Floriana Torelli
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PROFESSIONAL ENGAGEMENT

Engage in professional learning

6.1 Identify and plan professional learning needs
6.2 Engage in professional learning and improve practice
6.3 Engage with colleagues and improve practice
6.4 Apply professional learning and improve student learning


    I believes self-reflection is fundamental to learning, for teachers as well as for students. I set professional goals that are personally challenging at the beginning of the year, and I use opportunities to reflect on my progress with the subject coordinator and my colleagues. The feedback I receive helps me to identify strengths and weaknesses in my teaching style, but also to develop confidence and my own teaching persona. New professional learning opportunities are always welcome.
    Language teachers are often isolated in the school community, however I try to observe my colleagues with their classes whenever the opportunity arises. I believe that best practice can be transferred across languages, therefore I try to observe Japanese and English classes.
    I engage in collegial discussions with colleagues, learning support staff and admin staff who know the students and the class social dynamics, and who can suggest improvements specific to that particular class and/or student.
   My formal professional development is recorded online through the Queensland College of Teachers website, and I regularly update PD sessions and reflections.
    I am aware of the importance of career-long professional learning to enhance student achievement. Teaching methods and technologies, as well as the curriculum, are continuously evolving and I am committed to remain up to date. The section Great Teaching Ideas of the AITSL website is a great source of inspiration, as well as the Teachers' TV Australia, Edutopia and the TED-Ed Lessons Worth Sharing, and they are part of my informal PD.
Great Teaching Ideas
Teachers' TV Australia
Edutopia
TED-Ed

Engage professionally with colleagues, parents/carers and the community

7.1 Meet professional ethics and responsibilities
7.2 Comply with legislative, administrative and organisational requirements
7.3 Engage with the parents/carers
7.4 Engage with professional teaching networks and broader communities


    Meeting codes of ethics and conduct established by regulatory authorities, systems and schools is crucial for teachers. One of the first documents we were provided with, as part of the teacher training at JCU, was the Code of Ethics for teachers in Queensland (Queensland College of Teachers, 2008). According to this document, members of the teaching profession must demonstrate integrity, dignity, responsibility, respect, justice and care. I am committed to upholding those values inside and outside the classroom. The Staff Handbook, with the school rules and policies, is also a very important document to ensure I comply with the relevant administrative, organisational and legislative requirements, policies and processes. 
    As a professional, I advocate the importance of belonging to a teaching network and to the broader community; for this reason, I am an active member of the Modern Language Teachers’ Association of Queensland (MLTAQ).  The MLTAQ allows me to be part of a community of teachers and share ideas and resources, and to be up-to-date with the implementation of the national curriculum for languages. The MLTAQ also organises professional development opportunities for language teachers, as well as speaking and writing competitions for students. We cooperate with foreign governments and local cultural associations, such the Dante Alighieri Society, to keep the study of languages interesting and linked to the global learning community. I am also a registered member of the CO.AS.IT., an Italian Association of Assistance organised by the Italian Government in partnership with the Italian Language Centre (ILC) in Brisbane. These associations often organise competitions for Italian learners, and I always encourage my students to take part in these free events.
    I appreciate the importance of creating and maintaining positive relationships with parents/carers and the need to work together with the students’ wellbeing in mind. I include parents/carers in class communications about classwork and assessment requirements, to keep them informed on my program and eventual adjustments. I contact parents/carers in regards to the students’ progress, dispositions to learning and behaviour, focusing on strengths and positive features. I also like to use OneSchool to report positive behaviour rather than issues.

QCT
qct_code_of_ethics.pdf
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File Type: pdf
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alignment_between_qct_and_aitsl_standards.pdf
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Click on the interactive button to go to the Queensland College of Teachers website, or click on the icons to download the alignment between the QCT standards and the AITSL standards.

Cairns State High School
Click on the button to go to the Cairns State High School rules and policies webpage.

MLTAQ
Click to go to the Modern Language 
Teacher Association, Peninsula Branch website
Click the button to go to the Dante Alighieri Society Cairns, a local Italian association that promotes the Italian culture and language in the Cairns region
Dante Alighieri Society
Click to go to the Italian Language Centre resources for school webpage 
ILC

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