Name: Linh Do

The practice of English language teaching

Reflection 1
Having absolutely zero knowledge about the Greek language, I was rather curious about the way
in which the teacher can convey the knowledge and help students fluently use Greek to greet, ask
and say name or express likes and dislikes in just about 15-minute time duration. Even though
the lesson was fast paced, it gave me fascinating insights into the communicative approach to
teach a foreign language and consolidated several of my teaching practice beliefs.
Firstly, in terms of clarity of explanations, with the classroom setting of twelve total beginners in
Greek, the teacher did not use much instructional language. Instead, she demonstrated through
her actions and gestures, which is straightforward, easy to follow and less teacher talking time
involved.
Secondly, regarding student participation, the interactive activities such as pair work
conversation were highly engaging. Having students sit in a semi-circle and take turn asking
each other about what they like and dislike kept everyone on their toes and actively involved in
the activity.
What I also found interesting, in terms of correction technique, was the way the teacher utilised
peer correction in the classroom. Not only did this help to increase learners’ autonomy but also
build up their confidence in speaking. Being one of the students in the Greek lesson, I could feel
the great classroom dynamics as the teacher showed interest in each individual student and
encouraged students to participate as much as possible.
Compared with this type of teaching that I observed in the Greek lesson, learning English for me
from primary and up to high school was the experience of having teacher mainly as the
“controller” who transmitted knowledge to students. The focus at that time was on grammar
when we were introduced to sets of grammar rules by the teachers and then had verb form or
translating exercises. As a result, less attention was paid on how we pronounced and used
English to communicate with one another. However, when I got to university, I was fortunate
enough to immerse myself in an interactive classroom setting where English was taught for
communicative purpose and the focus was shifted onto building the language skills.
The observation of the Greek lesson also strengthens my beliefs of the effectiveness of
interactive teaching method to language learning and students’ participation in the classroom.