The Teaching-Learning Process and Effective SMART Target - Essay Example

Reflective essay based on an up d action plan [Insert al Affiliation] In all professions, trends are always changing, and new processes and learning strategies are always being discovered. For instance, teaching is an evolving activity and this call for the teachers to upholds the quality and relevance of proficient services all through their working life. As a result, it is essential to stay on top of these changes within my professional field. Also, continuing professional development raises the standards of my skills. Since, professional development act as the systematic preservation, broadening and improvement of knowledge that endorse the development of personal qualities indispensable for the education of professional hence helping me to always be updated (Moon et al., 2000). Thus, it is imperative that I take a keen interest in continuing professional development as this will make me feel more optimistic and confident about my profession, and to keep motivated and inspired by new ideas. Therefore, for me to realize professional development that is necessary for assisting me at implement my action plan I have to employ the distinctive reflective practice. Since, reflective practice will offer me chances for enquiring of often taken-for-granted assumption, and this helping me to develop a better understanding of professional practices. Subsequently, the reflective practice involves a constant critical look at teaching-learning process hence is essential at highlighting the significant gap in professional knowledge. This will help the teacher to be in a position of to find out their strengths and weaknesses (Philpott, 2009). It is only through reflective practice that we as instructor will be in a position to apprehend that education should act as an empowering process that consents and directs apprentices to develop their critical thinking, passions, compassion, and an alignment towards wisdom for timely action (Bines & Watson, 1992). For that reason, I had to re-awaken part of myself and connect up with the world that my learners inhabit. Interestingly, as was I longing to fulfill adequately my action plan I came to realize that contemplative practice is a vivacious aspect of working with my learners. Early years practitioners are increasingly expected to reflect on their practice in a number of ways in order to enhance their professional development. To continuing my personal and professional development, reflective practice will be a way for me to discover that learners are skeptical, reflective, inquisitive, open-minded individuals who must learn for them to develop a deep understanding (Perry, 1968). In setting my SMART targets, I had to ensure that the target is within the level that I can achieve at an available time and also with the resources at our disposal towards attaining the target. Subsequently, I made sure that I reach the SMART target through consideration of some of the aspects of its elements. Such elements are the time, the specificity of the target itself, how realistic it is, and whether the allocated time was possible for each target (Frey & Fisher, 2011). The plans also ensure that the set targets are meeting the deadline to which each is set within a particular duration. In this case, the planning would take an amount of time to complete, and sometimes targets may not be achieved in time. Once I know what needs to improve I can then plan my next steps and targets, these targets will benefit me who will attempt these targets. However, after assessing my SMART target if found myself making a mistake as I failed to provide a condition in which my apprentices can become what they want to be (Tripp, 2000). Thus, reflecting on my mistakes in the teaching-learning process this will help to adjust my practice hence upsetting unnecessary mistake from happening again. And so, I can attain this through making SMART targets to achieve on. Conversely, I knew that my student might be better informed than I accept and this will make them demand for a higher and better approach to the concept I am about to deliver. As a result of this, I was made to understand that professional development demands an active rather than passive approach to learning (Irons & Alexander, 2004). Therefore, I have set myself four different SMART targets. First is, we had a lesson on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and this initiated the need for my personal and professional development. And so, this made me to set a SMART target for completing the FGM online course and finally I will use the resource I have collected to determine which teaching strategies will be effective in helping me deliver the content (Frey & Fisher, 2011). Consequently, containing my personal development I will use the online and teaching material available to update my own learning and knowledge on FGM. After completing the online course, I will be sure that this will help me attain necessary qualification as it will allow me to develop a clear statement of the objective to be realized by my student. Besides this, I will also be in a position of passing on my knowledge on FGM to other practitioners within the setting and sharing our learning together through evaluation and reflection (Díaz-Maggioli, 2004). For that reason, I can state that it is through employing proper reflective practice that has enable me to understand that nurturing an