Lindsey Hornbuckle

EDAS 5760
Reflective Journal
Field Experience A
I had the opportunity to observe an 8th grade math teacher at one of the districts middle
schools. This occurred on the day I was able to shadow the 8th grade assistant principal who
was formerly my academy principal. Our district adopted the COACH model for conducting
observations approximately three years ago, so that was the model used in this situation.
Due to the fact that the model used was COACH, there was no a preconference with the
teacher; however, I did have a preconference with the assistant principal in regards to who this
teacher is. He simply told me we were going into an 8th grade math class, and that was all he said
because he wanted my honest/objective opinion in my evaluation I conducted.
The COACH model is intended to be used in conjunction with either six or eight, short
ten to fifteen minute observations. There is no preconference, but there is suppose to be a postconference within forty-eight hours of the observation. (Which the AP had with this math
teacher.)
When I walked into the classroom, I went to the back of the room to an available seat to
observe. The teacher was instructing the class about line segments and plotting points on a line.
The classroom was set up with tables, not desks, and there were eight tables. The majority of the
students were sitting around the tables in the front of the room, approximately eight students per
table, and there were students scattered around the tables in the back of the room. There was one
student who was sitting by himself in a cubicle in the back of the room. The first thing I noticed
about the teacher was her inappropriate dress. She was wearing fitted leggings with a sweater
that was not long, and she did not have on her school ID; this is a system-wide policy to which
she was not adhering. The fifteen minutes I was in there, it was teacher-led instruction with some
student participation. She walked across the front of the room and involved students who sat at
the front section of tables ten of the fifteen minutes I was in there. She kept calling on the same

male student, and he was the focus of the participation. There was little participation by the rest
of class because this student dominated the answers and discussion. This teacher did venture to
walk through the tables one time involving one female student who sat at the second set of
tables, but she then returned to the front of the room with her marker to continue writing and
discussing examples on the board.
One revelation from this semester about teacher observation that has remained with me is
not to see what the teacher is doing or how well he/she is doing it, but what are the students
doing. Are they engaged, participating, paying attention, etc? The majority of these students were
not involved at all. I noted that one table of students, in the front but to the far left of the teacher,
was in constant conversation but not about the math problems.
The teachers main strength was her content knowledge. If a student, who did participate
attempted an answer but was incorrect, she was able to redirect his/her statement towards the
correct answer and kept the discussion going towards the right answer. She also had students
write terms and definitions in their journals for notes and examples to study (study tools). She
would also write examples on the board, and if an example a student gave was incorrect, she
would plot that on the graph on the board for the class to work through (potentially).
My recommendations for improvement would be to get the students more involved in the
lesson. For example, she could have had the students come to the board and write their examples
or have the tables work together for an example and a representative to come to the front to write
the groups example. I would also recommend for her to walk around the room more during the
teacher-led discussions to ensure that the students are paying attention. There were too many
students who were distant and not involved in the conversation. She could have had, especially
in middle school, the class simply do a thumbs up or thumbs down for a quick comprehension
check. I just noticed the same three/four students participate.

On a professional level, I would discuss her attire. I realize this would be a difficult
conversation, but her clothing was too tight- especially for a middle school setting. I would
reference the teacher handbook for professional dress, and I would also explain that what she is
wearing is not inappropriate in a personal setting, but for school, she will need to adhere to the
policys dress code.
On a more personal, reflective note (maybe just for myself but still want to add), I did
not think she did a poor job overall. I realize that this one, fifteen minute observation, is just a
snapshot of her and her ability to teach these students. As a future administrator, I do not want to
forget the teacher side of education. I may have a completely different perspective than the AP
in this situation because I do not know/have a relationship with this teacher like he does. I may
notice more whats not going well over what is going well in her classroom. I do not know
what level of students she was instructing (special ed, honors, behavior, 504 plans, etc.). All of
those things, as a teacher, I know make a huge difference in the exact same lesson from class-toclass. That class may be more teacher led because it has proven to work the best for that
particular class; I do not know. What I do know is that the improvements I noted are ones that
can be applied regardless of the circumstances and/or students.
What I do want to take away from this is to remember what it is like to be the classroom
teacher and how important it is to know my teachers and their abilities to help students be
successful. For this specific observation, I only spent approximately three hours on this particular
evaluation including typing my reflection; however, I have spent several more hours in principal
discussions concerning teachers, observations, evaluations, pre and post conferences for my field
experiences.