WEEK 9: SELF-REFLECTION REPORT- THE TEACHING DEMO

 WEEK 9: SELF-REFLECTION REPORT- THE TEACHING DEMO

It'd been an exhilarating yet nerve-wracking ninth week! Our anticipation was high as we geared up for our first in-person presentation this semester. However, the journey to this point had been far from smooth. Initially, we aimed for an easy-to-teach topic and settled on the water cycle, but Dr. Lina's feedback about the need for a tertiary-level topic led us to reconsider. Despite our efforts to elevate the complexity of the water cycle, we couldn't quite reach the required level. After grappling with topic selection, we finally pivoted to a more significant societal issue—environmental pollution. Focusing on water and air pollution, we utilized recent events like the nuclear effluent discharge in Japan to highlight water pollution and the Indonesian haze to exemplify air pollution.

After settling on our topic, we outlined our teaching demo's content and divided the parts. Subsequently, in Dr. Lina's lesson, we delved into discussing learning outcomes (LOs). Her detailed guidance on creating effective LOs led us to determine three LOs using the SMART Model and Bloom’s Taxonomy to what the students would gain from our teaching. It was unclear which version we were presenting to you because we'd made so many changes during this session. Creating the PowerPoint slides for the presentation is the ultimate task, of course. Notwithstanding some challenges, everything had gone smoothly thus far.

The day before the official teaching demo, our group scheduled a rehearsal with Dr. Lina. Rehearsing together outside the classroom an hour before, the group's relaxed and joyful atmosphere eased my nerves considerably. Despite feeling a tad nervous about the rehearsal with Dr. Lina, the process flowed seamlessly! Following our rehearsal, Dr. Lina provided verbal feedback to each group member, highlighting areas in our slides that required improvement, such as incorporating higher-order questioning strategies and enhancing interactivity. She also complimented Jedidah's introduction and Fangwen's conclusion, recognizing their critical roles in crafting impactful beginnings and memorable endings essential for a successful presentation. To ensure a compelling presentation, the opening of a presentation should entice the audience, set the tone, establish the presenter's authority, capture attention, and summarize key points (Wrench et.al, 2011). Equally important are strong conclusions, offering a final chance to emphasize the message's significance, signal the speech's end, and reinforce key takeaways for the audience's memory (Publisher, 2016).

In group work, minor challenges are par for the course, but we consistently find solutions. A hiccup arose when a team member, absent due to illness, returned with a flurry of questions regarding the missed rehearsal. While attempting to clarify my part, confusion arose, leading to disagreement despite my efforts to address it. This incident shed light on the importance of communication styles, in line with Communication Accommodation Theory (CAT). CAT explores how we adapt communication within group dynamics, considering motives and consequences (Giles & Ogay, 2006). Reflecting on this, I recognized the necessity of flexible communication to forestall potential misunderstandings, aligning with the notion of divergent shifts that bolster understanding (Street & Giles, 1982).

Finally, Wednesday marked the thrilling moment of our official teaching demo! My anxiety lingered from bedtime right up to the presentation moment. Sleepless and constantly rehearsing my script mentally, I aimed to deliver confidently without relying on it. Being the third group scheduled, nerves consumed me during the first two teaching demo groups. However, Aimi's continuous encouragement bolstered my confidence and courage. Unfortunately, nerves took over, causing a blank mind—quite dreadful! Despite this, our group's presentation flowed seamlessly, sticking precisely to our allotted time. Everyone used a teacher-like voice ensuring clarity for all attendees. Each member gave their best, and it was truly commendable! Moreover, I learned a great deal from other groups: about the solar system from Wyai Hon’s group, biology from Luanne’s group, art from Manishaa’s group, and Sitao’s group, who presented the intriguing topic of German Expressionism. Their concise presentation perfectly embodies the Chunking theory, demonstrating how learners absorb information better when presented in manageable chunks (Thalmann et al., 2019). I previously struggled to grasp German Expressionism as an elective student, however, their simplified explanation provided a clear understanding—an exemplification of effective learning through chunked information.

This teaching demo brought back memories of my group microteaching session during my first year. We meticulously crafted each step of the teaching process, from developing the lesson plan to designing the slides. It was quite challenging because we were teaching actual primary four students. We had to ensure absolute control over every aspect to guarantee a smooth experience.

