Last night I joined a session on Skype with Adesola, James (M2), Jodie(M2) and Lily(M1). Here is a quick write up of some of the notes/thoughts I had because of the call.
We began by speaking about reflective practise in our journals as that was something that Lily is beginning now on Module 1. We said reflection was valuable because it clarifies your thoughts and allows you to improve on your practise. James said that you could, "get more out of the present moment."
We then talked through each person on module two's questions so that we could develop ideas further. The area that I keep coming back to in developing my ideas is about exams. I had two ways which I felt I could go:
1. Whether exams give a true reflection of a students ability - I was interested in whether this was the same for all subjects. I wanted to know what my students or their parents think of the exam. The reasons why they sign up for the optional LAMDA speech and drama exams.
2. To look at how exams are actually put together. It was pointed out to me by a colleague that those who put the exams together must do so carefully.
We then touched on some of the ethics of how we would carry out any proposed inquiry. I mentioned about getting teachers/parents permission to talk to students in regards to my inquiry. Adesola pointed out that this is not the only ethical consideration when thinking about interview your students for your inquiry. How viable actually is it to speak to your own students? The might say exactly what they think you want to hear. The information they give you may not be useful and may not help you find out more. Who the person is will affect what you say to them. We think about what we say to different people. We don't want to have a negative impact on the students. It's not fair to them that they go away and think about it. It's our BA not theirs. We discussed how it would be better to talk to people outside of your circles. You can then find ideas that don't stem from you - new ideas.
Therefore, I think that investigating how exam syllabuses are put together and why is a more viable line of enquiry. I would have to speak to examiners and those who put the exam together. This may help me to be a better teacher to my students if I understand fully why certain exercises are part of an exam. Adesola also mentioned that it would be interesting to see if there is any disconnect between the teaching of the exam syllabus and what the creator envisaged.
We ended by saying that we now need to be getting on with the planning. The plan is asking permission to be able to do your inquiry.
Thanks for writing up about the chat.
ReplyDeleteNo problem. It was a really helpful session. Helped me to be more decisive!
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