By Noah Kim
EDITION #2 – How do I build great relationships?
Published – 6th March 2019
Noah Kim is beginning the 2nd year of teaching after graduating from RMIT Brunswick in 2017
Now that you have gotten into the swing of things, it’s important to have an understanding about your role in the education system and pretty much, why we do what we do!
Making sense of the Victorian Teaching and Learning Model
The Victorian Teaching and Learning Model (VTLM) illustrates teaching and learning excellence at a whole school level, and how these filter through to teaching practice. It is separated into four categories:
- A Vision for Learning – A value-based set of beliefs that promotes teaching and learning excellence.
- Practice Principles – Nine pedagogies that we should be utilising within our teaching.
- Pedagogical Model – Creating an understanding of how to apply the Practice Principles.
- High Impact Teaching Strategies (HITS) – Ten research-based strategies that increase student learning when applied effectively.
At my school I was introduced to this by my school leadership team and actively implemented aspects such as the HITS through a team approach, in Professional Learning Teams (PLT). I found it helpful in my PLT, especially working with other graduates so we could discuss our understanding and find similarities between what we had implemented and the changes we could make to improve our practice.
What is the Framework for Improving Student Outcomes?
The Framework for Improving Student Outcomes (FISO) brings together the whole school improvement priorities for both the Strategic Plan (four years) and the Annual Implementation Plan (one year). The VTLM brings FISO into focus for the classroom teacher. It sets out all aspects that contribute to student engagement, achievement, and wellbeing. I have broken down each concept with links to the Practice Principles and a brief description of what this means for us.
Throughout the next ten editions, I will be unpacking different sections of the VTLM, and my overall experiences with the model as a graduate teacher new to the profession. Hopefully, you can relate to some of my experiences and can learn from my mistakes and successes!