Reflection #9 : Final Discovery

Looks like I finally made it to the last post for this assignment! Boy, what an experience this course has given me. It definitely wasn't an easy ride, but I'd say it was worth it. During this course, I have discovered a couple of things that I would like to share :

1. Blogging can be quite fun!

I've come to realize that blogging is like window to your mind. True, it can be a little tough to find inspiration sometimes. But when it does hit you, the thoughts just flow so easily and you're done before you know it! At first I thought having to do reflections every week seemed a little tedious, but in hindsight I realize that it was actually a pretty good idea to recall whatever we learnt and have it archived so we can always come back to it in case we forget. It's so much more personal and understandable compared to the conventional note-taking method we were previously exposed to in other classes. It's also really nice to read blog posts from my fellow classmates too. I didn't know so many of them had such a flair in writing! Moreover, I find it easier to write when you discuss about the topics with your friends. When ideas are shared around, sometimes all it takes is just a sentence or even a word  to trigger the creative train of thought in you to start writing. I might even consider continuing to blog on my own after this. Thank you Madam Ng, for introducing us to the world of blogging!

All aboard the train of thought! :p

PS : ''Inside Out'' is a must watch! You are never too old for Disney :p

2. School of Thoughts

In this subject, we got to be exposed to 3 schools of thoughts about learning and teaching namely Cognitive, Humanistic and Behavioural. It offers various kinds of methods of teaching with a lot of in-depth explanation for when to use them according to the situation at hand. I felt privileged to be learning about them as it is not found on Google so it's like a rare gem that is really helpful guide for us as future teachers. These school of thoughts also made me realize that no matter how much you know your stuff, you can only be an excellent teacher when you understand what is known about teaching and learning and can put that knowledge to work every single time you arrange a learning experience. It also gave me hope to not give up on students easily. If a certain method doesn't work with them, we can always go 'back to the books'' to try to understand what may be interfering with their learning and figure out and alternative method to suit them better. And as far as suiting goes, I think all teachers have their own different strengths and a successful teacher is one that incorporates methods from the school of thoughts that best reflects their own beliefs and personal style. I personally was drawn to the positive reinforcement method from the Behavioural school of thought. I found that getting good feedback from my lecturer and peers really made a tremendous change to my motivation to perform better. 

Always try to engage students in your lessons! Trust me, it will yield better results :)

3. Mock Teaching

As I have described in my previous post, Mock Teaching would definitely have to be the highlight of this whole course. It was our first practical experience as teachers and really helped to push us beyond our limits and break down our walls. Most of us come off as shy and timid, but during the presentations I have to say I was really blown away by some of them. It was nice to see a different side of them and a boost in their confidence. We were all on our own for this assignment and there were many times that our patience got tested when coming up with lesson plans and preparing for our mock teaching. But at the end of the day, I'd say it all paid off because we all definitely learnt a lot and has definitely been one of the best experiences for me out of all my subjects so far. I'm sure we can all use this as an experience to learn from our mistakes, apply the successful techniques shown to us and strive to be even better next time.

Friends who made my mock teaching experience memorable :)

Always believe in yourself and you'll be amazed at all kinds of obstacles you can overcome! :)

I would like to take this oppurtunity to express my gratitude to everyone who has made this subject a memorable one for me. It gave me a chance to to not only meet new friends from a different batch but also get to know my old friends better as well. Last but not least, couldn't have asked for a better lecturer than Madam Ng to teach this subject. She is a really dedicated and respectable woman and I really liked how she gave us a whole new learning experience by exposing us to interactive technology like Padlet, Blogging etc. She may be a little strict but I felt that was a good way to keep us in check and instilling discipline in us - which is a very essential thing to have as a teacher. Thank you everyone and I hoped you enjoyed reading this humble blog of mine :) All the best for finals! 

Reflection #8 : Dos and Don'ts of Teaching

So we just had our final mock teaching session yesterday and I must admit, it wasn't half bad! I think it was more of just a mental fear that made at us nervous initially. But once we got into it, those 30 minutes just flew by before we knew it!

