Leading in Teaching, Learning and Mentoring Practice - Essay Example

In this modern era where one has to make a tremendous amount of effort to come at par with the ever changing scenario, the mental growth and development of a person begins at home at a very tender age. The pace of this growth is large as compared to past few decades. For the same reason, the responsibility of a teacher in shaping the future generation has also increased manifold. Not only is he a mode of learning and education, but a teacher also has to work in shaping the pupil in a broader aspect. A teacher in fact acts as a prime leader for his students who look up to him and follow his words and actions closely. Moving onwards to the role of a teacher as a leader in the educational settings, it can be further elucidated by considering the major roles of a teacher leader as explained by Harrison and Killain (2007). Through their work, they have emphasized the role a teacher can play in the lives of their pupils both by working along with his colleagues and also himself directly. Some of them include role of a teacher as a; Source of information and resource Instructional support Curriculum setter and assistant Support in classroom Mentor Facilitator in learning School leader in addition to being a teacher leader Coach in data collection and provision A motivation for change and also a Learner According to Harris (2002) (as quoted by Beach 2007) is of the view that the role of a teacher as a leader for his students falls under four dimensions: Brokering-the mode of translating into practice the dictums or rules of school improvement Participative leadership- through which the teacher leader himself becomes a part of the change being brought about and is in a better position to collaborate with his fellows in achieving a set target Mediating-the process by which a teacher becomes source of expertise and resources for the colleagues and students alike and finally Forging relationships-with others in the field of teaching in order to broaden the horizon for the role of a teacher leader. A teacher leader is different from a school leader. He enjoys authority and power of a more expanded nature. Through formal and informal efforts, a teacher leader can collaborate with his colleague and even the head of the institution for the betterment of the educational setup. While in the work environment, a number of incidences are encountered which further strengthen the statement that a teacher plays the role of a leader. Two of such cases are elaborated in the subsequent paragraphs. I had the opportunity to work in Meadow High School and teach autistic children with special needs. During my stay there as a teacher, I came across the ways in which these children were being dealt with. While some of them were commendable, I found certain aspects of interaction and teaching lacking there. The school plans and teaches to a mainly primary model which prepares the student for an entry level qualification, although there are opportunities for the students to gain GCSE’s and A levels if the students are able to do so. In recent years the needs of students have become more complex as was witnessed by me during my interaction students which all had Autism of a moderate to complex level. ‘Autism is one of the most common developmental disabilities in the world, affecting approximately 1 out of every 166 children. Its prevalence rate makes it the second most common developmental disability-even more common than Downs Syndrome’ (UNC, 2007). It is important to keep this fact in mind that each child with autism is unique and requires special attention. For that matter, it was mandatory that I interacted with the children at individual level in order to learn about them as much as I could and later incorporate that learning and knowledge in my teaching and interactive methodology. The institution had incorporated into its teaching plan, the TEACCH methodology. TEACCH is currently one educational intervention used for people with autism. The acronym TEACCH stands for ‘Treatment and Education of Autistic and related Communications handicapped Children’. The students I got to work with were in Key Stage 3 of this plan. They follow a primary module in which they are taught most lessons in their own classroom with the exception of specialised subjects being taught in other rooms for example, wood technology, food technology, music, art and PE. Because the students had come to rely a lot on visual cues and specific routines in their base classroom, in other rooms there were no obvious signs of any TEACCH strategies prevailing. I decided to carry out a visual, unstructured observation of the classes involved with the intention that my findings would be a basis on which I could start the staff training from In order to perform these observations I distributed consent forms for the subject tutors to sign to allow me to observe their lessons. I was to observe both the nurturing class and the class that uses TEACCH. I sought consent from all of the parents of the students to ensure my practises were ethical. All staff was willing and spoke of the need to increase their own understandings and practises for complex classes. Prior to the observations I gave each staff member a short questionnaire to reiterate what they had said to me. I reissued the questionnaire towards the end of the three months trial to find out if there were any improvements or differences in the students’ behaviours. Initially, when I began to research others knowledge of TEACCH I found out that the staff were only aware of symbol use. There was little indication that students were placed at appropriate desks and also the language that was being spoken towards these students was hindering their understanding of what was expected from them. Using all of this information I held a brief individual meeting with each of the teachers where I provided them with subject related resources, ideas and the ethos behind the TEACCH programme emphasizing that TEACCH can be adapted to suit individual’s needs, which of course change over time with maturity. Here it would be justified to mention that every child with ASD is unique and will respond in different ways. If an assistant supports the child, teachers should find out from them exactly which conditions are most conducive to learning and good behavior. As a teacher leader, I spoke to them about the physical layout of their classrooms and we set up individual workstations. I reinforced the need to provide clear and concise schedules for the students as many students with autism have problems with sequential memory and organization of time. Individual workstations were set up for the children helping them strengthen their mind. After a period of three months, the data was collected once again from the teachers regarding progress of the children and a considerable improvement was noted in the children who were handled using the TEACCH method. While the other children appeared to be less focused with shorter attention span, the children with whom the new approach was being used appeared to be more settled. They were able to carry out simple tasks independently, they could follow simple instructions with the use of symbol and sign support, their concentration and behaviour both improved. Another critical incident would be the introduction and implementation of Attention Autism in the school I am working in. it is a program based on the concept of interactive approach to Autistic children, thus helping improve their communicability. In context of the attention