Participatory Research Proposal Final Anna Kurowska GPTE Cohort 2014/2015

BACKGROUND Exploratory Practice Dick Allwright ’What matters is that someone is interested enough in something to be seriously puzzled about it and so willing to work to try to understand it.’ [Allwright & Hanks, 2009: 146]

background Reflecting on situations and asking ’why’ questions about them rather then rushing into looking for ’solutions’. Social/individual activity Collegiality: learners and teachers working together to investigate what puzzles them Teacher’s and students’ joint experience in classrooms

background ’EP is work for understanding that problematises the notion of planning to control and introduces the alternative notion of planning for understanding.’ [Allwright, 2003] Control vs. understanding

background Quality of life vs. quality of work Understaning vs. problem-solving [Allwright & Hanks, 2009: 220-221]

Students’ communication needs The situation was that the students (6 year-olds, 26 in the class) were acting very lively/noisy just after the brake started. Some of them were naughty also during classes. The drawback of the situation was that the noise was unbearable for the mentee. I suspect it was a challenging situation for the teacher as well.

The students did not seem to rest after the class or enjoy each other company, but they took the chance and let go the energy that was stored in them. Their behaviour could suggest that their communication/kinaesthetic needs were not satisfied. Did they have to make up for the silent (or almost silent) 45 minutes? On the other hand, the teacher provided them with many opportunities to speak. Wasn’t it enough? [confusion]

Another challenge is that about 1/5 of the class time would be spend on keeping discipline or keeping the students calm so that the teacher could conduct what she had planned to do with them during the day.

The experience that lead to the puzzle Winter brake Practicum=observation+conducting classes CLIL unit It turned out to be a great surprise but also a major burden and a real challenge My mentor A primary state school 1000 students in the school

What have I done to narrow the the puzzle down? I answered a numer of questions which assisted my thinking Location (where do I locate the problem?) Viewpoint (is my viewpoint preventing me from seeing things clearly?) Interest Factors

What have I done to narrow the the puzzle down? I talked to my mentor throughout the whole practicum A talked to her after 2 months of being there during my practicum I talked to me colleague from my teaching practice A week ago another colleague suggested that I should not take the whole thing so personally

My mentor My mentor is the main teacher of the class I have been observing and teaching. It’s been 10 (?) years of her teaching practice. She also teaches English. She’s the kindest, warmest and most caring about her students, teacher. The programme she’s following is sort of experimenal. It’s an innovation. CLIL-does it actually work?

Ways of collecting data My main source of data was my mentor. The context: 2 boys who should not be in the same class Children at the age of 5/6 are not ready emotionally although cognitively they are eager and capable to learn Some of them have difficult situations at home Some of the parents are not cooperating

Ways of collecting data The teacher and the class are in constant movement: they change the rooms very often Lack of a one place The classroom is shared with another class/teacher Some of the classes they have classes in do not make it any easier

The questions Why are those students are so difficult to handle? Can students’ loud behaviour be eliminated/minimised through students’ cooperation? Is the number of factors that influence them so great and the factors are so deep that I’m not capable of investigating the puzzle?

The question Are their individual features influencing the situation so much that for the time being not much can be done in order to improve the quality of classes?

What have you done in order to: „bring people together..” „mutual development..” „make the work a continuous enterprise…” (Allwright,2005, p.360)