Teaching context
What is the details of the teaching context?
Fill out at the beginning of teaching a new student cohort and update if necessary
Course description
| Subject area | Fashion Portfolio Preparation for 16-18 year olds |
| Length of course | 4 days |
| Session no of complete sessions | 1 / 4 |
| Institution | UAL |
| Online, present of hybrid teaching | Online course |
| Platforms used | Collaborate, Padlet |
| Date | 20/12/21 |
Student cohort
| Number of students | 17 |
| Age group | 16-18 years |
| Pre-knowledge | |
| Diversity of the group i.e. ethnicity, language, neurodiversity, gender, level of education | International students, probably mixed experiences and confidences, various English levels Mostly beginner level in fashion design and portfolio work |
| Special needs of students | Various levels of English language skills Variety in learning types Neuro diversity expected |
Students’ needs, visions, motivations
| Motivations What are the motivations of the students on this course? What do they want to get out of it? | Gain support and knowledge around their application to FE / HE courses Creative input and learn about approaches |
| Investment What do they have at stake? | First step to pursue their ‘dream’ Vulnerable step with the risk of being rejected in the application process |
| Comfort zone What are the students’ comfort zones in average? Have the majority of students leant out of their comfort zones previously? | For most students the pursue of the wish to apply to UAL or a fashion design course is already a step out of their comfort zones. At some point during the course most students will be in the panic / uncomfortable zone. Important is that they are not leaving the session when being in that space. |
| Trust How far do the students trust the course content or process in advance? What do they need? Do they have a strong need to built trust? | As the course is run by UAL/CSM and most students are likely to apply to CSM courses, the ‘trust’ is more present as they know of the CSM reputation. |
| Direction Do they have a more or less clear sense of direction prior to the beginning of the course or beyond the course? | Most of the students are likely to have a sense of direction, i.e. apply to a fashion FE/HE course as the content of the course is tailored to this next step. |
| Willingness to take risks Are the students willing to take risks | Some students are more comfortable to take risks in venturing out into an unknown creative process that others. |
Teacher’s Agenda and Motivations
| What are my motivations to teach this course? | Testing the compassionate cornerstonesLearning more on compassionate teaching and engagement with studentsEarning moneySupporting young people on their path More unconscious motivations For the students to have a positive learning experience, comes from own traumatic school experiencecreate a rapport with students |
| What do I need from the students? | Students’ engagement in the courseSome visually interesting outcomeThat they complete the creative process, some of which coherently and aesthetically pleasing. So their peers have a ‘successful’ example.I need the students to engage in the course in a positive and constructive way. More unconsciously I need the majority of students to enjoy the course and learn new toolsI need to be liked by most of the students |
| What other agendas or intentions do I have in relation to the sessions? | I need to feel in control of the sessionsI want to create a positive experience for myself |
Teacher’s comfort zone
| Familiarity of subject area | Very familiar |
| Familiarity of ‘hard wear’ (institution, space) | Very familiar |
| Familiarity of ‘soft wear’ (student cohort, language, teaching context) | Very familiar |
| Familiarity of tech, platforms, apps | Very familiar |
| Other |
Students’ comfort zone
Depending on what is known of the student cohort estimate to your ability and adjust when more insight is gained. There will be a spectrum of students’ abilities to lean out of their comfort zones. Give options to students
| What is the estimated pre-existing experience of the students to lean out of their comfort zones (home, country, language…)? | Most students are likely to be in the physical comfort of their rooms/homes Some students might not be very confident with speaking and listening to English Some students might not be familiar with the online platforms used in the course Most students are likely to be new to the creative process (course content) |
| Are the students familiar with the curriculum / session content? | Quite likely not |
| Are the students familiar with self-directed learning? | Some might be, some might not be |
| Are the students physically in their comfort zones during the course? i.e. online, in person, in a different city/country… | Most likely |
| Do the students have a motivation to lean out of their comfort zone? | Yes, most students know that the good and creative fashion courses are highly competitive to get accepted. Most of the students know that they will need to lean out of their comfort zone to put together a ‘successful’ portfolio. |
| What do the students need in order to feel safe or find back to safety? | It is likely that the students need to build the trust into the unfamiliar creative process where the outcome might not look like something they are familiar with. The possibility to do self-care The possibility to ask questions during and at the end of the sessions 1-1 Clarity and transparency of the process Reoccurring ‘rituals’ in the course structure |
Media and Tech supporting the Course
| Is the tech of the course user-friendly for diverse students? (ability, internet bandwidth, language skills) | Collaborate takes a lot of bandwidth. This might be a difficulty for participants with weaker internet connection. Padlet is very user friendly, to upload content and to engage with |
| What is the students’ access to tech? i.e. computers, internet, printer … | Computer yes Printer uncertain Internet connection was for most students reliable, for 2-3 students (incl. myself) it sometimes dropped. |
| How easy is it to communicate between the students and teacher? Are the channels accessible and user-friendly to all? | There is no direct communication between tutor and students. This hinders the exchange of confidential information or answering questions |
| Is a mix of media used, physical and digital? | Yes, there is a mix of digital and physical work. The two media are linked on Padlet, which makes the complete work visible. |
| How easy is it to communicate to the students? | During the sessions it is easy as there is the verbal, chat and visual interaction to their work on Padlet. Between the sessions, the students can write questions and comments on the course Padlet page |
Reflection on the daily teaching
Fill out before and after each session. Add columns if necessary.
