THE REFLECTION OF

MY WORK AS A
TEACHER

TEACHING PRACTICE 1
No
Antonio
Coreas
Flores






June 15th, 2014
A reflection and Systematization of the Teaching Process.
This essay is focused on a reflection and systematization of my teaching
process. The elements that are going to be developed through this essay are the
followings:
Introduction.
Teaching Critical Reflection
Systematization of the Teaching Practice Process.
E-portfolio Approach including the new learning environment in
the ELT.
The use of technology in a place where there is no Tech in the
classroom.
Conclusion.
Introduction.
To start with the development of this essay, I have to say that being an
English teacher is not that easy as it looks like. The profession of a teacher is not for
those who just want or need something to do, because teachers are the ones who
mold students; teachers are needed in every society in order to keep moving
forward. The profession of the teacher has its origins since hundreds years ago,
due to no matter what you want to be in your professional life, you are going
taught by a teacher, teachers are everywhere, if you want to be a doctor, a lawyer,
a dentist, and so on, who is the person who is going to teach you and train you? Of
course, a teacher is going to be person in charge of teach you.
On this essay you will find information, analysis, and resources about the
elements that I have mentioned above. Something that I have noticed is that,
nowadays everybody is studying English due to English has become in one of the
most important languages all over the world, I mean is a need that people have in
order to have a better job, or just because they want to communicate with other
people.
Teaching Critical Reflection.
First of all, I want to say that I have reflected on what I have done, while I
was performing my social service at school, the thing was that I did not prepare
any class, what I used to was just go to school, and the teacher gave me topic, and I
explained to the students, and give them some examples. However, most of the
time, they did not understand anything about it. Sometimes, I got upset because I
used to explain them many times, but it was not their fault, it was mine, because I
did not prepare anything; that is the reason why they did not understand me. That
happened while I was doing my social service, I spent 4 months at school trying to
teach what I learned, but being a teacher is not easy. I believe that something
important teachers have is the experience; experience makes your work easier.
My second opportunity to practice as a teacher was this current year; I have
to do 40 hours of teaching practice. This experience was very different due to,
before to go and perform the class I had to prepare it, I had to create a lesson per
each class; it means that I have created 20 lesson plans. Lesson plans are so
important and useful as well, it was different because I had something prepare, I
read about the topic, I looked for information on the web; I always took some
photocopies with me, they contained important and useful vocabulary related to
the topic, besides I used to do some power point presentations, and showed them
some videos. Now, I can reflect on what I have done, I believe that I am better,
because I have improved a lot; my teaching skills have been developed and
improved during this period of time.
Regardless everything I had improve, or I have done, I must to keep
improving all my teaching skills, I have to read more, I have to look for more ways
of teaching, I have to improve the use of technology in my teaching, because
technology is so important in the teaching process, you as a teacher can use many
resources that are on the web, like webpages, some videos, some presentations,
and the most important the use of Realia, Realia---real things---represent the actual
conditions with which the learner will live. As such, realia should be used
whenever possible. Real things are available. The task is to locate them and put
them to use in helping students learn. Examples of realia are: insects; coins; rocks;
plants; pets; and stamps ( (Northeastern Illinois University, 2002). So, teachers
must to think of they can teach students no matter the circumstances.
Systematization of the Teaching Practice Process.
The planning of the course
A definition of planning is the process of setting goals, developing
strategies, and outlining tasks and schedules to accomplish the goals
(Investorwords, 2012).
So, it means that planning involves many things, it the process you create in
order to achieve an aim.
I had to perform 40 hours of teaching practice, so, I spoke to the teacher in
charge of the subject at Instituto Nacional Canton Tierra Blanca, and he told me
that it was ok if I go there, so, first I asked him about the topic that I had to
develop, he gave me the topics, and I had to create a table with all the topics, and
also the dates in which I will develop the topics. I started my teaching practice on
March 31
st
, I had to go two days every week, on Monday and Wednesday, on
Monday the class was from 8:45 am to 10:15 am, on Wednesday the class was from
7:00 am to 8:30 am.
The planning of the course was so important because it guided me through
all the process, how? Because I was not worried about the next topic, due to it was
dated already. Besides, it really helped me because, I knew the topic that I was
going to teach, and I had more time to look for information on the web, and be
more prepared to develop the class.
Syllabus
The syllabus was really hard to me to create because I had to include many
things, for each topic that you are going to developed, you have to include 3
systems and the four macro-skills, so it really difficult, the elements that you have
to include are; the topic, grammar, vocabulary, reading, speaking, listening, and
writing. It looks easy but it is not, everything has to match. The purposes of a
syllabus are almost as varied as the possible contents but can be grouped into
several categories. The article proposes that syllabi serve three major roles: the
syllabus as a contract, the syllabus as a permanent record, and the syllabus as a
learning tool. Each function has implications for what a syllabus should contain.
