Michael Ghali APTL ASSESMENT TASK 1 Student ID: 3668493

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Partnership Case Writing:

Case writing:
The day began on a beautiful sunny Tuesday morning. I walked into my allocated year nine
class and greeted my mentor who went on to inform me that we had a double session of
sport this afternoon. I was ready and more than happy to help, I paused for a second then
suggested How about I take the students for Basketball? She suddenly stopped what she
was doing and softly asked me Are you sure? She went on to inform me that I have so far
done quite well teaching and managing the students in the classroom, but quickly reminded
me that children outside of the classroom are a different challenge altogether. I was soon to
learn that lesson as the afternoon had quickly rolled around and here I was- standing all
alone before a group of students on the school basketball court.
I began the session by firstly introducing myself as some of the students had come from
other year nine classes and got them to do likewise so I can get to know them better as well
as help relax the overall environment on the court. After doing a few drills together I
gathered them to the centre of the court once more and randomly allocated them into two
groups so that we can start our practice game. Before each team could take their position, I
sat them down and reminded them that todays session is about getting us as a group ready
for the upcoming interschool sports and that I expected each and every one of them to
respect the rules, the decisions I make as an umpire/coach as well as respecting each other
on the court. It was fundamental to set some ground rules I thought so that students
understood what was expected of them.
All the year nine children began to play and behave as expected, all except one. This unique
student would refuse to pass the ball and would take every opportunity to express his
displeasure if one of his peers missed a shot or a pass. I stopped the game momentarily and
announced to both teams that we are here to work together and that respecting each other
was vital as earlier announced. I spoke to the group and not him individually hoping that he
would understand the underlying message without having to single him out in front of his
peers. The game resumed, but his behaviour didnt change. I felt that it was now more
necessary to direct the comments more directly to him, so In front of both teams I advised
him with a firm voice to play more like a team player and show more respect to his peers.
He responded with a silent shake of the head to show that he has heard, acknowledged and
accepted what was said to him. This is your last chance I continued saying to him as he
looked back at me. Its important here to note that his talent on the court far exceeded that
of his peers, so it was understandable to see why he was chosen year after year as the
school team captain, but this was also clearly getting to his head as was shown by his
behaviour so far. A few minutes later I blew my whistle to signal that his foot had stepped
outside the court while moving with the ball and that he now needed to give the ball over to
the opposition. His reaction however was unexpected as he slammed the ball into the
ground and yelled this is bullshit. I replied by asking him to sit quietly on the sideline and
then chose to address both teams only meters from where he was sitting so he could hear
Michael Ghali APTL ASSESMENT TASK 1 Student ID: 3668493

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every word I was about to say. I relayed to the group the importance of respect, managing
their emotions and how no individual was above the team. He could hear all of what I had
just said and quickly came and apologised to me afterwards for he understood from my
words that he could possibly be dropped from the team. I accepted his apology but advised
him that he needed to learn that for every action, there is a reaction- and the consequence
to his actions this time was that he would miss next weeks session which he sadly but
graciously accepted. This encounter proved to be a turning point for the student he changed
his ways and behaved exceptionally well for the remainder of the school term in sport.

Commentary:

