FP002 – OBSERVATION AND RESEARCH IN THE LANGUAGE CLASSROOM PRACTICE ACTIVITY, Trabalhos de Língua Inglesa

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FP002 – OBSERVATION AND RESEARCH IN THE LANGUAGE CLASSROOM

PRACTICE ACTIVITY

Name and surnames:

MAO

Group:

FP_TEFL_

Date:

November, 2023

INDEX INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................ 2 SECTION 1........................................................................................................................ 2 SECTION 2........................................................................................................................ 4 SECTION 3........................................................................................................................ 5 SECTION 4........................................................................................................................ 6 SECTION 5........................................................................................................................ 7 SECTION 6........................................................................................................................ 8 CONCLUSION................................................................................................................... 9 BIBLIOGRAPHY................................................................................................................. 9 INTRODUCTION The purpose of this document is to serve as a porfolio and a tool for professional development. It aims to provide the author with significant insight into their career by promoting critical reflection on their teaching experience. The paper consists of six distinct sections, each of which includes brief accounts of a small number of learning experiences, personal reflections, and self-assessment. As for the author’s training and professional experiences, they are quite varied. The author has had the opportunity to step outside their comfort zone on different occasions as a way to challenge themselves, broaden their knowledge, and develop professional knowhow. SECTION 1 My teaching career began when I was only 16 years old. I joined a languages institute for basic one students with just a week of training. It was a dream come true for me, but I soon realized that I was not ready for the teaching profession. Most of my students were older than me and they praised me for being engaging, friendly, helpful, and strict. However, I felt that I needed more knowledge and skills to be a teacher. Therefore, I studied a lot to gain more confidence and answer my students’ questions. Confidence is something that I always showed to my students, but deep inside I knew I had a lot to learn.I should mention that I was a beginner learner when the audio-lingual method was the dominant approach. Later on, I had the opportunity to learn with the

In order to organize my learning process effectively, I think it is necessary to learn how to improve my time management skills. This would allow me to balance the different aspects of both my personal and academic life. However, it is also important to be flexible and realistic about timing activities, considering that some tasks may take longer than expected, which is often the case for me. Focusing on priorities is another aspect that I need to pay attention to, so as to avoid procrastinating on important tasks and compromising the quality of my work. SECTION 2 The first sample included in this section was selected because it was very representative and significant to me in the beginning of the course, it is a post from a classmate, Ruth Esther Figueroa M., shown in figure 1, extracted fromthe CLIL subject forum on October 1 st, 2023. Figure 1 Steps on how to be organized for a Master course. Note: this figure shows how Ruth Esther organized the predicted events for a successful individual task. Adapted from CLIL – Forum activity, by Ruth Esther Figueroa Mejía, 2023. Master in Teaching English as a Foreign Language, UNIB. The second sample is an article from the recommended literature in the Materials and Resources in EFL – Design, Creation, Adaptation and Evaluation subject, entitled English teachers as material developers by Marlene Ramírez Salas, published in Revista Electrónica “Actualidades Investigativas en Educación” vol. 4, núm. 2, julio-diciembre, 2004, p. 0. A summary of this article is provided: English language teaching is a dynamic and diverse field that requires constant innovation and creativity. Teachers need to design and select materials that suit their

learners’ needs, goals, and preferences, as well as the context and objectives of the course. However, finding or creating the perfect materials is not always easy or possible. That is why materials development and adaptation are essential skills for English language teachers who want to provide effective and engaging instruction. According to Tomlinson (2011), materials development is “anything which is done by writers, teachers or learners to provide sources of language input and to exploit those sources in ways which maximize the likelihood of intake” and materials adaptation is “any modification made to materials in order to make them more suitable for the users” (p. 3). This article focuses on the need for English language teachers to become materials developers. Note: according to the post in the subject forum, profesor Sheila Queralt explains that two simples should be included in section two, and not three as described in the Practice file. SECTION 3 The first sample was chosen because I had not studied formally for a long time, especially online. So, my classmate Ruth Esther help me organize the activities I had to do in a very logical way. What called my attention in her description was that she read the task instructions before reading the material. I used to read all the material previously, highlight what I considered important and only then I read the instructions. Usually, what I had highlighted helped me answer the task. For me doing it this way helped me have a broader view, not only focusing in answering the task. But after reading her way of doing it, I gave it a chance and it worked better, because I already had a focus, and I did not miss the chance of reading everything and learning from all the passages. It also helped me save time because I knew what I was looking for - I used to read the same chapter once, twice, and even three times. I also created a way to highlight what I considered important according to the colors of the markers, for example: yellow – important, blue – more important, pink – important quotation, it can be used in the writing, and so on. I also used pos its with different colors to help me find faster information. It al resulted in my draft being written faster and I had more time to proofread it and make sure I covered the Evaluation requirements. I intend to teach again, and this technique will certainly help me guide my students to save time and be more productive. For me, it is really related to one of the UNESCO pillars, learn to learn. The second sample helped me analyze what I did as teacher long ago. At that time, I was 18 years old, and I was really loving teaching. I used to teach in company

