Something I have noticed is that English can be
used for so many things. An example of this would be teaching culture
awareness. It is interesting how we can teach it in so many ways. An example of
this can be about typical food, how it is prepared, why it is made in the
country and overall about it, in other words the history background on it. Teaching[RR2] this to our ESOL students is
awesome, but also having the two options on frameworks: ECRIF or PDP; makes it even easier
for both students and us since it is scaffolded and the objective can be met in
one’s class.
FOWSAK is one of the elements I will start
using in my lesson plans due to the fact that it helps me to understand more my
students and their language learning background so that way I will be even more
effective in my teaching.
C.C.Q
is a technique that I am definitely going to be using in my classes .
Why you say? Well, it will help me to be more aware of how my students are doing
during my classes. Using C.C.Qs help you to know if students have comprehended
the instructions you have just given them. Knowing if they have understood,
that’s your cue to carry on to the activity or stage of your lesson plan[RR3].
Gist is so important to use in your
class. It helps students to get ready for either the reading or listening
lesson plan that one has prepared. It
gives them an idea of what the next activity will be about and that way it will
be more effective or even easier for them to get the comprehension check done[RR4].
Learning-Centered
language Teaching: Something
I have noticed during the past two weeks, is the importance of having a
connection with your students from class. Why you might ask? Well, because if
you have the appropriate connection with your learners, it will make things
easier to teach them since they trust you, and overall, they feel more
comfortable with you in your class. Once you get these aspects going on, you
are for sure, ready to roll and your students to participate in your class[RR5].
Setting the right classroom environment is fundamental
as well as essential since it can either help our student’s learning process or
definitely hinder them. Knowing what your students like when it comes to music,
hobbies etc.; makes you more aware of how you have to approach them in terms of
starting the class. Of course there are several of these historical techniques
you can use. My favorite one would be Suggestopedia. It involves music, and environment
recreation on what you are currently teaching. It makes students get the real
feeling of the place or situation you want to convey to them[RR6].
Having previously mentioned both “humor and
classroom environment”, I can say that in the rancho class, I noticed how our
students enjoyed the classes. An example of this would be in Sabino’s class. He
was teaching grocery items you can buy in a supermarket or grocery. Before he
started the class, he had already recreated the classroom “rancho”. He called
it “Espiral Supermarket”. He had students stand outside and lined them up to
enter the supermarket. He gave them a tour inside and explained where each
section was. It was amazing how students got the idea really fast since Sabino
actually took the items and placed them around the classroom. Now that was a
great use of realia, plus he played special background music[RR7].
What I think about this is how it made us think
differently regarding when we plan our class. We must set the scene or
situation for our beloved students so they can get the overall idea fast and
effectively. Plus, I noticed that after that, Freddie used a similar process to
present his topic of “Kaps Place”, (a hotel). So in a way, in the peer
observation we get to see how things work along for our students and also their
reaction to each stage of the lesson plan[RR8].
What have I learnt
about myself as a learner?
Something I have realized is how much I have
learnt to unlearn in order for me to relearn more strategies so I can apply them
in my classes. I have seen that I am open-minded to new ideas. I am lucky to be
like that, since there are some of us teachers that we are not that happy to
accept new ideas from somebody else, and we just want to continue doing the
same things over and over again in our classes. The worst thing about this is
that we want to see a change in our students. However, as Albert Einstein said
once: “Insanity: doing the same thing
over and over again and expecting different results[RR9]”.
In addition to this, I realized how, much I
love what I do as a teacher, which is to serve our society. Being able to know
how to connect, learn from my students and how they learn, makes things easier
to share my knowledge and showing them the way to learn, and apply the language
in their lives, is just an awesome feeling and satisfaction.
A few important things I learnt from my peers,
for instance, the creativity of my fellow ESL teacher Vilma. The way she takes
her time to think on how to make students switch and work in pairs/teams;
either by colors, same hairstyle, etc.
Having seen this much creativity, makes me wonder, what have I been doing
in terms of T.P.S all this time? So I will definitely take most of her ideas
and give them my own personal style in my class. I also learnt from her on how
to keep focused during my lesson planning. I appreciate her tips on how to do
so, they have worked perfectly well[RR10].
