DPP Critical Reflection

Through its capability to organise documents, the DPP is an effective way to chronicle professional growth for measurement against the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership [AITSL] professional teaching standards. Lyons et al. (2014) recommend tracking professional development in a portfolio for measurement against the AITSL professional teaching standards as an effective way to gain employment. An additional benefit of the DPP is its ability to store and extract evidence in a single location; the platform's capacity to store and locate items with ease supports my ability to sustain a critically reflective practice. As cited in Gobby & Walker (2017), Down states that teachers who can evidence their ideas and growth are well-positioned to undertake analysis and discussions of these ideas with colleagues. The DPP is fundamental in my ability to be transformative in my teaching and learning practices. Currently, my DPP contains six pieces of evidence that sit across AITSL standards 1-4.

My artefact is evidence that my current strengths sit within the knowledge and planning components of the teaching and learning cycle (Whitton et al., 2016) and within AITSL standards 1-4. I have good knowledge of educational theory and effective pedagogical strategies for learning, I understand practical lesson structure and I have had multiple planning opportunities. In critically reflecting, I realise I have a detailed understanding of theory, and I need to continue developing my skills and knowledge through experience. My artefacts show that my areas for improvement fit within the implementing and evaluating components. I have not had the chance to teach one of my lesson plans and evaluate the outcomes, and I have had little exposure to formal assessment and reporting procedures.

During my subsequent placement, I will request opportunities to demonstrate assessment strategies, interpret student assessment data, provide feedback (AITSL, 2018), and enact opportunities to engage with colleagues, parents, and the community (AITSL, 2018). My next steps will be to begin evidencing standards 5 and 7, in addition to continuing to evidence standards 1-4.

References

Down, B. (2017). Critically reflective practice: What is it and why is it needed now? In B. Gobby & R. Walker (Ed.), Powers of Curriculum: Sociological perspectives on education (pp. 119-141). Oxford University Press.

Whitton, D., Barker, K., Nosworthy, M., Humphries, J., & Sinclair, C. (2016). Learning for teaching: Teaching for learning (3rd ed.). Cengage Learning Australia.

Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership. (2018). Australian Professional Standards for Teachers [PDF]. Education Services Australia. https://www.aitsl.edu.au/docs/default-source/national-policy-framework/australian-professional-standards-for-teachers.pdf?sfvrsn=5800f33c_64

Honor McCarthy