Recently I have been really busy, working in a school busy, which I thought I had left behind back when I finished working at school!
This has been great, as it means I have been productive (I LOVE feeling productive) but also that I am moving forwards- projects I have been working for a long time have been finished and I have been able to put new skills into practice to help me to achieve my goals.
For Christmas, my boyfriend was given a copy of Emma Gannon's 'The Multi-Hyphen-Method' after we watched her speak at the Literature Festival in Cheltenham last year. So far he hasn't had a look in as I have been making my way through it (usually I am a very fast reader but this has been going alongside the usual murder mysteries, Harry Potter and monthly book club novels). In it there is a section entitled 'Always be in Beta Mode' which I have felt an affinity with this week following some conversations with colleagues as well as reflections on my practice and work as a whole.
The message in the book is that you should never be finished- as a professional you should be an ever evolving entity, looking for things to tweak or develop throughout your career. Although in Emma's book this is largely applied to her own arena it is true when she says a lot of her advice can be applied to any career. In teaching you should always be looking for ways to improve and develop your practice and my constant refrain to students is 'you can learn something from everyone'.
A lovely example of this is a conversation I had with one of my students who is completing a placement in a secondary school. He is working with a very experienced head of department who often comes in for guest lectures and has fantastic knowledge of PE and its delivery in schools. The placement involves evaluating practice (both the students' own as well as identifying what makes existing teachers effective) and so students will engage in lots of discussion with their mentors about teaching pedagogy. This student reported that his mentor had explained that in working with him he had learned something new about his own practice; the student's desire to improve had allowed him to reflect on his own teaching and how he could use some of the techniques or ideas the student had to improve himself.
This was so lovely to hear, as sometimes I am aware of teachers who can be somewhat hostile to students asking questions, as students have sometimes identified that they feel that their ideas are dismissed by those whom they work with in schools.
It is important to remember that we will never be the finished article and teaching in particular is a profession of continued development and change. Ensure that you continue to challenge yourself in your teaching, as well as looking for CPD opportunities both inside and outside of school. Twitter is a great way to connect with other Education professionals as well as a realistic way to stay on top of developments across the sector.
Good accounts to follow include:
@afPE_PE - The Association for PE which gives regular updates on a range of PE related information
@PE4Learning - Great resources and teaching ideas
@AlisonMPeacock - CEO of the Chartered College of Teaching charity
@PEGeeks - An account which shares resources and ideas from around the world
@mrrobbo - Specialist in PE and Technology
@DrAshCasey - A PE researcher, sharing relate-able PE research
and, of course me....
@RachSu11 - I share my thoughts on education as well as ideas for teaching and improving health education.
Please let me know of any other twitter recommendations, or any top CPD tips you have found useful!
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