Tanya Cowie – VCC
Reflection on the observation of Tanya Cowie from VCC instructing in a Beginner Adult Literacy course.
Watching Tanya in her class gave me the opportunity to see how a class is conducted from the warm up to the close. Aside from the comments I made below I enjoyed the interview and her honesty with the struggles she sees in the classroom.
She mentioned how tired students were at the end of their working day and then coming to a language class. I see this as a legitimate challenge because I know how my focus wanes at the end of my day. Another comment she made was the education level is varied in the class. She recognized how some students had little knowledge of how to learn. I hope, being a seasoned teacher, I will be able to pick up on those differences quickly so I can plan my lessons with that in mind.
What I noticed with a Level 1/2 split is that she used the strategy of repeating often. Her lesson plan was focused on one aspect of clothing and shopping. She did not have every type of clothing hanging so her questions and phrases were basics, pants, shirt, belt. It was practical vocabulary.
Tanya used the term essential language and this is where I believe my path will head. I want to help new immigrants to our city learn how to use a bus, how to shop for clothes and food. Essential words that will help them assimilate into the community.
Below are my comments
| Time | Activity | Comment |
| May 14 1545 MST | Warm Up Wrote on the board using text and images She was reading as she wrote, repeating, repeating, repeating. She used gestures to identify the feelings She repeated after each person correcting/annunciating strongly Participation activity kept students engaged | She knew her students, she was putting their tent card out at same time saying their names. Each student had the same task of answering the same question. No one was caught off guard or singled out. She used interjection in her responses which can help students understand the context The bell made it fun – students were laughing. I have a cold/I am cold – I wondered if this was a good fit – or did this create confusion and should be left for a weather |
| May 14 1600 MST | Part 1: Communicative Activity 2 Part 1 Used board, artifacts Wrote phrases on the board Mimed the articles She had a sequence to the event of shopping for a belt. Partner practice, kept the interest and kept if fast paced | Engaged with students and content right away She was very personable with some laughs Formulate vocabulary She kept them at their table for table for partner practice instead of calling them up. |
| May 15 1800 MST | Part 2: Communicative Activity 2 Part 2 Writing on board and reading it as she writes, students are repeating Pointed at the words as students read Removed words one at a time to test memory Gave a worksheet to check memory of the words Role playing the same activity for all students | The paper activity was good in that she had the phrases on the board as well. It was very participatory and she kept everyone engaged with changing up the activity from repeating, to paper, to role play |
| May 15 1830 MST | Practice Card Game Brought ‘fun’ cards to class. She explained the game with simple instructions then she demonstrated how to play before she let them do on their own. She did go from table to table to check in She recapped the questions at the end both on the board, writing and reading. | I think the card game was very effective and it is something that you could have in your teaching kit. |
| May 15 1915 MST | Closing Exit ticket was to describe one item of clothing the student was wearing. Color was added A pleasant good night, see you tomorrow. | It was a good strategy to have students do one final repeat of a clothing item. They must have learned colors earlier as they could identify the color of their item. Everyone participated, no one snuck out. Good close to the evening class. |