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EDN470: Action Learning for Reflective Practitioners

Sandra Hesterman

Assignment3: Professional & Action Learning Project Report

Project Title:

Finding a way to improve writing outcomes for Pre-primary students, using

play-based approaches.

Definition of Key Terms in my Project Title

Writing Outcome: What students are expected to know, understand or be able to do as a result of

a learning process (University of Western Australia, 2012)

Play-based Approach: “A context for learning through which children organise and make sense

of their social worlds, as they engage actively with people, objects and representations”

(Department of Education, Employment and Workforce Relations [DEEWR], 2009, p.6).

By Krystal Jager

(31593483)

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Contents Page

Introduction__________________________________________________________________3

Rationale_____________________________________________________________________3

Process______________________________________________________________________5

Reflective Discussion___________________________________________________________6

Conclusion___________________________________________________________________7

References___________________________________________________________________9

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Introduction

As evident in my Professional Learning Overview and Plan, my action research program began

by using a spiral model of reflection to inform my action research topic of finding ways to

improve writing outcomes using a play based approach. I first implemented a play-based

approach to teach writing in cycle one which was successful however I lacked confidence in

using this approach. In Cycle Two my confidence grew when I observed students extending their

learning experience, which I previously struggled to allow. I was confident in Cycle Three

because feedback from the previous cycles and implementing a play-based experiences showed

me I am capable of teaching writing without worksheets.

The immediate context that informed my teaching of writing was the English framework in the

Australian Curriculum (Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority

(ACARA),2014). This framework has guided the 'act' stage of the cycles to ensure the writing

activities are educational and appropriate for all students. I worked with six Pre-primary

students, consisting of four girls and two boys aged 5. As the school is play-based students are

familiar with this approach and demonstrated engagement and confidence with my play-based

writing activities. The school has an extensive amount of resources I could use including ''satpin'

mats' that were used in my third cycle.

A key aspect of my professional background is the capacity to analyse and reflect on my

practice which I implemented in the 'reflect' stage of my cycles. This aspect improved my

teaching practice because reflecting identified effective traits of my teaching and different areas I

need to improve. The information obtained from my reflections was then used to inform the

'plan' stage of my cycles by ensuring mistakes were not repeated to further develop my teaching

practice.

Rationale

I identified my problem of struggling to incorporate play-based strategies to teach writing by

using the spiral model of reflection (O'Conner &Diggins, 2007). This is because the spiral

model requires continuous reflection, allowing me to reflect on many aspects of my teaching

practice that need change or development (O'Conner &Diggins, 2007). I began by reflecting on

my previous teaching experiences, guided by the question "What area do I want to improve in

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my teaching?" This reflection indicated that my current approach to teaching writing is formal

and consists of worksheets that students complete by tracing over dots on a page. Past feedback

forms from my practical experiences confirmed this with various comments, such as "Don't be

afraid to try informal approaches to teaching" (Praxton, 2011). I then reflected on my own

experiences as a student being told to complete worksheets and remembered how disengaging

this approach was. Although this reflection identified other areas of improvement in my teaching

practice, such as lesson transitions, I felt most passionate about this topic as none of my

memorable learning experiences as a student were worksheet-based and as a teacher I want to

create learning experiences that my students will remember.

My approach to selecting the strategies for my action research project was informed by the main

ideas of action research. 'Plan' influenced my strategy of setting realistic goals because part of

planning is establishing a plan of action, which MacNaughton& Hughes (2010) explain as being

a set of goals you aim to accomplish. 'Act' informed my strategy of cooperative learning because

I'm a social constructivist, inspired by Vygotsky (1978) and therefore aspire to implement my

plans in a collaborative environment. 'Observe' inspired my strategy to review relevant literature

because this knowledge provides a better understanding of what I observed and a critical

awareness of my observations (O'Conner&Diggins, 2007). Finally, 'reflect' encouraged the

strategy of assessment. Assessment is used in my action research to identify the effects of my

lessons and inform further planning and subsequent actions to take place (Brady & Kennedy,

2012).

My approach to identifying items of evidence for this project was also informed by the main

ideas of action research. 'Reflect' and 'plan' informed my selection because reflections should

identify what has been accomplished and what needs further development, subsequently

informing further planning and actions that need to take place (Brady & Kennedy, 2012). 'Act'

and 'observe' informed my selection of evidence by reminding me that any evidence collected

during the implementation of a plan needs to be efficiently recorded to ensure the lesson flows

and aligns with what is being taught and observed in the lesson. This ensures the evidence gained

is accurate and fair (McInerney&McInerney, 2010).

