Practising Teacher Criteria #1

Establish and maintain effective professional relationships focused on the learning and well-being of ākonga

Key Indicators:

engage in ethical, respectful, positive and collaborative professional relationships with:

• ākonga
• teaching colleagues, support staff and other professionals
• whānau and other carers of ākonga
• agencies, groups and individuals in the community

Reflective Question:

What do I do to establish effective working relationships with my ākonga, their whānau and my colleagues and others to support the learning of those I teach?

• I arrive at school early each morning allowing ample time to interact with students. I enjoy chatting with students about their weekends, asking questions and sharing what I have been doing. Doing this helps students to see that I am human and can be trusted therefore which has had flow on benefits in the classroom.
• I always talk to students in a calm respectful manner and provide a large amount of positive comments throughout the day linking in with the school values and positive behaviour for learning programme.
• I attend regular meetings and hold discussions with colleges in a positive and ethical manner surrounding student behaviour and learning. 
• I make it a aim to ring 3 parents a week to share something positive that has happened at school. Using the 'W.O.W' wall has been a great genuine means in which to generate dialogue with parents. 

Where to Next?

"Whānau are treated as partners in education, they are invited to make suggestions for teaching practice and offered suggestions as to how they can support learning"

• At present, when I communicate with parents and whanau, it is after something has happened (both good and bad). My next step is to try and make whanau feel like partners in the learning that we do in the classroom. As we have started using Seesaw to share learning with whanau this could be a good way to encourage parents to provide feedback on their child's learning through the comment function.