It's an new year! It's time to set a new goal!

Well this episode is about to give that goal a whole new sense of power.  This isn’t the usual guide to goals setting.  In fact, you’re about to learn how really effective educators plan their academic year define their goals and then reach every single one.

Great goal setting has nothing to do with a resolution or a list....

In this episode,  we reveal a new way to create your goals for this academic year.   We even provide you with a workbook to use as Selena coaches you through a process that will provide clarity and direction for you in 2021.

Whether you’re still at uni, in your first or 32 year, this episode will get you thinking very deeply about:

• The things that are stopping you reaching your teaching goals
• What you should say “No” to in 2021.
• How to make sure you reach your career goals in 2021.
• The lessons you learnt in 2020 and what you can do with those to increase your impact in 2021

We can’t wait to help yo define and reach the goal of your dreams in 2021. Grab your freebie at Edufolios.org/082

Too Tired to Celebrate?
Oh my goodness. Me too.

As the academic year draws to a close I am left feeling the most tired I think I have ever been! 

We have so much to celebrate here at Edufolios.  With record numbers of downloads on the podcast and a recent win in the Boosting Female Founders grant, we should be dancing a jig. But I need more chocolate and cheesecake if that’s going to happen.  I don’t know about you but the academic year 2020 has been a challenge.  So many things have had to be altered from the norm.  

How were your usual school markers and traditions affected this year?  Your routines and cultural norms at your site?  

How many times did you have to come up with a slightly different way to do something that happens every year? From assemblies to school trips and parent-teacher interviews.  It was all a bit.. well… different this year wasn’t it?
Are we so tired because of Creative Fatigue?
This phrase “create fatigue” was introduced to me by a senior leader at a site I’ve been working with recently.  I think she hit the nail on the head.

This year we have all had to think outside the box and change direction SO MANY TIMES. It’s crazy!

In this week’s podcast, we take a moment to pause and reflect on that.  To celebrate what that meant for you, your students and your professional experiences.

Reports are in. We're done with those for the year right?
If you’ve just finished your report writing for the year then congratulations!  What a mammoth task that was. I bet you spent hours putting those together.  PJs on, chocolate to hand typing away with the Australian Curriculum Descriptors as your ever faithful guide. 

How easy did you find the process?  
What steps did you have to take to put those reports together?
What if there was a way to make report writing a little less painful next time?
What if there was a way to see these reports you have written as a means to an artefact end? 

In this, the last episode in our series on assessment, I’m joined by special guest, Rachel Mac from Savvy Teachers is here to share her top tips and thoughts on the whole report writing process.  From the purpose of reports to what to do when you have to talk about something negative and how you should structure them, Rachel has you covered.

We talk about reporting as the end stage of a longer process of planning, marking, assessing and then… reporting.  All very standards five of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers!  Of course, we don’t stop there. With stories of practice from both us that touch on students and how they learn, policy and practice and much more, our conversation will show you how report writing can really dance all over those seven teacher standards!

Check the links at Edufolios.org/080 for access to more of Rachel’s amazing resources as well as the opportunity to connect with her and be involved in her excellent teacher mentor programs. 

Assessment happens at the end of a unit right?

Summative assessment practice may have us thinking that we can’t really measure our students progress until they sit that test, write that final piece for the exam or finish their coursework.  Alternatively, formative assessment might be a great way to check in now and then, but is it really a useful piece of data that I can use to measure impact?  

er.. yes.

Especially, if we have a look at some of the different assessment strategies found in pedagogical practices like Assessment for Learning

What if assessment was a part of your practice every lesson?

Assessment for learning is a process or practice that makes assessment one of the key features of every single lesson.  It changes everything, from the way in which you communicate and frame learning to how your students are enabled to take ownership of their own learning journeys. 

If you’re keen to explore how assessment can be used really powerfully to really drive everything else you do in your classroom then it’s time to explore Assessment for Learning in more detail.  

That’s exactly what we’re doing this week on The Reflective Teacher Podcast!

We assess against the curriculum... is there another lens to consider?

When it comes to standard 5 – “Assess, provide feedback and report on student learning” we tend to shy away.  In the last few episodes of The Reflective Teacher Podcast, we’ve been exploring what might be causing this strange phenomenon. 

Surely, Assessment should provide us with all the data and artefacts we need to show impact.  A good “before” and “after” snapshot of a student’s progress should be a big part of meeting this standard.  Yet, for some reason, we aren’t always confident in meeting the 5 focus areas of this standard.

It's time to think about cause and effect

In this episode, we discuss how we can use the standards as a guide to help us apply a different lens to our students’ work, exams and results. The lens of cause and effect. 

There’s a little reflection task for you to complete too and a great freebie to help you connect with the verb, what and why of standard 5.  In fact, we even have a chat about the difference it makes when there is no “why” to a focus area.  Head to Edufoios.org/078 to grab your copy
 
Don’t forget to tell us how you go as you apply this new lens.  Share your evidence post in the comments below or via one of our social media accounts.  We can’t wait to see how many focus areas you hit, from how many standards and (more importantly) what you learn about your practice.  Let us celebrate with you!   