General observations about constructing syllabi conclude the article.
The syllabus as a contract: the first purpose of a syllabus either explicit or
implicit is to serve as a contract between the instructor and the student, the
syllabus serves to set forth what is expected during the term of the contract,
typically a semester. The syllabus as a permanent record: There are at least two
general reasons why a syllabus is useful as a permanent record of what was taught
in a course: accountability and documentation. In this age of outcomes assessment,
which is often mandatory for accreditation of programs and institutions, more and
more evidence is often sought to show evidence of effectiveness. The syllabus as a
learning tool: A course syllabus can serve as a highly effective facilitator of
student learning, something that many faculty may not fully consider. With the
increasing influence that cognitive, constructivist, and social learning theories are
having on higher education as well as the effects of the many technological
advances in modes of delivery of instruction, faculty members realize that students
do not do all of their learning while sitting in the classroom. Students learn as
much or more by reading, writing, researching, and discussing outside of class as
they do from direct interaction with a faculty member (Jay parkes, 2004).
The outline of the course.
The outline that I developed for my teaching practice was good I think,
because on it, I explained and mentioned what activities I developed during my 40
hours of my teaching. However, the development of the outline it has to be focus
on the topics that you have on the planning, in addition, the activities that you
want to develop with your students must to be focus on the topic that you are
going to perform, example; the topic is the family, you can show them a video, or
some flashcards with the images of the family members. If you are using
technology, computer and projector, you can present a power point presentation,
and it would be easier. I had to perform 20 topics, and for each I had to develop
some activities, and that makes the learning process easier for you as well as for
the students.
Lesson plans.
I have got to say that lesson plans are one of the most important artifacts of
the teaching; lesson plans helped me a lot while my teaching practices, I remember
last year I did my social service, 500 hundred hours at school, the thing was I did
not know how to do it just because I did not prepare anything. However, this
semester at the college, I learned about lesson plans. A lesson plan is a set of
organizing activities that are used to achieve a goal. Another definition is A lesson
is a unified set of activities that focuses on one teaching objective at a time. A
teaching objective states what the learners will be able to do at the end of the
lesson. A good lesson plan is an important tool that focuses both the instructor and
the learners on the purpose of the lesson and, if carefully constructed and
followed, enables learners to efficiently meet their goals (CAL, 2013 ). So, a lesson
plan is useful for a teacher as well for the students, on the lesson plan you design
the activities that you are going to develop during the class, besides, it is a guide
that a teacher has, the lesson plan guides you through the teaching process,
because you have everything on it.
E-portfolio Approach including the new learning environment in the ELT.
First of all, here a definition of what an e-portfolio is The E-Portfolio is
formally defined as a collection of authentic and diverse evidence, drawn from a
larger archive representing what a person or organization has learned over time on
which the person or organization has reflected, and designed for presentation to
one or more audiences for a particular rhetorical purpose (Chang Barker, 2008).
So, as we can see an e-portfolio is a the collection of the evidence that a teacher has,
and it represents what a person has learned over time, and besides, it helps to
make a reflection on what you have done in order to keep innovating, and
improving your teaching.
I will apply the e-portfolio approach in classes, as I have said an e-portfolio
helps teachers a lot, once you have done an e-portfolio, you are going to reflect on
what you have done, and therefore, it would be useful for you because you are
going to improve your teaching style. In addition, the technical resources that you
use while you are performing classes are included in an e-portfolio, that is going to
help you due to there are many resources on the web that you can use, ones of the
most important are; YouTube, Facebook, besides, you can create a blog in order to
embed, and everybody can see what you have done, and remember that one the
main parts of being a teacher is to share.
ELT English Language Teaching, I believe that the most important is the
usage of technology, in order to create new English environment is needed to be
aware of students needs, and through the usage of technology you can achieve
your goals. A teacher must to be innovating at any time; an environment in which
students feel comfortable is needed in order to have a good learning and teaching
process, it is necessary to have a good rapport. Rapport means; the relationship
between teacher and the students. All that I have mentioned before are necessary
in order to apply ELT.
The use of technology in a place where there is no Tech in the classroom.
The use of technology in the classroom Technology can have a reciprocal
relationship with teaching. The emergence of new technologies pushes educators
to understanding and leveraging these technologies for classroom use; at the same
time, the on-the-ground implementation of these technologies in the classroom can
(and does) directly impact how these technologies continue to take shape (Erick
Klopfer, 2009)
To deal with the use of technology in a place where there is no technology is
something that happens to many teachers in El Salvador. It happened to me last
year while I was doing my social hours, the school in which I performed my social
hours; there was no technology in the classroom. However, there is a computer
room, but, the thing is that there are classes every single day, so, there was no time
to use the computer room in order to develop a class. On the other, this current
year, I did my teaching practice at high school, in which there is technology, the
high school has its own computer room, in addition, it has around three projectors,
and around 15 laptops that you can use in order to develop a class.
