The teaching presentation was really thought-provoking.
I was amused with all the teaching techniques shown... and learned an awful lot!
Much of the things learnt is hard to write down, for they are things that are subtle and are concerned with the teacher's detailed gestures, emotions, and also full preparation and familiarity with the content.
What was learnt was the kind that you get influenced by, and hopefully be able to reflect it out yourself ... then absorbing it to re-innovate something of your own.
Sufficient preparation is important for a good teaching.
So I've asked our professor what we can do in the Winter Break to prepare for the teaching next semester.
Below are ideas on what to prepare for:
- Review all the lessons covered this semester, get familiar with the high school teaching content
- Do more research on grammar that are related to the content
- Can prepare ppt slides beforehand
(Below are things I think I could add to my list of preparation items)
- Listen and read the English magazines the students listen to, to better understand what they're exposed to
- If time permits, practice blackboard writing
- Write reflections regularly and proof read past writings
- Watch movies or related clips sometimes to be exposed to more lively English
2011年12月29日 星期四
2011年12月20日 星期二
12/20 Micro Teaching Senior High- Group 1
Today, Group 1 did an impressive job of micro teaching senior high.
Much technique was learnt from today's observation, including how we can make the introduction of vocabulary and reading more interactive and connected with the student's prior knowledge.
As usual, below are some precious tips learnt:
When teaching English it is important to let students feel connected to what is learnt; so that they will be motivated to learn on their own.
The colours and layout of PPT should be clear.
When introducing vocabulary, it is good to add some additional example sentences that are relevant to the students' experiences, however the example sentences on the text book are also good. But be sure that the additional relevant phrases or words the teacher adds to the vocabulary are only ones that are really important and commonly seen... don't add too many things, or else the teacher will spend too much time lecturing and talk too much.
When teaching writing, it is important to give clear instructions and then a model of the writing. Tell the students what to do, and show them how to do it (unless they are advanced students) to make sure they understand exactly what to do.
Much technique was learnt from today's observation, including how we can make the introduction of vocabulary and reading more interactive and connected with the student's prior knowledge.
As usual, below are some precious tips learnt:
When teaching English it is important to let students feel connected to what is learnt; so that they will be motivated to learn on their own.
The colours and layout of PPT should be clear.
When introducing vocabulary, it is good to add some additional example sentences that are relevant to the students' experiences, however the example sentences on the text book are also good. But be sure that the additional relevant phrases or words the teacher adds to the vocabulary are only ones that are really important and commonly seen... don't add too many things, or else the teacher will spend too much time lecturing and talk too much.
When teaching writing, it is important to give clear instructions and then a model of the writing. Tell the students what to do, and show them how to do it (unless they are advanced students) to make sure they understand exactly what to do.
2011年12月13日 星期二
12/13 Micro Teaching Junior High- Group 4
Today, it was our group 's turn to Mirco Teach.
It's always enriching to learn from your mistakes.
Here are some tips for better teaching:
It's suggested that teaching be taught in all English.
If necessary, Mandarin explanation can be added but the portion should be very very small, and avoid sentences that co-mix English and Mandarin lest the students get used the co-mixing of languages.
When introducing vocabulary, it is a good idea to ask students to make their own sentences, because this way they can connect the vocabulary with their daily experience. However, be sure to alter the sentence a bit when you ask the whole class to repeat so that the sentence will be suitable for all who repeats it. For example, when a particular student make the sentence of "My favourite singer is Jay", the teacher can change it to "My favourite singer is him" so that all students will not feel awkward when repeating it... for some may not like the singer that another has proposed.
When playing hammer games with the new vocabulary, the teacher should remind students to call out the vocabulary they hit in order to win... this way not only the meaning of the word but also the pronunciation of the word can be re-emphasized through this game.
When teaching English grammar to junior high school students, the teacher need not teach them the English name of the term but simply use the Chinese... or else it'll become a new vocabulary the students need to spend time to digest. The more time they waste on adjusting the name, the slower they'll get to actually understanding the grammar content. It is also a good idea to use Chinese to write instructions of the worksheets, this way students won't get stuck on understanding the instruction... and will get to the core of practice without wasting time figuring out something they will eventually know in the long run of education.
Teachers should be careful when making grammar charts, make sure the arrangements of sections and the content will not confuse the students.
One of my favourites is the tip about not using "correcting" exercises. I added some exercises about correcting grammar mistakes in my worksheet, it turned out that this would not be a good idea. TOEFL used to have such types of questions, but now they have eliminated that. This is because it is better to tell the students "what to do" instead of "what not to do", because students will get mixed up if you tell them what not to do. And I think this is a concept that is very reasonable and true. I remember when I was in high school, my geography teacher would teach us some common sayings about the geographic nature of different local places, and then sometimes they would tell us the mistakes some people make about the sayings. They told us the mistakes to remind us not to make the mistakes, but it just got me confused all the time and I kept forgetting which saying was true. I guess that's probably why it's better to just tell the students what to do.
