Katie Miskell: 220129021
EDUC456
EDUC456
Unit Coordinator: Kristy Davis
Assessment 1
Due Date: 21 September 2025
Word Count:
Part A: 442
Part B: 1090
Katie Miskell
220129021
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Part A: Reflection
During my time as a teaching student one particular area of interest to me is the benefit of
student choice and engagement in the classroom. I have the view that students who feel they
have a voice in the classroom and a say in their learning, are more engaged and likely to
experience success in their learning. With student wellbeing and behaviour a significant
challenge for teachers in Australian classrooms, considering the impact that has on learning
has become a significant factor when planning and preparing for lessons. During my last two
placements, I experienced two very different learning environments. During my third
placement at OHS, many behaviours in the classroom were undesirable, with engagement and
participation low. In my final placement at JSCHS, students appeared to be engaged, but I
noted this was mainly due to the strict rules of the school, and that individual student learning
was at a similar rate to OHS, therefore, during both placements, I implemented strategies that
involved the students in their learning directly.
During my third placement at OHS, a public secondary school, students were disruptive,
loud, and engaged with their peers rather than engaged in their learning. As I developed
rapport with the students, I realised how receptive they were to instruction when they had a
good relationship with their teacher and felt as though their voice mattered. I planned lessons
around ideas they had and found their engagement was much higher. One way I did this was
asking students to complete a poll of activities they were more interested in; I would then
develop lessons that were built around the poll results.
During my final placement at JSCHS, a secondary private school, I found students to be
mostly reserved and compliant, with many not retaining information from lessons. To address
this, I engaged them in conversations about what learning looked like for them and used
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scenarios to explore preferred environments. Based on their feedback, I adapted my teaching
by varying delivery according to the time of day. For example, after lunch I planned more
collaborative, hands-on lessons, such as discussions and debates on historical perspectives.
The strategies I used can be linked to Standard One, Know Your Students and How They
Learn, and Standard Three, Plan for and Implement Effective Teaching and Learning, of the
Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (AITSL, 2017, pp. 10, 14). By actively
seeking student feedback and adapting my lesson delivery to suit their needs and contexts, I
demonstrated responsiveness to learner diversity. These approaches highlight the importance
of designing lessons that are flexible, engaging, and developmentally appropriate, ensuring
students remain motivated and supported in achieving meaningful learning outcomes.
Part B: Essay
Professional development is vital for effective teaching, enabling teachers to build
knowledge, strategies, and reflective capacity to address diverse student needs within
changing educational contexts. Research oriented approaches position teachers as active
participants in their own learning. Practitioner research allows educators to generate
evidence, critically evaluate practice, and connect theory with classroom realities. It is
important that teachers understand and explore the value of research as professional
development, focusing on reflective practice, action research, and autoethnography, whilst
being guided by the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers and the ethical
responsibilities of working with children.
Reflective practice is the process where thinking carefully about your own experiences,
actions and decisions can be used to influence individual performance; where an individual
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learns from and improves their future practice. Reflective practice in the teaching profession
involves actively thinking about your teaching by reviewing, analysing and planning, in order
to improve student outcomes. It requires teachers to reflect on and consider what happened
during a lesson, the course in which events took place, and how to adapt and improve moving
forward. Reflective practice is associated with valuable professional skills, including
increased self-awareness, the capacity to learn from experience, commitment to lifelong
learning, ongoing personal and professional development, the ability to question current
approaches, and the habit of thinking and acting in a professional manner (Smith & Trede,
2013, p. 632). This practice aligns with Standard Six of the Australian Professional Standards
for Teachers, Engage in Professional Learning, specifically Focus Area 6.3 Engage with
Colleagues and Improve Practice (AITSL, 2017, p. 20). As a Graduate Teacher, this Standard
is an important consideration in reflective practice as you are actively monitoring and
improving your teaching by applying constructive feedback from teachers who are competent
in the profession. When engaging in reflective practice it is essential to consider the ethical
implications when doing so. The confidentiality of students must be protected, therefore
when gathering student perspectives or analysing their work, the teacher must avoid labelling
or identifying a students’ personal information when doing so. Informed student consent is
also critical, this is to ensure the teacher-student relationship is not at risk of being affected
negatively. Therefore, reflective practice is valuable for professional development, but it must
be exercised with caution to protect the rights and dignity of students.
