Our last lesson this week was devoted to learning about how to make a good presentation. We read some tips in groups, and then mixed the groups up, so each one of us would know about a different tip and could tell the rest (our teacher used the information gap resource once again to press us to listen to each other, as the story each one of us had to tell was different from the rest).
We also watched a video, where Steve Jobs presented an Apple product to a more than passionate crowd (as teachers, we will need to win our crowd, they will not be fanatical fans who had to wait for hours to have the privilege of listening to us, which is a great disadvantage compared to Jobs, by the way). I agree on the fact that teachers need to be aware that, above all, they are communicators, and copying techniques used by sellers, such as Jobs, can be a good idea, but do teachers "sell" education? Is education another commodity? Is a teacher a Disney World entertainer who puts up a different and exciting show everyday, so school will be only and always fun? I have written on those concerns many times in this blog before, and I find it hard to strike a balance between the "no pain, no gain" applied to education on one end, and the entertainer-teacher on the other end.
2014/09/28
Can I tell you a personal story?
Our teacher started one of the lessons of the week with that question. Of course, being gossipy as we are, we were all ears, so the first of her objectives (grab our attention) was fulfilled. That is an important lesson for future teachers: turn to our lower instincts when it comes to gaining attention!
She told us a story of what had happened to her last summer. Of course, parts of the story sounded a bit fishy (being offered to become a gym trainer a having doubts about taking the job, when you are lecturing at university?), because we know that all she does is for a purpose, and not for the sake of just chatting, but it was quite close to something which actually could have happened to her. She did repeat and stress some of the things she said, so we got a few hints here and there, and afterwards, she asked us to tell each other what she had told us in small groups. Then, she made specific questions about some of the things she had said, until we gave her the five phrasal verbs she had used in her story.
We had another chance to experience a way to learn grammar in a real context, integrated in an meaningful activity. Of course, as we discussed, it is much harder to make up a whole "classroom situation" in which as a teacher you can "disguise" your didactic objectives and contents, so students will learn them feeling they are not "studying". That sounds very familiar to those of us taking the pre-school of pre-primary teacher education degree, because all the activities which a school teacher for ages 0 to 6 need to be meaningful to children first of all, because otherwise they will simply not do them. So, in a way, our teacher defends that the ways of doing which are common in pre-school should be extended to primary school as well (the minor we are taking is open to both pre-school teacher education students, and primary teacher education students), which I totally agree with.
She told us a story of what had happened to her last summer. Of course, parts of the story sounded a bit fishy (being offered to become a gym trainer a having doubts about taking the job, when you are lecturing at university?), because we know that all she does is for a purpose, and not for the sake of just chatting, but it was quite close to something which actually could have happened to her. She did repeat and stress some of the things she said, so we got a few hints here and there, and afterwards, she asked us to tell each other what she had told us in small groups. Then, she made specific questions about some of the things she had said, until we gave her the five phrasal verbs she had used in her story.
We had another chance to experience a way to learn grammar in a real context, integrated in an meaningful activity. Of course, as we discussed, it is much harder to make up a whole "classroom situation" in which as a teacher you can "disguise" your didactic objectives and contents, so students will learn them feeling they are not "studying". That sounds very familiar to those of us taking the pre-school of pre-primary teacher education degree, because all the activities which a school teacher for ages 0 to 6 need to be meaningful to children first of all, because otherwise they will simply not do them. So, in a way, our teacher defends that the ways of doing which are common in pre-school should be extended to primary school as well (the minor we are taking is open to both pre-school teacher education students, and primary teacher education students), which I totally agree with.
Grammar is embedded in language, after all
This week's first warmer had us chatting on what we did over the weekend, in what seemed to be a harmless and casual conversation. Still, we were practicing grammar; a modal past auxiliary, to be precise ("Oh, so you did so and so over the weekend; you could have done something else, but you decided to...").
After the chat, we discussed the way grammar (and language, in general) has been taught traditionally around here, treating grammar as something which somehow wasn't integrated in language and had to be learned (memorised) aside. Happily, things seem to be quite different nowadays (for some, at least); we see grammar as something of a structure that helps us communicate using a particular language, and which is acquired primarily by using the language to communicate in rich and diverse situations.
