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This is my peer teaching page. This page has much information on it about my very first teaching experiences here at Penn State. The video clip and the task analysis below go together. Following those are two final assessments that I wrote at the end of the first semester of my junior year.
This is my final peer teaching of the semester. I taught a symbolic patterns activity using the Postman game. You can view the whole teaching clip and the Task Analysis that I followed (or tried to follow) for the activity. TASK ANALYSIS - SYMBOLIC PATTERNS OBJ: Upon seeing a familiar triple TB, MB, division and MB elongation pattern notated with SP3 in the familiar measure signature of 6/8, SWABT recognize the pattern by chanting it correctly, with appropriate syllables, with consistent tempo and accurate meter. ACTIVITY: Postman Game TASK: Students will be able to chant familiar triple patterns with appropriate syllables alone or in small groups when shown the pattern on a card written out with SP3. MATERIALS: Index cards with pictures (variety of pictures) Paper/card with SP3 symbols Envelopes PROCEDURE: T: “Sway and tap, and echo me!” (in triple meter) T: Sway and tap too T: Pass out cards while chanting—students should not look at cards T: Cards should be mixed up so that similar cards are not all in one area S: Answer with appropriate syllables T: “I’m going to chant a pattern on ‘ba’, then I’d like you to think it in your head. I’ll chant it again and show you the pattern and all of you answer on the appropriate syllables.” T: “Sway and tap, sway and tap” (in triple) T: Sway and tap, too T: Chant pattern on neutral syllables (point to self) T: Point to head to get them to think it S: Think the pattern T: Chant the pattern again (point to self) and show them the pattern on card T: Have all the students answer on appropriate syllables (point to students) S: answer on appropriate syllables T: Repeat this step several times to practice T: Give positive feedback to the class at various intervals T: “Now, look at your cards!” S: Turn cards over or pull them out of envelopes T: “I’m going to show a pattern and a card. I want you to think the pattern in your head. Then I’ll give you ready chat and if you have the card, you chant the pattern shown.” T: “Sway and tap, sway and tap, ready and think” (in triple) T: Sway and tap, too T: Hold up a pattern and a card T: Point to head to get students to think it S: Think the pattern T: “Sway and tap, ready and chat!” S: Only students with this card chant the pattern on syllables Repeat a few times. T: “We’re going to try that again!” T: “Sway and tap, ready and think!” (in triple) T: Holds up just a pattern this time S: Thinking T: “Sway and tap and think again!” T: Hold up pattern and a card this time S: Think T: “Sway and tap, ready and chat!” S: Chat on syllables. T: Repeat this step several more times or until all cards have been called using a variety of patterns T: Give positive feedback as necessary Could collect the cards and redistribute In this case, do whole class practice with teacher chanting neutral syllables and students chanting on appropriate syllables while passing out cards.
REFLECTION ON MY TEACHING Below is the weakness that I worked on for the entire semester. The final paragraph is a reflection of my teaching of the above activity.
Domain B: Teaching If you select one of the following as your “strength” write an “S” in the box; as a “weakness” write a “W” in the box. The “W” is your one goal for the semester.
