjects provide the arena in which all the other subjects in the program are integrated into the Associates’ developing expertise as a classroom teacher, and their developing understandings of professional knowledge, professional practice and professional engagement and social context of the school. This subject focuses on the associate’s awareness of the characteristics of knowledge, practice and professional engagement for professional accountability in teaching, and on deepening their understanding of the use of assessment for tracking student learning more closely to inform teaching for individual student’s learning needs. Associates will continue to add to their portfolio evidence of their professional development as teachers.

On completion of this subject Associates should be able to:

• Demonstrate their capacity to use a range of strategies to establish a positive and inclusive learning environment;
• Establish a safe and productive learning environment with clear expectations for student behaviour;
• Use a range of strategies to assess and monitor student learning needs and use this to inform teaching, to report on student learning and provide feedback to students;
• Independently access and manage a range of learning and teaching resources including technologies to support their specialist area in teaching;
• Locate their professional practice within Standards for Graduate Teachers;
• Plan and implement strategies to support their professional growth;
• Engage effectively with parents and other members of the broader community who are stakeholders in education.

Teaching performance and professional engagement in the school throughout the year. Practicum mark, due November (50%)

Development of a portfolio (4500 words) of evidence of clinical practice (50%) including:

• Inquiry focus outline (1,000 words) and visual representation, due May (15%)
• Inquiry action plan with outline of unit plan/work program (2,500 words), due August (30%)
• Reflection on professional learning (500 words), due November (5%)

To pass this subject students are required to pass both of the assessment components.

There is one hurdle requirement:

• Students maintain a folder containing for example: lesson plans/ unit plans/ notes and observation sheets and any other relevant documents they deem relate to their teaching practice.

100% attendance is mandatory in all practicum subjects.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

On completion of this subject, Associates will have the knowledge, skills and understanding to enable them to:

• Be skilled communicators who can effectively articulate and justify their professional practice;
• Be flexible and able to adapt to change through knowing how to learn;
• Understand the significance of developing their practice on the basis of research evidence;
• Work in teams with skills in cooperation, communication and negotiation;
• Be independent of mind, responsible, resilient, self-regulating;
• Have a conscious personal and social values base that is evident in their teaching.