We also prepared a mini-lesson in groups, on a grammar item, in which we had to try to get our classmates to learn and practise that particular grammar item. It was interesting to see that most of us chose to explain on the board the grammar item after having performed some role playing or game, as if we didn't believe that the game was enough. That reminds me of a completely different issue, decades ago, when cows were begun to be artificially inseminated. Apparently, farmers didn't quite believe that just with a small shot you could make a cow pregnant, and they used to cover the cow with the bull they had at home, "just in case". Needless to say, they ended up having calfs that weren't anyhow close to what was expected by the vet.
After the chat, we discussed the way grammar (and language, in general) has been taught traditionally around here, treating grammar as something which somehow wasn't integrated in language and had to be learned (memorised) aside. Happily, things seem to be quite different nowadays (for some, at least); we see grammar as something of a structure that helps us communicate using a particular language, and which is acquired primarily by using the language to communicate in rich and diverse situations.
We also prepared a mini-lesson in groups, on a grammar item, in which we had to try to get our classmates to learn and practise that particular grammar item. It was interesting to see that most of us chose to explain on the board the grammar item after having performed some role playing or game, as if we didn't believe that the game was enough. That reminds me of a completely different issue, decades ago, when cows were begun to be artificially inseminated. Apparently, farmers didn't quite believe that just with a small shot you could make a cow pregnant, and they used to cover the cow with the bull they had at home, "just in case". Needless to say, they ended up having calfs that weren't anyhow close to what was expected by the vet.
2014/09/21
How do we apply all this in pre-school?
The first two weeks of the Minor have given us the chance to learn some activities in two of our units, one on communication skills and the other one on teaching skills. The teacher on the communication skills unit has openly admitted that the exercises she had proposed, which we have to adapt for a book of our choice, had been designed with primary students in mind, and she has had a couple of meetings with those of us who are taking the pre-school teacher degree, in order to discuss how they could be adapted to our needs. As a matter of fact, in my opinion, the book (Lord of the flies) and most of the exercises she has proposed to be taken as a model are really suitable for students on the last couple of years before going to university. It is quite revealing to see that almost all of our classmates who are taking the primary education degree chose ages 11 and 12 for the set of exercises we have to produce, most probably because adapting the exercises for those ages seems easier.
As for the activities that we have been doing in the unit on teaching skills, I have a similar feeling: I think that they could be quite easily adapted to late primary students, but when I try to think of a 4 or 5 year old classroom, I don't quite see how yet. In our case, we are talking of children at their very first contact with English and who are very young. It would be nice to have models of activities particularly designed for early childhood and ask us to do the opposite exercise, adapting them to older children, for a change.
As for the activities that we have been doing in the unit on teaching skills, I have a similar feeling: I think that they could be quite easily adapted to late primary students, but when I try to think of a 4 or 5 year old classroom, I don't quite see how yet. In our case, we are talking of children at their very first contact with English and who are very young. It would be nice to have models of activities particularly designed for early childhood and ask us to do the opposite exercise, adapting them to older children, for a change.
Running dictation
The last lesson of the week was devoted to an energetic activity, which was a very good idea for a Friday morning, as many students go out on Thursday night and are running a bit low on Friday mornings. So, we did a running dictation in pairs.
I enjoyed the activity; it was challenging and fun. What I liked the most was the last part, when we discussed the text in small groups. Each of the pairs had read one among four pieces of text, and we had to join a group of four where all the pieces of text were represented. Then, each one of us had to tell the rest about our part, and together we had to order them to complete a coherent text. Using the resource called information gap in this last bit of the activity was the most interesting thing for me. We clearly listened to each other very carefully, because we needed the information that the rest had in order to find the overall meaning. That is a very powerful resource when it comes to cooperative learning activities, it is important to give students a reason to interact, a common goal towards each on of them have something to give, and that is why it is widely used, not just in language learning, of course. It is even more important in the educational level or stage at which I intend to become a teacher, pre-school or pre-primary, when children are naturally more egocentric and need more encouragement to interact with each other in collaborative ways.
As far as I could see, all my classmates enjoyed the activity. We all learned a lot; that was obvious when we shared our bits in the small groups. The fact that we knew that we would have to be able to teach others what we had learned probably took us to make an extra effort. Sometimes it is easier to do things for other than to do them just for yourself, and a teacher can take advantage of that too.