I was a little upset my dramatic sound effects for my slideshow didn't work. And I didn't get to play a video because my time was up. But despite the setbacks, I think my mock teaching still went fairly well. (phew!) I had cold feet in the beginning but it quickly wore off thanks to my sporting and encouraging 'Form 2 students'.  Especially for the Role Play part - shoutout to Sherenne, Diyanah, Retesh and Kathir for being awesome actors! Really glad the charade game of 'Heads Up' was a hit with the class too. Who says learning has to be boring and conventional all the time right ? In case you missed out on the action, here's a glimpse of it for your viewing pleasure :

          Our Phantom got a bit of an upgrade lol. 

For this post, I was asked to choose a favourite mock teaching presenter. To be honest, I unfortunately was not able to attend all my classmates' mock teaching. And apparently I missed out on some amazing presentations. Nevertheless, I still got to witness some pretty impressive ones as well. Picking a favourite is tricky. Each and every presenter had their own unique strengths that captured our attention during their respective lessons. Some amazed us with creative games and songs, some kept us awake with their dynamic voice projections and others motivated us with their delicious rewards (nothing says 'good job' like chocolate hehe) If I had to really narrow it down, I'd have to say my favourite presenter (who also happened to be our final one) was Aishwini. Madam Ng really knew how to save the best for last. Aishwini had the complete package. From using the latest technology to her advantage, her creative 'Pick A Pouch' activity and just her overall control of the flow of the lesson - she truly had the makings of a great teacher. I really liked how she was well prepared, confident, really knew her stuff and above all - gave us an enjoyable experience. I personally am not such a big fan of Maths, but Aishwini's effort and enthusiasm in teaching was really contagious and made us all motivated to learn. Great job Aishwini, staying back for your mock teaching was worth it! :)

Cikgu Ash in action ! ;)

Since it was a first time for most of us, there were some distinctive mistakes that were made during the mock teaching that should have been avoided. But it's okay,we can all learn from them in order to improve in the future. For example, when a slideshow presentation is used,  a teacher should never merely read word to word from the slides without proper explanation. It causes students to lose interest easily. Another thing I noticed was that some of the presenters were not very prepared with their questions. When the time came for students to answer them and check if they were right, the teacher looked not confident of it  and was not able to confirm the answers properly as it was not worked out by them beforehand. This caused some confusion and lack of faith in the teacher. Poor command in language was another thing I felt needed to be improved. Especially for English subjects, students tend to not take the teacher seriously if they are not competent in the language. Last but not least, voice projection is another thing that most of us had to improve on. Some presenters were barely audible and very monotonous. This made it a little difficult for students to stay awake and focus in the class.

All in all, I still have to say that mock teaching was a very good and educational experience. We got a taste of what it's going to be like when we achieve our careers as teachers. Being in a huge class also gave us the benefit of being exposed to different kinds of pedagogical approaches towards teaching. Everyone had something we could all learn from. I also really liked how the class was very supportive of their friends who were presenting. This really helped to calm down our nerves and establish a strong bond of camaraderie amongst ourselves. Really proud to be a part of this fun and awesome batch! Great work everybody! Let's all continue striving for the best in the future! :)

Reflection #7 : Gearing up for Mock Teaching

As this semester draws to an end, it's that time of the year once again where everyone is freaking out about assignment deadlines. And yes, I unfortunately am one of them too. This particular assignment for Pedagogy in Education scared the daylights out of me upon mention of it's dreaded name - Mock Teaching. To be frank, the whole procedure of coming up with my own lesson plans and doing a 30 minute presentation based on one of them seemed pretty incredulous. I had no experience whatsoever. When the presentation schedule came out,  I thanked my lucky stars after seeing my name under the last day. 28th December is still a long way more to go right ?

