Myself as PYP Educator

 I wish to consider the following points:


1.I will support students to initiate and engage in their own inquiries

2.I will promote student reflection and action in response to their learning



1. If I am successful in developing this area, I ought to see students who actively raise questions that result in further development of concepts within my unit, and then suggesting and pursuing means by which they could discover the answers to their own questions themselves. I should be introducing a unit, provoking intrigue, and then the remainder of the unit should be spent facilitating students on their path to making their own conclusions, and undertaking action based on it.

I won't deny that this is something I have been struggling with. Currently, I have a class which varies incredibly wildly in ability, age (two combined grades) and English language ability (half of the students currently have virtually none) despite being a small class, facilitating all of them to find their own suitable path to inquiry, while attending to their varied needs has been very difficult. I am beginning to push them further in a direction in which they will understand that they are the ones who will direct their own learning, but I realize this will have to be a gradual process.

2. Success in developing student reflection and action might result in students who are self-aware; who independently consider their own strengths, weaknesses, successes and times when they could have done better. They would consider the possible outcomes of their actions beforehand and review them afterwards. They would examine situations, analyze problems, consider possible causes. They would then consider suitable actions.

I am encouraging my students to develop their skills of reflection, with a significant aspect of every Friday dedicated to reflecting on the weeks work and progress. I will ask them to consider how they have done and how they could improve; producing an action plan for the following week. Each week I also give homework that involves a short piece of writing that will summarize key points of our unit and ask them to really consider what they have learned.


I will use a variety of methods to continue my learning post-workshop. The most urgent one would be reflection on my own practice- assessing what works and what doesn't. I will continuously engage with my colleagues to share examples of best practice. I will pursue further professional development opportunities as they arise- I am particularly interested in the concept of job-alikes (which I hope I can join). I will further my own research into the literature surrounding constructivist and inquiry-based learning.

Evidence of my growth as a PYP educator will be seen in my students. I will ensure that I keep a portfolio of student work as well as appropriate video evidence of developments in student inquiry ability.

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