I enjoyed the activity; it was challenging and fun. What I liked the most was the last part, when we discussed the text in small groups. Each of the pairs had read one among four pieces of text, and we had to join a group of four where all the pieces of text were represented. Then, each one of us had to tell the rest about our part, and together we had to order them to complete a coherent text. Using the resource called information gap in this last bit of the activity was the most interesting thing for me. We clearly listened to each other very carefully, because we needed the information that the rest had in order to find the overall meaning. That is a very powerful resource when it comes to cooperative learning activities, it is important to give students a reason to interact, a common goal towards each on of them have something to give, and that is why it is widely used, not just in language learning, of course. It is even more important in the educational level or stage at which I intend to become a teacher, pre-school or pre-primary, when children are naturally more egocentric and need more encouragement to interact with each other in collaborative ways.
As far as I could see, all my classmates enjoyed the activity. We all learned a lot; that was obvious when we shared our bits in the small groups. The fact that we knew that we would have to be able to teach others what we had learned probably took us to make an extra effort. Sometimes it is easier to do things for other than to do them just for yourself, and a teacher can take advantage of that too.
My friend Charlie
Last Thursday our teacher brought a new activity, which was more than a warmer, really. Using a sequence of drawings that she put up on the wall, we had to first guess the name of her friend (Charlie), then describe him (unfit), and after that explain what the reasons behind his problem were (Charlie is unfit because he eats too much, because he smokes too much and he drinks too much, because he doesn't exercise enough and he doesn't sleep enough), to end up guessing what she advised him to do (go to the doctor's). It was a simple activity, in the sense that it required no sophisticated material, but very powerful.
The part I liked the least was actually the beginning, which is always a critical stage in any activity, as the level of engagement of students will depend greatly on it. When it came to describing Charlie (a round human figure on the drawing), our teacher had one specific adjective in mind, and we spent some time throwing words (fat, overweight, big, round, chubby...) until we gave her the "correct" answer (unfit). This is probably a very personal feeling, which I am quite sure most of my classmates didn't share, but I would have preferred our teacher asked us to come up with as many adjectives as we could think of, and discuss the subtleties among them, when it might be more appropriate to use one or the other etc., instead of rejecting what we came up with, when it really wasn't that relevant for the activity, and most of our proposals were equally right. So, having one answer in your mind and asking your students to throw shots until they guess it should be used sparingly, in my opinion, because it can lead to discouragement and the feeling that there is only one right answer, when most of the times there are many.
That brings me to rethink the purpose of the diary. Our teacher requested that we wrote down our feelings during the activities, but in order to improve our teaching skills we should pay more attention to what our students feel, because we want to be the best teachers we can for them, not for ourselves. I know that in many ways my thinking doesn't follow that of most of my classmates, and my reflections on the activity about Charlie can be an example of that. Therefore, I might be more interesting to observe how my classmates react to the activities proposed, rather than analysing how I react myself (or, at least, besides analysing that). I will try to do that from now on.
Continuing with the activity about Charlie, it also felt a bit awkward to repeat the sentences all at once (it reminds me of old ways of doing). Besides, when we recited the sentences together we tended to have a very monotonous tone, very far from normal speaking, and our teacher made us aware of it and asked us to be more natural. It might have been a good idea to ask us to say aloud pieces of the sentences we had created in small groups, one after the other. I remember that in our music lessons in the previous years playing or singing that way was very effective: it kept our attention focused, because we had to follow our turn, it made us give more, because errors were more noticeable in a small group, and it gave the teacher a chance to assess us more individually. Maybe that way we would have kept a lighter rhythm and better intonation. But then again, maybe our teacher wanted it to come out "wrong", so she could make us aware of how artificial we can sound if we don't manage to pick up the correct rhythm.
