Megan Vinck

001157309
April 8th 2016

Professional Semester III - Professional Growth Plan

Practicum dates: January 4, 2015 April 26th, 2015
In my Professional Semester III, I have focused on the following three areas for
professional development:

1. To incorporate differentiation to provide opportunities for each

student to be successful in the classroom.
Rational:
KSA #5 All Students Can Learn - Know (include when and how to engage others) to
identify ways students learn and their different learning styles. Respond to these
differences by creating multiple paths to learning for individuals and groups,
including those with special learning needs
I believe it is important to facilitate to the individual needs of each student and create
opportunities based on their strengths
To ensure a productive learning environment where all students are given an
opportunity to learn, achieve, and succeed
Keep students actively engaged and encourage them to take ownership of their own
learning
Aids in ensuring that no student loses focus due to boredom or information overload
Strategies and resources to achieve this goal:
Consult with other teachers to gain an understanding of what is already done at TIS
Get to know the students in order to assess which strategies will be the most effective
based on readiness, interest and their learning profile
Facilitate to the individual needs of each student and create opportunities based on
their strengths
Utilize resources already available within the classroom- manipulatives, Teaching
Assistant, Teacher Mentor and in some cases a representative from the Inclusive
Department
Prepare for lessons in a manner that aims at leaving no student behind
Create more detailed lesson plans that include aspects of differentiation such as the
amount of support provided or the complexity of a particular task
Vary the level of content presented to students within the classroom
Create a variety of activities which engage students allowing them to master content
Vary the length of time a student may take to complete a task
Accept a variety of assessments that provide evidence of student learning
Indicators of progress:
VINCK 1

Developed units and lessons that integrate elements of differentiation and are
cognitive of student readiness, interest and learning profiles
Students engagement in learning activities
Feedback from my Teacher Mentor, University Consultant and Administrator
describing evidence of differentiation

Self-reflection:
Differentiation came into my teaching practice on a daily basis as my classes were
diverse and reflected a wide range of learner needs. Prior to arriving in Macau I created a
survey, which asked students a number of questions about how they learned best. After
looking at each survey and working with my students, I gained a better understanding of
their learning styles. I then tried to incorporate these learning styles into my planning. As
my practicum was hosted at an International School a large percentage of my students
were English language learners. With this being said, differentiation in the language
chosen was continuously used to ensure that my students had a solid understanding of
what they were being taught. Classroom activities differed as they were completed as a
class, in large or small groups and individually. I also tried to include auditory, visual, and
kinaesthetic aspects to every lesson. The amount of support that was given to each
student also differed and extra planning was devoted to students that often finished their
assignments early. More specifically, in third grade Math students were broken up into
three groups based on ability that would rotate between teacher time, seatwork and game
time. I also found that by utilizing Google Forms I was able to differentiate tests and
quizzes with ease. I found it really encouraging to see my planning develop over my
practicum to further represent my students individual needs. Reflecting back on my
efforts, I truly believe that I strived to create many opportunities for student learning
using a variety of teaching styles. With this being said, I know that there is still personal
growth that I would like to see in this area so I can better accommodate to my students
learning needs.

2. Integrate technological aspects into classroom tasks.

Rational:
KSA #10 Technology and Teaching Know how to use and engage students in using
these technologies to present and deliver content, communicate effectively with
others, find and secure information, research word process, manage information, and
keep records
Increase student engagement and participation in learning activities
Further advocate 21st Century Learning
Strategies and resources to achieve goal:
Use technological resources currently available at TIS i.e. SMART Boards, I-pads,
Computers, Laptops, Chromebooks, personal devices, etc.

VINCK 2

Adapt assignments so that they include an element of technology

Create an educational online footprint through mediums such as Weebly, Twitter,
Pinterest, and YouTube
Collaborate with other individuals through online mediums
Utilize online resources

Indicators of progress:
Developed units and lessons that integrate opportunities for technology
Increased technological familiarity amongst students and staff involved
Self-reflection:
I believe that integrating technological aspects into the classroom was the goal that I saw
the most personal growth in. After arriving in Macau and seeing the resources available
for technology I challenged myself to incorporate technology into every lesson in a
meaningful way. With this being said, I am happy to report back that I felt a lot of success
in this area. Throughout my internship I was exposed to a number of different
technological resources. In addition, I spent much time researching and testing a variety
of technological tools to further enhance student engagement. After doing research on my
own Id schedule meetings with other teachers and technological support to learn more
about these resources. I even designed my Professional Inquiry Project around
technology with the goal of implementing Google into my teaching whenever possible.
Each one of my lessons had an accompanying Google Slide that went along with my
lesson plan to guide the lesson in a visual form. I would also assign, collect and mark
different assignments through Google Classroom. As it is a current goal at the
International School of Macao to transfer their students portfolios to online platforms I
took time to learn about the online programs Seesaw and Google Drive. Furthermore, I
would love to initiate a step like this in a school that I have the opportunity to work in.
Overall, I saw a tremendous amount of growth in my use of technology in the classroom
and I am excited to learn even more. Going forward I would like my next step to be
attaining my Google Certified Educator Level 1.

3. To improve and increase my teaching toolbox in the Mathematics and

Science subject areas.
Rational:
By doing so I hope to become as confident when teaching these subject areas as I
am teaching my major Social Studies
Finish my university experience as a better-rounded teacher that is prepared to
teach any subject I am presented with
Strategies and resources to achieve goal:
Collaborating and observing other teachers in these subject areas

VINCK 3

Creating a strategies toolbox that can be applied to multiple subject areas

Indicators of progress:
Strategy toolbox that can be applied to a variety of subjects
Self-reflection following Math or Science lessons that result in confidence
Feedback from my Teacher Mentor, University Consultant and Administrator
describing success in these subject areas
Self-reflection:
Prior to my internship I had limited experience teaching Mathematics and Science. I also
chose to focus on this particular goal as this was my mentor teachers first time
completing this particular units from the Alberta curriculum, so as much as she wanted to
help me I was often required to branch out. I used a variety of different resources both
online and at the school to gain insight as how to teach both subjects. I also found it
helpful to observe other teachers. As my internship comes to an end I am proud of my
developed confidence and increased knowledge to teach Mathematics and Science. I feel
that it is a big accomplishment to have successfully implemented these unfamiliar topics
and see growth in my own teaching and strategy toolbox. I look forward to continuing to
strengthen these skills in the future and further broaden my scope as an educator when
given a challenge such as this.

VINCK 4