Or so I thought. My overconfidence and estimation of time left suddenly got smashed hard. Today was the first day of the Mock Teaching presentations and around 8 of my classmates presented. I have to say I was really taken aback.  I was also really surprised with my friends natural flair and charisma in teaching. It seemed like they were born to be teachers! Some of them really put in so much of effort and were really creative in coming up with a really engaging lesson - even to the extent of printing out booklet handouts and attractive hand-made posters! Madam Ng even mentioned that they were some of the best presentations she'd ever seen. (especially for Economics) Kudos to you guys!

The presenters today definitely set the bar really high for the rest of us. (thanks a lot guys jk) But jokes aside, I'm glad that in a way I got a boost to start endeavouring more for my lesson plan. I had already made up mind to base my mock teaching on 'The Phantom of the Opera'. I was a huge fan of it back at high school and I thought teaching a class on it would be a good way to show my appreciation towards this beautiful, tragic classic. I already had prepared a rough lesson plan on it, with just a few more tweaks and polishing it should be ready soon enough. 

My mantra for the next few weeks lol

My bigger worry is the actual teaching part. A few questions constantly keep pouncing in my head - what's the best way to teach it ? How do I make my class fun ? What kind of activites would my audience enjoy ? What am I gonna wear on that day?!?! (okay the last may have been irrelevant heh) And so, the research process begins. Google and Youtube never lets me down. I found all sorts of cool ideas and activities to conduct my class with. A lot of information had been sufficiently and eloquently explained as well as broken down for ease of understanding. God bless those people who made their work available online! 

If I ever gave a graduation speech, I think it would start something like that haha

I thought of making my class a little more unorthodox by also including a special game during my lesson that I think my audience would enjoy. It's a surprise though, so you will just have to come and watch me to find out ;) This assignment doesn't seem so bad anymore. Actually feeling pumped about it now haha. I will try my best to customize whatever I've gathered from the Internet to suit my own learning style and hopefully make it an enjoyable presentation. Wish me luck! 

Stay tuned guys! You definitely won't want to miss it! :)

Reflection #6 : Rules to Apply for Effective Classroom Management

Classroom management involves how we relate personally to others and how we respond when someone does something we believe is not acceptable. It requires a wide variety of skills and techniques to keep students organized, orderly, focused and be as academically productive as possible in the class. When it comes to managing a classroom, every teacher has their own unique style in doing so. As for me, I want to create a positive, supportive learning environment in which all students feel safe and respected. Below are a couple of rules that I choose to stand by to facilitate that type environment when I become a teacher someday. The form that I choose will be Form 1 students. 

Rule #1 : Use positive reinforcement

Each and every student has their own strengths and weaknesses. It is impossible to expect them to behave the same way initially. Instead of scolding and blaming my students for any misbehavior, I would actually take responsibility and see to it that they improve willingly. I want to find long-term solutions to problem behaviors, rather than using short term compliance strategies (i.e., overemphasis on rewards and punishment). For instance, by  analyzing behavioral problems for possible causes, including developmental,emotional, and family factors. By displaying deep concern towards students’ welfare, I strongly believe that they will feel motivated to do correct themselves and comply with the good behavior expected of them. Furthermore, research has shown that positive feedback should occur three times as frequently as negative feedback. The positive feedback does not necessarily have to be verbal – it can also include praise, hugs, smiles, handshakes, nods, and eye contact. Recognition of achievements such as displaying an excellent drawing or essay in the classroom bulletin board can also make students feel intrinsically motivated to continue with their good behavior and inspire others to be follow them too. By these simple gestures, I feel that students will feel more emotionally secure in a classroom.

Rule #2 : Model the behavior you expect from your students

When managing disruptive behavior, it is essential for teachers to keep their emotions in check. Personal problems and frustrations should not be used at any cost as an excuse for taking it out on the students. Teachers must model the same restraint they seek to develop in their students. Thus, teaching requires a level of emotional intelligence, that is the ability to perceive a situation as stressful, reflect on the

best course of action, and choose a reasonable action. Losing one’s temper will only make a stressful situation even more worse. Therefore, I want to try to always remain calm and collected even when dealing with stressful situations for the sake of finding a positive solution to them. Students tend to emulate behavior that shows positive results. Therefore, I want to be able to “practice what I preach”,to build a classroom climate based on mutual respect, competence, integrity, and personal regard for others. 

