Category: Reflections

For this hour of observation, I observed the first half of an Advanced Oral Communication Level 4 ESL class. 11 adult students from varying cultural backgrounds were present. The focus of the class was to learn language used in discussions and to practice having discussions.

I thought the instructor did a great job of facilitating interactive learning in spite of the challenges of the online class format. He had the class learn how to have discussions by actually engaging in discussions with him and with each other. The students were given a list of target words and phrases to try to incorporate into their discussions which I thought was a helpful visual aid. One of the instructor’s greatest strengths in facilitating learning was that he was constantly acting as a model for the students. When they struggled to engage in discussion, he demonstrated the target language to not only prompt them to express their ideas, but also to provide an example of how the language of discussion is used.

The instructor had a few methods of assessment in this hour. He assessed knowledge of vocabulary by asking students to provide synonyms for words or to articulate what a word means. He assessed some oral discussion skills of four students by calling on them to share something that is banned in their home countries. He then assessed reading comprehension skills together with oral discussion skills by having students read a controversial story in groups and discuss it, then share a summary of the story and some points from their discussion with the class. For a more accurate assessment, the instructor engaged in the discussions with the class, asking probing questions to either clarify their interpretations of the stories or to help them articulate their arguments.

I think the main challenge to learning was the online format. I think it would be easier and more engaging for the students to practice discussion skills face-to-face. The students seemed reluctant to participate at times, and none of them wanted to turn on their cameras. I think if they could see each other they would have an easier time discussing. There were also challenges in the group discussion activity as not everyone fully comprehended the story they were discussing. The instructor did his best to clarify the content of the stories, but there still seemed to be some confusion. I think better comprehension would lead to better discussion, so maybe the material was too challenging.

I liked the instructor’s approach to teaching the class how to have discussions. As I mentioned, I think his biggest strength was his modelling of the skills he was teaching. When the students were reluctant to engage in discussion with each other, he helped them along by having discussions with them and asking prompting and probing questions to keep the discussion going. He also highlighted the cultural relevance of discussion right at the beginning of class which I thought was a great thing to do. He told the class that in this culture we are expected to have opinions, and he encouraged the students to disagree with each other. This demonstrated why what they were learning in this class was important, and also gave the students permission to engage fully in honest and meaningful discussion.

For my first observation, I observed a series of videos of an adult ESL class at a University. The class was a beginner level 1-2 literacy class with 11 students with varying levels of English proficiency. The lesson focussed mainly on clothing words and common dialogue phrases used when shopping.

I thought the instructor did an effective job of facilitating learning throughout the entire lesson as it was extremely interactive. During lesson time, the instructor engaged the students by having them repeat the dialogue she was teaching, and having them offer phrases to incorporate in the dialogue. This constant engagement meant that students were both learning and practicing new language at the same time. She also chose dialogue that was practical for real-world application so students would have a motivation to listen and learn.

The instructor catered to multiple learning styles, and I saw elements of auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learning. She primarily used auditory learning as most of the lesson relied on listening to and repeating phrases. She used many visual cues as supplements, drawing pictures, using props, and making physical gestures to convey the meanings of words or phrases. She facilitated kinesthetic learning by doing activities where students had to move around, such as the warm-up activity in which students moved down a line to greet each other, and the dialogue activity in which they had to act out an interaction in a clothing store.

The instructor was constantly assessing learning throughout the class. She did group assessments during her lessons when asking students to provide answers or repeat what she was saying. She asked questions that applied to the dialogue she was teaching to assess what the class knew already. She listened to how the students were pronouncing the words to assess which words were challenging and needed to be emphasized.

Individual assessment occurred in the dialogue activity and in the exit activity. In the dialogue, the instructor was able to hear students speak solo so she could assess their speaking skills. She provided immediate feedback for everyone. In the exit activity, students had to describe what they were wearing, and the instructor could assess the progress of each student. The students also did an individual writing activity which I assume was handed in for assessment, though this is not shown in the video.

Barriers to learning in the class were not obvious, but the instructor’s interview revealed some challenges. She stated that the students have varying levels of English proficiency, so perhaps at times the class is too difficult for some and too easy for others. The instructor mentioned that many students are tired when they come to class because they work during the day, so their fatigue may impede learning. She also mentions that some students have little educational experience in their home countries, so they lack learning skills used in the classroom.

There were many things I liked about the instructor’s teaching that I would like to adopt myself. I thought one of her biggest strengths was her role as a model throughout the class. She spoke very clearly at all times and repeated key words and phrases. She used more repetitions than I would have thought necessary, but it really did seem necessary for the class, so I will have to remember that I should repeat key words and phrases more than I intuitively feel I need to.

Something I noticed in the instructor’s teaching was her attention to cultural subtleties and aspects of communication that go beyond language. When she was teaching the dialogue, I noticed that she was emphasizing that she wanted the students to point when they said “over there.” She demonstrated the action several times and drew a picture of a pointing hand. In the activity, one girl gestured with her head when saying “over there.” The instructor corrected her and made her point. I realized that the instructor was emphasizing the pointing because it is not a culturally universal gesture. I have become aware that I will need to consider use of gestures in my teaching as well.