approach regarding the autistic children, there is a need to mention a few words regarding the original program itself. Attention autism is an intervention based on speech and language therapy for children and adults alike who suffer from autism. Attention Autism is a therapeutic program started by a speech and language therapist Gina Davies, base in Surrey (Attentionautism.com 2011). It aims at providing an interactive environment for people with autism focusing on them at individual level. Through this approach, the communication barrier that exists between autistic children and the people around them can be overcome. Autistics show signs of impaired reciprocal social interaction, failure to communicate properly, restricted repertoire of interests, behaviors and activities, neurological deficits and behavioral changes in different intensities (Dryden-Edwards, Stoppler 2012). All of these signs and symptoms may not necessarily be present in an individual and even when present, they tend to show variations among individuals such that clinically, a whole spectrum of manifestations is encountered. Owing to this variability, it becomes mandatory to tackle every person separately. This intervention by Davies aims to provide autistic people with such interesting and captivating opportunities that would encourage them to come forward and be more expressive. Attention Autism works by conducting training sessions for the parents and the professionals working with autistic children. Through this approach it is expected that the research being conducted on various aspects of Autism could be molded into a practical form facilitating people nationwide. As much as this intervention sounds appealing and hopeful, it faces a major setback when it comes to funding. Unfortunately, there is not much revenue available to expand and implement such activities due to which capable people are unable to extend their services to the population in need. A number of deserving people are unable to benefit from this marvelous opportunity which presents a sorry state of affairs. The scenario is our setting is not much different. While incorporating this strategy in to my current work settings, I have had the opportunity to work with 3 other classes and have worked to improve the concentration of all of the ASD students and SEN students alike to a marked extent. As bright as it seems, a major hurdle in the way of us teacher leaders over the course of time has been the lack of funding. Unfortunately we need to buy many more resources to help us with this process of autistic training and treatment. But we are being blocked at purchasing due to senior management holding the budget and not releasing. If this state of affairs is managed properly, a lot more autistic children could benefit from it and also the teachers would be in a much better position to administer their services. Appendix In the context of this essay, I have started with the emerging needs of children and the demands that put forth for the teacher in this modern era. Teachers have to play a role much larger than originally perceived and have to act as much more than a mere educator. The role of a teacher leader is applicable in every educational setting, ranging from pre-school all the way to universities. He has to work in order to shape the minds of his pupils and to mold them such that they are in a better position and in an advantage to handle the challenges life has to offer for them later on. Obtaining guidance from the works of Harrison and Killian (2007), ten important roles of a teacher leader have been mentioned in an educational setting. It is important to differentiate between a teacher leader and a school leader. In every sense of word, a teacher leader occupies a position much higher than the school leader, based upon the strength of roles he has to play. A teacher leader enjoys the authority and responsibility to collaborate even with the head of the institution when need be. Through the broad spectrum of roles assigned to him, he can modify and shape the personalities of his pupils. He has the ability to work with his colleagues in both formal and informal settings to bring about radical changes. As a curriculum developer, mentor, and resource provider and in a number of other roles that he has to play, a teacher leader gets the opportunity to be the symbol of change and a beacon for those who look for a leader to guide them. Moving onwards, I have mentioned two incidences from my professional experience with autistic children and how I felt the effectiveness of my role as a teacher leader. In both incidences, the aim was to improve the settings in which the special children were made to learn. Certain modifications in the teaching methodology were required. In the first incidence, there is given an example of how a teacher leader can incorporate his efforts in order to help improve the concentration and learning of an autistic child. I had the fortune to work in a school for children with special needs. During my experience in the institution under discussion, I came across the methodologies incorporated in to the teaching practice of children with Autism. While some of them were appearing to be successful, I noticed vast areas of potential improvement. During the course of my stay there, the school utilized the TEACCH program for interaction with autistic children. I was lucky enough to be a part of this program. Through my role as a teacher leader, I was able to conduct a study regarding the learning level of autistic children and the methods of teaching used. This study provided an insight in to the plausible reasons as to why the teaching methods were failing badly when it came to developing attention span. Keeping this piece of information in mind, I was able to convince the authorities and colleagues to modify the classroom settings and the teaching style with dramatic improvement of results. In the second incident, attention autism, a strategy has been used to help an autistic child communicate better and express his feelings, emotions and needs. In the setting I’m working in, I was lucky enough to introduce this strategy with the aim to help an autistic child better communicate and develop language skills. It focuses on individuals and treats each child as a unique person distinct from others with his own set of needs. Through interactive sessions and items, these children showed marked improvement in their behavior. While all these interventions provide an insight into a bright scenario, lack of funding is a major setback in every venture. The treatment options of autism are varied, and more varied are the strategies that can be used to help an autistic person adapt to and cope with the evolving challenges of life. Reference List: Attentionautism.com (2011) Attention Autism. [online] Available at: http://www.attentionautism.com/public/main.cfm [Accessed: 5 Dec 2012]. Beach S.N. (2007) 21st Century Learning: Teacher as Leader. [online] Available at: http://21stcenturylearning.typepad.com/blog/2007/02/teacher_as_lead.html [Accessed: 5 Dec 2012]. Dryden-Edwards R, Stoppler MC (2012) Autism Causes, Symptoms, Treatment - Autism Symptoms and Signs on eMedicineHealth. [online] Available at: http://www.emedicinehealth.com/autism/page3_em.htm [Accessed: 5 Dec 2012]. Harrison C, Killian J (2007) Ten Roles for Teacher Leaders Teachers as Leaders September 2007 65(1): 74-77 [online] Available at: http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/sept07/vol65/num01/Ten-Roles-for-Teacher-Leaders.aspx [assessed 5th December 2012] Read More