I found it very amusing to learn grammar in a contextualised way, integrated in a story, and to grasp the way English is talked, with its rhythm and contractions, through a real communicative situation, not on a theoretical and abstract way. After having done two "Charlie exercises" we were ready to apply the idea to a real and personal situation, sharing a personal problem in pairs and giving advice to each other. Relating the activity to oneself is a great resource, because it almost always guarantees to grab attention; we might not care much about what happened to the boy in our English book, and what he should have done, but we will be more interested in explaining something that happened to us last week and listening to what our friend has to say about it. Besides, the way we shared our problems was very thoughtful too: bearing in mind that we might not feel comfortable sharing a personal problem, we wrote it down on a piece of paper, all of them were collected and distributed, so we ended up talking in pairs on problems which were real, but not necessarily ours, which made it easier to talk. Talking was the main objective of the activity, and our teacher took many aspects into account in order to create the most favourable conditions for our learning to happen.
The part I liked the least was actually the beginning, which is always a critical stage in any activity, as the level of engagement of students will depend greatly on it. When it came to describing Charlie (a round human figure on the drawing), our teacher had one specific adjective in mind, and we spent some time throwing words (fat, overweight, big, round, chubby...) until we gave her the "correct" answer (unfit). This is probably a very personal feeling, which I am quite sure most of my classmates didn't share, but I would have preferred our teacher asked us to come up with as many adjectives as we could think of, and discuss the subtleties among them, when it might be more appropriate to use one or the other etc., instead of rejecting what we came up with, when it really wasn't that relevant for the activity, and most of our proposals were equally right. So, having one answer in your mind and asking your students to throw shots until they guess it should be used sparingly, in my opinion, because it can lead to discouragement and the feeling that there is only one right answer, when most of the times there are many.
That brings me to rethink the purpose of the diary. Our teacher requested that we wrote down our feelings during the activities, but in order to improve our teaching skills we should pay more attention to what our students feel, because we want to be the best teachers we can for them, not for ourselves. I know that in many ways my thinking doesn't follow that of most of my classmates, and my reflections on the activity about Charlie can be an example of that. Therefore, I might be more interesting to observe how my classmates react to the activities proposed, rather than analysing how I react myself (or, at least, besides analysing that). I will try to do that from now on.
Continuing with the activity about Charlie, it also felt a bit awkward to repeat the sentences all at once (it reminds me of old ways of doing). Besides, when we recited the sentences together we tended to have a very monotonous tone, very far from normal speaking, and our teacher made us aware of it and asked us to be more natural. It might have been a good idea to ask us to say aloud pieces of the sentences we had created in small groups, one after the other. I remember that in our music lessons in the previous years playing or singing that way was very effective: it kept our attention focused, because we had to follow our turn, it made us give more, because errors were more noticeable in a small group, and it gave the teacher a chance to assess us more individually. Maybe that way we would have kept a lighter rhythm and better intonation. But then again, maybe our teacher wanted it to come out "wrong", so she could make us aware of how artificial we can sound if we don't manage to pick up the correct rhythm.
I found it very amusing to learn grammar in a contextualised way, integrated in a story, and to grasp the way English is talked, with its rhythm and contractions, through a real communicative situation, not on a theoretical and abstract way. After having done two "Charlie exercises" we were ready to apply the idea to a real and personal situation, sharing a personal problem in pairs and giving advice to each other. Relating the activity to oneself is a great resource, because it almost always guarantees to grab attention; we might not care much about what happened to the boy in our English book, and what he should have done, but we will be more interested in explaining something that happened to us last week and listening to what our friend has to say about it. Besides, the way we shared our problems was very thoughtful too: bearing in mind that we might not feel comfortable sharing a personal problem, we wrote it down on a piece of paper, all of them were collected and distributed, so we ended up talking in pairs on problems which were real, but not necessarily ours, which made it easier to talk. Talking was the main objective of the activity, and our teacher took many aspects into account in order to create the most favourable conditions for our learning to happen.
2014/09/15
Giving clues to guess a word
Today we played a new game as a warmer. One of us had to sit with the blackboard behind, while the teacher wrote a word on it. The rest of us had to define/explain the word, so he/she would guess it and return to his/her desk.
