Analyse Teaching Strategies

1.1 Analyse learning and teaching strategies used in own specialism
In my speciality I use many various strategies in regards to teaching and learning. In this point I will explain in detail methods I used when teaching the learners I work with but also strategies to assess their learning and my own. When looking at various strategies and approaches that are used I often place myself in the situation of facilitating learning in order to get a good picture. I firstly, like to ensure that the teaching will engage, stimulate and motivate and provide the necessary teaching content in order for them to learn. A strategy I often use to start the lesson is an ‘icebreaker’. This will help establish/reiterate ground rules for the lesson but also help
engage the learners early on and get them on side for the teaching/learning to begin. Being assertive and concise with learners is important, so I will use direct names for attention and a slightly raised tone of voice when starting with an activity or icebreaker. Due to the nature of the young people at YAF I try to steer clear of exaggerating lesson objectives but merely show exactly what the lesson content is and what they need to do in order to meet their objectives. Bullet points, Q+A even que cards I have used to highlight to learners what will be taught and what they will have learned by the end. Using a variety of resources such as flipcharts, white board and laptop I will deliver the main content of the session very openly using strategies such as guided discovery to extract the answer from the learner rather than asking one direct question. During this time I will use a strategy I know as EDIP explain, demonstrate, imitate, which I will put into motion when the main content is being delivered. For example I will explain the task, let’s say create a collage of ‘what makes you happy’, demonstrate how I would like the learners to make it, show examples, my own version etc. I will then be their opportunity to have a go, with me offering, support, advice and interest throughout. This will help the learner take more ownership of their work and hopefully motivate them to put in maximum effort.
As the lesson comes to a close I will start to think about key points that I can put into the re-cap. My aim of the re-cap session will be to identify what the learners have learned throughout the lesson, what they enjoyed and what they didn’t enjoy. A mind mapping activity at the end will help evidence the learning but also add clarity for learners, helping them identify what they have learned. When the lesson has finished I will take some time to do my own re-cap session, either for myself or the learner support staff that had assisted me. This will help my personal development by highlighting what I have done well and parts I could work on to improve.

1.2 Evaluate the effectiveness of approaches to learning and teaching in own specialist area in meeting the needs of learners
In this point I will evaluate the strategies I use when teaching and learning and how they meet the needs of the learners that I work with. One particular strategy which I think works well is the re-cap session that is used at the end of every lesson that I deliver. I think this works well because it allows the learners to give feedback on what they have learned, highlighting there likes and dislikes during. Strategies such as; question and answer, guided discovery and mind mapping helps the learners express themselves in various ways. If a learner wish to speak about their experience then the question and answer strategy will appeal to them more, compared to learner that may not be as confident speaking, who may opt for the mind mapping option to show there learning. Having various strategies in place helps meet the needs of everyone involved, providing inclusivity and also aid’s in meeting my objectives, one of those being to assess the learning of the group. Re-cap sessions can sometimes be slightly tedious for the learners after a long lesson, so I will always involve an element of fun to engage them. A good example of this is giving the learners a pen each and asking them to write on the board one word about the lesson, which can be in relation to what they have learned, how they feel and even an option of providing a word with question mark to put to the rest of the group. If learners wish to write more after, then that is also an option. Throughout the lesson I will often look to re-iterate the objectives of the lesson and give feedback to learners when they have been met during the learners. I feel this works well and it gives the learners an opportunity to see them working towards their final goal. I will deliver the objectives part of the lesson in two parts, the first one being by writing the objectives clearly on the board for learners who are very visual to read easily. Secondly I will explain these objectives in more detail for those who find learning orally easier and who may find reading objectives difficult to follow. Using the learners progress chart to highlight their achievements in subjects such as; Asdan and Pshe helps build confidence and also gives me an opportunity to give brief feedback on their progression which also helps with my quality assurance and evaluation process. All learners have wide range of different needs so it is important I plan the strategies and tactics I intend to use prior to a lesson. For example one particular learner suffers from severe ADD, so I will use more than one strategy to meet their needs. Strategies such as; shorter sentences on worksheets, writing clearly in bold and providing the learner with updated tasks will help keep them engaged.