This experience was the first of its kind for me, but Im glad it happened because I will be
better prepared I feel the next time something similar comes up. When I look at the case in
closer detail, I feel like there was opportunities there to be had that could have helped me
along the way. Like the opportunity of asking my mentor what she meant when she said
children pose a different challenge when they are outdoors. What would have happened
if I had stopped and asked her about her thoughts and ideas? There is a big possibility she
would have opened my eyes to a few problems I feel that may have come up such as the
case mentioned above and maybe she would have shared a number of ways to deal with
them with me.
I feel that I began the session well nevertheless as I imitated those clever Lecturers and
teachers I had in the past who always used the first few minutes of their very first initial
lesson to introduce themselves and allow the students to do the same- it was a good
technique I felt to break the ice and it was something I successfully replicated in this
scenario. The other pleasing step I did was setting out expectations quite early, it was
something I observed my mentor do with her students repeatedly and it lead to a positive
outcome for the majority of times. This was however not the only reason why I did it, I felt
that if I outlined the rules and expectations early then it would help students better manage
their emotions and behaviours on the court. I had read on the AUSVELS about the
importance of teaching middle year students better management skills and thought to
myself what better way to do it than to set a clear framework as I have done which they
could follow to ensure that they behaved accordingly on the court. The plan nearly worked
to perfection, but that one student was the exception. I remember writing in my praxis
inquiry journal that night when I got home- why did this student not follow the rules and
manage his behaviour just as every other student did?
On reflection, I found that I had missed noticing something very important. This vital piece
of information was that this middle years student was an adolescent who as Carrington
(1996) suggests is trying to create or further mould an identity, or in simpler terms-trying to
become somebody. An identity as Grivas & Carter (2010) put it which is most likely
influenced by the attitudes and behaviours of his basketball heroes. The media today
portray stars as invincible, they are shown as individuals with huge egos who care less about
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the rules because they know how valuable and irreplaceable they are to the team. It may
have been that the student was possibly trying to imitate his hero just like I was my mentor,
a behaviour most commonly seen with observational learning as psychology points out.
Discussions with my peers that day made me ponder-what if I had advised students of the
consequences they would receive if they misbehaved during the game? Would that have
helped curb that students misbehaviour or the way he acted out? The term negative
reinforcement was first coined by Psychologist B.F Skinner to explain that a response or
behaviour is strengthened by avoiding a negative outcome. I strongly believe that the
student most likely would have behaved well had he known in advance the consequences
he would face if he behaved otherwise.
I understand that as a teacher I gave the student not one, but two chances before finally
asking him to step aside. I also understand that I avoided embarrassing or criticizing him in
front of his peers by directing most of my criticism at the group rather than at him
individually, in the hope he would understand and stop his behaviour. I cannot however
help but think that maybe the student was acting out because he was possibly dealing with
difficult personal and family matters. Wyn & Whyte (1997) relay that students value
teachers who talk and regularly ask about them, a point reinforced by Bahr & Pendergast
(2005). Maybe I could have taken the opportunity during or after the game to talk to the
student privately, to check on his wellbeing and see whether he needed professional
counselling. The opportunity couldve been utilized to form a new professional relationship
that would have helped the student manage his emotions and behaviours not only in sport,
but possibly in other areas of his life.
I recognise that I managed to get the student to understand that actions have consequences
and to change his ways moving forward. I do however believe that my experience would
have been more fruitful had I asked my mentor for her thoughts earlier, had I outlined the
consequences for misbehaviour along with the rules and expectations when they were
mentioned before the game. I strongly believe that I wouldve possibly had a better
outcome had I invested the time and effort to examine if the student was battling personal
issues. Undertaking those steps I believe would have made an enormous difference, but
they are steps I plan on applying the next time a similar situation arises.








Michael Ghali APTL ASSESMENT TASK 1 Student ID: 3668493

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References:

Bahr, N. and Pendergast, D. 2005. Teaching middle years. Crows Nest, N.S.W.: Allen & Unwin.
Carrington, V. 2006. Rethinking middle years. Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin., p 107, 108
Grivas, J & Carter L. 2010. (5
th
Ed) Psychology VCE Units 1 & 2. Jacarandaplus, Qld.
Smyth, J. and Mcinerney, P. 2007. Teachers in the middle. New York: Peter Lang.pg 38, p 42-
43
http://ausvels.vcaa.vic.edu.au/Personal-Learning/Overview/Introduction data accessed 20 July
2014
http://bcotb.com/the-difference-between-positivenegative-reinforcement-and-positivenegative-
punishment/ data accessed on 01 August 2014