Name: Carlos Romero Carrillo

Candidate Number:
ICELT Guanajuato 2014
Course Tutor: Dr. Martha Lengeling




Methodology Assignment 1
Evaluation of Teaching











No. of words. 1,496
Date submitted:









INTRODUCTION
Assessing ones own teaching is very complex and challenging; I based my assessment on
a lesson taught to a group of young low beginner elementary school students. Building a
self-critique is a long process and critical process. The universal function of this is to
develop and enrich teaching by building a strong foundation based on fundementals.
The following are the principal objectives to be discussed in this evaluation. My principal
objective was to give my students more freedom by allowing them to make more choices
on their own. My secondary objective was to provide an adequate context by providing a
fun environment, and using active activities to keep students engaged in their learning. My
third objective was based on having different activities that would provide receptive and
productive skills as well. Finally, I wanted to provide adequate vocabulary by having
enough flashcards and cues around the classroom.
I. ACHIEVEMENT OF LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Successful elements
In this assignment I taught a class and based on my observations these are my reflections on
what worked well. First, I really felt that my first objective was successful. It is difficult as
a teacher to have the right measure when challenging students, so for this objective I
allowed students to make choices by allowing them to choose any classmate to work with
in the warm up activity which is something I normally would not do (activity 1). However,
giving them the chance turned out to work well as students were more willing to work
together and completed the activity as a team.
Similarly, I found the fourth objective to be successful as well. The vocabulary that was
introduced was plentiful, functional, and was used correctly throughout the first activity.
Most of it had to do with food vocabulary, and food flashcards were used in the first
activity (activity 1). These flashcards are very helpful since they have many special
functions. The front of the card has the food image and the food name, pronunciation, and
an example are on the back of the card which students use when they speak and reduce the
possibility of breakdown.
Less successful elements
I will mention the objectives that did not work as well. For instance, my third objective was
based on integrating productive and receptive skills, but did not develop according to plan
because of time management concerns. In this activity students had to design a Mexican
dish and they had to use different ingredients to make it, but because of time factors
students were not allotted enough time to finish it.
Additionally, the second objective became quite challenging because it was partly
successful. Sometimes this becomes really challenging because there is a big mix of
learning styles. I have some students that love to be up and running around, but I also have
students that prefer to do bookwork. I provided lots of fun activities with the flashcards that
were competitive, but sometimes keeping everyone active is a big challenge. I had some
students that were a little reluctant to work in teams. Moreover, some students were
discouraged when they felt that they were not participating.
II. DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF TASKS AND ACTIVITIES
Successful elements
To analyze the development and performance of the activities set up in the lesson plan I
will mention the most functional ones and supply evidence for the facts. The first activity
was pretty easygoing for students to perform and it involved a lot of interaction since
students were doing a walk and talk (see activity 1). Students in this group seem to be more
reluctant to speak in the lockstep but when grouping them in pairs it seems to be fitting.
According to (Ur, 1991 p.121) this grouping technique broadens talking time in a short
period of time and also reduces any type of intimidation towards embarrassment or shyness
too for students who are unwilling to speak in the lockstep formation. To add to this the use
of flash cards was helpful in keeping the exchanges going and not breaking up because of
language. Drawings or other visual aids bring representations of real things into the
classroom (Davies, 2000 p.158)
Furthermore, the bingo-food-board game was very successful in getting students involved
in terms of making decisions on their own and negotiating meaning (see activity 2). The
primary success in this activity is that I allowed students to carry out the game which was
basically based on accuracy and some fluency too as students had to elaborate answers
about how frequently they ate the foods on the board. According to Drnyei & Murphey,
(2003 p.107) it is recommended in the autonomous learning setup to allow students to