I enjoyed the game. I like quizz games, and even if the rest of us knew the word, it didn't take away the interest. I also liked the feeling that it was a group accomplishment somehow: our classmate had to guess the word, but it depended greatly on our help. I guess I like cooperative games more than I do competitive ones, even though I also enjoy those. Well, in general, I like playing and, in particular, I love games on words. It reminds me of a game we used to play when I was young in large family gatherings: one of us would choose a word from the dictionary and write down one of the definitions (often there is more than one meaning for a word). The rest of us had to invent a definition for that word. Then, all definitions (the real one, along with the made up ones) were read aloud and each one of us had to choose the one we believed to be the real one. Points were allocated following a bit of a complex system that I never learnt, but two factors would give you points: for the one that had chosen the word, having very few people guess the real definition; and for the rest, having your "made up" definition chosen as if it were the real one. The game wasn't particularly good to learn new vocabulary, as we often remembered best the wittiest definitions, and not the real ones, but it was a lot of fun.
So, I guess that much of the reason why I enjoyed today's warmer was that it reminded me of other games I have played in great company. That made me think of the importance of relating to previous nice memories in education, which can be done intentionally, but sometimes will be unexpected, as we cannot know all the details about our students' lives.
I enjoyed the game. I like quizz games, and even if the rest of us knew the word, it didn't take away the interest. I also liked the feeling that it was a group accomplishment somehow: our classmate had to guess the word, but it depended greatly on our help. I guess I like cooperative games more than I do competitive ones, even though I also enjoy those. Well, in general, I like playing and, in particular, I love games on words. It reminds me of a game we used to play when I was young in large family gatherings: one of us would choose a word from the dictionary and write down one of the definitions (often there is more than one meaning for a word). The rest of us had to invent a definition for that word. Then, all definitions (the real one, along with the made up ones) were read aloud and each one of us had to choose the one we believed to be the real one. Points were allocated following a bit of a complex system that I never learnt, but two factors would give you points: for the one that had chosen the word, having very few people guess the real definition; and for the rest, having your "made up" definition chosen as if it were the real one. The game wasn't particularly good to learn new vocabulary, as we often remembered best the wittiest definitions, and not the real ones, but it was a lot of fun.
So, I guess that much of the reason why I enjoyed today's warmer was that it reminded me of other games I have played in great company. That made me think of the importance of relating to previous nice memories in education, which can be done intentionally, but sometimes will be unexpected, as we cannot know all the details about our students' lives.
2014/09/14
Betiko ikuspegi iluna hezkuntzaren inguruan
Hau da Haur Hezkuntzako graduko laugarren ikasturtea niretzat, eta hasi nintzenetik berrietan betiko ikuspegi iluna dago hezkuntzaren oraina eta geroari buruz. Ideia nagusiak EL PAISeko artikulu honetan laburbilduta daude: irakasleen egonkortasun eza, mozketak, lanbidearen ospe kaxkarra eta abar luzea.
Ikasketak bukatu eta hezkuntzako lan merkatura sartzean benetako esfortzua egin beharko dugu tristura horrekin ez kutsatzeko, edo gauzak hobeto dauden herrialderen batera alde egin!
Ikasketak bukatu eta hezkuntzako lan merkatura sartzean benetako esfortzua egin beharko dugu tristura horrekin ez kutsatzeko, edo gauzak hobeto dauden herrialderen batera alde egin!
2014/09/12
C1 maila
Aste honetan Atzerriko Hizkuntzako Minorra hasi dugu, eta irakasleek oso argi utzi nahi izan digute ikasturtea bukatzerako ingelesez C1 maila izan beharko dugula (minorrean sartzeko B2a eskatu zaigu). Azterketa bat jasoko dugu maiatzean horrela dela bermatzeko, eta lauhileko honen bukaeran maila ebaluatuko digute eta C1era iristeko zer egin beharko genukeen esango digute.
Horrek euskara ekarri dit burura, egia esan. Hobe zuten graduko lehen egunean euskararen inguruan gauza bera esan izan baligute, eta eskakizun maila parekoa izan balitz graduan zehar. Gutako gehienok maila badugula esango nuke, baina ikasle mordoxka bat euskaraz C1 maila menderatu gabe graduatuko dira eta, dirudienez, horrek kezka gutxiago eragiten du ingelesez gauza bera gertatzeak baino. Hori bai marka!
