EDUC4742 Activity 2 ID: 2166872

Hannah Fox

Context for Learning

School Context
The school that I will be attending for my final year placement is Glenunga International High
School; a category 7 government school located in Adelaide, South Australia. Currently, the school
has 1, 839 students enrolled which of whom are from 84 different countries of birth. Positions at the
school are offered to locally zoned students, specialist entry students and 70 international fee-paying
students. Moreover, the school provides specialists programs for students which include the IGNITE
Program for students with high intellectual potential and the International Baccalaureate Diploma in
Years 11-12. It is evident that the school has a strong focus on developing their students into 21 st
century learners, which they work to achieve through personalising learning; delivering trans-
disciplinary curriculum; developing critical thinking, literacy and numeracy skills; and using
technology to enhance face to face teaching.

Policies and Principles

The staff and students at Glenunga adhere to the school’s community-influenced values, which
encompass excellence (to the power of personal best), opportunity (to the power of you), international
mindedness, and harmony. It is apparent that the values are reflective of the school’s 21 st century
ideals, and permeate every aspect of the school climate. Moreover, due to the rich cultural diversity of
the school, it is important that the staff are culturally responsive to the various religions of the
students. A positive example of this that I have identified during my time at Glenunga was the staff
setting up a designated area for Muslim students to pray during Ramadan. Furthermore, the school has
a set of policies which the staff and students are required to adhere too. Policies relating to Behaviour
Management, Child Protection, and Assessment and Reporting, are featured on the school’s website,
and explicitly outline the expectations and processes that must be followed. Parents and caregivers are
encouraged to work in partnership with teachers to monitor and support the learning of their student;
maintain strong communication with the school; and, access assessment information online in
DayMap to ensure they can effectively support their student’s learning.

Classroom Context
Throughout my 10-week placement at Glenunga, I will be teaching four classes, and joining a Year 11
mentor group for their Program X sessions. The classes are as followed:

 8.03 IGNITE English – This class has 25 students, with a ratio of 13 girls to 12 boys. All the
students in the class are a part of the IGNITE Program; thus, meaning they are recognised as
gifted and/or talented in literacy and numeracy, and are performing above what is expected at
their year level. The cultural diversity of the class is extensive, thus making it difficult to
EDUC4742 Activity 2 ID: 2166872
Hannah Fox

ascertain all the languages spoken by the students and where they, or their family, originate
from. It is apparent that many of the students speak a language other than English at home,
yet this does not appear to hinder their learning in any way. However, it will be important to
monitor students individually to ensure they are adequately supported.

 9.02 IGNITE History – This class has 25 students, with a ratio of 14 boys to 11 girls.
Similarly, to the students in 8.03, these students are a part of the IGNITE Program and are
recognised as gifted and/or talented in literacy. The class is culturally diverse, and has a range
of students who speak English as an additional language and/or originate from another
country. It is difficult to know how many languages are spoken by the students, but
throughout my placement I will endeavour to speak with students and learn more about them.

 9 History – This class has 26 students, with a ratio of 14 boys to 12 girls. The class is
identified as mainstream, and comprises students with various readiness levels. The cultural
diversity of the class is not as extensive as the IGNITE classes, however, there are still many
students who speak English as an additional language and/or originate from somewhere other
than Australia.

 10 English Language Plus – This class is a specialised program for EAL/D students, which
means that the students do not do a language subject (i.e. French, Latin, German etc.), and
instead have two English classes. The class has 12 students, with a ratio of 7 boys to 6 girls.
The cultural diversity of the class is incredibly broad, as every student in the class immigrated
to Australia after they were born. It is difficult to know how many languages are spoken by
the students, but throughout this placement I plan to spend time speaking with students to
establish a greater understanding.

Students’ Development
From my observations and discussions with my mentors throughout my planning days, I have been
able to gain a greater understanding of the students I will be teaching, and what I will need to take into
consideration when planning my lessons. The notes I took during my planning days are as followed:

 8.03 IGNITE English; 9.02 IGNITE History – From my observations, I have been able to
make strong connections between the two IGNITE classes I’ll be teaching. The students in
both classes appear to be highly engaged in their learning, often display higher order
thinking skills, and seem to be at similar readiness levels. Also, the students appear to be
highly social, and seem to work effectively with all members of the class. Also, I have
EDUC4742 Activity 2 ID: 2166872
Hannah Fox

noticed that the they respond well to group work, and are quick to understand new ideas and
concepts. Since it is apparent that the students are performing above what is expected at their
year level, it will be important for me to continually pre-assess what they know, and modify
my teaching as necessary. I plan to assess the students’ prior knowledge through various
learning activities (i.e. quizzes) to ensure I can correctly identify their current understanding
and learning strengths. However, it is important that I am not extending students beyond
their Zone of Proximal Development. Thus, I will need to continually assess students (i.e.
formative assessments such as personal responses, quizzes, group work tasks, etc.) to ensure
they are understanding the content, and they are receiving the necessary support they
require.