Something I enjoyed very much in terms of frameworks
was the “PDP”. It gave us a different aspect on how to take each stage of a
lesson plan more effectively and meaningful for students. Either for reading or
listening, it works perfectly. The part I love the most is the 3rd
task in the During section. It is the main objective one has to achieve under
this framework and also kind of complicated at times if you are not well
prepared for it. I learnt from this
experience that one must learn how to challenge our students, so the 3rd
activity won’t seem too easy.
When it comes to my strengths I would say that
in my personal case it is the way I can connect somehow with people, I mean, it
is not that I am an expert, but I do have my way to do so. In class, since I
enjoy it, I love making my students laugh and have fun so their learning can be
more meaningful and fun for them. One[RR11] of the challenges I currently have
is to be even more creative in my classroom activities. In addition to this, I
would say that I must include many more extra activities under my sleeves so
just in case my students are ready for some more, I will be fully prepared for
it.
Regarding myself as a teacher, I would say I am
24/7 on the learning mode on. I am the kind of person who is always willing to
learn as much as possible, no matter the age[RR12].
As I said before, connecting the dots is very
important, but knowing how to do so is even more important. Being mature enough
to accept our daily feedback, in order to improve teaching methods requires
professional growth. I have learnt on how to expand that even more than what I
had. Knowing what really goes on in our
class based on our peers observations makes us wonder on how to overcome those
puzzles during the planning. I also,
take into account everything I learn in the workshops to make my classes much
more entertaining. In conclusion, I learn awesome elements in the workshops, I
add it in my lesson plan, I get feedback, and then I reflect on my teaching and
think of ways to improve them so my learners can get achieve their goals in life[RR13].
“Expect the unexpected”
DESCRIPTION
I had a specific
moment in my first PDP lesson. Students were clarifying the new supportive
language that was going to be used throughout the lesson. I had written on the
board the topic “Healthy Food”. Students had an idea on what the class was
about. They were actually working in their teams showing the pictures with the
written words. I had thought everything was going just perfectly, when all of
the sudden Eylin asked me: “Teacher, what are blueberries?” And obviously, as a
teacher I was going to answer her immediately. However, I noticed that I had
not done enough research regarding if blueberries had another definition in
Costa Rica. So in that moment my mind
went blank. So what I did was ask “Does anybody know the meaning in Spanish of
blueberries?” One student answered and Eylin apparently did not listened to him
because she was writing down the examples from the board. I had to ask again so students could explain
it to her. I noticed that she still had doubts since the flashcards were not in
color but she went on with the activity. At the end of the pre stage, I had one
of her classmates explain to her the meaning. She finally got it and understood
better the following activities[RR14].
|
INTERPRETATION
|
GENERALIZATION
|
PLAN ACTION
|
|
Not having done enough research on how people call blueberries in
Costa Rica might have hindered student’s learning because I lost the opportunity
to explain it in a more meaningful way to her by using Costa Rican’s version
of blueberries.
|
I believe that it is important to find out if there are other ways of
calling the supportive language to be presented to the class.
|
In the future I will always check according to my students’ background
& country the supportive language to be presented, and be prepared to
explain the meaning in their own country.
|
|
She might have been hindered by not having a colorful picture of the
word blueberries.
|
I believe that it is important for one to carry around in class back up cards to explain better the
supportive language.
|
I will carry around a back up set of flashcards to make the supportive
more understandable for students.
|
|
I would say that something that helped Eylin was the fact that we had
the topic on the board and she knew that what we were talking about was food.
|
Students feel more comfortable knowing what the topic of the class is about
and start relating the supportive language to the topic.
|
So in the future I will keep using writing the topic on the board as
well as the supportive language.
|
|
It’s important to have students teach each other in the class. Make it
more interactive.
|
Based on what I learned I will always have my students help each other
so they become a closer family in terms of the class.
|
As a
conclusion, I have learnt to see myself as a professional teacher trainer, but
I know that the road for that is a bit long for now. However, I am very
motivated in taking my first steps for the master’s degree. In each workshop, I
am eager to learn and practice the strategies in my class. What has changed in
me has been getting out of my comfort zone.
