Department has a very particular style of teaching ...

[djandpuncan]

And it really doesn’t align with mine. I’m finding it really difficult to work with the sows in place and so have largely been doing my own thing (sticking to the topic but not delivering the lessons on the system) and have been told off for it in a department book scrutiny.

Has anyone ever been in this position?

Unacceptable. You are sentenced to 50 lines, lunchtime detention and an hour of the dunce hat in the corner

:-) I mean, who asks questions? I hang my head in shame.

OP I think people just want to help? I've read and re-read Don's posts and I can't see the problem?

The immediate presenting problem is that don very pertinent questions have not been answered.

Quite. Even worse, who asks questions of someone who's supposed to have the patience to explain unfamiliar concepts to young people!?

How dare you? Don, YABVVU...

Be fair.

I didn’t object to the questions.

I pointed out (politely I think) that the ‘I repeat’ and the use of the bold did make it seem a bit like a teacher demanding a year 6 explain herself.

I don’t really want to get into the finer details. I am worried about being identified - tbh the style of teaching is bonkers and I haven’t come across it before - and also there’s not an enormous amount that can be done. My line manager wants kids rolling round the room: what can I do? Not much!

OP, what were you thinking? Turning to your professional peers and expecting some sort of advice? Unthinkable?

Perhaps posters seeking more information in an attempt to 'help', could do so in a gently reassuring way and not in a totally patronising way? Maybe then the OP may become less defensive and more willing to elaborate?

Or perhaps it's just a good excuse for some to feel superior with a good old pile-on instead?

Mumsnet at its best.

OP maybe you could try to find a middle ground. Kinaesthetic learning is extremely effective and there is a huge amount of evidence to show this. Could you maybe put some kinaesthetic learning in your lesson and mix it more with tour own style?
I think you have to be seen to at least be trying the school’s approach. I’d you try it and it’s still not working you’ll have more of a voice to share this with SLT.

@djandpuncan

It wasn't polite, it was condescending. If you think that's polite, maybe that is the problem you're having with you SLT?

@shortcircuitlongmemory

Or perhaps OP shouldn't waste people's time? Multiple people asked very relevant questions so they could form adequate advice and inform OP. With half a story, you can't do that. OP is an adult with a job that requires significant responsibility and resilience. If being asked questions about a topic that she broached is too much then that's not the fault of other posters (who took the time to read the post and consider advice to help OP).

I pointed out (politely I think) that the ‘I repeat’ and the use of the bold did make it seem a bit like a teacher demanding a year 6 explain herself.

Use of bold for quotes is very normal on MN. I repeat was for brevity. I'm trying to launch 2 kids at the same time.

what can I do? Not much!

You can do shit loads, but the advice you get will be of very limited use without context.

I don’t think we are going to agree. I think the way I was spoken to was extremely inappropriate. I didn’t actually mean to make such a big thing of it, but I do stand by that.

But maybe you are right and I am the problem. Who knows?

Well Don did have to repeat and used bold to direct your attention. Missing a few lines is very easily done.

Judging by your overreaction to being asked a simple question, I'm not convinced you were "told off" at all. They probably only asked how you were getting on!

Was it an official telling off? If not they may have just been suggesting that you try this approach.

I think it's important to stick to the department's sequence - consistency and all that.
However, your delivery can be your own.

There are lessons on the system we are expected to follow - that’s basically what it is

Oh dear. I thought that kind of approach to teaching had gone. More recent approaches have been that any ‘gimmicks’, even jazzy effects on power points, distract from what you are trying to teach - eg kids will remember that the rolled around on the floor but not why. Could you do all this kind of silly stuff at the end of term as the ‘fun lessons’ then you can say you’ve done it?

It sounds like a clash of teaching styles. You won't "win". As a science teacher, I'd stick it out for the year, then move on - there'll always be another job. Can't you just lie and say you have done these activities to get you through?

What evidence that kinaesthetic learning works?! It may clean the floor a bit I suppose...

I thought all the learning styles rubbish was debunked years ago...

@Whatwouldbigfatfannydo

"Multiple people asked very relevant questions so they could form adequate advice and inform OP"

None of whom are you.

Don and other posters at least apologised and reassured the OP their posts were taken the wrong way. All your posts are having a dig and being facetious.

You're the last person who should be taking umbrage.

@shortcircuitlongmemory

I declined to ask a question after seeing the rude response by the OP.
Nothing about my humour was inappropriate and I'm not offended in the least but I deeply appreciate the concern.

Lighten up

They did a study where kids were taught to ride a bike. Some were taught kinaesthetically and some watched a video about how to ride a bike.

By the end of the study, more kids who were taught kinaesthetically were able to ride the bike than those taught visually.

Hence kinaesthetic learning is more effective than visual learning.

@Whatwouldbigfatfannydo

I'm afraid your appreciation is misplaced.

My only concern is for the OP 😉

Looks like my sarcasm was too. Oh well!

To offer proper advice it would depend on a number of things:

• Following a scheme of learning is fairly standard and making small changes for your class is normal.

• are your results and pupil progress as good or better than your colleagues? Generally schools tend to be more open to people doing their own thing a little more if they get good results

• are you a subject specialist teaching in subject? Schools may want non specialists to be more closely directed

• how far from the schemes of learning are you going? Eg. I've had to speak to staff who decided they didn't like schemes of work and so did their own thing and the impact was that their classes were missing content and work that the rest of the year group was covering (which was causing repeat issues for future staff)

• how much kinaesthetic learning are they expecting? Given how many schools are obsessed with books, it's surprising that any department would be all learning styles about things. Could it be that they're suggesting you use a wider range of teaching methods?

• is this a piece of feedback for a specific class, or a pattern raised about your teaching overall? Could it be that suggesting certain approaches have been done because they'd better fit the student needs?

• who has spoken to you and under what context? E.g. a head of department seeing that one class has got a totally different curriculum coverage to others, possibly with bits missing following a book check is very different to someone catching you informally because they did a 4 minute learning walk with one class

I'm not suggesting that you answer the questions on here OP, but for me whether they're right on wrong in their feedback would depend on so many factors (and I'm not a fan of pushing VAK by the way because it's nonsense).

noblegiraffe, that's a joke ,right? Not an actual study used to support kinaesthetic learning in biology for example?