1.3 Evaluate aspects of inclusive learning
In this point I will explain how well I provide inclusive learning and what I would change to improve it. Inclusive, for me is about providing quality teaching and learning that involves all learners, treating them equally and fairly without excluding anyone. In my role I feel I provide inclusivity well on a regular basis, through following the five keys points of the learning cycle. Firstly I will promote inclusion by identifying the learner’s needs through using initial assessment results to plan individual learning. This will help me develop an appropriate lesson to suit the learner’s needs, whether it be changing the font of a document to suit a learner with reading difficulties or include a variety of learning methods in my lesson to suit all different learning styles, PowerPoint presentation for a visual learner etc. With this information on the learner I can then plan a lesson using the correct resources and materials so that no-one is excluded, correct amount of equipment, suitable venue which is safe and accessible are essential. Differentiating my teaching approach I find is strength of mine and can help towards promoting inclusivity, through speed of the lesson and the level the learners are working. This will ensure that no learner feels excluded because they are finding the lesson to challenging and are no confident enough to ask for help but also feeling left behind on previous tasks if some learners are ahead. When facilitating the learning, I will avoid favouritism and promote equality and diversity by treating all learners the same. Understandably there are some learners that need more support than others but I will always make sure that my time is shared throughout to reduce the risk of learners feeling excluded. I will involve all students by using eye contact, appropriate language and taking a keen interest in there development. This works well and helps me build a positive rapport with the learner but also a basis of trust that I am sincere and passionate about developing their learning. When assessing the learning I will encourage students to reach their full potential at all times. To make this inclusive I will give praise to the learners throughout the lesson constantly updating them on any tasks they have completed and objectives they have met. This will not only help me assess their learning but also give the learner an insight into how they are performing. Finally to evaluate the lesson I will gain feedback from the learners by running a short re-cap session which allows them to voice their opinions and tell me what they have learned from the lesson. This information can be extracted in many ways so to make it inclusive I will offer a variety of methods to evaluate such as; Question and answer ‘verbally’ or mind map activity ‘written’. This will help meet the needs of the learners by catering to their various learning styles.