The statement for my project aims is:

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To improve writing outcomes, using a play-based approach instead of a worksheet-based

approach

The Aims for this project are:

1. The project will encourage me to methodically reflect on my teaching practice to further

develop a pedagogy that is appropriately suited to the individual needs of my students.

2. The project will provide me with confidence in using a play-based approach to teach a topic I

would have normally taught with worksheet-based strategies.

3. The project will provide me with play-based strategies to effectively teach writing and

encourage students to remain engaged and active in their learning.

Process

In Cycle One the 'plan' stage was informed by my observations of students, their work and

discussions with their teacher. This is because to be an effective teacher I must know the students

I am teaching (Burns, 2007). I then implemented this knowledge into the 'act' stage of the cycle

to create a lesson where students wrote 'sight words' (they have been doing in class) in sand.

During this lesson the 'observation stage' indicated that my lesson was appropriate because it

related to students' interests and content they have been doing in class that I identified in the

'plan' stage of this cycle. However I observed my lack of confidence with implementing a play-

based approach caused my instructions to be unclear. This observation was confirmed in my

friend’s review of my lesson. Therefore the 'reflection' stage of the cycle identified I need to be

explicit and clear in my instructions which will inform what I need to do in Cycle Two.

In Cycle Two the 'plan' stage was informed by my previous reflections in Cycle One and a

discussion with my mentor teacher about ideas for writing activities to inform the 'act' stage of

this cycle. From my planning I implemented a lesson where students write their names in glue

and then put glitter on the glue for the 'act' stage. This is because the discussion with my mentor

teacher revealed students need to practice writing their names. I also planned what I wanted to

tell students before the activity to achieve my goal of giving clearer instructions than what I gave

in Cycle One. In the 'act' stage of the cycle I was a facilitator of learning and in the 'observation'

stage I observed students extend the lesson by writing their last name as well. Although I usually

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struggle to let students do things outside of my plan I encouraged it because I observed students

learning from this experience and Barblett (2012) says that self-efficacy and self-regulation

thrives in student-directed experiences. In the 'reflection' stage the relief teacher emphasised that

I had created an effective play-based writing lesson that students loved and directed. My

instructions were clear but I found it hard to let students direct the lesson which I would like to

encourage in the next cycle because student-directed experiences are a feature of a play-based

approach, which I aim to successfully implement in my action research.

In Cycle Three the 'plan' stage was informed by my reflections from Cycle Two and a discussion

with my mentor teacher and students about possible writing activities. From my planning I

implemented a lesson where students wrote 'satpin' words, using playdough (Jolly Phonics,

1987). This is because during the 'plan' stage students said they loved this activity from last term

and my mentor teacher had the resource available. In the 'observation' stage I observed my

confidence had grown with using a play-based approach to writing. My teaching practice

reflected this confidence where my instructions were clear and I was less nervous than I was in

Cycle Two when students assisted in directing the lesson. The 'reflection' stage confirmed my

observation that my confidence had developed when my mentor teacher said "It is great to see

how much your confidence has grown" (Thomas, 2014).

Reflective Discussion

The 'plan' stage of an action research cycle is where I planned what I intended to do in the 'act'

stage of the cycle (Arthur, Holly and Kaster, 2001). In the 'plan' stage I aimed to be provided

with play-based strategies to effectively teach writing and encourage students to remain engaged

and active in their learning. This was guided by the question "What strategies can I use to ensure

students are engaged, and active participants in their learning?" I used the strategy of discussing

this question with my mentor teacher for the first two cycles. However I realised I was only

gaining my mentor teacher’s perspective on accomplishing this aim and Brookfield (1995)

explains in his model there are four critically reflective perspectives we should consider, as

practitioners. This includes students’ perspectives so I incorporated their perspective into the

'plan' stage of Cycle Three to create a lesson that would engage students and encourage active

participation because they participated in choosing the writing activity for the 'act' stage of this

cycle.

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In regards to the 'act' and 'observe' stages of the cycle I aimed to have confidence in using a play-

based approach to teach writing. Unfortunately this aim wasn't accomplished in Cycle One and

consequently gave unclear instructions which was embarrassing because I confused the students.

