Reflective Summary

 During my teaching practicum, I was amazed at the fact that even though I had an exact lesson plan, things did not go as planned.However,  I EXPECTED THE UNEXPECTED . 

  Even though I had planned my materials, teaching methods , and pace to suit Cambridge grade 8 students , I had to slow down the pace and add some basic supporting teaching materials to the lesson ,  given that some students were not yet up to the Cambridge grade 8 English standard.

 To begin with, I had not allocated time to receive student feedback, hence I had to alter that in my upcoming lessons. Implementing this strategy alone, significantly impacted my teaching. I was able to develop an effective and healthy two-way communication with the students. Gradually I was able to comprehend the teaching methodologies that resonated with my students. Yet , this took its own time. Eventually , more students began to give more and more feedback which I believe takes time as it is a matter of developing a bond and trust with the teacher. I began to google for ways to make my teaching interesting . 

Gradually ,  I was surprised that I was getting well with the students more than I had anticipated. One of the most valuable  insight that I gained from this demo is that as a teacher expect the unexpected.  Our Lessons would take turns that we never imagined. I also understood that I can not  straight away start my lesson since it was crucial to take my students along with me .As I began to implement the lead in I would see the interest of the students shown to the lesson-raising.

 

 The chosen strategy of eliciting was used  in the lead-in, in addition to the above benefits it also aided me to smoothly transition into the next stage of the lesson. Furthermore, I used the technique of visualisation.  For instance, I used props such as a neatly covered exercise book, and a smartphone, which the students found rather inquisitive. It was used to make the learning of the concept more memorable and create more connections between objects and vocabulary words.

The main insight I gained from the class is that as a teacher I  might need to alter the way I teach depending on the response of the students. Sometimes we have to either simplify it further or sometimes we can move into more complex concepts easily. It all depends on the response of the student however one of the main criteria I need to improve is to be more confident in front of the classroom because when the teacher is not confident it shows in the tone and the body language. So this was something that I believe I need to improve which is to build my confidence through more practice.  However, one aspect I believe I demonstrated confidences with is when I used handmade posters to present my ideas I did not rely too much on them. But anyway, I have to develop other aspects of teaching through practice as I believe knowing the theory alone is insufficient without the application.

Another  major learning point for me was to understand the ways I could minimize distraction. For instance, like sitting in a strategic position away from distractions. Also , to keep my materials and notes organized to avoid searching for during class time. 

Another challenge I had to face was that a few students were consistently disrupting my class by talking during the class.  I started to appreciate the students who were attentive and respectful . On the other hand, I had to be proactive and address the issue early on and communicate the significance of a focused learning environment .

I had to learn about effective strategies for quieting the classroom . For instance , some attention grabbing activities like tapping  the board , clapping , were quite useful.