Observation Report

Forms for inclusion in the Observation Notebook must be typed

Name of Observer__Wang Zhao______

Date
Observation Environment

Observation # __4_

(include URL if the class was online)

Class Skill/Content

4/22/13 UCR Extension Oral skills classroom development Focus on relevant areas from the What Can Be Observed handout. Notice how the teacher handles these areas during the class. OBJECTIVE OF THE LESSON: Students will be able to: Describe their family members in terms of their physical appearance Tell the date, time and season Notes while observing: Classroom administration (8 mins) T checks each students homework and gives feedback to students individually

Class Teacher Level/Number (Beg./Int./Adv.) 100 Kelly Lopatynski

T informs the entire class that their answers to the homework questions are minimal, T explains it is the smallest amount and she wants to see better answers in the next class. Review (20 mins) T and Ss go over the homework (pair up the words, e.g. twice a week, yesterday afternoon, this evening etc.) in the textbook together Each S takes turn to answer question T moves from one student to another in order to talk to them face to face When a student fails to give an answer, T turns around and asks the whole class Most Ss have done the homework and answered correctly After finishing the homework, T engages in conversation with the Ss. T asks Ss What are the winter/spring/summer/autumn months? Most Ss offer correct answers although some have trouble with pronunciation Independent practice (20 mins)

T gives two worksheets to Ss and asks them to walk around the classroom and talk to each other to fill in the answers Some Ss are told to take an oral quiz with the T individually

On the worksheet, there are questions like What day is tomorrow? What season is it?, How was your weekend? , When do you usually eat dinner? etc. All the Ss engage in conversation with each other actively and write down what they hear Some students talk to each other in their native tongue during the practice Closure (2 mins) T points out Ss strength and weaknesses in describing their family : Ss are generally strong in describing family, but not in cousins, nephews, in-laws etc. Some misused collocation like tall hair T recommends Ss to use their picture dictionary T collects Ss worksheet

(continue on back) What did you learn about teaching or learning from this lesson? Consider your observation focus, and the theory you have studied in your TESOL classes.

This is my first time observing a beginning level class, one of the things that struck me is the tolerance of the Ss use of their native tongue. The English-only policy is always in a debatable position in the ESL classroom. Before the class began, the teacher advised me not to be surprised if I hear students use their mother tongue to communicate with each other. According to my observation, it seems almost impossible to prevent students from using their native language because they have to understand the words and meaning of the sentence in order to give an answer. For example, one of the questions on the worksheet If you are wearing swimsuit and sandals, what season is it? I heard one student try to explain sandal to the other in English at the beginning. After several unsuccessful attempts, he resorted back to Arabic and the other student got it immediately. There are other ways to explain vocabulary under teachers instruction, one way is to bring in pictures or realia.In peer activities, however, it seems that using ones native language is the most efficient way to achieve the goal for beginners.

Observation Report
Forms for inclusion in the Observation Notebook must be typed

As in every language classroom, there are multilevel students present in the same class. One thing I have seen is that lower level students are more willing to talk in groups than in front of the entire class. This might relate to their personality or the affective filter. Nonetheless, they seemed more at ease and they offered answers more often in groups. Even though sometimes it is in their native tongue, higher level students from the same country often provide them with the English word accordingly.

What activities/techniques from this class do you want to remember for your own teaching practice? Consider specific ways in which you could apply the techniques and methods you saw. Consider your future teaching environment and your students needs and goals.

I think at the beginning level, maximizing the benefits of peer work in combination with input from teacher is beneficial to the students. By pairing higher level students with the lower level ones, both parties could learn from each other through answering questions and revisiting the content together. At the beginning level, most of the vocabularies are concrete ideas or solid everyday objects that are easy to demonstrate through visuals. As I have mentioned in the previous question, teacher could bring in realia to the classroom in order to let students achieve better comprehension.