 Rule #3 : “No one should be left behind”

In my classroom, I want to foster relationships amongst my students that make them feel like part of a family. Each and every one of them should contribute to creating a stimulating classroom atmosphere. To do this, I will emphasize a lot of group activites, team work exercises etc that will make them bond. This will instill cooperation and leadership qualities in them. In a classroom where people are always working together, group dynamics come into play and the synergy that forms as a product of that motivates them to perform well. I want to also make it a point to nurture each student’s potential with the fundamental message that “You Matter”. This will make them develop a sense of belonging and make them feel positive about learning.

I strongly believe that these rules will definitely help to manage a classroom effectively and hope all my fellow educators found them useful :) Thank you!

Reflection #5 : 7 Methods for Effective Powerpoint Slides

Hi guys! In our previous class, we reviewed a few submissions of slideshow presentations of a few of our classmates' lesson plans. Madam Ng gave us some constructive criticism and methods about how to make them as effective as possible for teaching and learning. Here is the list :

1. Understand that students are graphic literate and use colours that would appeal to them. Be careful to make sure that the colours are not an eye sore or too flashy. It is best to keep the slides clean and simple. Appropriate contrast should be used also (eg : if background is dark, choose light colours for the text and vice versa)

Keep it simple guys!

2. Slideshow presentations should be interactive. Do not ever make the mistake of merely reading word by word from the slides. Include activites within the slides to engage the students during the class to check their understanding and to prevent them from feeling too bored.

3. Choose proper templates. There is a variety of pre-designer, colour coordinated presentation templatest offered on Microsoft. Adjust the font and size if necessary to something appropriate like Century Gothic (size 20-25). The theme should be relevant with the theme of your slideshow. Do not over edit and put in too much custom animation as it may become annoying especially when repetitive.

4.  Do not try to cram too much information into one slide. Contrary to popular belief, the use of more slides is actually less time consuming. It will also be much easier for students to digest information when they are divided separately.

Won't want this to happen to our students, do we ? :p

5. Use creative strategies such as displaying pictures in slide show with the title and ask students what they think of it before showing them the definition straight away. This will provoke their curiousity and interest towards the lesson as well as help them understand better.

6. Give modern and local examples especially when explaining dry theory subjects. Students will be able to relate better when they are familiar with these kind of examples.

Characters from popular movies are good examples :)

7. For pictures, cartoon clip art should be avoided and real life ones should be used instead. This will show professionalism. Also, if only a certain part of the picture is relevant to the presentation, crop out the unnecessary part of that picture to highlight what you want the students to focus on.

Hope you found these tips useful ! :)

Reflection #4 : Most Important Element In A Lesson Plan

This week we were assigned to create our very own (and first) lesson plan! It was to be done according to our respective individual majors. Equipped with the basics of how it should look like, we were then faced with the challenging part : the content. After quickly skimming through a couple of samples that Madam Ng had posted, we tried our luck at it and hoped for the best.

As for me, I chose to base my lesson plan on a literature component called 'The Phantom of the Opera'. I fell in love with it when I first got exposed to it in high school. It is such an epic story embellished with elements of love, mystery, tragedies, culture, drama etc. Since I had a rather enjoyable experience learning about it back in high school, I figured why not try to recreate it for others ?

