DELTA blues...

So here I am with my DELTA blues... only 6 or so weeks to go and I have a block that I can't seem to shake off. I need to write around 22,500 words in 12 days and I can't find the motivation I need to get on with it. Timing is very important in module 2 due to the fact that we have to teach two observed lessons before we can write the second part of our R & A assignment (Reflection & Action) so even though that feels like an easier job to be getting on with, I can't as I haven't been observed for the second time :( Despite promising myself that I will get work done, I get home and feel shattered. A slightly comforting thought however, is that I know I am not the only one. I talk to friends from the same group and they are suffering from the blues, too. It must be a mid-DELTA life crisis! Module two keeps you on your toes and makes you question each move you make and every word that you write. I looked at my feedback for my previous background assignment and decided to pinpoint all my weaknesses so I wouldn't make the same mistakes in this assignment. So, I do have an action plan. I know what I need to change which is a positive thing although not having the motivation, nope wrong word, the energy to write it up is the problem. I want to pass this so bad and want to be a better teacher. Advice for module two students; don't stress out about it. I stressed myself out for two days and felt sick to the stomach and so naturally couldn't face up to what I need to know and the second piece of advice would be to keep a blog, I feel like I might be able to close this blog and start correcting my assignment :) So, why am I here writing about doing something instead of just getting on and doing it? Good question! Answers on a postcard please!

DELTA

The beloved DELTA... so many covet it and so many fail it. At the moment, I am in the middle of module two and it will probably be the reason I don't get to write much again! the only reason I decided to write is that I looked high and low for something on the DELTA but it seems others are reluctant to share their experience and knowledge. I have wanted to do the DELTA for years but there was always some reason that I never got to do it, be it time, money or both. Now I am back in Istanbul (have been since June 2012), I knew it was time to pick myself up from the module one exam fail letter floor and start again. I attended the module one course at ITI - aka International Training Institute - but decided not to take the exam for the second time as I knew I would get the results during the second module and another fail letter probably would have put me off altogether, plus I felt that the more knowledge I gained in the second module would all contribute to the exam I am to take in June. There still is the issue of Cambridge expects you to answer things in certain ways but at least now I know more than I did three months ago (I hope I do anyway!) Back to module 2 -I'm preparing for my second assessed lesson at the moment (same institution) and as I type that I am wondering why I am sitting here writing this instead..I guess my brain has had enough of tone units and learner problems for one evening. Finding time to concentrate on the focus I have chosen is difficult as I need a fresh mind and I am one of those people that prefers to study for long blocks of time, say for three or four hours on the trot, and I have dealt with a lot of learner problems at work already today, that's why I thought taking up my blog again would be a good idea, and now there is a mobile app too, I can blog to my hearts content :) If you are debating doing module two, make sure you have done module one first, it is a good way of getting back on the knowledge horse even if you don't take the exam right away. Please don't expect it to be easy, and make sure you have the commitment to see it through to the end, it is stressful but I know it's going to be worth it in the end. I am doing the DELTA for better career prospects but I am also doing it for me in the sense that I want to be a better teacher, not just earn more money as much of a bonus as that will be in the long run. Don't let your place of work pressure you into it if you are not 100% up for doing it..it could end in tears. Well, I think that's enough for tonight and hopefully this time, this blog will stay alive. Well, it will if someone is reading it :)

Resources...to ICT or not to ICT...

Resources, resources, resources...endless, limitless, infinite resources. How nany resources can a teacher have and can a teacher have too many resources?

The thing I admit to struggling with the most are most definitely resources. The first question is Which one? Then How many? Then In what order....the list never ends. But the biggie is for sure...How many ICT resources do I use?

ICT resources can be split into two categries...one being the resources we get from the Internet, the other being the ICT resources we produce or use with the students.

I like to browse the net for ideas on what I can do with the children as an activity but I seem to spend to much time on actually looking and browsing than actually planning. This is a problem with the WWW. It can give us too much to look on and when one idea is better than the next!

Teachers spend a lot of time planning as well as assessing and marking and all the lovely time spent outside of the classroom. It`s not to say that tine is a waste of time, on the contrary we need that time to know what were doing inside the classroom but people often forget what work we drag home and God help the spouse and children of the teacher!

