Teaching Assistants Sopporting the Curriculum Essay

Teaching Assistants Sopporting the Curriculum - Essay Example This interaction will also instil in me the ability to assess where each pupil stands in terms of their individual learning and help me identify any gray areas where further effort is required to help the pupil progress further. I am aware that when working in any school as a teacher's assistant there will be a number of children who will be identified as having special educational needs. Some of these special needs pupils may have the same diagnosis and at times some of them may have not one but a combination of conditions. I will make sure that I adapt class activities to suit these special needs pupils. As Susan Bentham has successfully pointed out "In any discussion of diagnosis it is important to remember that a child is first and foremost an individual with his/her own personality". (Bentham pg 72) I plan to use this very philosophy to help each special need child and cater to them in the way that will suit them the best. This may involve adjusting various class activities to suit the personality and level of understanding of the special pupil or group of special pupils.

Draw on relevant theories, the quote, and your own developing pedagogy Essay

Draw on relevant theories, the quote, and your own developing pedagogy to discuss and debate the notion of partnership with par - Essay Example Democratic practice is evident as teachers, parents and even children share power equitably and each is given the acknowledgement and respect he or she deserves. Parent participation comes in the form of â€Å"providing necessary information about the child, providing resources and attending special events to active participation in decision-making† (Styles, 2000, p. 5). If parent participation in schools in strong in Italy, the same is desired for New Zealand and for anywhere else in the world. It would be ideal if parents not only â€Å"take part† in early childhood programs but to â€Å"be a part of† such programs. In this sense, parent involvement is elevated to parent partnership with the school or children’s center. I believe partnership is a collaboration of parents and teachers/child workers as equals with regards to planning the early childhood program for children. ... Its strand of Mana Whenua or Belonging ensures that children and their families feel a sense of belonging in the children’s center (MOE, 1996). In my place of work, parents are considered important resources in our early childhood program. They are aware that they can be called upon anytime to help facilitate children’s development with the collaboration of the school. Evidently, Te Whaariki is one reflection of how the government gives importance to educational partnership with parents. There is a mandate that requires ECE services to establish and sustain collaborative partnerships with parents/ guardians and whanau. The collaboration of the parents with the teachers/ child workers benefits all children, as their learning and development are promoted and extended in both home and children’s center/ preschool (Crown, 1996). â€Å"The strategic plan for ECE Pathways to the Future: Nga Huarahi Arataki (Crown, 2002) devotes an entire goal to promoting collaborativ e relationships, including stronger linkages between ECE services and parents and whanau (Mitchell, Haggerty, Hampton, and Pairman, 2006, p. 4). Government initiatives to deliver high quality early childhood education to children obliges professionals in the field to comply with the highest standards in care and education for very young children and to forge strong partnerships with parents. However, Styles (2000) enumerates some obstacles in the formation of effective partnerships – â€Å"lack of time, busyness, lack of clarity about expectations, different priorities, staff turnover, and cultural differences† (p. 6). Personally, I would welcome more ideas and suggestions from the parents of our students because I believe