Domain B Performance Rating:
Comments: Teaching Song without Accomp: I have selected B7 as my weakness. While I felt that I kept most of my directions clear and concise, I still had moments where I would ramble on. At one point, I was explaining the next step and apparently had lost my train of thought. I ended up saying the same thing twice. And I almost started to say it again! I notice this in my conducting DVDs as well. To work on this, I am going to write a script for myself and keep the sentences as short as possible when practicing. I am also going to go back and read the Mager book on objectives. While it does not apply directly, the book provides good ideas on how to keep statements in general brief. Finally, I am going to practice saying my instructions (prior to teaching) in as few words as possible. I may start off by just using basic nouns and verbs, then expanding it slightly to form a complete, but brief sentence. (9/19) Teaching Song with Accomp: While teaching this song, I noticed that I was thinking about a ton of things all at once. I did manage, however, to cut down on a lot of words. I felt that my sentences mostly made more sense and I was tripping over my tongue saying the same thing over and over. I did have trouble with specific words and their meanings this time. I was fumbling over the difference between sing and echo. I think the next appropriate step would be to use my pre-written script and go over that as many times as possible. I will make sure that I have the exact words that I want. Even if this is not memorized, at least it will give me a net to fly with. Also, I think applying the final step of the first teaching would help a lot. If I just think short, concise sentences with as few words as possible, my ideas are more likely to come across without extra distraction. (10/12) Reviewing a Song with Accomp: This teaching experience was the first one where I had to think on the fly. I had to do some problem solving and decide which steps I needed to take. With all of this to think about, I forgot to put a lot of attention on my talking. While I did not talk too much, I did find my verbal communication a bit wordy. Sometimes my feedback was so lengthy that I contradicted myself and did not even pick up on it. I think that I did a decent job of keeping it at about the same spot as the last teaching though. I think that a good step for this next teaching would be to go back and watch all of my previous teachings (and maybe even some conducting videos) just to see what I think is too much talking. That way, I can see where the good things are and how to say them in as few words as possible and even see how to break down some of the ideas that were much too long. (11/9) Teaching a Tonal/Rhythm activity at VP or VS: I did very well this time on my teaching goal. I’m not entirely sure if it was just because I was under the weather or if I actually improved. For the most part, I seemed on the ball, so I think I’m actually improving. One thing that I noticed this time is that I’ve minimized my talking, but my feedback isn’t as effective because I’m trying to say as little as possible. Now that I have the talking somewhat controlled, I’m going to start working on concise and thorough feedback. I’ve watched all my past teachings and a couple of my past conducting videos to see what feedback works well and what does not. I’m also going to work on listening even more attentively than normal so I can think of exactly what I can say, or DO, to let the students know what is good, what they can improve on, and how they can improve it if necessary. (12/7) Teaching a Tonal/Rhythm activity at SP or SS: My talking was a little more present this week. However, I noticed a good bit of non-verbal cues and facial gestures. It was nice to see such an emphasis on the non-verbal feeback. The talking was a bit distracting and did draw my focus away from the actual teaching. For the future, I will continue to work on following the scripts that I have been writing for myself. While I have to be flexible in the way the lesson goes, it is somewhat necessary to follow these scripts. If I knew the script a little better, I would not be as nervous and then I would not feel the need to talk as much. This goal will work in conjunction with my future goal of giving specific feedback and encouragement. These two will work hand in hand as I will continue to keep my talking clear and concise to give the best feedback in as few words as possible. Even though I feel that talking is a strong, identifying characteristic of mine, I think that it will what I have to say seem that much more important in the classroom. (12/14) FINAL PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT This semester has been quite a challenge. I have always felt that talking has been one of my identifying characteristics. So, when I started teaching, I decided that I would work on modeling more and talking less. I also realized that I needed to do more with gestures while standing in front of a group of students. These talkative traits were not only noticeable in my 295A teaching, but also in my conducting videos. It just felt easier to say everything than to try to model. I noticed that the opposite was actually true. Modeling turned out to be much easier and I found myself leaning on that end of things a bit more as the semester continued. At times, I would still talk a little too much, especially when I was nervous. I finally arrived at the point where I felt comfortable with less talking. I do not feel that I ever reached excellent with my goal. I hit a plateau at good which was just time. These are skills that I am going to be developing for the rest of my life as a teacher. While I feel that I could stay with this goal, I am finally at ease with the idea that I can keep working on this, but have a more prominent goal for next semester. I have chosen B4 as my next goal. This goal states that the student teacher manages student learning with consistent feedback and encouragement. I have noticed that my feedback is often generic at best and generally does not give any tools to fix the issues that might arise. It also would be helpful to provide some more specific feedback if the students are doing well. It would be a shame for the students to hear the same positive comments being used in rotation. I think one of the first specific steps I will take in attaining this goal will be to observe some teachers both over break and at the beginning of the school year to see what kinds of encouragement and feedback these veteran teachers give to their students. It always helps me to see how other teachers handle their classrooms in situations similar to the ones that I will be put in. I will also work on writing down some generic positive feedback and ways to fix common errors. This will give me a vocabulary of comments to use in a classroom of any kind. |