I therefore posed the question of 'How can I become confident in using play-based strategies to

teach writing?' To answer this question I implemented my research strategy of reviewing

relevant literature. McInerney and McInerney (2010) revealed confidence can be established

through gaining more experience. This proved to be true as my confidence grew in Cycle Two

and Three because I had gained more experience of implementing a play-based approach.

Pictures that were taken in Cycle One, Two and Three to assist in the 'observation' stage of the

cycle demonstrated my gain in confidence with each experience as I continued to prove to

myself I can implement a play-based approach to writing in each 'act' stage of the three cycles.

Part of the action research cycle is to 'reflect' which I aimed to accomplish by methodically

reflecting on my teaching practice to further develop a pedagogy that is appropriately suited to

the individual needs of my students (Grundy, 1995). The accomplishment of this aim was lead

by the question 'How will I know if I am reflecting methodically as a participant in this project?"

to ensure I remained focused on my aim. Boud (1987) methodic reflections can be in many

forms consisting of self-assessment and the reflections of others on your practice. Therefore

self assessment, relief/mentor teacher reflections and reflections from a critical friend were

essential strategies in my reflections because they provided multiple perspectives on my teaching

practice that I could use to inform the 'plan' stage of each cycle (Brookfield, 1995). Although I

felt nervous having people watching me they noticed things that I didn't which I could then

reflect on by considering their positive and negative comments to decipher what I need to

improve in my teaching practice.

Conclusion

This action research project has contributed to the development of my teaching philosophy in

beneficial ways. I now have the confidence to teach writing, using a play-based approach which I

didn't have before. This action research project has shown me that a play-based approach to

writing engages students and is not as difficult to implement as I first thought. Thanks to my

action research I will not rely on worksheets to teach writing outcomes in my future classrooms.

Instead I will incorporate a play-based approach because worksheet-based methods are

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unnecessary. There are more active, authentic and engaging ways to teach what is in a work

sheet (Lee-Hammond, 2013). At the start of this action research I couldn't have predicted how

much it would positively influence my teaching philosophy. Therefore I plan to continue to

undergo reflection and action research in the future to continue to develop my teaching

philosophy.

Word Count= 2000 words

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References

ACARA: Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2014). Contains information about

the new national Australian Curriculum. Retrieved from http://www.acara.edu.au/publications.html

Arhar, J. M., Holly, L. M., & Kaster, W. C. (2001). Actione Research for Teachers: Travelling the Yellow

Brick Road. Upper Saddle River: Merrill.

Barblett, L. (2012). Play-based learning and the Early Years Learning Framework with Lennie Barblett.

Retrieved 3 1, 2014, from http://vimeo.com/30403831

Boud, D. (1987). Appreciating Adult Learning: From the Learners Perspective. London: Kogan Page.

Brady, L., & Kennedy, K. (2012). Assessment and Reporting Celebrating Student Achievement. French

Forest NSW: Pearson.

Brookfield, S. (1995). Becoming a Critically Reflective Teacher. San Fransisco: Jossey Bass.

Burns, D. (2007). Systematic Action Research: A Strategy for Whole System Change. Bristol: Policy Press.

Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. (2009). Belonging, being and

becoming: The early years learning framework for Australia. Canberra: Australian goverment

Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.

Grundy, S. (1995). Action Research as Professional Development. Perth: Affiliations of Arts Educators.

Jolly Phonics. (1987). Make Learning Fun and Easy! Retrieved 5 17, 2014, from Jolly Learning:

http://jollylearning.co.uk/

Lee-Hammond, L. (2013). Early childhood then and now. Locating ourelves in the field. Western

Australia: Murdoch University.

MacNaughton, G., & Hughes, P. (2010). Doing Action Research in Early Childhood Studies: A Step-by-Step

Guide. Milton Keynes: Open University Press.

McInerney, D. M., & McInerney, V. (2010). Educational Psychology Constructing Learning. Sydney:

Pearson.

O'Connor, A., & Diggins, C. (2007). On Reflection. Reflective Practice for Early Childhood Educators.

Aotearoa New Zealand: Open Mind Publishing.

Praxton, L. (2011). First Year Practicum Report on a Literacy Lesson. Perth: Murdoch University.

The University of Western Australia. (2012, 9 27). A guide to writing student learning outome

statements. Retrieved 3 3, 2014, from Teaching and Learning:

http://www.teachingandlearning.uwa.edu.au/staff/policies/outcomes/guide#s1

Thomas, E. (2014). Krystal's Playdough Writing Review. Perth.

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Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in Society. The Development of Higher Psychology Processes. Cambridge: MA

Havard University Press.