Using data to analyse and evaluate student understanding...

In this, the second episode in which we are focusing on Standard 5 of the Australian Professional Standards for teachers, we’re talking data-driven teaching. 

If 5.4 asks us to collect and interpret student data, what might that look like? 

How does the idea of “Data-Driven Teaching” make you feel? 
If we're going to spend time collecting data let's make sure it's the right kind...

In this week’s podcast episode, we’re going to dive in what “data” is.  We’ll look beyond test scores and the graphs and progress charts we often think of when we think of the word “data”, as we explore how we can evidence standard five so much more!

Tune in for practical pointers on how you are assessing and responding to student need every day.  Let’s see if we can make that assessment more visible and really get to grips with the impact you are making in your classroom every day. 

"I hate talking about Assessment in my Portfolio"

Assessment.  What is that for?

If it’s so we can check in on the progress of our students then it makes sense that the results of assessment would provide us with copious artefacts for our portfolios.  In fact, we should need assessment to inform copious amounts of focus areas whether they’re in standard 5 or not.  So, why is it then that standard five “assessment, reporting – “Assess, provide feedback and report on student learning” is one of the least represented standards in our portfolios?
Let's take a moment to consider what assessment is for and how we're using it.
This episode of The Reflective Teacher Podcast is the first in a short series on the subject of assessment.  In it, I share some thought about what assessment is actually for.  I pose the question… is it helpful to see assessments as formative or summative and challenge you to think deeply about the connections between the assessments you’re conducting and the way in which you’re using what those assessments show you,

We explore how one assessment could form the basis of decisions made in at least seven other focus areas across the standards.  Assessment is super important to so many aspects of learning and teaching.  It’s time to explore whether we’ve just forgotten to connect the dots.

Artefacts... I need to collect heaps of them because that's my evidence right?
Artefacts punctuate your teacher portfolio like little quotes to prove that you did what you said you did.  They’re the crowing moments where you show the magic you’ve been creating in your classrooms and with your colleagues.  Artefacts are much more than things that you collect in a box for later.

An Artefact isn’t evidence until it has a narrative attached to it; an annotation.  These annotations help assessors to see what you see.  To share in the celebration of your impact and to acknowledge the growth you’ve been making as a teacher.  

Sounds good right?

So why does it feel soooooo overwhelming?

What if I shared five quick tips to keep your annotations focused and fabulous?
In this episode, I’m going to share 5 really simple things you can do to make sure that your annotations use every single word to create the maximum opportunity for you.  These tips break things down into bitesize chunks, taking away the overwhelm of writing stories of practice and annotating your artefacts for accreditation.  They also keep your focus razor-sharp. 

So, if you’ve been feeling like you’re not sure where to start. 

You’re short on time and want to make sure you hit the ground running or you’re just keen to see where the artefact fit in after you’ve written your context statement… tune in! 

Selfish, Selfless, Self-full?

As teachers, we are often called to lift up the spirits of young people and our colleagues.   We re very well versed in the ways of selflessness and, often feel selfish if we choose to take time out for ourselves. 

What happens though when life is busy making other plans?

When something de-rails you and pulls the brakes really hard?
When you stop, the world keeps spinning and nothing bad happens. Honest.

In this podcast, I’m being really honest with you.  I learnt a new word… “self-fill” and, over the last few months, I’ve had to learn what that really means for me.  This new word has given me a much deeper perspective on teacher wellbeing and, in this episode,  want to share what I’ve learnt and reflect on what that means for me and even for my view on our profession. 

Context Statements for stories of practice seem long and tricky...

Context statements are a staple requirement when creating your teacher portfolio for highly accomplished or lead teach status.  HAT can be tricky can’t it!  Well, the thing is, there’s a structure you can follow to make things even easier for you.  If you’re currently feeling overwhelmed by the idea of 700 words of context then worry no more.  Edufolios members from all over the country have been using our platform to sail through stage one of the teacher accreditation process.  

In this episode, we’re going to share with you what we’ve learned from working with them AND how you can apply these lessons at any teaching career stage.  

Here are seven tips to help you create amazing context statements

In this episode of The Reflective Teacher Podcast, Selena shares seven simple (and yet very effective) tips that will remove the headache of getting started with the stories of practice for your HALT application.  

As there’s plenty to go through she’s even created a freebie with examples of HALT application best practice to guide you through it all.  You can download the example by adding your email address to the box at Edufolios.org/073 (It’s a great companion to this episode!)

This episode has all the structure, guidance and sneaky, time-saving tips you could ever need to turn your informal stories into practice into the beginnings of a polished, very formal, evidence set for your accreditation assessment.

Let us know how you go by tweeting us, sending us a DM or dropping us an email!  We’d love to celebrate with you!