Professional Documents
Culture Documents
for
INTR 613: TESOL Classroom Dynamics Practicum
Dr. Cheri Pierson
August 5, 2016
Final paper
Final paper
Final paper
settings for me. I was in each site for a very short period of time; not all students knew
my role clearly since they didnt show up for each class while I was observing or
teaching the class; I was trying to be sensitive to their views on student teachers, which
they brought with them from their own countries, which constrain my role a little bit.
To sum up what I have learned from the course, I appreciate that I am able to see
myself through the Johari Window model in a reflective way: the open self, the secret
self, the blind self, and the hidden self. Dr. Piersons reports on my teachings were
tremendously helpful, very detailed, very timely, very precise, which help me to reflect
on two goals that I set for myself in the beginning of the course.
Goals. There were two goals that I set for myself before taking this course. The
first one was to learn my classmates creativities and adapt them for my future teaching;
the second one was to grow and strengthen what I was not good at based on the feedback
from my classmates, the professor, Dr. Pierson, and two Cooperating teachers. They are
instructions and classroom management.
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only get to practice with male clothing items, he gathers a variety of items from
magazines that both genders are able to talk about. Natasha takes her teaching very
seriously. She prepares well what she exactly wants to say and teach, which shows her
dedication. Junko is a hard worker and writes a great lesson plan. She lays out her
lesson plan in a very profession manner. Chelsea plans her lesson thoroughly. She preassigns each student a role for each small group so that there is full participation. Jenny
has a joyful childlike presence in a very good way. Her activity is very inviting and fun
for young learners to participate. Charity has a calm presence. She handles classroom
management well when things do not work out well as it is planned. Mary knows how to
create fun interaction. Her choice of the activity, pushing the cell phone button, is a great
example. I am so blessed to get to know my classmates and be able to learn from them
and the gifts that they bring to the class. I will carry their gifts with me and use them
when opportunities come.
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I am glad that we get to read this book before our practicum, Practice Teaching:
A Reflective Approach (Richards & Farrell, 2011). There are countless stories printed in
italic throughout the book, which help me see certain situations or issues that both
Cooperating teachers and practicum teachers are dealing with. I could use some of my
common sense to predict those situations or issues and how I might deal with them;
however, their stories enrich and expand my views so that I can be more objective when
those situations occur and be more sensitive to students. For example, two teachers share
their views under the subtitle, Developing Learner-Focused Teaching. The question is,
What constitutes an effective language lesson from your perspective? (Richards &
Farrell, 2011, p. 23):
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Both teacher A and teacher B care very much about their teachings, but one is learner
centered and another one is not. For the teacher A, the goal is about what she has planned
to accomplish. For the teacher B, the goal is about what students are able to accomplish
and learn well. Another factor that I like those stories is that the student teachers name
and their nationality are noted. That helps me to understand his or her thought process,
which is influenced by the culture and ethos that they have been raised under.
We wrote our evaluation without signing our names, which I did not understand
why. If we all were invited to give personal suggestions and critiques face to face, why
we left our names out in writing. Few comments I got did not make much sense to me,
and I wish I could have been able to ask face to face. If the intention of this exercise is to
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build each other up and encourage each other, we should be able to speak truth in love in
both writing and face to face. That is my thought. However, I have to admit that I am not
good at giving very constructive suggestions in a short amount of time like we have in
class; the feedback from Dr. Pierson is a good model for me to learn. Sometimes when
things cannot be explained well in a short amount time, I prefer to give a simple concise
comment instead of writing some thoughts which cannot be conveyed clearly to the
person who is teaching.
I enjoyed this class, the small group that I was part of, and the 3 practicum sites
where I got to know Jenn and Ellen. I have learned so much. This is a reflective
practicum teaching experience for me. These three words, recognition, examination, and
rumination become alive throughout the course.
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References
Richards, J. C., & Farrell, T. S. C. (2011). Practice teaching: a reflective approach. New
York: Cambridge University Press.
Scrivener, J. (2011). Learning teaching: the essential guide to english language teaching
(3. ed). Oxford: Macmillan.