iWalkthrough in School

Having class at CFHS definitely has its perks for a pre-service teacher. This week, we ventured into the school in small groups and observed a few classrooms on our own. We had recently discussed reading in and outside of the classroom, so we tried to determine whether the classes we observed were doing pre-, during, or post-reading activities and whether or not there was evidence of learning.

The group I was in observed three different classrooms – two ELA and one art class. As we observed the classrooms, we saw different techniques being used for classroom management and teaching methods. The first ELA class we observed had students participating in a read-aloud of a novel they were reading in class, and apparently had been watching scenes of the movie. As the students were reading in parts, the teacher would stop in between and pose thought-provoking questions, allowing the students to understand and interpret what they were reading. The students appeared to be well-behaved, staying quite when listening to their peers, although participation was hard to observe. A student might have a book open seem to be following along, but how can you tell?

The second classroom we observed was also and ELA class. We had previously observed this teacher during a previous class, so it was interesting to see what else she had up her sleeve. The students in this class were also reading in class, but there was a different flow to the instruction. As students were reading, the teacher was walking around, asking individual questions (to make sure the students were participating) and the students were taking notes, I’m assuming to remember what they were reading (most likely preparing for a future class activity/assignment). However, at the same time, every few minutes, the teacher would pose questions to the class, asking about plot points and predicting what might happen in the book and the possibilities their actions might have. She was also creating a graphic organized on the board of a specific character in the book that the students were developing. There was a lot going on in this room at once, and it was hard to tell, once again, whether or not students were participating or learning.

The last classroom we observed was an art class. This class was not what I expected it to be. I honestly don’t know what I was expecting to see in an art class, but what I saw was nowhere near what I imagined. Students were all in their own little worlds – listening to music, fidgeting with their electronic devices, and the teacher only seemed to check up on and help students who were actually trying to put in an effort. There seemed to be no structure, as desks and tables were grouped differently in different places, and no motivation for most of the students. Most of them seemed young, most likely freshmen and sophomores who are required to take an art class and the students didn’t seem to care that they were there and neither did the teacher. It was like the teacher had given up on some students, and the students knew they could get away with it.

It was nice finally being able to go out on our own and observe classrooms. It was interesting to see the different strategies and classroom management skill (or lack of) in use. I can’t wait till I can observe classes in my content, and an entire class, at that, to see the total flow and feel of the classroom.