Practice Teaching
Procedures of Teaching
As for my procedures in teaching, I made sure that I target all skills such as reading, writing, speaking, individually and as a group even if my topic was mainly focused on reading. My main goal was to build relationships and motivate students to learn while at the same time, teaching me how to become a better teacher too. It is not the teacher who is the priority but the students. Here are the procedures of my teaching:
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Greetings
In which I projected my voice and its tone to be loud and clear. Not demanding, but not boring too. I put a smile on my face to lessen students from getting pressured since I am a new teacher and of course I gave consideration to my body language as well, as a teacher, I want them to see how confident, excited and happy I am to be with them.
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Remind them rules inside the classroom
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Motivation
This is one of the most crucial parts in class because they are all different students with different likes and dislikes. We, teachers, have to think of a way that will engage them in participating throughout the day thus a good first impression is a must! I used my materials which are pictures to engage them in recitation. I walk around the classroom and support them in answering.
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Lesson proper
Repetition of words during class is very important. We must make sure that they are truly understanding the topic given to them.
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Activities
This is where I see if the lessons we are tackling are being acquired by the learners. I used a True or False game and recitation for this part that enabled me to gain their trust and confidence. Through these activities, they happily participated.
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Evaluation
After the lesson, I evaluated them through the use of instructing them to answer their workbooks.
Time Management and Organizing Activities
As a teacher, being punctual is important. It speaks more of you and how you are as a person. When you arrive early, it means that you value maximizing your time and not wasting opportunities. I always come early than expected because I want to be prepared and avoid problems such as forgetting this, forgetting that, stressing this and stressing that. I believe that as an educator, when you know how to manage your time personally, you'll know how to manage your time in the classroom. Thus, having this mindset allowed me to use my time well during my demos. I wasn't in a hassle; I wasn't feeling anything rather than excited and well-prepared. I came early in the room, prepared my materials, waited for the bell to formally start the class then I made students stand up and dance to make sure they're ready for my class. It was hard because I was a new and foreign teacher, but I know that once you allow them to be comfortable, they will be comfortable. I didn't spent so much time in the motivation part but expected that when I ask questions, it will not be as quick for them to respond so I considered that too. I made sure that it wasn't me who's only speaking but gave them the chance to share and express. For the activities, a factor one must consider is the instructions. Especially as a Filipino teacher teaching English to Vietnamese students is tricky, that is why we must be slow and clear when delivering. Thank God I was able to use my materials well.
Classroom Management
It was hard handling different sections for the first time since I haven't clearly gotten to know them all. I don't even know their names, but I am so grateful for Ma'am Ana for giving me a heads up about them. The thing about managing a classroom is that it's never going to be perfect. There will always be unexpected situations that we have no control of, and we have to be quick to decide and take action. What I did to manage Grade 4 was to present myself well from the beginning-not a teacher they can be naughty with, but not a teacher who is very strict. I delivered the rules from the start and made sure I am also alerted to remember the rules. When they were getting too noisy and chaotic, I reinforced a clap to get their attention back too. It wasn't easy but we compromise. Here are some of my rules during my demos:
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Sit properly
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Listen and participate to the discussion
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Raise your right hand if you want to ask question/s, clarifications/s or answer.
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Enjoy our class!
Problem-solving while teaching
One of the hardest parts during my demos was lesson planning and managing the classroom. There are really factors to consider before creating and executing these things as an educator. I found it very difficult to start my lesson plan without a curriculum. Yes, it is easy to create objectives for the day but without a basis, and since I got used to the template in the Philippines, it will really take some time and effort to decide on the most appropriate. Teaching in Vietnam is rewarding but very challenging as well. There are cultural differences, language barriers, difference in how the educational system works and lack of familiar resources. But indeed, this is how you grow. Through this, I was able to not just teach during my demos, but actually learn.
As for the difficulty in managing the classroom, aren't we all experiencing these, teachers? Everyday you wake up, go to school and you don't know if the students got up on the wrong side of the bed. They all are different and go through different situations thus it takes a lot of patience, strength and creativity to be as one inside the classroom. That is why we must value the rules to be implemented and the preparedness a teacher must have in order to achieve the goals for the day.