I think we should search for a limited amount of time and spend more time on the content of the lesson. We should also be able to define what we are looking for in the first place. Teachers look for resources to save time then spend hours googling the topic itself! We need to look for specific tags on Google rather than trawl through thousands of pages.

ICT is a necessity in the classroom in this day of age where technology is the source of our lifestyles. So how much needs to be used in the classroom???

We have a wide range of Smartboards, projectors, laptops, media and internet access in schools today yet some teachers never seem to be able to use them or don`t want to use them. The answer to this lies in the teacher. Some go with the old school manner, which is not to use ICT too much probably stemming from the lack of knowledge and ability to handle it themselves.

Other overuse ICT (if thats possible!) and do every songle thing on technology.

Personally I try to take a mix of old school, good old pen and paper, and ICT resources. I would like to use ICT more than I do at present but with all the paperwork needed I cant spend my entire life planning when not in the classroom!

So how do I achieve ICT based lessons in short and simple planning sessions?

Ive yet to find the answer myself so if you know, let me know!

Behavioural problems

Is the term "behavioural problems" politically correct? These days we worry so much about what the correct term for things are that we have lost sight of what the actual issue is!

Behaviour is a concern at all ages in all countries around the world...however some issues I have been facing are not at all in the norm. I can`t see how a child throwing bins all over the place and shouting abuse at all and sundry, including the teacher can be a typical behavioural issue.

Clearly in the home life of this one particular student, things are not as they should be and the upbringing of the child is far from healthy. We worry about what children eat, whether or not they can read or write and if they can count up to ten, but we are missing the `big picture`. The one that tells us regardless of the capabilites of this child, what kind of a person will they grow up to be if they are behaving in this way.

If he can count to ten, will he be counting the number of people he has hurt in the past week?
If he can read, will he be reading the statement the police want him to sign after committing a crime?
If he can write, will he emailing loved ones from the inside of a prison?

Our job as teachers have countless aspects and the one that concerns me here, is what will this child be doing when hes older? I look at the 10 year old face that can grin from cheek to cheek with dimples and look so happy at times. But then does a Jekyll and Hyde and turns into this monster who throws chairs at his friends?

~More should be done to resolve the anger and frustration he has inside him. A teacher needs back up in this situation and it cannot be handled alone. Heaven knows how much I`ve tried! The numerous reward systems, target setting, extra attention, planned ignoring, detentions, certificates, phone calls home, exclusions and praise.

What more can be done? What other ideas can I try? I spend a lot of time searching for the answer to this child but sometimes stop and feel helpless. No matter what is done, it is never enough. Just when you think you have him in the palm of your hand, a bin goes flying.

You could judge me...you could say I don`t do enough...but that would not be true...I could you write you a very long list of all the methods and approaches that have been trialled.

But believe me, I am not the only one who has tried or is trying with this child...
The parents cannot be bothered to keep an important appointment with the school to help their child be a better learner and to become a better person...

Yet I refuse to stand down. To be defeaten. To be crushed by a bin...a little humour goes a long way in our line of work.

Is the government so busy focusing on the initial educational matters such as points, levels and grades that they have forgotten these children are little people tghat will one day be the future of the city, the country and the world.

And who knows how many of you there are in the world who has a child in their class like mine!

ah..paper, paper, paper...

Paper..we go on and on about recycling yet all the paperwork that teachers do is incredible!
I seem to be swamped by paper at the moment and there's no end in sight!
Why do we do so much paperwork anyway?

I think we'd all be better off focusing on the paper we use for the children in the lessons than all the writing we do for OFSTED!

I can understand some of the things but in this day of age...it's a bit too much paper for my own liking! I do believe in recycling and the school I work at does a lot of recycling, however depite many attempts to cut down it seems imnpossible.

In the age of technology, we as teachers. can`t get away from printing out things. For some reason, printing things makes them real and lets us know that we have done what is expected of us.

So why do we use so much paper? PLans, worksheets, assessments, books the children use, passing on information to other colleagues and managment, note taking, observations...the list is endless.

But we need to make sure the paper we do use is recycled and that we dont use paper we DONT need to use!

The End