2.1 Analyse inclusive approaches to learning and teaching
In this point I will look at why I use different inclusive learning and teaching strategies in my lessons. In my role it is important to recognize the value of participation. If a learner is not engaged and participating then there is usually an underlying issue which could involve, the level of work being too difficult, pressure from peers, home life or even generally disengaged and bored with the lesson. Due to these various issues I will always plan a lesson that includes every learner, offering challenges throughout and adapting the lesson to suit the needs of the learning so that they can fully participate. One particular strategy I often use is giving the learner a task I know they can do before they move on to something they are just learning to do. Not setting a learner up for failure works particularly well with special needs learners but is inclusive across the board and can be used on anyone. I will use this strategy because it builds confidence early on in a lesson, as supposed to the opposite where a learner would fail a task become disappointed and disengaged and no longer wish to continue. The saying ‘Don’t try to walk before you can crawl’, springs to mind, where a learner will complete a task they are comfortable with just like crawling before they can move onto something more challenging, working they way to finally achieving the end goal. Often the learners I work with have an inability to fully communicate what there wants and needs are, resulting in them not being able to fully interact with staff and peers. Several strategies I will use to solve this issue will revolve around social skills and practical interactions. For example I will put a social issue to the learners and ask them discuss their thoughts on that issue and why they feel that way? This provokes discussion within a group making it inclusive for the learners but will also help with their communication skills between staff and peers. To follow on from this learners will then be giving a scenario on that issue and will have to create a short play to show what how they would deal with that situation. I will use EDI as a strategy to help the learners identify what it is they need to do, then giving them the opportunity to complete it themselves. Although the strategy and exercise promotes inclusion and interaction, it can also have an adverse affect on learners who lack in confidence and do not feel comfortable talking in front of others. To treat this will try to deal with that leaner on a more one to one level, letting them complete the task in writing rather than verbally or ask them to complete electronically, Dictaphone etc. One to one review meetings will also help develop the learner’s communication skills and it gives me an opportunity to set targets in relation to the issues they may have.
2.2 Analyse how to select resources to meet the needs of learners
In this point I will explain how and why I select certain resources for the learners I work with. When selecting learning resources for the learners I will often look at their needs to ensure that what resources I will provide are suitable. These resources should be engaged for the learner and relate to the session topic, for example if the lesson was sciences and I provide the learner with a worksheet on personal finance then they are likely to become frustrated and disengaged with the lesson so I will always relate resources as much as possible. In order to indentify other potential resources I can use I will speak with other tutors and agencies to highlight the needs of the learner so that I can select the correct resources and make it inclusive for everyone. When creating resources I will look at the issues and how I think I can portray these in a non-discriminative way so that the leaner’s can understand. Promoting equality and diversity with the resources I use is important and I will do this by including suitable images and text so that the learners are not offended or excluded in anyway. All the resources I create will include the necessary areas for learners to input their name and date but also module and tracking details so that it easier for filing and evaluating at the end of the term. Due the nature of the leaner’s I work with, all the resources will be created to suit their needs in terms of level and ability. Leaner’s who find tasks to difficult and frustrated will become disengaged quickly so indentify their needs early on will help me create appropriate resources that are a suitable level and inclusive for everyone to complete. For example I will base the resources of my lesson on the lowest level of leaner and create or adapt the resources throughout the lesson if a particular leaner finds it too easy or completes it quickly. I will do this to promote inclusivity within the group, ensuring that all leaner’s are participating and learning at the level that are most suited. On a regular basis I will try to introduce a variety of resources to deliver my lessons, these can include; books, catalogues, flipchart and pens, handouts projector, internet, interactive whiteboards. The most common resources I use are flipcharts and pens, which are easily accessible and can be used to deliver the basics of a lesson. Overtime using these same materials can become boring for the learners but also for my own development, so I will introduce lessons that involve using ICT ‘PowerPoint presentations’ and sometimes specialist speakers for example, drug awareness workers from KCA or sexual health nurse who come in and deliver workshops on social subjects. Using these various subjects keeps the lessons fresh and fun, but also maintaining the element of inclusivity as ICT can be accessed by the leaner’s themselves in various facilities used at YAF but also used by me to deliver to a class. The specialist speakers that deliver workshops are ideal for promoting inclusivity as they are often very interactive and involve challenges, question and answer sessions and group discussions.

