esl ::: emily's so luscious

Peer Evaluation 1 ::: Connie

One of the biggest challenges Connie faces in her class is not knowing how many students will show up for class, and if they do, what level are they, and how many of them were there last week for the lesson that this lesson builds on ... ? See the problem? I'm impressed by how well Connie handles this uncertainty - by forging right ahead, and dealing with whoever comes, catching up those who have missed crucial information from prior lessons. The problem tonight was that only one student showed up. However, b/c she was videoing her lesson, she really needed to have class as usual.

First, she reviewed the time vocabulary from the last lesson. The student, Patricia, seemed to be very uncomfortable with telling time. She was a very-beginning novice, but I'm not sure she could tell time very well in Spanish, either. Connie used copies from the Oxford picture dictionary and flashcards to go over phrases such as: quarter of, quarter after, half past, etc. These were good tools, but the best was when she brought out the clock. She turned the little dial on the back to make it show the time on the worksheet, and that worked so much better, b/c Patricia could see the movement. Patricia had a lot of difficulty with "a quarter to". Using a quarter ($.25) to demonstrate the idea helps, but they haven't officially covered money yet. I noticed that Patricia says "I don't know" very quickly, when just a little extra thought will produce the answer. Watching the clock hands move helped her a lot.

About an hour in, Guadalupe peeked in the door, and Connie invited him to join the class. It's good that he did, b/c Patricia perked up considerably when the attention was not all focused on her. The pair together made more progress. Patricia was less self-conscious, and volunteered more answers. Guadalupe had apparently studied much of this information, but the practice was good. Too often, we assume that b/c a student is at a slightly higher level, they don't need to cover rudimentary language, when we should recycle regularly so that those basics don't fall through the cracks. When I found out she has access to the Heinle Picture Dictionary, I suggested she use the pages on time and time of day, b/c it worked well with my students. That seemed to help. I really like the basic words section of that dictionary - and it goes along with the first part of her course goals and syllabus.

Moving on from vocabulary practice, Connie made a sign that read "Bi-Lo" and put it in front of each of us in turn, and the rest took turns being the customer, on the phone. This was very good practice, and the students enjoyed it. They even added "thank you" and "you're welcome" to the end. With only 10 or 15 minutes left of class, Connie brought out her modified deck of cards (no face cards) for a game of "go fish". Her rules were weird - not that it mattered. It was effective practice for numbers and the students had fun.

Connie is calm and organized, which puts people at ease. She stays on track very well. It’s possible that staying so focused causes her to miss out on some detours to spontaneous teaching moments. Despite the fact that teaching isn't about a "bag of tricks", Connie has just that - she's worked hard to fill her bag with supplementary materials, to be prepared for two or ten students. After seeing her teach, the only tips I have for her are to be open to spontaneity and to learn the rules for “go fish”.

posted by E.M @ 11:14 PM