1. + Individual Review of the Special School Experience Elley Heard - 900214387

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3. + My Special School Experience: The presentation is a review of my experience working with students with disabilities at HeatherWood School in Donvale. Myself and three other Deakin University Physical Education Students were involved in four lessons across four weeks with one of the year 8 physical education classes. Samantha Ditty was our contact and supervising teacher at HeatherWood. She provided us with very insightful feedback on the lessons we taught and also provided us with many tools and teaching strategies she found worked well for her. Elley Heard - 900214387

4. + Review I will presentation I will review the following: The thought processes in developing each lesson. Various teaching strategies used in the classroom – both successful and unsuccessful. Teacher – Student Relationships – building rapport with students. Exploration of my current and past assumptions about working with students with a disability. Elley Heard - 900214387

5. + Thought processes behind lesson development Introduction to the lesson and defining the lesson structure: This was the same routine at the beginning of every lesson, to ensure there was a familiar routine and lesson format to follow for the students. Each lesson involved both: Direct Instruction Collaborative Learning Personal and Social Responsibility Elley Heard - 900214387

6. + Thought processes behind lesson development Direct Instruction: Teachers provided clear and concise instructions for each activity to ensure student understanding and therefore participation in activities. Collaborative Learning: In many of the activities students were required to work together towards a common goal. To ensure that students did this well, they were reminded of their expectations surrounding sportsmanship during instructions and explanations prior to beginning activities. Students were encouraged to work together to ensure safety maximum participations and enjoyment. Personal and Social Responsibility: This important faucet of each lesson empowers the students to develop important social and personal skills in being responsible for their own actions and the implications they will have on themselves and others in their environment. In this case, the physical education classroom. The implementation of clear expectations ensures that the students are always aware of their behaviours and the consequences surrounding them. Metzler, 2011 Elley Heard - 900214387

7. + Thought processes behind lesson development Implantation of class expectations in every lesson: The class had three main expectations for every lesson: 1. Give it a go - then speak to the teacher about a compromise 2. Sportsmanship - everyone deserves the right to participate (positive thoughts and actions towards others) 3. Think before you speak of act (do not provoke or annoy others) These expectations we’re clearly outlined at the beginning of the lesson and enforced when needed. The students reacted well when reminded of the class expectations, as though they had a sense of ownership and therefore responsibility to uphold them. Elley Heard - 900214387

8. + Thought processes behind lesson development Utilized existing structure for lessons: The lesson plan was set out in the same fashion each week: Warm up: usually the teachers choice - may have one or two activates Main (2 games): One game is their choice and the other is a teacher choice Conclusion: varies depending on the plan for the lesson, but usually is sport focused. Students had the opportunity to nominate their game and then a vote was taken for their choice of game. By following this routine structure we could easily implement a variety of teaching strategies and avoid disrupting the usual teaching style that the students had become accustom to. Elley Heard - 900214387

9. + Thought processes behind lesson development Varying activities and objectives of each lesson Each lesson was a variation of minor games and structured sports and skill developments through play. The students had opportunities to choose their own activities and then in turn seemed more willing to give new activities and sports a go – as a part of their class expectations. Students had plenty of opportunities to choose their own activities to ensure that they were motivated an enjoyed their lessons in physical education. Boud et al (1993) proposes that ‘Learning is influenced by the socio-emotional context in which it occurs.’ because of this we ensured that student enjoyment and participation came first and foremost in our lesson planning. It is important to ensure that the students have positive experiences in physical education and sport to ensure they will continue participate in classes and extra curricula activity in the future. Elley Heard - 900214387

10. + Teaching Strategies Employed Group/Team teaching: All four teacher involved in running each activity. Reflection: Students found this approach to taking the lesson very confusing and off putting. Students were unsure of who was the best person to speak to in regards to questions and following the expectations of giving the activities a go and who to talk to about compromising when they did not feel they were enjoying the activity. This created high frustrations for some students and resulted in quiet a few disruptions. Upon reflection we decided to take another approach. Elley Heard - 900214387

11. + Teaching Strategies Employed One leader, 3 helpers: Reflection: This approach involved everyone taking leadership of one activity through out the lesson. We maintained the introduction and lesson overview delivery as a group, however we broke down each part and clearly defined each role we would play in doing this, avoiding any confusion. The lesson structure was set and activities were decided upon by students and teachers. Each activity was then allocated to a leader, that person was to run the activity or game and all questions were to be directed to that person. The students reacted much more positively to this approach, as it reduced the number of decisions they had to make, in who to ask, if they had any questions are were unsure of the activity. This approach also enabled us as teachers set up explanations of the activity clearly and concisely; very important for student understanding. Elley Heard - 900214387

12. + Teacher – Student Relationships In our first lesson with our new class, the students were excited to have new people in their classroom, however they were a little apprehensive about approaching us and asking questions initially. We participated in activities with the students during this first lesson, building relationships and getting to know a little about each student and their individual capabilities. Building rapport with students was vital in creating an atmosphere within the classroom that allowed the students to feel safe and confortable in their learning environment with us as their new teachers. The importance of learning names; Sam (our supervising teacher) played pivotal role in this process, she would at every possible occasion use each students names. Marking the role and introducing us to the students every lesson and ensuring she mentioned every students name clearly during role marking to assist us in learning their names. Over the next 3 lessons with the students, they became more confident in asking us questions and approaching us with any concerns. Elley Heard - 900214387

13. + Exploration of current or past assumptions about working with students with a disability Over the duration of my 4 week experience at HeatherWood School, I found many of my assumptions and expectations about working with students with special needs were altered. I was surprised by the differing levels of abilities in one classroom. Students of both high and low mental functioning worked surprisingly well together in achieving the same learning outcomes, when appropriate modifications were implemented. Due to the class expectations clearly put in place I found that the students we’re very considerate and aware of each others abilities and were usually very tolerant. Although we had a few outbursts I was generally surprised at level of good behaviour, I expected to see many more behavioural issues due to high levels of aggression and frustration in some students. Understanding and comprehension of nearly all students was much better than I expected. Explanations of activities were always short and concise, students responded well and often had a go even if they were unsure. Other students were also very helpful during activities in ensure their peers could participate, demonstrating maturity and responsibility for their own learning and that of their peers. Elley Heard - 900214387

14. + References: Boud, D., Cohen, R., & Walker, D. 1993b, 'Some propositions about learning from experience,' in Using Experience for Learning, Open University Press: Buckingham. Metzler, M. 2011, ‘Instructional Models for Physical Education’, Holcomb Hathaway, 3 rd Ed, Pearson Education Elley Heard - 900214387