Come one, come all… and welcome!

Welcome! Welcome! Welcome!

I am so excited to be starting this new project in my professional learning network. As a University student I have found the use of ICT paramount to the success of my education, and I feel this sentiment applies to the younger generation that I will be teaching in the future. My expectations for this blog is to begin as a networking and sharing platform which will allow me to collaborate with other educators, students and the wider community. I hope that it will eventuate in to a space where I can share my own learning experiences, both at University and ultimately in the classroom. It is my belief that ICT opens many doors in connecting the global education community, and I hope to maximize this experience for both myself, colleagues, and most importantly for my students.

Here’s a little about me.

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To a lot of people, I am Amelia: University student, Harry Potter enthusiast, social media addict. I come from a close-knit family and have grown up with a passion for the arts, particularly music, and performance arts. Born in the UK, I have been living in the southern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia since I was five (1997 -yes, I’m not very old). I was educated in both the public (Government/State) and private (Independent/Religious) education sectors, and have primary schooling experiences both in the UK, and Australia, including Western Australia, Queensland and New South Wales (We spent a year traveling when I was in Year 3 – age 8). I spent one year of secondary in an all-girls public school, and finally finished up my schooling at Tatachilla Lutheran College in the McLaren Vale wine region of South Australia. With that in mind, I became a very well-socialized student with a passion for meeting new people and being immersed in different school cultures. I am sure, in-part, that this added to my overall desire to become a teacher. I am also involved in a project in which I facilitate a playgroup for pre-school aged children. The relationships I have formed with the children and parents at playgroup has consolidated my desires to become a teacher.

 

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This brings me to my second identity: Miss Smart (let’s face it, how many teachers out there wish their last name was “Smart”? It makes for a wonderful twitter handle @asmartteacher). In reflecting on my own schooling experiences, I have identified that I have always enjoyed close relationships with my teachers, from primary school, through to year 12. Ultimately, I think it was this respect for my teachers and the bonds with my own mentors that led to my decision to pursue the path to becoming an educator.

In the first assignment I ever wrote, in my first year of University I noted that “I intend to regard my students as individuals who each require to be taught in a different manner, catering to their unique learning needs. It is my opinion that by creating a welcoming and positive learning environment students will be more willing to learn, and more likely to feel enthusiastic about their education. I want to be the kind of teacher who inspires students to learn and to share their learning experiences both as youths and in the future. I believe that by respectfully approaching each student as an individual as well as a member of a cohort, students will receive a rounded education that allow them to reach their full potential.”

This statement is the basis for my personal teaching philosophy that I continue to construct through my own learning journey and the experiences I have had in schools as a pre-service teacher.

Here’s a little about this blog.

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I am starting this blog in my third year of my teaching degree. I have just started an ICT topic which encourages the use of social media, digital technology and global communication. After analyzing the Professional Standards for Teaching for graduate teachers in Australia, and reading a wonderful article (who knew assigned readings were actually interesting?) about blogging in the online educational sphere, I realized the time had come to start my own professional blog. While I consider myself reasonably technologically-literate, I have never created a proper blog before (aside from a Tumblr. account I created as a teenager which is limited in its exploration of the skills needed to be successful in the “blogosphere”). I found some really great resources for enhancing the visual quality of my blog at The Blog Guidebook: for all things bloggy! Visit them here:

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Well, this is my first official post. I apologize that it is a little scattered. I am known to deviate on impossible tangents when I let my mind wander. My love for creativity is the only excuse I can offer. I hope to update as often as possible, although I feel once I leave University it will become more regular as I reflect on my teaching practice and experiences, and begin to share the experiences of my students.

Please feel welcome to leave me feedback, comments, ideas, constructive criticism and any other tidbits you feel need adding (please be nice, I have a zero-tolerance for harassment!). Also, don’t forget to follow me on Twitter and subscribe to my YouTube channel by selecting the icons in the sidebar to the right.

Thank you very much for taking the time to read this and for supporting me in my digital education adventures.

Adios Amigos,

~Amelia

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