Furthermore, I took a baseball class this semester, and the coach who is a professor teaching PE psychology graduate programs, taught us the best way to coach is to never tell the players "what not to do". Always tell them "what to do", because the brain reacts and tends to shift to the things it hears. "For example," he said, "if I tell you to not think about elephants right now. It's impossible for you to not think about it. If I didn't say it, you never would have thought about elephants. Now that I've warned you, you think about it even more." Another reason is, when playing baseball, the reactions are often done instantly, the brain will respond with the most emphasized information it received recently. For example, if you tell a player to not bat on high balls, you make the player's mind filled with the message of "high ball". When a high ball flies near he will automatically hit it because it was on his mind... by the time he realized he shouldn't have hit it, he would've been half way finished his swing of hitting. So, I guess the mental reason for just telling people what they ought to do is... it takes time for the mind to switch from the negative mode. The mind is a brilliant masterpiece that has a sharp focus on the things it is told, and when one speaks of negative things it is natural for the brain to automatically obey it... it takes extra effort and time for the brain to switch from the negative mode to the positive, not to mention how much time it takes for it to turn that switched mode into action. So, after some personal experience and lessons about PE psychology, it really makes sense to just tell students "what to do" and correct them only when they do wrong.
It's always enriching to learn from your mistakes.
Here are some tips for better teaching:
It's suggested that teaching be taught in all English.
If necessary, Mandarin explanation can be added but the portion should be very very small, and avoid sentences that co-mix English and Mandarin lest the students get used the co-mixing of languages.
When introducing vocabulary, it is a good idea to ask students to make their own sentences, because this way they can connect the vocabulary with their daily experience. However, be sure to alter the sentence a bit when you ask the whole class to repeat so that the sentence will be suitable for all who repeats it. For example, when a particular student make the sentence of "My favourite singer is Jay", the teacher can change it to "My favourite singer is him" so that all students will not feel awkward when repeating it... for some may not like the singer that another has proposed.
When playing hammer games with the new vocabulary, the teacher should remind students to call out the vocabulary they hit in order to win... this way not only the meaning of the word but also the pronunciation of the word can be re-emphasized through this game.
When teaching English grammar to junior high school students, the teacher need not teach them the English name of the term but simply use the Chinese... or else it'll become a new vocabulary the students need to spend time to digest. The more time they waste on adjusting the name, the slower they'll get to actually understanding the grammar content. It is also a good idea to use Chinese to write instructions of the worksheets, this way students won't get stuck on understanding the instruction... and will get to the core of practice without wasting time figuring out something they will eventually know in the long run of education.
Teachers should be careful when making grammar charts, make sure the arrangements of sections and the content will not confuse the students.
One of my favourites is the tip about not using "correcting" exercises. I added some exercises about correcting grammar mistakes in my worksheet, it turned out that this would not be a good idea. TOEFL used to have such types of questions, but now they have eliminated that. This is because it is better to tell the students "what to do" instead of "what not to do", because students will get mixed up if you tell them what not to do. And I think this is a concept that is very reasonable and true. I remember when I was in high school, my geography teacher would teach us some common sayings about the geographic nature of different local places, and then sometimes they would tell us the mistakes some people make about the sayings. They told us the mistakes to remind us not to make the mistakes, but it just got me confused all the time and I kept forgetting which saying was true. I guess that's probably why it's better to just tell the students what to do.
Furthermore, I took a baseball class this semester, and the coach who is a professor teaching PE psychology graduate programs, taught us the best way to coach is to never tell the players "what not to do". Always tell them "what to do", because the brain reacts and tends to shift to the things it hears. "For example," he said, "if I tell you to not think about elephants right now. It's impossible for you to not think about it. If I didn't say it, you never would have thought about elephants. Now that I've warned you, you think about it even more." Another reason is, when playing baseball, the reactions are often done instantly, the brain will respond with the most emphasized information it received recently. For example, if you tell a player to not bat on high balls, you make the player's mind filled with the message of "high ball". When a high ball flies near he will automatically hit it because it was on his mind... by the time he realized he shouldn't have hit it, he would've been half way finished his swing of hitting. So, I guess the mental reason for just telling people what they ought to do is... it takes time for the mind to switch from the negative mode. The mind is a brilliant masterpiece that has a sharp focus on the things it is told, and when one speaks of negative things it is natural for the brain to automatically obey it... it takes extra effort and time for the brain to switch from the negative mode to the positive, not to mention how much time it takes for it to turn that switched mode into action. So, after some personal experience and lessons about PE psychology, it really makes sense to just tell students "what to do" and correct them only when they do wrong.
2011年12月6日 星期二
12/6 Micro Teaching Junior High- Group 3
Today, group three presented a well devised teaching plan.
Much was learnt.
Much creative thoughts were applied.
One of the creative ideas were the use of Scaffold Reading.
Scaffold Reading method includes:
1. Scan: Ask students to circle words they don't know
2. Roughly read for a general idea
3. Teacher reads aloud (so students can connect the written words with spoken pronunciation)
4. Time students, and ask them to read as much as they can in limited time, see if their speed improved
This teaching method is an option teachers can consider when teaching reading, but of course there are other methods, and every method has its different purpose. Teachers should consider the many successful ones and blend them in teaching.
Comments and suggestions from teacher:
-教單字要字形(spelling)、字音(pronunciation)、字意(meaning)、字的使用(in context)都兼顧
-請學生造句後，叫全班再複誦ㄧ次，因為通常其他學生會分心，不知道學生造什麼句子
-要講解worksheet上的內容前，記得先把worksheet發下去
-叫學生分組討論時，確認每個人都有分到組別，若沒有直接分配
-可用“愛的小手“指vocabulary(if there are too many of them on board)
-使用的單字照片要清楚，如果用線條就可以表達單字內容，則用之，只是線要粗點
-做drilling時，可邀學生上台模仿老師的例句，ask student to rearrange the nouns and do a new drilling with the rest of the class... this way students can have the experience of choosing for one self
-make good use of different colours to separate different concepts
-instructions ought to be clear, tell students exactly what to listen or read for and write the instructions on board for students to see
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