Our group primarily centered on lecture-based learning aimed at one-way information delivery, complemented by guided questions and assessments. Additionally, we embraced inquiry-based learning by fostering an environment where thought-provoking questions guided our classmates toward discovering answers. Furthermore, our utilization of pre-teaching quizzes reflects the core tenets of both cognitive theory and constructivist theory. Firstly, the cognitive theory, emphasizes mental processes in learning by activating prior knowledge through prompting students to recall what they already know about the upcoming topic. Learning, from a cognitive perspective, occurs as new information is acquired or existing knowledge is adapted through experience (Bransford et al., 2000). Moreover, according to Ormrod and Jones (2018), students achieve better comprehension and retention when they link new material to their existing knowledge base.

Secondly, the constructivist theory emphasizes learners' active engagement, suggesting that by integrating past experiences with present perspectives, students develop, reconstruct, and expand their existing knowledge (Gee, 2012). Consequently, the classmates not only reviewed what they knew but also established connections between prior knowledge and new concepts. Additionally, this approach nurtures a student-centered environment, encouraging active participation, self-assessment, and reflection (Gazibara, 2018). Despite comprising only four questions, our pre-teaching quiz adeptly triggers prior knowledge, encourages reflection, and aligns with the principles of both cognitive and constructivist learning theories.

Improvements are needed especially in boosting self-confidence, particularly for me as I tend to get excessively nervous, impacting my performance and causing lapses, such as forgetting words. Although I had memorized my script, nervousness led me to rely on it more than intended. Furthermore, our group needs better time management skills. During one instance, with only three minutes remaining and a group member yet to present, our timing fell short. We overlooked classroom activities by dedicating most of our time to lectures, neglecting interactive sessions for our classmates—an area where other groups excelled. They allocated time for assessments and explanations, unlike us. While we were adept at posing questions, we lacked depth in gauging what the students were comprehending, pinpointing a significant weakness in our teaching.

                In conclusion, this journey of preparing and executing our teaching demo has been both challenging and enriching. I've realized that effective group work demands strong communication skills to avert misunderstandings that could potentially impact relationships. Additionally, I aim to refine my presentation abilities comprehensively to elevate my teaching professionalism in future endeavors. Moreover, the importance of time management and interactive classroom activities, showcasing areas for improvement in our teaching approach. Overall, this experience has been a valuable learning curve for me.

References

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experience, and school. In Committee on learning research and educational practice: Vol. Expanded E. https://doi.org/10.1016/0885-2014(91)90049-J

Gazibara, S. (2018). Constructivist active learning environments from the students’ perspective.

5th SGEM International Multidisciplinary Scientific Conferences on SOCIAL SCIENCES and ARTS SGEM2018, Science and Society, 5. https://doi.org/10.5593/sgemsocial2018/3.4/s13.023

Gee, J. (2012). Importance of prior knowledge to learning. Illinois State University News.

Giles, H., & Ogay, T. (2006). Communication accommodation theory. In Explaining

Communication: Contemporary Theories and Exemplars. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781410614308

Ormrod, J., & Jones, B. D. (2018). Essentials of educational psychology: Big ideas to guide effective teaching. ResearchGate. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352354491_Essentials_of_Educational_Psychology_Big_Ideas_to_Guide_Effective_Teaching

Publisher, A. R. at R. of O. (2016, November 8). 11.1 Why conclusions matter. Pressbooks. https://open.lib.umn.edu/publicspeaking/chapter/11-1-why-conclusions-matter/#:~:text=Key%20Takeaways,to%20remember%20the%20main%20ideas.

Street, R. L., & Giles, H. (1982). Speech accommodation theory: A social cognitive approach to

language and speech behavior. Social cognition and communication, 193226, 193-226.

Thalmann, M., Souza, A. S., & Oberauer, K. (2019). How does chunking help working memory?

Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning Memory and Cognition, 45(1). https://doi.org/10.1037/xlm0000578

Wrench, J. S., Goding, A., Johnson, D. I., & Attias, B. A. (2011). Stand up, speak out: The

practice and ethics of public speaking.