1st Week - day1:

Meet the Principal, MST and class

Information gathering (see below)

Further details about 1st Week

Your main objective this week is to settle in to your school. You should get to
know your MST, your class and other members of the school. To help you do
that,

Collect important information for your practicum and collect copies of the
following
v Unit plan/Weekly English plans/Unit that will be taught in the 2nd Week
so that you can plan suitable activities/Make copies of the pages of
the Teachers Guide and Class Book and workbook.
v Class list-get to know the children
Explain to your MST that you have a teaching task for the 2nd Week
which is to teach two speaking / listening lessons either to a group of
children or to the whole class
Complete Observation Task 1 Chit Chat. This activity is designed to
focus you on understanding the amount and the type of talk in the
classroom. It will give you a clearer sense of the purpose of talk in the
classroom; as well as identify how much talk is in English / how much is in
Arabic. It will also start you asking yourself why language is used in the
classroom. Hopefully, you will comment on this in your daily Reflection
Journal.
Complete Observation Task 2 Observe a teacher during a Listening Lesson
You will read a story to the class (if possible). In your planning, design a
pre- / a while- / a post- activity. Remember, also, to design aids to
meaning pictures, flash cards.
Teach them a song (if possible)

Observation Table, Task 1:

Reasons for speaking in the classroom
Class: Grade three

Number of learners:

30

Length of lesson: 45 mintes.

Teacher observed: Gada Mohammed

Language Learning Goals: the students will be able to speak English and to know
how to write and read.
Materials used:

project and wall cards.

Reason for speaking

1

Learner A

Learner B

Learner C

Learner repeats word(s) after teacher

- (whole class together)
Learner repeats word(s) after teacher
- (group / pair together)

Learner repeats word / phrase after teacher

- (individual )
4

Learner answers direct question from teacher

Learner answers open question from teacher

Learner asks teacher a question

Learner answers a partner in English

- (pair/ group work activity)

Learner answers a partner in Arabic

- (pair/ group work activity)
9

Learner speaks to the teacher informally

- (Add E for English; A for Arabic)

10

Other reason(s) for speaking

After the Observation

Write your answers in the boxes:

What was the most common reason for speaking?

The teacher did a speaking activity, and the students talk to each other.

What was the least common reason for speaking?

There are some students that have a low ability and they cant speak English well.

Were there any boxes with no ticks?

How much of the lesson was spent on the teacher using Teacher Talk, in your
opinion?

No

Half an hour.

Do you feel it was too much / too little / just the right amount of talk? Why / Why
not?

Its was too much because the students need to do more activities and the teacher talk, that
takes from the class time.

What do you think is an appropriate sequence of interaction patterns?

Some students are interaction and they want to do more work than the teacher give them.

Now consider how much Arabic was used. Do you think it was used appropriately?
Why? / Why not?

Yes, the students dont know English, even in English class they speak Arabic. They are low
in English.
Extra reflection
You do not have to do this activity. However, if you want a higher grade, you
must do it. If you are interested in thinking about this subject more, consider the
following reflection.
Reflection
Choose one of the following:
A.

Why is talk important?

for teachers?
for learners? (Think about the What and How.)

B. Why is it important to think about using English for varied purposes in the
classroom? For example, not just for giving an example, but also for correcting, for
praising, for everyday uses, like asking for help, or asking to borrow something?