Books, Badminton and Bike rides...

This week has been fairly relaxed after the stress of assignments and exams finishing last Friday. The main focus was on thinking about dissertation ideas, doing a bit of reading around and trying to come up with something that I am interested in – well enough to write 10,000 words on! I am due to meet my tutor later today to talk through some ideas, so I'll let you know how that all went at some point!

This is the Alexander Sports Hall (Students call it ASH) where
 the Uni Badminton teams train

Badminton has been a big feature of the week, combining training and matches I have played for at least 2 hours a day. The reason I love to play so much is because it’s a sport that can be played leisurely with friends or at high intensity and speed in competition! The Uni team this year is comprised of people who have not competed in badminton before and so training and matches has really improved their game play and tactical understanding. It’s really good to have people from different sporting backgrounds on the team too because it means training can be mixed up a bit to keep it interesting; people often bring new ideas to the table which means we have a laugh even when we are training hard.

Not even halfway!

Bike rides have been another key theme this week as I am currently training to cycle the circumference of the Isle of Wight for Charity (which is happening next Saturday – ahhh!!) and so I have been out practising for that! It has been a challenge but I feel pretty much ready for it now. I have found that for me the key is in the breathing, which sounds odd but has really helped improve my stamina and power output – especially uphill!

Pause for a Selfie!

As I said previously, it was an unusually quiet week, but plodding along has been a well-deserved rest! Next week is half term (although at Uni we don’t get half term) and I am working on a children’s camp, whilst still attending my sessions at Uni. So the plan for the blog next week will involve balancing life, Uni and Jobs and, hopefully, I’ll have some good stories to share from my Explorer Camp!

Introductions

Hi! My name is Steph, I am a second year Sport and PE (SPE) BSc (Hons) student studying at the University of Bedfordshire. I originally chose Bedford because of its locality but also the phenomenal history and reputation of PE education. I am thrilled with my choice! My course offers a wide range of topic areas from sport sociology, physiology, psychology and, most importantly to me, pedagogy (combination of teachers/teaching, learners/learning and knowledge in context). The SPE course offers in depth and current knowledge of these areas across all years, particularly in pedagogy, which the department prides itself on. They use lots of different techniques of assessment, not just essays, but podcasts, blogs, presentations and practical tasks so if you're not one for writing essays there are plenty of opportunities for you to show you know your stuff! 

The staff here are incredibly supportive, active in research and genuinely want their students to achieve their best. The SPE department are also keen to integrate technology in the classroom which I have found really helps my learning and remembering of content. 

I also currently captain the Women's 1st Badminton team. Sports teams and societies are great ways to extend your social network, learn new skills and challenge yourself. This has been one of my favourite parts of University! Another favourite part are the practical sessions for my course - I have learnt how to play ultimate frisbee, how to make cross country running more engaging to students and some non-traditional games. 

However, my favourite part so far has been the science internship that I completed last summer, working on a PhD project, in the sport science labs. I learnt so much spending time in the labs and the paper is now going to be published in an academic journal - with my name on it! This is particularly special for me as I would like to pursue a career in academia and research. 

The next coming weeks are looking quite good. I have completed a few modules now as we are now in the second semester and so I have less contact time, which means I can get cracking with the dreaded dissertation. But I genuinely can't wait! I have a few ideas in the pipeline at the moment, which I am sure I will share with you in future blogs, but I need to read the literature surrounding my area of interest first before ideas can be cemented. 

Please follow me on Twitter @stephwhite121 where I often get involved with various PE related discussions and tweets! My blogs won't always be written, I may try a VLOG or podcast, so if you have a preference then get in touch.  Let me know if there is anything specific you would like to know about and I shall make sure I cover it in a blog, otherwise... Speak to you next week!

On the other side...

Lessons, after school clubs, meetings…its different doing it from the other side. Having dreamt my whole life of being a teacher it is good to be putting that dream into action. There is never one day in the week that is the same. There is always variety, new experiences and new lessons to be learnt. The weather has been a bonus towards the end of this week and it has meant that all outdoor lessons; Athletics, Tennis and Rounders can go ahead. Yesterday I delivered my first ever Javelin lesson! I was so scared to start off with; Year 10s (most of them bigger than me), health and safety and delivery all being aspects on my mind. I survived! Safety being one of the best parts of the lesson…phew!

It is great to see learners achieving their potential and the best thing is that it happens when you least expect it, often giving children that avenue to explore, a new experience/sport can be a real form of motivation and a huge boost that they need. There is also a lot of paperwork that comes with teaching, PE or not, lesson plans, unit plans and evaluations to name but a few. The last couple of weeks I have struggled with this a lot and it certainly needs determination and commitment in order to succeed. Observations by experienced teachers have also been vital in my development. I look forward to the remainder of this placement and seeing more learners achieving their goals.

 

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”-Nelson Mandela.

Back to School

After a year of being back in lectures at University and becoming a second year student I am finally back to school! Of course I mean I am back to carry out my Teacher Training Year 2 Placement. I have been placed at a Secondary School in Hertfordshire. This is my first week, and so far, its going well. The best experience you receive as a PE QTS trainee is the School Experiences because you are in a real life school setting, the classes become your own, you are teaching and planning for several lessons a day and I even have a Year 7 form group!