students and helped them communicate the sooner possible, providing them with useful content since the beginning. Unfortunately, they never paid me, so I stopped writing. The project never really started because the school split in two soon later. Now looking back, I see how audacious and fearless I was to accept the proposal. SECTION 5 I am certainly learning a lot from taking this course. Proof of this is that I am already applying what I have been studying. Last August, the network of schools I work for, accepted my proposal to have new English books for next year, so I was in charge of building the process to select it. I had to write Termo de Referência (a document that is the basis for a public invitation for companies to apply their books and participate in a public selection) and Edital 004/2023 – Seleção de Empresa para fornecimento de Programa Bilíngue (the official document that is published for all companies to be aware of this opportunity and apply their books). The link for the two documents is available in the bibliography. Writing these two documents I used knowledge from some subjects I had already done, such as Content and Language Integrated Learning - CLIL, Second Language Acquisition, Materials and Resources in EFL – Design, Creation, Adaptation and Evaluation. I am sure I could have used a lot more of the last subject in the list, such as these questions when selecting the new books for the schools where I work: Figure 2 Motivation and the learner I gathered with other 8 teachers and we had a list of topics we built in advance to evaluate the books. Now I see what we should have valued more, aspects like communicative proposals, integration of subjects, guide for busy teachers, etc. Even

having already had the subject at the Master’s, only reading for the second or third time I am really understanding in depth and being able to apply the knowledge. And this is the reason why I intend to develop my dissertation around this topic, making sure our selection is well based in theory and can reach students in the classroom making a difference in their performance. CLIL subject was the one that opened my eyes and guided me to the direction of choosing books only with this methodology. Before that, I was the kind of teacher who believed and adopted the Communicative Language Teaching based in Jeremy Harmer’s approach. Now I see that in CLIL there could be and engaging phase, then a study phase and finally an activate phase, mixing both approaches I agree with. SECTION 6 Diverse learning experiences can pose unique challenges. The teaching environment and learners’ personal backgrounds are two factors that can contribute to these challenges. Additionally, certain theories and approaches may be more effective for some learners than others. Therefore, it is crucial to identify the most suitable approach to help learners succeed. Classroom observation and needs analysis are two key methods to achieve this goal. Encouraging critical thinking and problem-solving activities can also be useful strategies to overcome these challenges. In my opinion, being a Master’s student requires developing certain characteristics to succeed in your studies. One must be adaptable to change and willing to work hard. Being inquisitive and focused is also essential. Above all, one must strive for greater efficiency. As such, it is essential to apply certain strategies to deal with an online Master’s degree. For example, organizing course materials, notes from readings and lectures, and research ideas can be helpful. Another strategy to consider is designing and making a timetable that ensures a sensible use of your time and prevents procrastination. Challenges that emerge from the learning experience can be solved by adopting the following strategies: Reading the material again, discussing with other teachers or peers, and having a well-organized timetable to allocate time for reading, thinking, and being reflexive. As a Master’s student, it is important to balance your studies with your social life. While it is essential to study a lot, it is also important to take breaks and spend time with friends. Only using your spare time to study and not seeing your friends can be overwhelming. Therefore, it is crucial to find a balance between your academic and social life. You can try to set aside specific times for studying and socializing, and make sure to

Tomlinson, B. (Ed.). (2011). Materials development in language teaching (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.