Observation report-1

1. method, a sentence is read for understanding, divided into “chunks” or thought groups,
explained in different words, and then the chunks were recombined into a new sentence.
As a native speaker, I found this method helpful, and I wish I had this instruction during
my undergraduate studies. After presenting the method, students read an example passage
on the overhead screen and were asked to break it into chunks, reword the chunks, and
put them together in a new sentence. They also talked about putting an in-text citation at
the end of the passage in parenthesis or at the beginning within the passage. During this
activity and discussion one student raised a good point about relating the passage you are
paraphrasing to the context of the whole passage it comes from. It was interesting
watching a high level ESL class of learners because they were willing to raise issues like
the connection between their paraphrased passage and the larger context. I think this
could be challenging for a teacher who is not prepared for the discussion, but it also
presents a very dynamic classroom where the discussion can be directed to suit the needs
of the students. The last activity the students did related to paraphrasing included their
homework assignment from the previous class. The students were assigned to read an
article about using English in business. The activity in class asked the students to choose
a passage from their homework article and paraphrase it using the “chunking method.”
Students worked independently in Microsoft Word, and the teacher monitored their work
via the teacher computer’s remote desktop feature. This feature allowed the teacher to
monitor each student computer from one place in the room. It also allowed the teacher to
share a student desktop with the rest of the class. When students had finished
paraphrasing their passage, the teacher asked for some volunteers to share their
paraphrasing via the remote desktop. The class then discussed what was done well and
what could be done to improve the paraphrase. This activity also proved to be a good
time to address grammatical and lexical choices in the student paraphrased passages. I
think the biggest thing I took away from observing this class is the importance of suiting
student needs and how beneficial student-centered teaching can be to creating a friendly,
enthusiastic atmosphere for learners. By tailoring the content and materials used in class
to meet student needs, the students are more likely to benefit from the course, and the
teacher will probably enjoy the classroom interactions more than if students were not
learning anything new. That being said, it raises a question of definition for me. How
much should a teacher change their course content to suit student needs if it means
completely reevaluating the entire curriculum? I think the choice to abandon the textbook
and pursue topics that are more pertinent to the students’ lives in this case was the right
choice because, from what I could tell, all of the students would benefit from it. They
were all at about the same level of experience, and the change would suit all of them.
What happens if the class is less homogeneous when it comes to learning levels? I think
there has to be a balance between being flexible and meeting student needs and
maintaining a planned curriculum in the case of mixed-level classes. Perhaps in most
cases it would not be appropriate to completely change the syllabus, but smaller actions
could be taken within the planned curriculum to help better suit student needs.