Horrek euskara ekarri dit burura, egia esan. Hobe zuten graduko lehen egunean euskararen inguruan gauza bera esan izan baligute, eta eskakizun maila parekoa izan balitz graduan zehar. Gutako gehienok maila badugula esango nuke, baina ikasle mordoxka bat euskaraz C1 maila menderatu gabe graduatuko dira eta, dirudienez, horrek kezka gutxiago eragiten du ingelesez gauza bera gertatzeak baino. Hori bai marka!
Azken mailako lehen astea
Iritsi da, azkenean; ikasturte honetan egunero izango da azken eguna (azken ikasturteko lehen eguna, practicumera joan aurretik azken azken eguna, azken azterketa eguna...). Gradua hasi genuenean inoiz iritsiko ez zela iruditzen zitzaidan, eta hemen dago, egi bihurtu da. Hori bai, azken egun luzea izango dela argi geratu zait lehen aste honetan. Honezkero hasi zaizkigu lanak bidaltzen, mordo nahiko potoloa osatu arte.
Nik azken maila arinagoa izango zenaren esperantza nuen, ikasgai gutxiago ditugulako besterik ez bazen ere, baina erabat uxatu zait. Aurten kirol pixka bat egitera berriro bueltatuko nintzela uste nuen, eta polikiroldegian izena eman nuen udan (inozoa!), baina hasi aurretik bertan behera utzi dut, inondik inora posible izango ez dela ikusita. Datorrenean beharko du.
Bestetik, aldaketa handiak ditugu: talde berria, minorra hasi dugulako, eta ordutegi berria. Askoz hobeto moldatzen nintzen orain arte, goizean lan egin eta arratsaldez eskoletara joaten, baina suposatzen dut lortuko dudala chipa aldatzea. Oraingoz, onartu beharra daukat maldan gora egin zaidala astea: berriz ere Txantxilo bezala poltsaz beteta, iluntzean etxera bueltatu eta hurrengo eguneko bazkaria prestatzea...
Ea beste aste bateko epean neurria hartu eta gozatzen hasten naizen, horretxek arinduko baitit gehien urtea.
Nik azken maila arinagoa izango zenaren esperantza nuen, ikasgai gutxiago ditugulako besterik ez bazen ere, baina erabat uxatu zait. Aurten kirol pixka bat egitera berriro bueltatuko nintzela uste nuen, eta polikiroldegian izena eman nuen udan (inozoa!), baina hasi aurretik bertan behera utzi dut, inondik inora posible izango ez dela ikusita. Datorrenean beharko du.
Bestetik, aldaketa handiak ditugu: talde berria, minorra hasi dugulako, eta ordutegi berria. Askoz hobeto moldatzen nintzen orain arte, goizean lan egin eta arratsaldez eskoletara joaten, baina suposatzen dut lortuko dudala chipa aldatzea. Oraingoz, onartu beharra daukat maldan gora egin zaidala astea: berriz ere Txantxilo bezala poltsaz beteta, iluntzean etxera bueltatu eta hurrengo eguneko bazkaria prestatzea...
Ea beste aste bateko epean neurria hartu eta gozatzen hasten naizen, horretxek arinduko baitit gehien urtea.
More warmers
Today we had our first class in the large group (we split in two for some of the sessions), so it was around 50 of us in class. Just like the previous day, our teacher used another warmer (the birthday line) to start the lesson and set where each one of us will sit in class.
Just like yesterday, I have felt a bit awkward in such a huge circle, talking in turns, with that tension building up as your turn approached (again, we couldn't repeat a sentence that had already been said). I didn't feel as tense as it might sound, but that is my general feeling about the activity as a whole; I sensed tension, our bodies weren't relaxed. I didn't like at all the fact that all of us spoke to our teacher, instead of talking to our classmates. Our teacher was on one end of the class (opposite to mine, actually). Those of us who were on the other end of the room had to raise our voice to be heard (by her), so all the rest of classmates got the chance to hear what we said, but when those close to her spoke, I didn't understand what many of them said, because they talked to her. I guess that, as a teacher, you need to be aware of small practical things like that, and try to make people talk to each other, either by asking explicitly, or maybe stepping out of the circle (?).
Gosh, I realise that what I have written on this week's activities sounds like I have not enjoyed it at all, and that is not how I feel (I think), but I guess it has been a rough week.