contribute to the learning and in occasions peer teach and it is amazing how resourceful this
is. Additionally, it is suggested that students learn more in this reciprocal teaching way
(Palincsar, 1986).
Less successful elements
The most complicated activities in this lesson were the ones that involved reading and
writing. For instance, the third activity involved a survey which was quite challenging in
terms of reading and writing down additional information which had to do with the use of
adverbs of frequency was too challenging. Modelling was used, but did not work as I
thought because students lacked attention. The biggest problem here is that students are not
used to reading and this is a terrible flaw to which I take blame. According to (Rubin &
Thompson, 1994 p.93) it is advisable to make it a habit to have students read something in
English for at least 10 minutes daily.
The writing part became challenging as mentioned before, but the most challenging part
was in the food menu writing activity (activity 4). In this activity students worked in groups
and had to design a new international dish for a restaurant, but the writing became a little
complicated. I think here the problem lies that not even in their L1 students can write
competently and doing it in a foreign language is much more complicated (Rubin &
Thompson, 1994 111). Even though, the language used was really basic it was complicated
and took a very long time.
III. CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT
Time management continues to be a problem because students tend to drift away into
irrelevant topics. I mean for example in some of the activities some students were talking
about football in their L1 which had nothing to do with food. Sometimes using L1 as an
advantage is crucial to promote student security while working to develop the target
language, so using it as a backup plan to get the message across is possible (Nolasco &
Arthur, 1988). In addition, on the next teacher-parent meeting I plan to address the issue.
The next time this happens I will use time out as a last resort with disruptive students.
IV. TEACHER AND LEARNER LANGUAGE
Successful elements
In terms of the language that was used these are the areas that were functional. The
vocabulary was appropriate for students level and there wasnt any problem in terms of
understanding and using the food vocabulary throughout the lesson. In addition, the
instructions were appropriate for the first and second activity. As a developing teacher I am
aware that I do need to develop certain areas of my teaching that will better prepare me
cope with unforeseen problems. That is why to further my professional development I will
extend my knowledge on the topics I teach and investigate the field of methodology and
class management too (Arnold, 1999).
Less successful elements
The least functional elements in terms of classroom language were the following. The way
the writing was approached was the least functional. It was very challenging for students to
write accurately the food dish description. Many didnt quite understand the instructions
and some simply didnt know how to write in Spanish. My teacher language was poorly
selected; maybe I could have introduced other words like different adjectives to make the
description more meaningful such as spicy, salty, crispy etc. From the student perspective,
the way they managed the exercise was totally non-communicative, simple phrases to seek
help could have been used such as, how do you spell? How do you say? Etc.
ACTION PLAN
Finding a solution to the hardships experienced in the teaching of this lesson is not so
complicated and I will do the following to combat them. First, I will continue to read up on
the different resources available from different teaching websites. Second, I will use
different strategies and put them to use in my planning. Finally, I will keep a teaching
journal where I will write the effect of such strategies and use peer observation too.
CONCLUSION
I am an English teacher in progress and I know I have so many things to learn in regards to
my teaching. Nevertheless, I will not flood myself with excuses. I must focus on the
successes and strive to start preparing myself to better teach my students in all sense and
purposes.
REFERENCES
ARNOLD, J. (1999). Affect in Language Learning. Cambridge, UK: CAMBRIDGE
UNIVERSITY PRESS.
DAVIES, P. (2000). Success in English Learning. Oxford, UK: OXFORD UNIVERSITY
PRESS.
DRNYEI, Z. and MURPHEY, T. (2003). Group Dynamics in the Language Classroom.
Cambridge, UK: CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS.
NOLASCO, R. and ARTHUR, R. (1988). LARGE CLASSES. London, UK:
MACMILLAN PUBLISHERS LTD.
PALINCSAR, A. (1986). Reciprocal teaching. In teaching reading as thinking. Oak Brook,
ILL: North Central Regional Education Laboratory.
RUBIN, J. And THOMSON, I (1994). HOW TO BE A MORE SUCCESSFUL
LANGUAGE TEACHER. Boston, MASS: Heinle & Heinle Publishers.







