It's true! I'm an English Teacher
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My Qualifications
I received a first class joint honours BA Degree in English and Mathematical studies in 2008. I also hold a Postgraduate Diploma in Education as well as an first class honours Applied Psychology Degree. All of these I received from the University of College Cork, Ireland. While an academic qualification in the area means there is a good chance the person knows a bit about a subject, but it certainly is no guarantee that that is the case. Trust me! So at the moment I am going to push myself to write in various styles so that I am comfortable writing in all styles. I have a fairly good handle on functional writing including scientific report, academic essay and speech writing. However there is one area which I am weak on... creative writing. Here are examples of my work.
My School Days
I did my Leaving Certificate (High School) exam and achieved an A2. I was very happy with this as I knew I did not deserve an A1 as my essay had left me down. The reason for this is that at the time I was going through a bit of writer's block / had a negative attitude towards English. I would come out in sweats when I had to be creative under pressure. My forte was memorizing answers by continuously putting in effort to perfect my answers. But when it came to creative writing I sucked as I had not had a good English teacher and so lacked the confidence.
My Philosophy of Education as it pertains to the teaching of English
I grew up with a philosophy of education which was encapsulated in the motto 'work the system'. In practice this meant using knowledge of the assessment mechanism to maximize the final grade. I am not constantly attempting to distance myself from this philosophy as it neglects the vast potential that English has to help students develop an appreciation of and power over language which is the most essential educational achievement if they are to become confident, thoughtful and critical conscious members of society. I want to move away from the former philosophy and adopt a more progressive philosophy of education. My vision of my classroom is one where my students have a sense of ownership over what they study, are challenged to degree appropriate to their ability so that they are neither overwhelmed or bored. Motivated by this sense of ownership students are motivated to put continuous effort into working on different dimensions of a project over the course of a few weeks to develop a variety of skill set s.
I will endeavour to facilitate my students' development of
- a mature and critical literacy
- an appreciation for language used accurate and appropriately
- a wide range of skills both oral and written
- an awareness of the value of literature in its diverse forms for enriching their perceptions,
- an awareness of how it enhance their sense of cultural identity
- an enjoyment of literature.
In order to achieve these aims I will foster students' development in the following areas;
CONCEPTS & PROCESSES: the ability to think, reason, discriminate and evaluate in a wide variety of linguistic contexts, personal, social, vocational and cultural. In comprehending, students should be able
to analyze, infer, synthesise and evaluate; in composing, students
should be able to research, plan, draft, re-draft, and edit.
KNOWLEDGE & CONTENT: knowledge about the nature and uses
of language and the variety of functions and genres in which it
operates. In this context genres of literature will be of particular
significance.
SKILLS: interpreting and controlling the textual features (grammar,
syntax, spellings, paragraphing) of written and oral language to
express and communicate.
ATTITUDES & EFFECTS: the development of interest and
enjoyment in using language, a respect for its potential to make
meaning and an appreciation of its diverse cultural manifestations.
Online Resources
Here is a list of useful online resources related to English grouped by subject matter.
Persuasive Writing
I received a first class joint honours BA Degree in English and Mathematical studies in 2008. I also hold a Postgraduate Diploma in Education as well as an first class honours Applied Psychology Degree. All of these I received from the University of College Cork, Ireland. While an academic qualification in the area means there is a good chance the person knows a bit about a subject, but it certainly is no guarantee that that is the case. Trust me! So at the moment I am going to push myself to write in various styles so that I am comfortable writing in all styles. I have a fairly good handle on functional writing including scientific report, academic essay and speech writing. However there is one area which I am weak on... creative writing. Here are examples of my work.
My School Days
I did my Leaving Certificate (High School) exam and achieved an A2. I was very happy with this as I knew I did not deserve an A1 as my essay had left me down. The reason for this is that at the time I was going through a bit of writer's block / had a negative attitude towards English. I would come out in sweats when I had to be creative under pressure. My forte was memorizing answers by continuously putting in effort to perfect my answers. But when it came to creative writing I sucked as I had not had a good English teacher and so lacked the confidence.
My Philosophy of Education as it pertains to the teaching of English
I grew up with a philosophy of education which was encapsulated in the motto 'work the system'. In practice this meant using knowledge of the assessment mechanism to maximize the final grade. I am not constantly attempting to distance myself from this philosophy as it neglects the vast potential that English has to help students develop an appreciation of and power over language which is the most essential educational achievement if they are to become confident, thoughtful and critical conscious members of society. I want to move away from the former philosophy and adopt a more progressive philosophy of education. My vision of my classroom is one where my students have a sense of ownership over what they study, are challenged to degree appropriate to their ability so that they are neither overwhelmed or bored. Motivated by this sense of ownership students are motivated to put continuous effort into working on different dimensions of a project over the course of a few weeks to develop a variety of skill set s.
I will endeavour to facilitate my students' development of
- a mature and critical literacy
- an appreciation for language used accurate and appropriately
- a wide range of skills both oral and written
- an awareness of the value of literature in its diverse forms for enriching their perceptions,
- an awareness of how it enhance their sense of cultural identity
- an enjoyment of literature.
In order to achieve these aims I will foster students' development in the following areas;
CONCEPTS & PROCESSES: the ability to think, reason, discriminate and evaluate in a wide variety of linguistic contexts, personal, social, vocational and cultural. In comprehending, students should be able
to analyze, infer, synthesise and evaluate; in composing, students
should be able to research, plan, draft, re-draft, and edit.
KNOWLEDGE & CONTENT: knowledge about the nature and uses
of language and the variety of functions and genres in which it
operates. In this context genres of literature will be of particular
significance.
SKILLS: interpreting and controlling the textual features (grammar,
syntax, spellings, paragraphing) of written and oral language to
express and communicate.
ATTITUDES & EFFECTS: the development of interest and
enjoyment in using language, a respect for its potential to make
meaning and an appreciation of its diverse cultural manifestations.
Online Resources
Here is a list of useful online resources related to English grouped by subject matter.
Persuasive Writing