PE can be a challenging subject to teach at times; you get the learners who love PE and you certainly get the learners who hate it! I aim to make my lessons as inclusive as possible and am passionate about making my lessons suit the needs of each individual that I teach. This year I am placed in a School for 6 weeks during the summer term. This is a new and, at times, nerve racking experience for me as in Year 1 we had a winter term placement so we are therefore teaching different types of sports and it happens that Athletics, Tennis and Rounders are typical sports to be delivered in Schools at this time of year. Of which Athletics and Tennis are challenging topics for me as my subject knowledge isn't as good within these areas but, I am learning along the way. Yesterday I taught my first Year 10 lesson of Shot Putt and also managed to include the Reciprocal Teaching Style throughout my lesson. This gave the learners a chance to coach one another and feedback on each other’s performance and this worked really well and gained a positive response from all learners.

I am enjoying being back in a School environment, teaching and learning and developing new skills. The 6am wake up calls can be challenging at times but its worth it!

“The best teachers are those who show you where to look, but don’t tell you what to see”- Alexandra K.Trenfor. 

Exploring new heights

Hi all, things have certainly been hectic lately and the workload is continually increasing with exams and assignment deadlines approaching for my course, before I embark on my School Experience placement  in April. Which I am really excited about!

Last week we had the chance to undertake a new and exciting activity that forms part of some new research being done by our University and other Teacher Training institutions around the country. This is known as “Pedagogy of discomfort” and the aim is to challenge trainee teachers to be out of their comfort zone. Both Psychology and Dance have been combined through Rock Climbing. Below you can see a photo of me on the climbing wall we have here in Bedford. The session was so much fun with music playing, a real team effort and trying to show some moves whilst climbing up the wall. It was fair to say I had a few pulled muscles afterwards but it was worth it and I am looking forward to seeing the research develop over the next couple of years and having the honour to be a part of it.

I am finding the motivation and concentration hard at times and it can be difficult to stay focussed, especially at this time of year, but I am content in the fact that it is in my challenges that I grow the most.

“Move out of your comfort zone, you can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new.”

Hide and S(W)eek!

 Hi all, this week has been exciting and I have thoroughly enjoyed some new adventures. This morning we spent our practical O&AA (Outdoor & Adventurous Activities) class outside in Bedford Park; Geocaching! For those of you who haven’t heard of Geocaching, it is referred to as a “real-world treasure hunt.” It’s like a huge game of hide and seek, hence the tittle. There is said to be about 6 million active Geocachers’ worldwide. It was great to explore the outdoors and there are many caches hidden just within a few hundred metres from campus- there is bound to be ones near you too, I urge you to have a go, its great fun. We thought about how we could incorporate this activity into our teaching, but it is also fun for all the family. Attached are some photos of our finds, the GPS system we used and the signed log book.

This week has also been great for my Swimming progress (that’s where the ‘W’ comes from in the tittle.) For those of you who read my previous blogs you may know that when I arrived at University I wasn’t a strong swimmer, it wasn’t that I didn’t enjoy it- I love water, I just never had the access. I have made it my goal to improve over the 4 years undertaking my degree and so far…it’s going well. This week I received my grade from the Synchronised Swimming assessment we did in January and I got a (B+) this is such an achievement. Maybe by year 4 I can reach that grade A. I attended my weekly improvers’ class with a lot more motivation, knowing the hard work is paying off, and swam 12 lengths. This is a working progress but I am determined to improve. There are certainly many new opportunities here at UoB and I am enjoying learning more about myself in the process.

 

“Everything seems impossible, until it’s done!”-Nelson Mandela

"OPEN" a new chapter...

Hi all, my week has been very hectic! I have had numerous assignments due in and have found the approaching deadlines pressurising but they are now all submitted, until next month, so it is now time to focus on my exams before I go on placement in April; my favourite part of the year! I am enjoying the new units on my course; we did “Jitterbug” in Dance today which was thoroughly enjoyable and last week I was in an Outdoor Adventurous Activities (OAA) lesson where I found myself climbing up the side of a bench which was only held up by fellow students, about 10ft in the air, and standing on the top, arms out to the side, without support- I love a good challenge and adrenaline rush! I also enjoyed the Christian Union Society this week, we have had a great time exploring faith and fellowship on campus and we are continually growing in numbers which is great to see.

OPEN a new chapter…by this I am meaning new opportunities and new beginnings. For those of you hoping to study here I would say come along to an open day. If I am honest, I never had chance to attend an open day here- the distance from home was a little too far during the time I wanted to go, I was however quite fortunate in the sense that for PE QTS you have to attend an interview day and during this time I got a tour from a current student who was undertaking the same degree, this was very informative and vital. This is not true for all courses so I urge you to come along if you can and gain a real sense for the campus and surrounding area, after all you will spend 3/4 years of your life here. I wish I did attend. Recently I became a Student Ambassador here at the Bedford Campus and part of my role is to give tours around the campus especially on open days. I have now seen how valuable a tour can be, and how valuable an open day can be, it gives you a chance to speak to current students, ask questions that you may not feel comfortable asking staff members and you will certainly get an honest insight into life here.

Come and explore and have a look around and remember:

 

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”- Lao Tzu.