Action research is the systematic, critical and self-critical enquiry with the intention of
developing and improving knowledge and wisdom. Action research can be described as
planning, acting, observing, and reflecting on practices. As a teacher this can be depicted by
identifying a challenge in your practice, implement an intervention, and evaluate whether or
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not it was beneficial by using evidence from the classroom. Costello (2003) states action
research is a process of critical inquiry designed to guide educational judgments and
decisions, with the goal of enhancing educational practice (p. 3). An example of this when a
teacher might investigate whether introducing collaborative learning structures improves
student engagement in history lessons, such as group tasks that require students to collaborate
and combine information into a presentation. Data collected such as student feedback,
participation levels, and assessment outcomes, can then be used to refine strategies, resulting
in improved teaching and learning. This aligns with Standard Five, Assess, Provide Feedback
and Report on Student Learning, specifically Focus Area 5.4, interpret student data (AITSL,
2017, p. 19). Using student data to inform future practice and planning as a teacher facilitates
the opportunity to identify learning gaps and tailor lessons to meet the diverse needs of
students, ensures that teaching strategies are evidence-based and responsive to student
progress, and supports the development of targeted interventions and differentiated learning
experiences. While action research offers significant benefits, it presents ethical challenges
when conducted with children. Risks also arise if research goals outweigh student wellbeing,
such as new strategies disadvantaging some learners (Janse van Rensburg, 2023, p. 248).
Central to this process is the question of how teaching can be adapted to ensure all students
have equitable access to success in their learning. To address this concern, teachers must
develop equitable processes that minimise harm, and maintain transparency with parents and
carers. When responsibly implemented, action research fosters teacher growth, student
growth, and improves outcomes inclusively and ethically.
Autoethnography is a qualitative research approach in which teachers examine their own
experiences as both personal and cultural texts. Rooted in ethnography, the process by which
a researcher immerses themselves in a social or cultural group over an extended period to
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develop a deep, insider understanding of its beliefs, values and practices, autoethnography
acknowledges that personal narratives are shaped by broader social and cultural forces
(Hammersley, 2018). In educational research, autoethnography allows teachers to critically
question their professional identities, and relationships with students. In professional
development, autoethnography is valuable as it highlights the connection between the
personal and professional. Teachers who examine their own experiences of learning and
teaching can uncover the values, biases, and cultural assumptions that shape their practice. An
example of this is when a teacher reflects autoethnographically on their childhood growing
up in a disadvantaged household, they may develop a greater awareness around student
welfare and wellbeing, subsequently implementing strategies to support students. This
practice aligns closely with Standard Four, create and maintain supportive and safe learning
environments, as self-awareness and reflection build empathetic and inclusive classrooms
(AITSL, 2017). As a result, autoethnography encourages authenticity and value in
professional growth. However, autoethnography has certain ethical considerations to take into
account when a teacher’s narrative is associated with a student’s experience (Lapadat, 2017,
p. 589). Autoethnographic research and accounts must be anonymous, and information cannot
be used without consent. Further, the information gathered should not be used so that there is
a conflict between the teacher’s perspective and the student’s voice, such as if a teacher
describes a behaviour management strategy as successful, without including the student’s
perspective. To reduce the instance of implications, teachers should balance self-reflection
with sensitivity to student perspectives, ensuring that the research process is transparent,
ethical, and respectful.
Research as professional development offers teachers valuable opportunities to critically
examine practice, generate context-specific knowledge, and connect theory with lived
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experiences. Reflective practice promotes self-awareness and adaptability, enabling
responsiveness to diverse learners. Action research provides a structured, evidence-based
framework for improving teaching and learning collaboratively, while autoethnography
encourages interrogation of personal identities and assumptions to foster inclusive practice.
These approaches align with the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers, reinforcing
professional growth in daily work. Conducting research with children, however, requires
ethical vigilance, including informed consent, confidentiality, and prioritising wellbeing.
Ultimately, research-oriented development empowers teachers as reflective, innovative, and
ethical practitioners.
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References
AITSL. (2017). Australian professional standards for teachers. Australian Institute for Teaching and
School Leadership. https://www.aitsl.edu.au/standards
Costello, P. J. M. (2003). Action research. Continuum.
Hammersley, M. (2018). What is ethnography? Can it survive? Should it? Ethnography and
Education, 13(1), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/17457823.2017.1298458
Janse van Rensburg, A. (2023). Retrospective action research on facilitating equitable learning
outcomes in a diverse class. IJAR – International Journal of Action Research, 18(3), 247–
267. https://doi.org/10.3224/ijar.v18i3.04
Lapadat, J. C. (2017). Ethics in autoethnography and collaborative autoethnography. Qualitative
Inquiry, 23(8), 589–603. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077800417704462
Smith, M., & Trede, F. (2013). Reflective practice in the transition phase from university student to
novice graduate: Implications for teaching reflective practice. Higher Education Research &
Development, 32(4), 632–645. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2012.709226
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