journal entries

This assessment task requires you to write one 400-word journal entry each week on the concepts explored in the first four weeks of the unit. In total you will submit, in a Word document, 4x400- word journal entries. The purpose of this assessment task is to reflect on the knowledge and understandings you acquire from the weekly online activities (specified below). You are expected to draw on the prescribed weekly readings and resources to help support your reflections, as well as independently sourced scholarly literature.

For each journal entry, you must include evidence of the completed weekly activity (clearly indicated in your submission). Please note that your response to the weekly activity itself will not be assessed, however, it must be submitted in order for you to at least pass the assessment task.

Responses to the weekly activities will not be included in the word count. Each journal entry will follow the Connect-Extend-Challenge thinking strategy:

Connect – how are the ideas and information you’ve explored this week connected to what you already know? Firstly, you need to consider how all of the information and new concepts you have read and thought about connects to your pre-existing knowledge and experience. Provide an example (1-2) here demonstrating this connection with theory to support.

Extend – in what ways has your thinking been extended by these ideas and this information? Then you need to consider how the new material and discussions on Bb with your fellow students has extended your thinking. What is something new you have learnt? How have your ideas been developed? Have we discussed something that you had not previously considered? Use examples and theory to support.

Challenge – what challenges do you think you will face in applying this knowledge/understanding to your classroom practice? Finally, you need to highlight the challenges you may face in applying the concepts and new knowledge from Week 1 into practice during your practicum and as a teacher into the future. Again include examples and theory support.

1. Understanding of concepts

The key concepts that underpin each of the activities have been accurately identified and critically reflected upon. A comprehensive and succinct knowledge of the concepts being explored has been demonstrated and well-supported with relevant and meaningful academic literature.

2. Link between theory and activity

The entries demonstrates a deep, insightful and sophisticated understanding of connections between prior and new knowledge. The ways knowledge has been extended are thoughtfully articulated.

3. Transfer of knowledge into practice

Insightful and succinct entries demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of the challenges in applying new knowledge to practice. The entries are fully supported with meaningful and relevant examples and sophisticated integration of ideas from relevant, current and diverse bodies of scholarly literature.

4. Academic writing.

The journal entries are professionally presented, well-structured and logically ordered. The writing has no grammatical, spelling or punctuation errors. APA referencing is correct.

Readings

Focus: Creating a safe and effective learning environment

Last week we started our practicum journey by getting to know each other and examining the importance of effective communication within a school context. We then explored the significance of building professional and caring relationships with your mentor, students and families.

This week we continue our introduction to the primary setting by looking at the primary learning environment. We will begin by unpacking some of the key principles required to create a safe and effective learning environment and will then refine our exploration to focus on its various facets including the physical, social and emotional environments. We will conclude by focusing on strategies to manage the learning environment and exploring the multiple dimensions of classroom management.

The concepts that you cover this week will assist you in developing your understanding of the multiple dimensions of a primary learning environment and will help you prepare for your first practicum in a primary setting. They will also help you prepare for Assessment 2: Lesson plans, as many of these concepts are interwoven throughout the lesson planning process.

Before delving into our first concept for this week, take a moment to consider your own schooling experience in light of how safe, supportive and inclusive the learning environments were and also, how engaging and challenging your learning experiences were. Which learning environments stood out to you the most and why? How were each of these components structured within the environment?

Creating a safe and effective learning environment

To begin our exploration of the learning environment, we will start off by asking the question, what constitutes an effective learning environment? Nicholson (2013) explores this concept thoroughly through the 5 Key Principles Model (5KP), highlighting five areas required to create and maintain an effective learning environment. These principles (pillars) are as follows:

· Pillars 1-3: Safety, Support and Inclusion (socio-cultural pillars of effective learning environments)

· Pillars 4-5: Challenge and Engagement (the critical facilitators of learning).

Throughout the following reading, Nicolson (2013) unpacks this model in detail and provides real-life examples, scenarios, policies and insights into how the five key principles form the basis for creating effective learning environments. Furthermore, he highlights some of the possible implications for teachers and provides practical strategies, as to how each principle can be applied within a classroom context.

 Reading