2.3 Explain how to create assessment opportunities to meet the needs of the leaners
In this point I will breakdown how I would develop methods for testing in regards to initial assessment, formative assessment and summative assessment.
-Initial assessment is used by myself at YAF to formalise a way off deciphering my learners skills, knowledge and specific needs before they join the YAF. This assessment also helps identify what level the learner is working at and what level they have the potential to reach. One particular area of initial assessment I would like to develop would be the indentifying learning styles. I feel that the assessment for this should be taken in more detail, i.e. more testing to identify which style is best suited to that learner. At the YAF diagnostic testing does not figure regularly as part of the initial assessment so when the time for teaching and learning arrives the information received does not always go into great detail regarding the learning style of the learner, which can later hinder my role to provide suitable resources and teaching techniques to meet their needs. Developing this would benefit the learner because it would allow me to create the appropriate resources to provide good learning suited to their style, preventing disengagement instead of delivering a lesson where the format that does not cater to the needs of learner which would ultimately resulting in them failing.
- Formative assessment in my role will take place continually throughout the learner’s time with us. Formative assessment techniques I use include; question and answer, observation, testing and short tasks all of which help identify the learners ongoing progress and aid in providing new potential targets for them to work towards. This assessment itself can be difficult to evidence so to develop I would create a generic witness statement/assessment form which can be used at the end of every lesson and again at the end of the week. This can be quite mundane for the learners so will produce a format which is more exciting, for example a quiz or activity which can be used to asses through observation and written work. This benefits the learners as it highlights to them their individual short term and long term progressions, giving them the opportunity to see their end goal.
- Summative assessment will occur at the end of the year or qualification that they have completed. The learners I work with can sometimes feel under pressure by this so to develop the assessment and make it easier I will only give feedback on what they have achieved i.e. qualifications and not focus on the negatives such as behaviour and what they haven’t achieved. Words such as; failed and underachieved are words I try to avoid, instead telling the leaner what they could/can do better. This will benefit the learner because I will give them an opportunity to hear, see and ask questions on their performance during the course, highlighting potential weaknesses that they can try to rectify going forward. One to one staff – peer meetings and self assessments will help me indentify their development from when they first started and will also give me an idea of what areas I need to focus on to help them progress.
2.4 Review how to provide opportunities for learners to practice their literacy, language, numeracy and ICT skills
In this point I will look at ways I can implement all the core elements into learning and their advantages and disadvantages. Prior to delivering a lesson I will plan and prepare what I think is suitable for the learner and their needs. Once I have done this I will then identify what functional skills are being used during that lesson, for example a Independent Living lesson on washing your clothes will have literacy- reading instructions, asking questions etc, numeracy – timing of the washing, what is a suitable temperature for the clothing and language- researching various types of washing techniques, reading website information and writing a step by step guide. In my lesson plan I will highlight these key functional skills and show how I intend to implement, for example ICT would be used for reading websites, giving the learner an opportunity to develop their ICT skill during the lesson. Incorporating these key skills into a lesson help the learning develop all round and can be beneficial for their progression later in life. An advantage of this method is that it helps me in my role asses the learner’s functional skills and indentify areas where they need development. A good example of this would be if one particular learner needed to develop their ICT skills then I would set them the individual task of creating a step by step guide to washing using PowerPoint or word document. This would allow them to improve their language and ICT skills with the possibility of moving on to an alternative task, introducing literacy and numeracy later through a re-cap session. One disadvantage of this can be my own functional skills and lack of training. Although I am very competent when planning, preparing and delivering a session I will sometimes adapt the session to suit my own needs rather than then learners. I find I am strong in most functional areas but lack sufficient knowledge in ICT which makes it very difficult to deliver and incorporate all these skills to benefit the learners and help me deliver the correct material.

