Contemporary Teacher Leadership – 17701352

Assignment 2 – Part A

Link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3Gs1cUI4zo&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR0emue9

WkdmHF0yLL8gnx7wpvfJFWsSzR99ElV3iXEpR5mVOW3tzc2j6C8

Assignment 2 - Part B (Critical Reflection)

The job description of a teacher is more than just educating students, there are many other

roles that consist of professionally interacting with fellow colleagues. The Contemporary

Teacher Leadership unit focussed on how to implement constructive collaboration between

teachers to benefit schools, teachers and the students. Additionally, this unit looked to build

holistic teachers in correspondence with the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers

(AITSL, 2014). This critical reflection aims to discuss my personal understanding from this

unit regarding the roles and responsibilities of a teacher. As part of this reflection, reference

will be made to relevant literature and the teachings/group work required in this unit.

The first main take-away from this unit is that teachers need to work together in order to

successfully mould the future. As part of the learning materials, this collaboration between

teachers was described as building a community or teacher network. Conway and Andrews

(2016) covey this message in their article, conveying the importance of community in

relation to building a positive environment that is most beneficial for pedagogical

enhancement. McDonald and Klein (2003), identify that the learning environment does not
only reach students but also teachers. The learning environment needs to be one that is

constructive and accommodation to all members of the of the teaching network. Lee,

Hallinger and Walker (2012), discuss the theory of distributed leadership. This article places

an emphasis on creating an environment that aims to provide equal roles to each teacher,

this would allow everyone to demonstrate leadership qualities and reduce the need for a

sole leader.

As part of the Contemporary Teacher Leadership unit, pre-service teachers were required to

demonstrate collaboration through a teacher network. Much like actual school faculties,

you cannot always choose the groups you work with. The tutorial groups forced individuals

to work together and build a work-based relationship with the goal of working

collaboratively to complete a set groups assignment. This relates to the theoretical

components delivered in this unit as it put theory into practice. By put in a situation that

required pre-service teachers to simulate the actions of teachers inside of schools placed

them in a unique situation that allows them a practice run.

Upon reflecting on the group assignment, collaboration was required to meet our goals of

producing a video of a high standard. This meant that students need to demonstrate clear

and effective communication skills with fellow group members, something that is discussed

in Starratt (2005). One challenge that the group faced was finding time to meet face-to-face

to complete particular video tasks. This was due to the busy schedule each member of the

group had however, it was nullified through the use of zoom meetings and messenger

applications to keep open lines of communication.

Another take-away from this unit was that the teaching landscape is constantly changing

and evolving. As teachers it is up to us to ensure that the landscape evolves for the better

and not the worse. In particular this can relate to how teachers collaborate for assessment,

planning and instruction. Broemmel, Jordan and Whitsett (2015), discuss the importance of

planning in terms of teacher leadership. Chapters 10-12 discuss teacher leadership and the

implementation of plans. The need for planning comes with the ever-changing landscape of

school and the need to prepare for these changes coming. Breaking down the process into

three macro stages allows for the distribution of roles and leadership for all teachers

(Broemmel, Jordan and Whitsett, 2015). What this means is that when implementing new

programs (assessment or units), initiatives or even teacher timetables requires thought. This

is relative to change which is considered to be a necessity in the world of teaching. Teachers

are agents of change within the realms of a school environment (Taylor and Klein, 2015).

Once the ideas have been discussed as a group, the action can be researched and designed.

Once the objective is completely thought out and designed it can be pulled together and put

into action.

This is relative to the group assignment presented in this unit as it required an action

research plan to be designed. In designing a new initiative, it was open to the group as to

what would be the target, what the aim was, and how we would plan this. As part of this

assignment, the group posed the question ‘what kind of initiative can we implement that is

relevant to schools and the outside world?’. This question was the base for the thinking

process. It was identified that in a selected school, sustainability isn’t given enough focus
and the way it is taught in different KLA’s is very dull and not very engaging. This thought

process allowed the group to share creative ideas that could implement engaging

sustainability in the school the group selected. The action design phase included each pre-

service teacher to become a leader in each specific aspect of the initiative. As a result of this

assignment and the unit, the importance of addressing contemporary issues with other

teachers was delivered.

The final aspect this unit has provide me is the need to constantly reflect and improve upon

teaching pedagogies to meet the needs of the student. By adapting to modern and up-to-

date teaching methods targets a variety of professional standards teachers are required to

meet (AITSL, 2014). Leadership can be applied to how teachers teach students and by

demonstrating positive qualities that connect with student on a social level but also have

student efficiently work is a method of leadership. This can then lead to improved

engagement and academic achievement. By providing efficient differentiation in a

classroom, the teacher is meeting standards 1.5 (AITSL, 2014). Differentiation has been

linked to improving engagement and bring out the best possible results for all students

(Katz, 2013). When discussing with fellow teachers, sharing effective pedagogical

approaches is a way of collaboratively working with teachers. By doing this, a teacher opens

themselves up to a variety of different pedagogical approaches that can be very helpful for

reflection on their own pedagogy. By reflecting on your own pedagogy, a teacher opens

themselves up to improvement (Biktagirova and Valeeva, 2014). This was evident in the first

assignment as teachers were required to reflect on a teaching program and implement

improvements that benefit the students.

Moreover, upon reflecting on this unit, the world of teaching is a multi-faceted realm that is

constantly evolving. As a pre-service teacher about to enter the teaching world, it is crucial

that relationships and networks are built with other teachers. This can include collaboration

in program building, teaching pedagogies and meetings. By doing this, not only can a

teacher thrive and successfully navigate the early years of their career but also, set

themselves up for a career that has longevity.

References

Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL). (2014). Australian

Professional Standards for Teachers. Retrieved from

http://www.aitsl.edu.au/australian-professional-standards-for-

teachers/standards/list

Biktagirova, G., & Valeeva, R. (2014). Development of the teachers' pedagogical reflection.

Broemmel, A. D., Jordan, J., & Whitsett, B. M. (2015). Learning to be teacher leaders: A

framework for assessment, planning, and instruction. Routledge.

Conway, J., & Andrews, M. (2016). A school wide approach to leading pedagogical

enhancement: An Australian perspective. Journal of Educational Change, 17(1), 115-

139

Katz, J. (2013). The three block model of universal design for learning (UDL): Engaging

students in inclusive education. Canadian Journal of Education, 36(1), 153-194.

Retrieved from

https://searchproquestcom.ezproxy.uws.edu.au/docview/1440186282?accountid=36

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Lee, M., Hallinger, P., & Walker, A. (2012). A distributed perspective on instructional

leadership in International Baccalaureate (IB) schools. Educational Administration

Quarterly, 48(4), 664-698.

McDonald, J. P., & Klein, E. J. (2003). Networking for teacher learning: Toward a theory of

effective design. Teachers College Record, 105(8), 1606-1621.

Starratt, R. J. (2005). Cultivating the moral character of learning and teaching: A neglected

dimension of educational leadership. School Leadership and Management, 25(4),

399-411.