Teacher: Carlos Romero Carrillo
Class: Beginners
Place: Elementary Miguel Hidalgo
Date: April 10, 2014 8 8:50 a.m.
Background: This class consists of 29 students (16 girls and 13 boys) from El Llanito
Farming community. The averages age of students is between 10 and 11 years old. This is
my first year working with them and it is a true beginner group, since none of the students
speak English fluently. Some of the students have writing and reading problems in their L1
which also causes problems. About 7 students are interested on the class because they
seems like they want to learn the language. They are currently working with the book play
and do 4, but I dont usually use it because it too challenging for their current English level,
and it tends to bore them. I have thought them approximately 18 class hours. They have
problems with being on time and being on silent during class as well.
Recent work: Sts have been working on vocabulary (colors, animals, fruit and vegetables).
Sts have been answering information questions about food characteristics (what color is the
apple, what is the shape, what color is the watermelon, etc.) Sts have worked on making
simple questions and responses too.
Main objective: I would like my Sts be able to identify, read, speak, and write about the
vocabulary they have been learning about food competently. Additionally, motivating them
to work at home would be great.
Teacher aims: First of all, as a teacher I am going to make some changes on my activities
by giving students more control and I will just monitor and facilitate. Second, I want to
provide a context in accordance to my sts needs so that ideas can be grasped quickly, and
feel comfortable too. My third aim would be to combine the four skills in one or two
activities and making them fun as well. Finally, I want to provide adequate vocabulary by
having many flashcards around the classroom and having sts use them with the activities.
Rationale: the sts need a lot of listening, reading and oral practices. Therefore I have given
sts vocabulary so that they can start making questions and answering them as well. I will
place some flashcard on the white board and will model some questions to get them
working. They will add to the questions some frequency adverbs (always, frequently,
usually, sometimes, never). The primary vocabulary they will work with will be food
vocabulary.
Activity 1: 8 - 10 minutes
Context: Sts reinforce vocabulary and make simple do you like questions about food
vocabulary and I will introduce them to 5 snacks as well.
Sub-objective: Sts will be able to practice the previous vocabulary food vocabulary. With
flash cards and they will be able to ask their classmates questions on whether they like or
dont like the food..
Activity/ class organization: Sts will work in pair practice and will each get a flashcard
from the T and will walk around the class asking do you like questions about the food. Sts
will express if they like the food or not, and will exchange cards and find a new classmate
and continue to ask. At the end I will have a few sts share the information they discovered.
Aids: Flash cards, whiteboard,
Language: body language and present simple do you like questions and short answers.
Possible problems and solutions: Sts may just be late from their house and interrupt the
class asking if they be able to come in. In addition, some sts might be a little shy and might
be a little reluctant to work with all the sts.
Activity 2: 12- 15 minutes
Context: Lottery game
Sub-objective: Sts will be able to practice their listening with previous vocabulary (fruit
and vegetables).
Activity/ class organization: First the students will sit individually and receive a bingo
board to start a lottery game. The board will have eight different pictures about fruits and
vegetables. The T has a copy of all the vocabulary. Therefore, the T will start to call out the
food words and sts must pay close attention as the words will only be repeated one. When
they hear the word, they have to look the sheet and check if they have what the teacher said,
and if they have it, the sts should put a bean on the pictures and that means they have it,
when they finish with all the 8 pictures they need to scream bingo and to make critical
thinking important sts will have to pronounce the word and give two example with like and
one with an adverb of frequency.
Aids: Lottery game, beans.
Language: Just vocabulary (fruits and vegatables).
Possible problems and solutions: Sts may have problems with listening and may confuse
vocabulary. At the end when a sts wins the teacher will show sts the flashcards so they can
check.
Activity 3: 5-10 minutes
Context: Food survey.
Activity/ class organization: Students conduct a survey and then with the information
gathered will fill a chart with the top 5 favorite fruits and vegetables. Students will work in
groups for this activity. Walking around and gathering the information on the survey sheet
and then transferring the information to the chart on the board. At the end T shares whats
the top five fruits and vegetables in this class.
Aids: Survey sheet, and flashcards on the board.
Language: Just vocabulary and do you eat questions.
Possible problems and solutions: Some sts may not know the correct vocabulary
pronunciation, T needs to monitor closely, but not interfere since this will be a fluency
based activity so I want to encourage them to talk.
Activity 4: 12- 15 minutes
Context: Sts will have to design a healthy dish to promote to reduce obesity levels in
children by using fruit and vegetable vocabulary they will create the dish and writing a
good description for the dish as well.
Activity/ class organization: The students will work on groups of four or five depending
on number of student on the class. T will tell them that obesity is a big problem in Mexican
children right now and the government is asking them to design a healthy dish to promote
in the schools in order to reduce obesity levels. Sts will write a description of the dish; the
name of the dish, describing the ingredients, the flavor, the benefits, and the cost. At the
end students will tape their dish descriptions on the wall and include a drawing as well.
Aids: Flash cards, whiteboard, sheet of paper, pencils and crayons.
Language: Fruit and vegetable vocabulary and present simple statements.
Possible problems and solutions: Writing will be very challenging for students.








APPENDICES
ACTIVITY 1 (le pones el nombre de la actividad)
Y UNA COPIA DE LA ACTIVIDAD CON REFERENCIA A KIEN LA HISO.