SCHOOL PLACEMENT 1
Student: Damian Martin
G00360533
Date: 13/10/17
OBSERVATION
In this first school placement
we observed the way the
teacher spoke, thought and
interacted with the students
in a professional way.
Knowing the students.
2017/2018
Class Observed: 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th class
Topic: Professionalism in teaching
CRITICAL REFLECTION ON THE OBSERVATION
We were given a warm welcome by the Principal. She briefed
us on what we were going to be doing in our teacher
placements. She was very professional and she had all the
work prepared for us and the students so that she didnt have
to think on the spot. The teacher gives a spelling test to each
class every Friday morning. While working with one class
group she assigns work to the other class groups. She works
with the most junior group in the classroom first. This helps to
settle and focus the Junior students. The teacher gives a
positive vibe on doing the spelling and this makes the students
excited to learn their spelling or to do other class work. (In
addition, good teachers are often described by pupils as
making use of a variety of teaching methods and learning
activities, using a range of skills to maintain pupils interest
and to diffuse discipline problems quickly, and managing the
lessons so pupils are kept engaged in what the teachers want
them to do. (Kyriacou, 2007)). The way the teacher interacted
with the students made me feel hopeful as I would like to give a
positive vibe when I would be teaching and it would encourage
the student to want to do more work and they would become
excited to come in to the class and learn the work that I would
produce for them. This method the teacher used helped the
students enjoy school and want to learn more which helps the
student progress in school.
It is essential that a teacher get to know the students as each
student has there difficulty in different subjects. The student
could have difficulty with reading, numeracy and co-ordination
but it is up to the professionalism of teachers and resource
coordinators to recognise this among the students. When the
teacher establishes this in the students the students can then
get help and can improve on their learning difficulty. As the
teacher was going around to each student I observed the
teacher helping the students that had learning difficulty . It was
clear that the teacher knew their student. While I was in
primary school and secondary school seen the resource
SCHOOL PLACEMENT 1 2017/2018

coordinator at work but know from my own experience I see

the value of that work and the difference it makes to the
students. (Intelligence arose from research fi ndings that
indicated that children appeared to differ in performance in a
consistent way across a wide variety of cognitive and
intellectual tasks (Kyriacou, 2007)).

Bibliography
Kyriacou, C., 2007. Essential Teaching Skills. 3rd ed. Cheltenham: Nelson Thornes Ltd.