I have to do what???

Accreditation.

Is its completion really a wicked festering monster in the true sense of the word or just one of those make-believe childhood fantasies hiding under the bed brought to life via vivid imagination and a whole lotta fear?

For me, it has been a little bit of both. We all know that sometimes the thinking is often worse than the actual doing, and whilst I've tried to stave off the thoughts of 'am I doing this right?' it has been a little bit of a hill (not a mountain) to climb.

I'm almost done. I already have some of those retrospective powers goin' on about what processes have worked and what haven't. I've both loved and hated the process yet the hate only comes from the fear and the frustration of and with the process. The love for me has been about the wow factor when annotating my evidence - 'yea, i've done some awesome things in my teaching', 'hey, that lesson was great', and 'gee that kid kicked goals in that unit'.

Tips:

Give yourself some time. Doing this process last minute would possibly remove some of the drawn out indecisiveness as to which element each piece of evidence covers however I wouldn't be able to deal with the panic of having to get it in within a very short timeframe. I've set myself a goal to get it done by the end of these holidays and heck, I'm almost done with a whole week and a half up my sleeve.

Get yourself a mentor. Make sure there is one in the school. Make sure this person knows the process. Our school has had a couple of mentors yet there is no one at the moment which is not a great situation. My head teacher has been great for observations and guidance but I really think a person assigned as a new scheme teacher mentor is essential. Luckily my school brought in a couple of teacher mentors from another school for a one-day workshop which clarified every detail. I am also able to send my evidence and annotations to them for checking. I did however tell my principal and DP that whilst it was an excelled session, what is needed is a similar session with head teachers, etc to ensure the new schemers have the support needed.

Read-up. There is a whole lot to read - other teachers who have walked the road to accreditation will be more than happy to hand over their examples. There is the standards themselves to get to know, there is information from the Institute and the Federation. I read all I could, wrote my annotations, re-read, then edited. Don't forget to read info on the quality teaching model...

Incorporate the Quality Teaching Model into your annotations. How do the Quality Teaching dimensions and element inform and help you develop your teaching? The DET's document 'Quality Teaching to support the NSW Professional Teaching Standards - Part A: Linking the NSW Professional Teaching Standards and the NSW Quality Teaching Model' has been an excellent document to assist me in writing my annotations.

Ask questions. Any questions. I was a little embarrassed at our workshop because I had so many of those niggly little questions, yet I was so glad I asked them.

Be a nerd and share your knowledge with other new-schemers. Where are you at? What element are you on? What evidence have you got? What fabulous documents have you found to help the process? Talk about it and share it with others - it will help them and you.

Sell yourself. Use buzzwords such as 'engaged', 'effective', 'successful', 'implemented' and 'I have shown/I have demonstrated'. Remember, the evidence has been chosen because it is evidence of how you ensure quality student learning in the classroom. There is really not a lot of room for understatement here.

Follow the rules. Don't submit originals, submit only that which can fit in an A4 sleeve, sign in the right spot, etc. I sure as hell don't want mine sent back for a silly error!

So why am I posting these suggestions when I haven't even submitted the document? I am no expert and there is every chance my work could be sent back. As I write this post, I continue to edit. I've almost finished that last element. The blog is acting as a means for me to make sure I address what I need to address and why.

I also seek feedback from others who have completed the process, and will add or amend my content of this post accordingly. Can you contribute to this discussion to assist others in their accreditation?