Self-compassion
What do you do for self-compassion?
| Pre | During | After | |
| Be kind to yourself | I have been going on high speed this morning, feeling like on an internal run | Able to take breaks incl. food and drinks | Kind self-talk Very busy schedule |
| Space and practise for self-care | Over the last weeks I made some time for compassionate meditation, not today. Generally, it is an intense time for me | Check in | Created a full schedule for myself, was not able to practice self-care |
| How are you feeling? PIES check in | Physically: full and slightly sleepy Intellectually: Stimulated and curious, yet slightly distant from the enquiry Emotionally: nervous Spiritually: calm | Physically: well, wanting to move Intellectually: stimulated Emotionally: excited Spiritually: trusting | |
| Was there something that pre-occupied my mind? | Would have had slightly more time today before the course, yet trusting that I am well prepared. Other ‘to-do’s and important stuff on my mind | The thought that the intro might be too long If I am going in the right order, also trusting the prep and the slides | |
| What external support is there for you? | Session with a therapist Exchange and reflection with a friend | Slides of course prep, previously prepared | Session with a therapist Exchange and reflection with a friend |
| Progress rather than perfection | I trust that the preparation that I have done is enough and I see it more as an experiment no perfection possible or needed | Slight changes during the session Able to laugh about own mistakes during the session | Kind self-talk |
| What do you need for next session? | Go through slides again | Update Padlet with independent tasks and screen shots from session Inform students on Wednesday session change | |
| Were you able to organise your support from previous session? | |||
| Other |
Activities and Structure
What structure and activities are set in place to nurture a kind teaching space?
| Pre | During | After | |
| Built in flexibility i.e. timelines, assessments | At times for the whole course, yes. Today’s session is tightly structured | ||
| Give students choices i.e. activities, topics | Today’s session has choice in their starting point they want to use for their project | ||
| Mix of synchronous and A-synchronous learning | The students are introduced to research and to continue in their own time. | Optional independent study tasks | |
| Did something unexpected occur through being present with the students? i.e. co-creation of session | Questions helped to clarify course content | ||
| Other | Observation: The frame building activities felt a bit long to me. |
Communication and Connection
What supports kind communication and connection to and between the students?
| Pre | During | After | |
| Inclusive language: pronoun, simple and relational | I paid attention in the hand outs, briefs and all the other com to use as inclusive and accessible language | At the beginning showing the students to be seen with their preferred name and pronoun | |
| Encourage dialogue between students | There are built in exercises / space for conversation | Ice breaker exercise Questions to discuss in pairs/teams Brainstorm exercise in pairs | |
| Check ins and outs | Built in | Introduction of tools to make it more accessible Green, orange, red for comfort zone check ins/outs Internal weather as check in tools | Check out at the end so the students are not leaving the session in the ‘red zone’ |
| Model empathy, example of students, myself | Share about my own experience of setbacks and successes Sharing including my emotions in the check in Sharing about my dyslexia and challenges During a session a student asked to share more of my experience to support them in their learning experience | ||
| Make deliberate connection, value vulnerability and openness | Referring to students name or their experiences that they shared Addressing students by their name | ||
| Non-verbal communication amongst the group | Hard as most of the students had their camera off | ||
| Other |
Review and Feedback
What supports kind evaluation of the students’ work?
| Pre | During | After | |
| ‘Practise makes Progress’ ethics | Feedback that I am giving to the keywords for their research is very supportive and framing it positively | ||
| Co-creation of constructive feedback questions | Part of course structure at the end | ||
| Encourage feedback between students | Built in exercises for peer to peer reflection | ||
| Other |
Other Areas
What else do you do to nurture a kind learning environment?
| Pre | During | After | |
| Be trauma informed Name the larger context | As clear as possible communication on the course structure, verbally, written and visually | ||
| Other | |||
Intention and actions gap
What was my intentions for the session?
What were my actions?
Was there a discrepancy?
If so, what created the discrepancy between the two?
| My intentions were to build a clear and supportive container for the course, to create a positive course experience for the students, for the students to be motivated to do further independent work after the session, to communicate clearly and to be open towards the students and kind in my teaching practice. My actions: Through the very thoroughly prepared course and slides I was able to trust the preparation, which helped me to be relaxed and present with the students and hold a kind learning space. The discrepancy: Through the thorough preparation and being in my comfort zone during this course I was not aware of a theory-action gap today. |
Overall Reflection
What was your overall reflection of the course in retrospect?
Follow up
What do you want to take into next session?
| Upload course and independent work info Communicate that I am not able to teach the 3rd day of the course to the students tomorrow |