Standard+6.3.6

=Actively utilise and maintain professional networks such as professional associations to access information that supports professional learning. =

Attending professional [|Conferences] enables me to access information to support my professional learning which also allows me to support colleagues.

Some of my most valuable professional development has been in my role as an [|HSC Bio Marker] and an [|ESSA Marker]. The detailed analysis of questions and discussion of what constitutes an accurate answer that one goes through while pilot marking was some of the most worthwhile professional learning I have experienced. It has changed the way I teach my students and the way I prepare them for their examinations. It has also changed some of my priorities in the types of assessment tasks I set as I try to provide my students with effective scaffolds on which they can build their answers.

My experience of ESSA marking has also enhanced the way in which I approach concept development in my students. I found the SOLO framework so clear and logical that one can quite easily see the level a student’s concept development has reached.

These marking teams have provided substantial amounts of information that has supported my professional learning.

As sited previously I am an active member of STANSW Council and this means that I not only attend conferences and often present at these conferences but I also participate in formal and informal professional discussions with other councilors and conference attendees. These conversations occur in person, via email and via the STANSW Ning.