Nazia Afzal
Homeroom teacher. Then subject coordinator.
Growing from homeroom teacher into subject coordinator.
- Now
- Subject coordinator
- Before
- Homeroom teacher at the same school
- Programme
- PgCTL, in progress when she recorded this
- Next
- Aims for a leadership role three years down the line
She joined her school as a homeroom teacher, teaching without ever having learned what reflection really meant or how to level an objective. PgCTL taught her to observe her own lessons and set objectives by Bloom's taxonomy, and within months she was given a subject coordinator role.
What reflection came to mean.
Nazia Afzal was still working through PgCTL when she recorded her account, and the first impact she names is on herself. Reflection, as she now describes it, is “a process of self-observation”. “I am able to evaluate my strengths and weaknesses and identify my areas of development,” she says. What she finds goes into her next plan as better strategies, which she says makes her classes more effective for her students. In the video she shows her reflection on a lesson she had recently taught.
During the programme she also learnt about Bloom’s Taxonomy. She describes it as “an engaging and measuring tool for students’ progress”, and says she has set “specific levelled learning objectives” using its action-oriented verbs.
Plans that earned praise.
The second impact was on her career. She joined her school as a homeroom teacher, and the subject coordinator role came within months. It was a post, she says, “where I could create customised lesson plans, engaging activities and implement various strategies”, and she says those plans and new strategies have been praised. A student in the video says they enjoy her classes. A parent singles out her questioning techniques, saying they help their child to understand and think about a topic.
I have grown so much professionally and gained confidence by learning the pedagogy of teaching.
Time for her own children.
Nazia calls her working life hectic, and says her skills let her stay confident in it and keep a balance at home. “I am able to give ample time to my own children with their learning and spend quality time,” she says, listing outings, games and indoor movies with popcorn. She is looking further ahead too: “I am eager to learn and grow to see myself in a leadership role three years down the line.”
