The dust has settled on the last few weeks of excitement so it seems an appropriate point to update.
The two big events were the Monitoring and Assessment assignment, the final 5,000 word bit of work and my final University observation. The former was pretty hectic and my hatred of long essays is well documented. Despite this, it was actually one of the most beneficial bits of work in terms of professional development; the research into assessment was actually really useful. I was pleased I got it finished and actually got some sleep before the hand-in but as ever I wish it was a little better. As with everything on the PGCE though, it’s about getting the time/result balance: there’s no point not sleeping for a week to get a Grade 1 only for you to be a wreck in school.
The following day was my final observation from University. I’m not sure whether my lack of nerves was still due to being on a come-down from the M&A hand-in or just the fact I’ve had so many observations now it seems second nature. No matter which, it went as well as I could expect, gaining praise in particular from an area of my teaching which I consider something I need to work on so that was all I needed to feel like I’ve made progress.
I think that last sentence does sum up the PGCE year. There will be very few trainees (myself not included) that are natural teachers and by the end of the course are rated Outstanding, but that’s not to say the rest are bad teachers (although again, there will be some!). The key to being a good trainee in my humble opinion is all about reflection, taking advice and acting on it. I’ve been teaching for what seems like a good chunk of a year but in terms of actual hours, not really that many, especially compraed to that teacher who’s giving you feedback who has been teaching for longer than you’ve been out of nappies.
If you are capable of realising where a lesson was bad and how you could avoid it in the future, I believe you are on the way to being a good teacher. Good teachers are not born, they just learn from their mistakes quicker than everyone else.