Mapping my field of practice

My Professional Practice

Over the past six years I have taught English and Drama in Thailand. My experience abroad was absolutely incredible and life changing. It opened my eyes to new cultures and religions and I made many strong relationships along the way.

I was lucky to land an amazing job at an international school based in Chiang Mai. Myself and other teachers enjoyed putting on shows for the children every month based on childrens literature, such as 'The Gruffalo', 'The Lorax' and 'Room on the Broom' (which was rather hilarious). Teaching Drama to bilingual children was challenging but also uplifting. Playing drama games, learning lines and singing songs helped the children learn English quickly and gave them the confidence to use the English language, rather than use their mother tongue, which of course is much easier. Children are like little sponges, absorbing information and developing their knowledge at an impressive rate.

I'm currently working for a performing arts school which teaches children singing, dancing and acting. I am fortunate to work with people from different backgrounds and amazing families who want their children to thrive and build up their confidence. I enjoy connecting with children but also their families who appreciate updates on their childs progress or how they have behaved in class.  

Teaching Method

My teaching method is based on constructivism. This means the student constructs their own undertsanding of the world. Students are expected to build on the knowledge they already have by making observations, colloborating and being pro-active in inquiry based activities. The teacher acts as the facilatator and is responsible for making sure the learning environment is designed to suit the childrens needs and interests.

Here is a more clear and concise explanation of the constructivist theory.

Mind Map

I have created a mind map on my feild of practice including ethical considerations. I believe this will develop throughtout the BAPP course and continue to progress and grow with my career. Here is a photo of what I have come up with so far:

For me I wanted to highlight the fact that as a teacher you a responsible for many things, but most importantly a childs well-being. Teachers must provide a safe and supportive environment where children can be nutured and tended to for their own individual needs. It is also highly important to safeguard a students privacy and confidentiality. For example sharing personal information without permission, not getting consent for taking photos and videos of students; these are breaches of confidentiality. 

When I look over my map different words jump out and hold a lot of meaning to me, such as happiness, commitment, respect, ambition, teamwork, inclusive and integrity. These are words that I want to adhere to in every day life and at work. Being an active member of the local community and a role model to young learners is very important to me, therefore I want to make sure I am presenting the best version of myself and make sure that I am constantly evolving my teaching methods, knowledge and skills, which will in turn benefit my students. 

The End!

I thought I would end this blog by leaving you all a magical photo of me and my fellow ex colleagues dressed up as characters from Harry Potter. For Halloween we turned the whole kindergarten into Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry. We used our acting skills and imaginations to come up with fun activities such as potions class, dragon egg painting and quidditch. As I was playing Professor McGonagall I decided to hold spell classes for the children where they got to learn all the different spells and actions to accompany them. WINGARDIUM LEVIOSA! :)