Professional Experience Office

School of Education
Telephone: 8201 3330
Fax: 201 2568
Professional Experience Report 2013
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE THIRD YEAR
Middle & Secondary Schooling
Year 3 Undergraduate & Year 1 Master of Teaching


Pre service teacher name Su-Sim Lim Student No. 2082583
School Amata Anangu School Year level(s) taught Seniors
School mentor teacher Raegina Taylor Subject Maths
School coordinator Jan Love University liaison Lyn Wilkinson
20 day placement 5 Days Preparation + 4 Week Block DATES: 22 July-16 Aug, 2013
Site Context School Coordinator - Context statement about your school
School sector (DECD), Independent.
School size, class size and composition of
campus
(R-12, Area, Primary, Secondary)
Physical and/or unique characteristics.
Students with specific needs.
Socio-economic factors.
Amata Anangu school is government school located in
the APY Lands in the North Western corner of South
Australia. The school caters for early years to
year 12. Students in the school are Anangu
(Aboriginal) who live in the local community and
surrounding homelands. The majority of students in
the school speak languages other than English at
home. The school has adopted PBL (school-wide
positive behaviour for learning) as a way to
redirect behaviours towards learning.


Su-Sim was placed in the senior girls class, which
caters for approximately 22 girls across years
8-12. Teachers in this class teach across the range
of subject areas, at times outside their field of
expertise. Some particular challenges of this class
are: catering to the range of year and ability
levels (some girls are well below their age level
for
literacy and numeracy indicators), attendance (most
girls have been below 80% for previous terms).

Mentor Teacher - Summary Statements
Professional Relationships Comments
PROFESSIONAL & COLLEGIAL LEARNING
Teachers actively engage in personal and
collegial learning within the professional
community
Su-Sim demonstrated initiative in developing
working relationships with staff, students and
family. She showed a deep understanding and
maturity towards the balance between personal and
professional. Su-Sim participated and contributed
to staff meetings, and
meetings with community stakeholders. She also
attended Anangu events to develop rapport with
students and community.

LEARNER REPORT
Teachers foster trusting and respectful
relationships with all learners
Su-Sim was quick to develop rapport with students
and attempted to communicate with students at an
age appropriate level despite the low level of
English for many of her students. She has an open
and friendly manner with learners whilst remaining
professional. Evidence of her relationships was
demonstrated outside school times with students
feeling safe to approach her outside school hours
and grounds.
PARENT/CAREGIVER & COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP
Teachers work effectively with
parents/caregivers and the wider
community
Su-Sim exhibited a sensitive and appropriate
manner when communicating with families/carers.
Su-Sim accompanied staff on family liaising visits
such as gaining consent, enrolments and also
discussing strategies for improving student
attendance. She assisted in organising and
facilitating a family
BBQ to get to know the students, carers and staff. Professional Knowledge Comments
LEARNING PROCESSES
Teachers know about learning processes and how
to teach and implement
Su-Sim is developing skills in scaffolding across
a range of curriculum areas: English, science, ICT
and mathematics. She has sound practical pedagogy
in science, which engages students. Su-Sim is
developing differentiation across the range of
learning levels in a mixed age and ability class
and has identified this as a professional learning
priority. She utilises contextual pedagogies such
as place based learning and Yunkaporta & Kirbys
learning framework and is starting to explore the
interrelationship between planning,
assessment and reporting.
LEARNING CONTENT
Teachers know the content they teach
Su-Sim demonstrates thorough science and
mathematical content knowledge. She is actively
developing content knowledge in other curriculum
areas such as English and ICT as required in the
context. Su-Sim engages effectively with ACARA at
unit and lesson level planning, and
implementation. She engages with local and
national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
perspectives in the curriculum incorporating
cultural
reciprocity in her teaching and learning choices. LEARNING CONTENT
Teachers know about learner contexts and
diversity
Su-Sim uses a range of devices and teaching
strategies to support the inclusion of students
with disability such as employing presentation
stimulus (visual and audio). She is trialling
techniques to support the inclusion of students
from a diverse range of educational experiences
and backgrounds, for example students who have
undertaken school in urban settings and students
who have remained in community.
Professional Practice Comments

PLANNING AND TEACHING
Teachers plan and implement teaching
strategies for successful learning
experiences
Su-Sim developed a 5-week unit and sequenced lesson
plans which she adapted whilst learning about
students. She uses a range of resources to support
teaching and learning as specific to the curriculum
areas, as well as a broader range of resources
connected to the integrated unit (such as ICT
stimulus and English novel study). She uses a
repertoire of planning and facilitation skills to
engage learners such as role-play, group work,
videos and organising and running weekly field
trips.
FEEDBACK AND REPORTING
Teachers assess and report learning outcomes
Su-Sim contributed to formative assessment notes on
student progress. She discussed student outcomes
linked to identified lesson assessments. Su-Sim
facilitated diagnostic literacy testing
(Waddingtons) and discussed the outcomes of a
range of diagnostic tests. She also observed the
facilitation of reading benchmarking. Su-Sim
discussed and began to explore strategies to
feedback authentically to students such as moving
away from good work and towards genuine
discussion of learning progression.
LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
Teachers create a safe, challenging and
supportive environment
In this practicum, Su-Sim has developed skills in
managing classroom activities and negotiating the
changing dynamics of a lesson. She has developed
through her placement, a good understanding of how
and when to respond to the range of behaviour
levels. Su-Sim engaged in professional learning
around trauma and incorporated this learning into
managing student safety through strategies such as
recognising and responding to student disengagement
from learning, and enhancing the classroom
environment. Su-Sim has worked with staff to
establish a safe environment where students can
take risks with their learning.
Pre-service teacher: Comments
Being a Pre-service teacher in Amata was challenging and exciting. I felt I was able
to develop my skills in presenting lessons, engagement and building student
relationships. I also learnt a lot about the complexities of school attendance, second
language
learners and Anangu culture. University Liaison: Summary statement
Su-Sim was proactive from the commencement of her practicum, contacting me as soon as
she knew I was her liaison and keeping me informed of issues through her placement. I
have been delighted to support her through her practicum in this remote and often
challenging setting. The reports of her progress were always positive. She demonstrated
clearly the ability to form relationships with students and other staff and to deal
with cultural difference sensitively. She has been
able to use her content knowledge to plan for worthwhile learning and has been
sufficiently flexible to adapt her plans for this unique and ever-changing context. I
believe that Su-Sim has enjoyed this placement and that she will carry the cultural
understandings she has developed to subsequent teaching appointments.
School Coordinator: Final Comments (optional)
Su-Sim has shown a consistent commitment to improving outcomes of the learners in her

class. She has taken risks in both content and pedagogy and has identified short-term
and long-term goals for her professional learning. Su-Sims commitment to improving
outcomes for her learners is testament to her reflective practice. Su Sim is currently
well positioned in the professional development continuum.
School Coordinator:
The pre-service teacher may wish to submit this report with an application for employment. Please
avoid the use of acronyms as student reports are often viewed by interstate and international
employers who are not always familiar with South Australian nomenclature
Name of School Mentor Teacher(s): Raegina Taylor Date: 08.10.2013

Name of School coordinator: Jan Love Date: 08.10.2013

Consideration has been given to the complexities and degree of challenge of the professional
experience context in evaluating the pre-service teacher's ability to meet the assessment
criteria for the professional experience.
In our opinion, the pre-service teacher -

HAS demonstrated competency in the professional standards indicated in this report, and is ready to
undertake Professional Experience in the final year SATISFACTORY
University Liaison
Name of University Liaison: Lyn Wilkinson Date: 15.10.2013
Report ID: 000354