3.1 Explain how to engage and motivate learners in an inclusive learning environment
In this point I will explain how I would develop a working relationship with the learners I work with. I often try to find ways to build a positive rapport by placing myself in their position and thinking what they expect from me as a lead tutor. Why are they here and what motivates them to attend and keep attending are important points and are key to building a positive rapport with a young person, which later on result in them working more pro-actively in my lessons. Ideally I would like my learners to be motivated intrinsically but more often they find external incentives more of a motivation such as enrichment trips and free time. In my role I will always remain professional when building relationships, using a caring and energetic approach to gain the learners trust. I often find characteristics such as humour bodes when to building rapport, although this can sometimes have an adverse effect when learners become too familiar in the relationship, which later on breeds content. Techniques I tend to use include; challenging the learners with new and interesting tasks, often give praise and encouragement to help build confidence to continue and be aware of attention spans of the learners, knowing when to move on and change the task. This brings me on to the attention curve below http://presentations.catalysis.nl/presentations/presentation.php This shows the average attention span of a learner which starts high at the introduction of the lesson but dips to a very low attention span and back up slightly for the conclusion. It is this middle area that I try to challenge the learners with new tasks and activities to keep them engaged, even sometimes allowing the learners to choose a new task to re-gain their interest.
Most learners tend to be very aware of your interest in them and the subject you deliver so it is important in my role to show passion about the subject and their development. My learners want to see and hear what I have to say a what knowledge I have so if I show enjoyment when I deliver and prove that I can teach them something then it will help towards gain their trust in me not just as tutor, but a mentor and role model too.
3.2 Explain how to establish group rules with learners to promote respect for others.
In this point I will explain how I establish group rules and how I go about promoting respect for others. Prior to starting at YAF all learners will sign a Code of Conduct which state all rules at YAF to which they are to adhere too. Once the learners start it is my role to implement these rules and maintain their importance with the learners. This will define right and wrong to the learners and give them necessary boundaries to follow and take responsibility over. One particular method I use is letting the learners pick their own rules (obviously within reason) with my supervision. Once they have chosen their own rules I will get them to agree as a group and sign the document all together, this eliminates any arguments. In order to maintain these rules it is important for staff to all working together and ensures that the rules are being followed across the board. One criticism in the past has been that certain tutors working differently with their learners allowing them more leave way than other tutors. This can potentially cause friction between staff and learners resulting in arguments and sometimes learners attempting to play staff against each other. This is an example of a lack of respect between staff and learner which is something that I try to eliminate in my role through the rules that are used. Constant informative communication between staff and to learners helps encourage respect and ensure everyone involved at the YAF are on the same page. From tutor to learner is important to use key methods to ensure good communication promotes respect, through eye contact, appropriate body language and level of voice, for example not belittling them by talking in a childish manner. Using good communication skills such as the above will help enforce the rules in an appropriate way for the learners to follow, for example I will ask learners to hand over their mobile at the start of a session and explain that they will only receive it back at lunch times. This can sometimes be a problem and upset the learners so I will reiterate the rules and explain the consequences if they do not hand it over. It is important I do this in a non-aggressive fashion offering the learners a choice of whether to hand over the phone or keep it and receive a punishment. This situation usually occurs in front of other learners so to make it fair all learners will receive the same sanction if they fail to comply or receive the same praise if they do hand it over.

3.3 Review ways to give constructive feedback to motivate learners
In this point I will look at ways to give positive feedback and what motivational theories I use to do this. Victor Vroom (1964) created the expectancy theory of motivation which is defined as the process in which the individual is in charge of their own motivation, eventually leading to outcome and reward. Seen below are four points which lead to personal goals the end and final point, which is ultimately where I like the learners to end.

Initially learners will rarely achieve if they do not put in the effort so it is part of my role to encourage them to achieve by offering support with their work, giving praise “come on, you know how well you can work” and identify the goals and outcomes “this is what your capable of and you can get it, if you do this”.
These methods of motivation and feedback will hopefully coerce the learners to make the initial effort to attempt the task set. Once the effort has been made my role will then include offering support with performance. Giving regular updates on how they are performing is key for keeping them on task and engaged. Feedback such as “how you getting on” and “do you need anything” shows you are interested and may encourage learners to ask questions if they are unsure. Any feedback on work will be constructive and supportive, for example if a learner has made a mistake I will say “don’t worry, this has happened, look try it this way” or “ good effort but can you have a go this way”. If they have completed the task well then I will praise them, “well done” and “great work” are common phrases. As the lesson comes to a close I will give feedback on what they have achieved, the outcome. I will ask open questions in order to encourage a response from them “how do you think it went” and “what do you feel you done well” will give the learner an opportunity to take pride in their work and identify their own successes and not the ones that I have witnessed. Hopefully through these questions the learner will have identified what they have done well and give me the opportunity to re-enforce what their personal goal is “well done, that brings you closer to completing the module” or if it’s on a more personal level I will congratulate the learner completing the lesson without disruption or poor
behaviour.
I feel that ultimately offering praise and encouragement throughout a session can help motivate the learner to achieve their own goals and the goals set by myself.

References * Gravells 5th edition (pages; 14, 24, 25, 30, 39, 51, 52, 57, 88,) * Victor Vroom 1964 – Expectancy theory * Yerkes and Dodson law – Attention Curve * Colleen A. Capper, Elise M. Frattura – Meeting the needs of learners