Mark Lee 32052022

Essay BED150s2
Practical Experience
Over two weeks this semester, i was placed on practical experience at two schools, one
primary and one high school. I did hear a lot of assumptions, there were some who believed
primary school would be easier to communicate with and control compared to secondary
school. For me that assumption was certainly different, I didnt view either as easier or
harder, rather I viewed them requiring different focus. I certainly was more interested in
teaching high school, given my experience, but also fields I wished to teach in, Computer
Multimedia and Maths.

My first week of practical experience was in primary school. This was a jarring experience for
me, since I spent a long time in teaching in tertiary education. It was the schools book week
so there was a huge focus on literature during this week, and it was reflected in the lesson
plans and class work. The primary school students seemed to require far more hands on
learning then what I was expecting. The mentor teacher made sure they focus adequate
amount of time on their usual subjects, despite literary focus of book week. Most notably to
me, was the focus on praise, that rather than disciplining a student, the mentor actively tried
to find ways to praise the student, leaving disciplinary actions as a last resort. This made the
classroom environment more pleasant, and more relaxed, making students active and
receptive to the mentors lessons. There were issues with the mentors lesson plans, but I was
assured that this was often the case with this particular class, especially during weeks with
disruptions,

Second week of Practical experience was set in high school, most notably the maths
department, where I, was shared among the teachers there, to increase our exposure to
different Classes. This made it hard to focus on a particular teachers methods, but helped
illustrate common techniques and practices. There was a more structured environment
compared to the primary school class, which assisted in getting students set down and
working promptly, and able to continue lessons from previous days. Where the primary school
students often had to recap lessons, the high school students were expected to be able to
build on pervious lessons far more readily. Class numbers were much bigger then primary
school, requiring teachers to adopt common class room management techniques, such as
proximity and pauses, rarely did I see a teacher have to raise their voice above appropriate
levels. Once more there was a focus on praise, teachers praising students for improving or
maintaining grades. The week was interrupted with the schools sports day, leading some
classes to have highly diminished numbers, which lead to lesson plans being changed,
showing some of the flexibility teachers had with their lessons plans.

Mark Lee 32052022

Essay BED150s2
Practical Experience
Primary school was certainly a trial, given some of my assumptions of the students
capabilities, and the fact that it wasnt a field that I held a lot of experience in. high school
was a more comfortable experience but also with its own share of challenges. Despite the
difficulties, these are experiences I am glad to have, because they helped inform my choices
as a potential educator.