environment that is passionate in supporting critical thinking and an environment and that is ready to help students realize their ignorance thus empowering learners to discover their potential is vibrant. Correspondingly, by following the action plan, I have organized myself time to complete the course and keeping my progress up to date. I had completed the course on the set date that I will achieve the target, but the time that I have set myself on completing the course were out of my planning as it took longer, and this made me miss for my Christmas shopping. If I do need to set myself this target again or a target that are similar, I will still follow my action plan layout but I will have to develop strategies favorable in time management skills. In relation to that, I will demonstrate the ability to set and review appropriate SMART targets by initiating better instructional approaches that will help me endorse positive learning and teaching learning practices that incorporate action and reflection as this are vital is saving time factor (Jennifer, 2012, July 27). SWOT analysis is that tool that I used to plan my SMART targets, see Appendix 2 for the SWOT analysis. It assists in the evaluation of the strengths, weakness, opportunities, and the possible threats that may come by or one meets on the road towards the realization of a given objective (Honey & Mumford, 1986). SWOT analysis expansively evaluates the effect of these components in realizing a goal that an individual has in their plans hence crafting a practical reflection (Philpott, 2009). Through the SWOT analysis, I find out one of my weaknesses is not being unorganized, but the lack of mastery of day-to-day aspect of teaching. It was through this that I was able to understand other factor such as how to establish authority that will make my student listen to what I am teaching them hence stimulating their enthusiasm to learning and this crucial in saving time (Irons & Alexander, 2004). Additionally, it is through my SWOT analysis that I came to realize that I concentrated on problem solving which I used on my SMART targets, finding different ways to achieve my targets. Nevertheless, my weakness was depicted by lacking to acknowledge that teaching with clarity; passion, sincere enthusiasm and responsiveness help in making learners develop passion for education thus eliminating the risk of poor time management (Jennifer, 2012, July 27). Therefore, based on SMART target I agree that time management is a tool that I use to manage to maintain my class. And so, this made me to forget that interactive lectures is important as by making my learners the subject of their learning this would have help me to move away from the banking system philosophy of teaching hence accomplishing the collaborative learning and active learning auspicious in saving time factor. Therefore, time management is skills that can be learned through involving techniques from prioritizing activities (Keenan 1992). For that reason, using time and other teaching strategies harmoniously this will help me eliminating disruptions and time wasters. In conclusion, it is necessary comment that the impact of the teaching-learning process depend on an effective SMART target that concentrate on improving communicating in class, teacher’s experience as this assisting will them in managing their self and managing the task during research and delivering time. For that reason, SMART targets must incorporate a deeper reflection and SWOT analysis as they are an essential feature of reflective practices (Tattum & Tattum, 1992). It is from this that we get to comprehend that reflective practice is vivacious in reconnoitering the underlying assumptions in our teaching practices and this help us to begin building our understanding of teaching and learning and add to our professional knowledge. Therefore, a teacher who is unreflective about their teaching tend to concentrate on finding the more efficient and effective means to solve problems that have large be defined for them by some collective code. This restricted a rationale for critical thinking hence hindering the establishment of better dimension to curb the existing educational problems. References Bines, H., & Watson, D. (1992). Developing professional education. Buckingham: Society for Research into Higher Education & Open University Press. Díaz-Maggioli, G. (2004). Teacher-centered professional development. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Frey, N., & Fisher, D. (2011). The formative assessment action plan: Practical steps to more successful teaching and learning. Alexandria, VA: ASCD. Jennifer, H. (2012, July 27). Professional Learning And The reflective Practitioner. Retrieved from: http://www.sagepub.com/upm-data/49808_02_Dymoke_Ch_01.pdf Keenan, S. (1992). Brain train: Professional education and training requirements in developing countries. London: British Library Research and Development Dept. Moon, B., Butcher, J., & Bird, E. (2000). Leading professional development in education. London: Routledge/Falmer in association with the Open University. Perry, G. (1968) Patterns of development in thought and values of students in a liberal arts college. Philpott, J. (2009). Captivating your class: Effective teaching skills. Tattum, D. P., & Tattum, E. (1992). Social education and personal development. Tripp, D. (2000). Critical incent in Teaching: Developing professional judgment. . London: Routledge. Read More