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Laura Cowley - DHFS Placement Presentation (SHU)
- 1. Experimental Learning Developer Dronfield Henry Fanshawe School Laura Cowley BSc Human Biology
- 2. Dronfield Henry Fanshawe School • DHFS est. 1580 – School motto: ‘Success with care’ • OFSTED – Outstanding since 2015 • In excess of 1700 students – 300 of which are 6th form students – One of the largest post-16 centres in Derbyshire • 81% of 2017 leavers went on to university – 30% in STEM subjects
- 3. My role • Developing and optimising PAGs • Teaching of experimental lessons • Lab technician • Tutoring • Pastoral care • Reimagining of the online learning platform
- 4. Relevant experience gained • Greater admiration for the profession • Interpersonal skills • Confidence • Transferable skills for postgraduate studies • Time management • Ability to work under pressure • Personal health & wellbeing
- 5. Highlights • Trip to University of Sheffield’s teaching laboratories • Barlow CofE Primary School • Results of student intervention
- 6. Challenges • Lack of equipment & finances • Time constraints • Sheer number of underconfident students wanting help • Exhaustion
- 7. Scientific skills • Dissection skills • Molarity calculations • Safety skills • Autoclave training • Statistics calculations
- 8. The value of a placement • Made my decision about postgraduate study • Made me a much more confident person BUT • Remember not to work too hard • Make sure you are financially able to support yourself/be supported – If not it will be unenjoyable because you’ll be too exhausted • Make the most of the time you have there – Make light work of PSP3 in final year
- 9. Acknowledgements • I would like to thank the whole science department at DHFS for allowing me the opportunity to join their team and welcoming me so warmly • Special thanks to my WPS Simon Hawkins and my VT Dr Kim Lawson for all of your support
- 10. Methane rockets with strontium chloride
- 11. Any questions?
Editor's Notes
- Dronfield Henry Fanshawe School (or DHFS for short) was established in 1580, and is based on the outskirts of rural Derbyshire. Students come from an extremely large catchment area, spanning into the centre of Sheffield, as the school has such a great reputation. It has had an OFSTED rating of ‘outstanding’ for the past 3 years, an accolade which it truly deserves The school has over 1700 students, around 300 of which are 6th formers. DHFS has one of the largest post-16 centres in Derbyshire, with an output of high achieving students 81% of 2017 leavers went on to enrol in university courses, 30% of which were STEM subjects – a tribute to the great teaching in the relevant departments at our school 38 seconds
- So what does an “experimental learning developer” do? To summarise it in a word, a LOT I’ll be using the word “PAG” a lot during this presentation, so I’ll define that for you now, they are the Practical Assessment Groups; each PAG (numbered 1 to 13) has a subset of experiments within it which (a colleague) and I were tasked with optimising and developing We prepped for, pre-tested, (and when necessary, i.e. when it was a hard topic) developed pre-labs for the students We were then expected to deliver these lessons, stressing the importance of learning objectives of the PAG (following an OCR – exam board – inspection) – i.e. health and safety, theories the experiment was based on, mathematical skills involved, laboratory skills obtained – all leading towards creating a laboratory-ready scientist Struggling students were directed to us to reach out for help; students seemed more comfortable coming to me than a teacher, I was the bridge between student and teacher, maybe they felt they would be wasting teachers’ time, whereas I was lower in the hierarchy, so they felt like I could help Because of this I adopted a somewhat pastoral role with my intervention students (those struggling to attain their target grades), reassuring them that you don’t have to get straight As to get you where you want to go – I mean, look at me, I didn’t do great at A level, but I’m flourishing now. 1 minute 20 seconds
- During my time at DHFS I gained a much greater admiration for the profession I was allowed to see the other side of lessons, the background work; lessons(or labs) don’t just appear, there’s a lot of time, effort and thought that goes into them Made me a lot more grateful for the teaching I got and am still getting here at SHU I was also able to develop my interpersonal skills further by building a rapport with a number of different individuals - every teacher has a very individual style and works in a diverse way, you have to learn to be very to adaptable. In my teaching of experimental lessons some teachers wanted me to take the entire class, whereas others just wanted me for practical support Confidence building was also a massive development for me; I used to hate making presentations, now it’s basically second nature. I could never have done this (this presentation) before my time at DHFS. Throwing you in the deep end really does help. It is skills such as these, time management, and the ability to work under pressure which will help me through final year, and hopefully my postgrad And finally, I generally know how to look after my own well-being better after pushing myself too hard at times working up to 25 hours per week in retail alongside my full-time placement 1 minute 17 seconds
