Procedures in class were already put in place by my CT and most of the pupils were accustomed to it. This was a mixed blessing. It was easy for me to conduct lessons, collect assignments and conduct cooperative learning but to introduce new procedures which I felt would make the class more efficient, was difficult. My CT encouraged me to ‘practice’ teaching with the rules and procedures already enforced and model his teaching style. I found this helpful as I was totally new to teaching and without an inkling of what to expect. I felt compelled to follow his lead. However, what I really wanted to do was try out all the strategies I’ve learnt in school. Then again, as it was my very first ever teaching experience, I decided that modeling after him would help me gain my confidence and momentum as a teacher. That was my stance for the whole of

In addition, with my new knowledge of learning styles, different needs from EED102 compounded with the earlier knowledge and strategies in EED101 Will better prepare me for the next time I prepare a lesson for the class.

I do feel that I need more help in the area of providing a variety of learning activities that will interest, motivate and challenge my pupils other than only using the educational games I play with them (if time permits) at the end of each lesson. The enthusiasm I receive from the pupils before and during these sessions makes me wish all my classes were like that: fun yet effectively educational, and always leaving the pupils hungry for more.

The pupils had assembly that day during which incidentally, a skit by a local drama group was put up. Before the skit, flyers about the skit were given out to all the pupils. I reminded the pupils of this and pointed out that the flyers they received were actually the programme. Referring to a concrete example in real life will allow pupils to construct their own schema for this new knowledge. I asked the pupils to tell me what was on the flyer and wrote the responses on the board. They responded with what they saw on the flyer.

In retrospect, I feel the modules have helped me better understand how pupils in general think and learn. However, due to my lack of experience in teaching per se, I was not able to fully utilize and apply everything I have learnt when teaching. I was only just getting into a ‘teaching’ mode and found it difficult to consciously incorporate everything that I have learnt in NIE. I did, however, inject miniscule teaching and learning strategies wherever possible and appropriate. I also felt that given the Practicum duration, it was still too short for me to have a comprehensive assessment of the way my pupils think and learn. It was further hampered by the fact that they are used to their ‘real’ teacher’s methods and procedures .

Some topics in this essay:
According SIO, Evaluation Assessment, Five EM1, Teacher’s Handbook, Practicum Compared, , pupils learn, text type, answers exercises, pupils tell, found difficult, attempting worksheets, procedures class, programme pupils, pupils questions, prior knowledge,