I have taken both frameworks: ECRIF/PDP to a whole new level!!!! This course has really given me a new way of
seeing life and my ESOL teaching career. Thanks[RR16]!!!!!!
Elvis,
It has been a pleasure reading and commenting on your
extended reflection for this last week. It was really nice for me to learn more
about you, your most important learnings from this week, and what some of your
thoughts are in terms of moving into the last week of the course.
As I was reading your essay, I was excited seeing how
you have enjoyed the course and the processes and cycles we go through. It’s
great to see that you hae become aware of how you learn and what had been
helpful for you as a learner and as a teacher. I also enjoyed reading about how
creating connections with your students has been essential.
In terms of your DAPA task, you did an excellent job
choosing moments that were relevant and meaningful to you. Your DAPA had lots
of helpful details that described the small slice you chose. All of your
interpretations, generalizations and action plans in your analysis section
connected directly and successfully with each other.
Once again, thank you for all your hard work, passion
and dedication for learning and teaching.
Your paper has met the requirements and is a pass! If
you have questions, let me know.
With
gratitude,
RogerJ
[RR1]You made me laugh with this title! I
hope you has as much fun as the picture illustrates. I am sure you did
actually! J
[RR2]Yes! I love this part of the course
and am curious about what you migh decide to teach this week in terms of
culture. Have fun with it no matter what you choose. It’s time to enjoy the
last week of the course!
[RR3]I appreciate how you not only
mention CCQs are soemthing important that you learned, but also why you think
it’s important. Thank you for the deeper insight here.
[RR4]I also think that listening for the
gist helps students develop a needed skill in life. Sometimes we don’t have
time or we simply only want the gist of something we are reading and listening
to before we choose to go in more detail or not. It’s a skill we all need in any
language.
[RR5]“Connect before you direct” says Raj
Gil. Absolutely! It’s these connections that help create a safer and more
trustworthy learning environment in the classroom.
[RR6]I agree with you. The bette we know
our students, the better we’ll be able to serve their learning needs. Have you
noticed this with your students over the past 3 weeks? What might be an example
of this that you have experienced this week?
[RR7]I remember this moment. It was also
a great example of the use of realia and setting the enregy of the classroom in
a way that welcomes students to something different and new.
[RR8]Did you do something like this in
your own classroom? I would love to hear about an example from your class.
[RR9]I love this quote! Let’s not be
insane and reflect in order to improve ourselves and the opportunities for
learning that we might provide for ourselves and of course our students.
[RR10]These are all great things and
attributes you have shared about Vilma. It’s sweet to see that you are
acknowledging her in such a positive way. I am sure she would love to hear
about this from you. Please do share what you have shared with us with your
peers! J
[RR11]I agree with what you are saying
here Elvis and would to hear more about it. What might be 1-2 things that you
do more specifically to help create these connections with your students? Becoming
aware of what and how you do things will help you share with others.
[RR12]I have noticed this! This is a great
attribute to have - a never0ending deaire to learn and share with others.
[RR13]I’m glad to hear that you have
enjoyed the process and cylce we follow on the course of workshops, planing,
teaching, and reflecting. It has been a pleasure learning with you over the
past fe weeks. Please enjoy and savor the last week to come. J
[RR14]Excellent job choosing a
moment/slice from this week Elvis that really introduced a small period of time
of something that was relevant to you and your students. I really appreciate
the specific details of what your students said and did during this moment.
[RR15]Elvis, you have job an excellent job
this week with your DAPA reflection. You have successfully written
interpretations based on the description of your moment. Your generalizations
are clear statements of theory you have come to based on your interpretations and
your action plans are specific and measurable. I don’t have much more to say
here, except bravo! J
[RR16]Thank you Elvis! It hass been a
pleaure having you with us and we hope to see you soon again. And please do
pursue that master’s degree. I am sure it will be a great step torwards
reaching your goals.
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