I think the most important part in creating a lesson plan is the organization of the stages. It consists of 4 sections namely,

1) Duration
2) Content/Skill
3) Teacher/Student Activity
4) Rationale/ Audio Visual Aids (AVA)

I find that this is a very useful technique to prepare for a lesson. It serves as a good mental checklist to know what to expect and what needs to be delivered in terms of priority. It is quite comprehensive and meticulous as well, as it goes to the extent of coming up with sample questions and answers from the class activities. You can also envisage a rough scenario of the class and be prepared for some of the common questions the students might pose to you. Not only that, I also really like the rationale part because it really makes you think whether a certain activity can be justified and that it's not just planned out whimsically. This enables us to fully maximize the benefits we can get out of the class.

I think that's pretty much the gist of it. Please excuse the brevity of this post compared to others. We have to prepare a slideshow presentation based on our lesson plan next week and I've barely started ! :O Yikes. Wish me luck! I'll be sure to let you know how it goes it my next post. Till then, stay tuned ! :)

Reflection #3 : Lesson Plan and Words of Wisdom

Technological advancements never cease to amaze me. In our last class, we were exposed to yet another new product of it. It was an interactive website known as 'Padlet'. It works like a sheet of paper where anything could be posted (images, videos, documents, text etc) anywhere from any kind of smart device , together with everyone. Our task this week was to upload our favourite school of thought as well as a method used in it. Within minutes, the verdant grass canvas page became fraught with a plethora of sticky notes. The fancy touch screen wall proudly displayed everyone's entries being edited and posted simultaneously. It was pretty cool. I liked how we were all able to collaborate in such a creative manner using our smart devices in the classroom. Not only was it quick and efficient, but the best part of using the Padlet was that there were no complications like we experienced the last time with our blog. What a relief!

Here's how Padlet looks like. Sorry this was the only picture I could find close to ours on Google. Note to self : snap more pictures in class 

In the next part of our lesson, we were assigned into groups and had to come up with a draft of a lesson plan. What is a lesson plan, you ask ? Basically, a lesson plan is a teacher's detailed description of the course of instruction, or "learning trajectory" for a lesson. A daily lesson plan is developed by a teacher to guide class learning. Details will vary depending on the preference of the teacher, subject being covered and the needs of the students. 

First, we started off with a quick brainstorming session and this was what we came up with :

Don't complain. Writing on touch screen walls are tricky. And anyway, as a teacher you have to get used to ALL kinds of handwriting :p

With Google and Microsoft Word as our allies, we all got our lesson plans done in no time. Then, we had a small discussion about everyone's finished masterpieces. All of us, more or less got the basics down. They were pretty simple, easy to digest and straightforward. Smiles lit up our faces as we got positive feedback from Madam Ng. We took note of her constructive criticism as well. 

Madam Ng is a very admirable person. In this lesson, we also had the privilege of getting to know her a little better as she shared with us some interesting anecdotes in her life. Many of us could relate and empathize with her especially when she told us all about her parents' pressure being the main reason she was in this teaching field. Despite it not being her first choice, Madam Ng persevered and thrived to achieve excellent results. She advised us that no matter how much we may be unsatisfied with the course, we should still strive to do our best. Getting a degree with flying colours will definitely benefit us in the working world, she reminded us. Our results can let people gauge what kind of a person we are and the abilities we have to contribute to them. By achieving excellent results, we would definitely have an advantage over others. 

Another piece of sound advice she delivered was to never give up. Jaws dropped in disbelief as Madam Ng narrated the number of jobs she had quit in the past until she finally found one that suited her. It surely must have been mentally challenging to go through what she had. However, she explained her simple philosophy that she vehemently stood by, "If I don't like the people I work with, I don't work with them". That really hit me because of the truth between the lines. You shouldn't have to compromise your own values and force yourself to work somewhere that is not conducive to your own well-being. Especially for teaching, I feel that it's important to have good emotional stability. Otherwise it may reflect badly on your teaching style and in turn impact the students negatively. One's happiness is definitely important in a career and shouldn't be taken for granted. If you adhere to this principle, you can be rest assured that there will always be a silver lining to find a job that's right for you. 

Thank you very much for your inspiring words of wisdom Madam Ng! Aspiring to follow in your footsteps :)

Happy Deepavali & Happy Holidays !