8th, September. 2022
Prior to the lesson, I noticed that the classroom was very old and dated and that there was only one chalkboard. There was no computer or projector to facilitate learning which made the classroom very stale and bland. While being very free from distractions the classroom did not seem very conducive to learning.
In order to establish the objective of the class, which was to provide students with information that could help improve their English studies, the teacher presented them with copies of his book.
The teacher met his objectives by encouraging students to pursue English learning after high school. This was done by engaging the student with supplied questions on the importance of English and its uses.
The teacher did not use many techniques to gauge engagement. The only engagement from the class was from a handful of volunteers throughout the class.
The lesson consisted mostly of listening and reading skills. Some speaking skills were used but only by a select few participants.
Student response was hard to gauge due to the fact that most of the work was reading and the group work that was done was done very quietly. The class did respond to some of the guest teacher’s jokes but throughout the tasks, very little student-to-student communication could be heard.
The atmosphere seemed awkward and boring. While students completed the required tasks, only a few students would volunteer to answer the guest instructor’s questions while most of the class waited quietly for the class to end.
Student engagement was fairly low as only a few students volunteered or participated in the discussion while most of the class sat in silence.
While some material may be enjoyable for students there may be some lectures that may not grab many students’ attention and to not take it to heart but it is important to learn from it and use that to improve it for next time. This lesson included some more challenging material for high school students as the guest was from a university and students may have other concerns rather than an info dump that won’t be on their exams.
I believe that a couple of tasks that include a competitive aspect could help improve student motivation to participate. Since there is a lot of reading, instead of students reading by themselves I would ask students to read out loud. When answering the questions in groups I would ask students what they wrote and if others had thought of the same thing. This may be a simple enough task for this level but may also give a chance for further discussion.