- Our trip to the University of Sheffield with our y13s gave our students the opportunity to experience a full working laboratory, using equipment they’ve never experiences before. We took part in an introductory DNA electrophoresis session in which we detected whether or not we were genetically pre-disposed to be able to taste a certain chemical. We then later developed a PAG based loosely on the method used during this trip (adapted due to lack of equipment), so this got them really excited for when we did it in school. It also gave them the opportunity to see what the uni is like on a day-to-day basis, prompting some to apply here. We also took part in a feeder school science programme in which we worked as classroom assistants at Barlow CofE Primary School, helping with the teaching of electrical circuits for 4 weeks; I then returned here to help with an acids and alkalis crash course in which we made baking soda volcanoes and learned about dangerous household chemicals. I also visited William Levick Primary to teach the year 6s about polymers, in which we discussed plastic pollution and created borax bouncy balls. Perhaps the most inspiring part of my placement was seeing the results our y12 intervention students managed to attain, some progressed all the way from Us to Bs, and we can only hope they remain as motivated in y13. 1 minute 16 seconds
- The financial struggles the education sector faces in the current climate really does show in departments like science. We often had to substitute equipment in methods as we didn’t have enough of or simply didn’t possess the equipment necessary. We often had to adjust to time constraints – working around the timetables of both staff and students to arrange intervention sessions whilst also allowing time for lab equipment preparation and setup. We each had 2 y12 and 2 y13 classes, and they were all at different parts of the curriculum at different times. Perhaps the hardest part was the microbiology PAGs where we had to make up around 60 agar plates per session, whilst also ensuring that enough equipment was sterilised and enough bacterial culture made up to provide for the number of students in each class, whilst also carrying on with our allocated class slots uninterrupted Lots of underconfident students wanted our help – trying to balance tutor session planning alongside testing, prepping and carrying out of practicals was challenging at times, but a lot of the time the students only needed gentle encouragement, they actually had the knowledge, just not the confidence to apply it And as aforementioned, I ended up working over 65 hours per week, so I had to be careful not to work myself into the ground. Keeping the balance between work and social life even was a struggle. 1 minute 17 seconds
- My work as a lab tech allowed me to remain competent in the skills I obtained in first and second year labs Molarity calculations were commonplace, especially when working in the chemistry prep room, so my grasp of the mathematics required to create solutions was often necessary When marking students’ lab books I often had to go through entire manual statistics calculations to discover at which point a mistake was made, allowing me to practice my own skills (something I am now used to relying on a computer system to calculate for me) Hopefully my continual practice in these things will make my final year project easier to adjust to 36 seconds
- Prior to embarking on my placement I was 60:40 between pursuing a career in medicine or education. Every woman in my family has worked in education, so I wanted to explore this possibility myself before ruling it out. After this year I have made my decision about postgrad, I am now in the process of applying for a post graduate diploma (PgD) in Physician Associate Studies, with the hope of starting this course at SHU in January 2020. As stated throughout this presentation, this year has massively improved my confidence, and I will always be grateful for that – my future as a PA will rely on this heavily BUT Remember not to work too hard. Make sure you are financially able to support yourself, be supported by family, or by finance available from the university before deciding whether or not to do an unpaid placement I was lucky to be in a very supportive environment at DHFS, so they understood that I would be tired some days, but in different circumstances I may not have been able to enjoy my placement because I would have been too exhausted Make the most of the time you have whilst you’re there, if you do, you’ll find that it makes light work of PSP3 in final year. Final year is stressful enough as it is, any opportunity you have to make it easier for yourself, take advantage of it, it will pay off. Students who have done a placement are likely to do up to 10% better than other students in their final year, so this could just be the difference between degree classifications, but you have to work hard! 1 minute 32 seconds