Just like yesterday, I have felt a bit awkward in such a huge circle, talking in turns, with that tension building up as your turn approached (again, we couldn't repeat a sentence that had already been said). I didn't feel as tense as it might sound, but that is my general feeling about the activity as a whole; I sensed tension, our bodies weren't relaxed. I didn't like at all the fact that all of us spoke to our teacher, instead of talking to our classmates. Our teacher was on one end of the class (opposite to mine, actually). Those of us who were on the other end of the room had to raise our voice to be heard (by her), so all the rest of classmates got the chance to hear what we said, but when those close to her spoke, I didn't understand what many of them said, because they talked to her. I guess that, as a teacher, you need to be aware of small practical things like that, and try to make people talk to each other, either by asking explicitly, or maybe stepping out of the circle (?).
Gosh, I realise that what I have written on this week's activities sounds like I have not enjoyed it at all, and that is not how I feel (I think), but I guess it has been a rough week.
First day's impressions
After a short presentation on the unit and getting to know our teacher a bit on the very first day of the academic year, we had our first "regular" day on Thursday.
She used two warmers: throwing the ball to somebody you don't know and asking a question in the large group, and writing down two items on yourself and playing mingle in pairs in order to guess your classmate's items and viceversa.
I must admit that in the first warmer I was more anxious about choosing a question (you couldn't repeat what others had already asked, so it became increasingly difficult) than listening to what was being said, which I think went against the objectives our teacher had for the activity. Maybe, it would be a good idea to try to take that pressure off the game (or maybe only I felt it, and then there is nothing wrong with the warmer itself), or ask the students to remember the answers, not just who you threw the ball to. I guess that when you speak in front of a large group of people it is normal to feel a bit anxious, but I hate to see that I focus more on myself than the others. Other than that, I felt quite comfortable.
The second warmer was more fun for me for two reasons: it was more dynamic, in the sense that it implied moving across the classroom and it was "messier" because people were talking at the same time, and it allowed me to have a better interaction (with few people, that is true), because it was done in pairs. After doing the second warmer, I realised that the first made me feel a bit tense, because it was too static for me.
I guess those are things a teacher should bear in mind, as some people will feel more comfortable with certain types of activities, and there should be enough diversity so all in the group are offered the chance to feel relaxed and receptive, which are prerequisites for learning, after all.
In the second warmer I felt a bit silly because I didn't measure well one of my items, and it was too difficult to guess (except for one of my classmates, who must have had a very similar way of thinking as mine, because she guessed both straight away). Hopefully, I will stop feeling so self conscious soon, because at the end of the day, we are just learning through play, just like we have been doing in the degree most times, but this first week I couldn't help those mixed feelings.
She used two warmers: throwing the ball to somebody you don't know and asking a question in the large group, and writing down two items on yourself and playing mingle in pairs in order to guess your classmate's items and viceversa.
I must admit that in the first warmer I was more anxious about choosing a question (you couldn't repeat what others had already asked, so it became increasingly difficult) than listening to what was being said, which I think went against the objectives our teacher had for the activity. Maybe, it would be a good idea to try to take that pressure off the game (or maybe only I felt it, and then there is nothing wrong with the warmer itself), or ask the students to remember the answers, not just who you threw the ball to. I guess that when you speak in front of a large group of people it is normal to feel a bit anxious, but I hate to see that I focus more on myself than the others. Other than that, I felt quite comfortable.
The second warmer was more fun for me for two reasons: it was more dynamic, in the sense that it implied moving across the classroom and it was "messier" because people were talking at the same time, and it allowed me to have a better interaction (with few people, that is true), because it was done in pairs. After doing the second warmer, I realised that the first made me feel a bit tense, because it was too static for me.
I guess those are things a teacher should bear in mind, as some people will feel more comfortable with certain types of activities, and there should be enough diversity so all in the group are offered the chance to feel relaxed and receptive, which are prerequisites for learning, after all.
In the second warmer I felt a bit silly because I didn't measure well one of my items, and it was too difficult to guess (except for one of my classmates, who must have had a very similar way of thinking as mine, because she guessed both straight away). Hopefully, I will stop feeling so self conscious soon, because at the end of the day, we are just learning through play, just like we have been doing in the degree most times, but this first week I couldn't help those mixed feelings.