Learning from my Peers

       During fieldwork when we were not teaching for two days we had to watch and observe our classmates teach the class. There were four groups in total. I was the first group to go, then I observed the teacher candidates the following weeks. While observing my classmates I learned new great methods I could use in my future classrooms as well as what not to do.

       I noticed that the second group to teach was very organized and had good timing. However I noticed that they would just say "very good" after getting one answer to a question. They would not check with the whole class or get multiple answers. I also noticed that they had a lot of words on the slides and a lot of words to fill in on their notes. This might seem overwhelming for students; to make I less overwhelming, teachers can have each bullet point go up by itself. I liked how this group had name tags for students so that they could call on the students name instead of pointing at them. I also enjoyed when they had students repeat words to drill it in their heads. However, teachers should not use "teacher vocabulary" while teaching students such as calling activities guided practice or independent practice. Here is a link to my Direct Instruction observation for group 2. I like how in the inquiry and cooperative learning lesson you modeled exactly what to do and the thought process students should go through to complete the activity. I also like how you walked around to help groups who needed help while completing the activity. I really liked how teachers explained how students should communicate while completing  the cooperative learning activity by filling in the acronym. However, I think teachers should have modeled and gave directions on what exactly what to do like they did for the inquiry lesson. Here is a link to my inquiry lesson observation and my cooperative learning observation.

        The third group had a method to see how well students understand the topic. This group had three colored index cards (green, red, and yellow). Teacher candidates would ask students to hold up the card to see where students stood then would reteach if they saw yellow or red cards up. However, when asking students to hold up their cards they may be embarrassed to say how they really feel so maybe ask for those who do not understand to hold up first. I also believe that teachers should not just rely on index cards; they should call on multiple students for the answers and have the rest of the class agree or disagree. I would use this in my future classroom This group also taught together and went off of each other to teach instead of one at a time which was great teamwork. However, teachers should always have an independent practice to see if students understand the material on their own. Here is a link to my Direct Instruction observation for Group 3. The third group combined their inquiry and cooperative learning lessons this was a great engaging lesson and activity; however, our task was to complete three lessons. Before starting the lesson teachers played a video without asking students to think about something or asked any questions after the video was played. Teachers should always ask questions or have students think about something while watching a video to make sure students are watching and make it meaningful. Also, teachers should always model and give specific directions to make sure students understand what is expected of them. I like how while completing the activity they would ask students meaningful questions and asked them to share their opinions. This allows teachers to understand students' thought process. Even though there is not a lot of time to complete all of the material, teachers should not cut out essential parts to a lesson. Here is a link to my inquiry lesson and cooperative learning observation.

        The fourth group also used index cards to see how well their students understood the material. However, they laminated them so that they could be reused which is a good idea. They also had name tags on the students done in big black letters so that it is easy to read while standing in the front of the classroom. I like how this group repeated words and definitions to drill the information into the students head. They also had a very nicely designed PowerPoint presentation that was engaging to look at.  I also enjoyed how students worked in groups to come up with an answer; however, I think it would be more beneficial to call on random groups not just one person in a group to give an answer. I also like how they had a kahoot as a closure, but I think students need more time to read and think of the answer of the question. Also, the guided practice activities should be done at the end of the lesson instead of throughout the lesson, but had engaging activities that built off of one another. I also liked how the independent practice required students to draw a picture because it switches things up a little bit and allows students to show off their creativity. However, instead of asking students to draw one thing they learned about students should try to in cooperate everything they had learned in the lesson. Here is a link to my Direct Instruction observation for Group 4. During the second day of teaching for Group 4,  they combined both their inquiry and cooperative learning lesson which worked out for timing purposes. I really liked how they showed a video relevant to the students age to encourage them that they could become entrepreneurs.Each group also had kindle fires  to complete the activity which is good to bring technology into the classroom. Here is a link to my cooperative learning and inquiry observations for Group 4. 

        I believe that learning from doing and watching is the best way to learn. I learned a lot from the feedback my peers gave me after teaching my lesson and from watching them teach their lessons. I will definitely use some of the methods my peers used in their lessons in my future classroom. I also learned what works for students and what does not work.