LING

320 TESOL Practicum II

Lesson Reflection
Looking Back
(What went well/not so well and why? What went differently than expected? What were the challenges you faced
and how did you respond? Etc.)
This lesson went very well. I would judge it to be the strongest one so far. I expected the students to be hesitant to
participate in the warmer, which was a picture dictation. I thought they would be self-conscious and unsure during
this activity (which I planned to use to my benefit, as this lesson focuses on listening to instructions), so when I
explained the activity I made it sound like they would be doing me a favour by completing the exercise. They were
all happy to do this, even though they were a little hesitant about their ability. The activities all stayed within my
time guidelines, and the lesson as a whole felt well-paced. I had to make an adjustment at the end, because it was a
two-part activity and not all pairs were done at the same time (in fact, some were way ahead). I had anticipated this
in my lesson plan, and had an alternative finish in mind.
This was the lesson observed by the practicum supervisor, so the learners were on their best behaviour. However,
this made the classroom atmosphere a little less relaxed than normal, even though I knew they were trying to help
me look good for our guest. This was an interesting dynamic; I felt like the students were trying very hard to
support me, and they almost seemed protective of me. After the supervisor left, they looked at me and said I did
very well, giving me thumbs up, etc.
(251 words)

Looking Ahead
(What are the key learning points and how will you apply them? How might you do it differently next time? What
skills would you like to develop to teach this sort of class better? Etc.)
Observing how the students behaviour changed when there was a stranger in the room, I would say that I saw the
value of cultivating an effective classroom atmosphere. The students did very well, but I find that when they feel
more comfortable they participate with a little more enthusiasm. Some of the humour was lost among the class
because they were all trying to be perfect students. I think that a little bit of chatter can be a good thing for the
classroom atmosphere and can lower the affective filter.
I was more strict with my pacing for this lesson, and I felt that this was a good decision for the class. Going
forward, I would like to be better at managing class time, because this seems to lead to a more effective lesson.
(134 words)

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2012 Briercrest College. Materials created by David Catterick