Teaching Reflection
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Teaching in the classroom when fairly smoothly. I taught three classes ages 5-10 and even though this seems like a small gap, it’s amazing how different each class is. Even though the students were young, I was very impressed at how much they knew. Even the smallest class knew quite a bit of English. This was not my first time in the classroom, but teaching in a new environment with new students is always a little nerve wracking. Having the class plans helped a lot and the TA was also a great help.
I think that if I would have prepared more I could have given a better class. Also, I think I have a weakness when it comes to discipline in the classroom. I know that this discipline is necessary to have a successful class so I will continue to seek out and practice different methods until I find something that works. I also want to continue looking for new games and activities to use in class as I think it is important to use these to keep the interest of the class and facilitate learning. Overall, teaching today was a good experience and I can use what I learned in the future.
Teaching classes in Zhangjiagang has been a good experience for me.Firstly seeing how the schools here operate in general,like the schools curriculum and policies, and how staff get along with each other.
As for the teaching part goes,i must say I have had fun doing this.It was interesting and challenging a few times.Some classes took a while to warm up to you as being a stranger, new to them,they sat in their chairs and were shy.Other classes,all they wanted to know was where you came from and tell them about your country (which was a great opener for teaching),the students gave me ideas of topics which i used to talk and teach them English about,ie:Australia.
Once the classes warmed to me,it was enjoyable,they became more open and willing to take in what I was teaching and responses/communication from the students started to flow.
Teaching the classes with the help of the actual teachers for the classes made it a lot eeasier,as the class plans were already set out(eventhough I improvised at times with some of my own plans) and all you had to do was follow it.A couple of times I stumbled,but was quick enough in thinking in making it not to obvious,or the times I stumbled i made it humorous for the class,so they could have a laugh at my expense,which again was widely excepted and interaction with each other more fun,because the students saw I was not just the teacher whom tells you what to do and you do it,iwas there for them to teach them,Yes but also as a friend.
Having not taught for a while now,I must say that it was noticable.Giving a class by myself at a school blind I know I am not ready for,a few more classes with an assistance would be good,just to make sure I have all the components in place.Plus there a points that in teaching that I need to work more on myself again,to bring myself up to date and re educate.meaning “Grammar”.reading,Writing,Spelling no problems,came to the “Verb,Noun,Adjectives” part of teaching and boy have I forgotten.I will and have already started to drums these back into my head.
Overall I had fun observing,giving,and joining in with these classes.The way of teaching is differnet then I am used to,but not to far from it.The classes are full of energy and the Teacher/Student interaction is great.
My experience as an English teacher here in Shanghai for almost 2 years now has been very rewarding. I love being around my students, their child- like innocence and their happy outlook in life can be very infectious. It keeps me young at heart.
But teaching is not at all rainbows and taking a walk in the park. There are students who are not at all interested in learning English and would rather play. There are students who claw away at your patience. For these kids, all you can do is understand them and continuously think of different ways on how to make lessons interesting for them.
Stressful times can’t be avoided, but, still, the show must go on, as they say. Always think that there are students depending on you to learn what they need to learn.
Being a teacher doesn’t mean that you know everything; being a teacher means you are also a student. It is essential to be open-minded to new experiences and different teaching methods. Through continuous learning, you can continue improving your craft and be the best teacher that you can be.
The practical teaching experience has been a very positive one so far. I have particularly enjoyed having so much time to observe lessons and seeing the interaction between teachers and kids. The fun and energy of teaching was clearly displayed through both teachers and students, and it is certainly infectious. It took me a while to “click” with the DD Dragon terminology and lingo (teachers launching into “rock, paper, scissors” at random?!) But once familiar with the flow of the lessons and the DD teaching methods and tools, I was quickly drawn in and I didn’t feel nervous about trying my hand at some of the exercises in class. Connections with the students seem surprisingly easy to make and the interaction has been really fun. Running a full class on my own would be nerve racking at this point, but I think I will get over the initial insecurities quickly once I am more confident about the tools at my disposal and have some more classroom time under my belt. I found that it was easier than I thought to actually enjoy teaching and to play to the energy in the room. Plenty of aspects of teaching would need some extra work, primarily in building an easy and confident teaching flow once in the classroom, and keeping directions clear and simple. Building games into the teaching is also something I would need to practice more. At this stage it is also difficult to judge where children are in terms of their knowledge and comfort level at various ages/levels, but I assume that this is something that teachers develop from experience over time.