SENCO duties away from the classroom Essay Example

SENCO duties away from the classroom Essay Example SENCO duties away from the classroom Essay SENCO duties away from the classroom Essay During my ESE the class was covered by a supply teacher every Friday morning allowing the class teacher time to carry out her SENCO duties away from the classroom. I observed that each time the children were taught by the supply teacher they behaved extremely badly and did very little work. Even children that were normally quiet in class saw this time as an opportunity to become boisterous. The teaching style of the replacement teacher differed greatly from the class teacher. The supply teacher was softly spoken, gentle when giving instructions, and did not carry out punishment threats; for example taking time away from the children’s play time for bad behaviour. I noted that although the usual class teacher might be viewed by some as strict and authorative, this was in fact what the children craved and they did not work as well when this structure was removed. Pollard and Tann (1993) observed, when asked about their ‘best’ teachers, a majority of junior age pupils chose fairness and consistency as the chief qualities. (p.164) An effective teacher will have numerous strategies for controlling the children’s behaviour, however for these to work it is important for the teacher to know each child individually. Some children respond well to hand signals, or facial expressions. Some will not understand these subtleties and will need verbal reminders. By understanding each child, an effective teacher will control behaviour more effectively. I witnessed an example of this during my time in school. The teacher asked 5 of the most disruptive children to draw a picture on a small card of something that represented good behaviour to them. She then laminated the cards and the 5 held them at carpet time and had them on the table during work sessions. When the behaviour of any of these children became unacceptable, the class teacher would say; ‘look at your card’. For two of the children this simple idea worked extremely well and their behaviour improved dramatically. The other three folded, chewed and lost their cards and were not interested in what the significance was. Some methods that work for visual learners may not be as successful with kinaesthetic ones. A good teacher will understand the differences. It is extremely important that the teacher uses all knowledge they have about a child effectively and to the child’s benefit. An effective teacher will be aware of the child’s cultural and religious background and will pay particular attention to any specific needs. This is also the case for children with special educational needs. By being interested and informed, the effective teacher will successfully manage the class to it’s maximum learning potential. In my recent ESE I experienced such a case; Wiktoria is a Polish girl who had very little speaking English and naturally struggled with class work. I noticed that she was not labelled as ‘low ability’ simply because she did not understand the language. She was given support from the TA and oftencame up with correct answers before the english speaking children. She was extremely able and just needed extra assistance as she leant the language. In some schools she may have been automatically placed at the lower end of the abilty range; however this was not what was required and the class teacher had realised this and acted accordingly. Of course it is understandable that in a class of thirty children, issues such as these will occasionally be missed. But if left, children such as Wiktoria could become frustrated at their inabilty to understand and follow the other children, resulting in behavioural problems. The class teacher informed me that Wikoria had been transferred from another local school where she had been considered ‘a problem’. During my three week placemnent, I saw no sign of any behavioural issues with Wiktoria, mainly because she was handled extremely effectively by the class teacher. It is important that children are viewed as individuals with different needs and not left unmotivated as this can result in bad behaviour. An effective teacher will encourage discussion and contribution and ban the children from mocking or laughing at incorrect answers. An effective classroom is one where pupils learn, and all staff help them to do so without spending too much of their time managing problem or difficult behaviour. The Elton Report on Behaviour Management, comissioned in 1989 states; Everybody involved in the planning, delivery and evaluation of the curriculum should recognise that the quality of teaching and learning has a significant impact on pupils behaviour. An effective teacher is one with a variety of teaching skills and a flexibility to implement them whenever they are required. By creating a positive and stableclassroom environment with rules and boundaries, the children will be able to express themselves and work to the best of their abilty. It is essential that children feel respected and included and a good teacher will realise the importance of high self esteem among his/her class. I have studied a wide range of skills that I feel make up an effective teacher, three of which I have discussed during this essay. I am aware that in order to develop my strength in these areas I will need to practice and apply the skills within a school environment and I am looking forward to doing this later in the year. The successful combination of personal attributes and practical knowledge that combine to make a successful teacher is a mix that I hope to achieve through hard work and keen observation.