Teaching Journal

Class: 40 students of 1-1 in HSHS
Date: October 11th, 2005
Textbook: Brushup your English grammar p/b CHART INSTITUTE
Allotment: Participle (1) pp.56-57

Lesson objectives

1. To review what Ss have learned about participles in their junior high school.
2. To have Ss understand functions of participles.
3. To familiarize Ss with the basic usage of participles through exercises.

Teaching objectives

1. To keep looking at Ss as much as possible.
2. To call on as many students as possible.

Outline of the procedure

1. Review of Gerund (5min)
2. Introduction of participles (5min)
3. Checking the meaning of examples on page 56 (15min)
4. Checking the answers for exercises on page 57 (10min)
5. Composition practice on page 57 (10min)

Post-class reflections

I set two teaching objectives above because I got shocked by the video-taped lesson. What shocked me most was that I seldom looked at students. I had believed that I did communicate with students. That is why I tried to look at Ss today by all means, which I believe was quite successful, though I need the video-check again. When I looked at Ss' faces, I strangely felt relaxed, probably because I could catch their reaction to what I said to them. Though this interaction was mostly done in Japanese, I want to believe that this is a kind of improvement.
At the same time, I tried to call on as many students as possible. Unfortunately, there was no significant improvement because I didn't make any fundamental change for the lesson procedure. I know I should, but the strict time allocation and assignment stopped me. It was a kind of dilemma.
On the other hand, time allocation and overall procedure were OK. I feel funny, but I am good at keeping time in the lesson. This itself is not bad, but I am realizing that there is something more important in the lesson. I want to motivate students to study English by ... how?
Washino-sensei game me a hint. It was called a "program study", where each student studies with each pace, and teachers just check their proceeding. He said that this way of studying is often done in the elementary school. I want to try it someday.
From this Friday, the preparation for the mid-term exam will start. I will have Ss review what they learned so far, using a lot of exercises.