What am I going to do if there is no technology?
I would say that if there is no technology in the school or place of work,
what I would do is to take some flash cards, or postcards with the information
about the topic. Besides, I can take a radio with me and use it in order they can
listen to something, a record or a song. In addition, what I used to is, print a page
with information related to the topic that is going to be developed. That is the
challenge of a teacher, to think how to innovate even if you have no good
resources, try to go beyond, break down the traditional teaching process, and that
is the only way we can do it, thinking.
How am I going to solve the problem?
As I mentioned before, I say that I would have to take my personal device
with me, take my computer, and show them some images. Or as I mentioned, I
could do some flash cards with relevant information about the topic that is going
to be developed. On the other hand, in order to solve that problem is to create a
comfortable environment, I mean, if you are developing a topic related with the
family you can do it like a play, I mean, the students can pretend they are acting.
Anytime you want to do an activity, you can take the students out the
classroom; they are going to feel different, they will feel relist, and they will
participate more in the activities. I know it is hard to make students to participate
in classes, but we have to find the way to do it.
Conclusion.
To conclude this essay, I can say that I have improved my teaching skills;
however, it is not enough, in order to become into a teacher, I must to keep moving
forward, reading, searching, and looking for another ways of teaching. Because,
that is the work of a teacher, in order to be a teacher, I cannot see this profession as
a work; a teacher must to love this profession. Otherwise, we are doing nothing.
So, I hope to keep improving my teaching style, and think of ways of teaching,
look for resources to use, and I know that the previous experience that I have are
going to help me through this process. In addition, if I continue practicing the way
how I teach, and I innovate, I will be better, you know, practice makes perfection.


CAL. (09 de December de 2013 ). CAL (CENTER FOR APPLIED LINGUISTICS). Recuperado el 13 de
June de 2014, de CAL (CENTER FOR APPLIED LINGUISTICS):
http://www.google.com.sv/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CBoQFj
AA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cal.org%2Fcaela%2Ftools%2Fprogram_development%2Fell
toolkit%2FPart2-
29LessonPlanning.pdf&ei=Q6ObU_myEuzmsATF_4HoCg&usg=AFQjCNElQtaHauyxnF_z-
VAr7URAKbHGWg
Chang Barker, K. (04 de October de 2008). FUTURED. Recuperado el 14 de June de 2014, de
FUTURED:
http://www.google.com.sv/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CB0QFj
AA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.futured.com%2FePortfolioIntroduction-
FuturEd.pdf.pdf&ei=hzGcU4vuOarQsASFuIEY&usg=AFQjCNGZ6hyDqpGXrydWfy6meQGl-
LD9Kw&bvm=bv.68911936,d.cWc
Erick Klopfer, S. O. (12 de February de 2009). The Education Arcade. Recuperado el 14 de june de
2014, de The Education Arcade:
http://www.google.com.sv/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CB8QFj
AA&url=http%3A%2F%2Feducation.mit.edu%2Fpapers%2FGamesSimsSocNets_EdArcade.
pdf&ei=OK6cU9aLD_OisQSDuYDABA&usg=AFQjCNEF81oPcLM4MTOUD1GXSASYxZIgHA&b
vm=bv.68911936,d.cWc
Investorwords. (19 de May de 2012). Investorwords. Recuperado el 13 de June de 2014, de
Investorwords:
http://www.google.com.sv/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CBoQFj
AA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.investorwords.com%2F3710%2Fplanning.html&ei=wombU
46RL8m-
sQS_hoLwCg&usg=AFQjCNGB0Ba4Mu15jvpoQ_xRf9pWKZNJ0Q&bvm=bv.68911936,d.cWc
Jay parkes, a. M. (17 de June de 2004). Northern Arizona University . Recuperado el 13 de June de
2014, de Northern Arizona University:
http://www.google.com.sv/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CCUQFj
AB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fjan.ucc.nau.edu%2F~coesyl-
p%2Fsyllabus_cline_article_2.pdf&ei=C5GbU8TPBOjNsQTo9IKAAg&usg=AFQjCNEJJqoRM9
Roq-g85yOtLUuYbfilrg&bvm=bv.68911936,d.cWc
Northeastern Illinois University. (02 de February de 2002). Northeastern Illinois University.
Recuperado el 13 de June de 2014, de Northeastern Illinois University:
http://www.google.com.sv/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=4&ved=0CDEQFj
AD&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.neiu.edu%2F~sdundis%2Fhrd310%2Frealia.pdf&ei=joabU8
bnF-
GgsQSk8oHQAQ&usg=AFQjCNGdF4puMuuqaU0inuGvLRGJP3zN0g&bvm=bv.68911936,d.c
Wc