 9 History – Based on my observations and discussions with my mentor over the term, it is
evident that the readiness levels of students in this class vary slightly. I have noticed that the
students prefer to work individually, or in groups that they have established friendships with.
Most students in the class appear to be engaged with their learning, however, there are
several students whom require consistent support to remain on task. Since it is apparent that
the students are performing at different readiness levels, it will be important for me to
continually assess their understanding, and differentiate where necessary. I think that tiering
activities might be beneficial for this class, particularly for students who are struggling to
complete class tasks to the level that is required. Moreover, there is one student who has a
diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder; however, I have only had discussions with my
mentor about how to support the student. From my observations, I have noticed that the
student actively engages with learning activities, yet requires additional support to ensure
they remain on task. I believe that it will be important for me to set personal goals for the
student to work towards during lessons, establish a routine in the class, and always ensure
they are aware of the plans for lessons.

 10 English Language Plus – From my observations, I have noticed that the readiness levels
of the students in this class vary significantly, yet they all appear to be engaged in the
learning process. It is apparent that the students in the class are quiet and feel nervous about
contributing to class discussions. However, over the course of the term, I have noticed that
their confidence has grown and they are starting to share their ideas more willingly and
openly. Since it is apparent that they are all EAL/D students, it will be important for me to
continually build on their literacy skills and work with their learning strengths. I have
noticed that they all prefer to work individually, or in their friendship groups, and generally
prefer to express their ideas in written form rather than orally. Thus, I plan to give them
EDUC4742 Activity 2 ID: 2166872
Hannah Fox

opportunities to work in their preferred learning styles, however, I want to challenge them as
a class because I believe they have a lot of potential.

Lesson Planning
Throughout this placement, I will be teaching both my minor and major subject areas, History and
English. As aforementioned, I will be teaching a Year 8 English class, two Year 9 History classes, and
a Year 10 English class. The details for each class are as followed:

 8.03 IGNITE English – I will be teaching a film study unit on Edward Scissorhands for the
entire duration of my placement. The students will focus on themes and film techniques, and
will be working towards writing a 400-word paragraph which discusses how film techniques
are used to convey meaning. The students will only complete one summative assessment
task during the term, yet will continually be formatively assessed through class learning
activities and various teaching strategies. Since the students in this class are performing
above what is expected at their year level, it will be important for me to use a range of
teaching strategies to ensure the content remains challenging yet interesting for them. Some
strategies may include having students share their interests and preferred learning styles so
that I can design lessons based on them, pre-assessing students before beginning a new topic
to ensure I am not covering content they are already familiar with, and developing activities
that are within the students Zone of Proximal Development.

 9.02 IGNITE History – I will be teaching a 10-week unit on Rights and Freedoms, which
encompasses the US Civil Rights and Indigenous Rights (Australia). The students will be
required to complete two summative assessments tasks during the unit, one being a film
review on Green Book, and the other being an oral presentation on a historical artefact from
the US or Australian Civil Rights Movement. Throughout the unit, the students will
complete a range of formative assessment tasks to ensure I am able to effectively gauge their
understanding and address misunderstandings when necessary. It is important to note that
the unit the students will be completing throughout this term is expected to be taught at Year
10 level, however, because of the IGNITE Program, the students complete the unit in Year 9
instead. I will be using similar teaching strategies that I outlined in the previous section to
support the students throughout this unit.

 9 History – I will be teaching a 10-week unit on WW1 to this class, which will require
students to complete three summative assessment tasks. The first task requires students to
create an infographic that outlines the technology used during WW1; the next will be an
EDUC4742 Activity 2 ID: 2166872
Hannah Fox

essay which explores the life of an Australian solider from WW1; and the last will be a game
development task which requires students to create a board game that is influenced by
WW1. Formative assessment will also be used throughout the unit to help students unpack
content further and gain a deeper understanding of certain topics.

 10 English Language Plus – The focus unit for this class is a novel study on I Kill Giants.
The students will spend the entire term working with the text, and will be required to
complete two summative assessment tasks. The first task is a personal response to the text,
and the other will be a review of the text. Since the ELP Program is designed to build the
literacy skills of students, it is important for me to use teaching strategies to help support
students. Throughout the unit, I will look to develop explicit scaffolds that the students can
use to guide them in learning activities/assessments, continually monitor and provide
feedback on student work (both in-class and out-of-class work), and frequently build on the
literacy skills of students through various learning activities.