What did I like and dislike about online teaching?
During my experience with online micro-teaching, I was both challenged and intrigued. One of the standout aspects of online teaching was that it allowed for greater flexibility in terms of teaching methods whereby I was able to incorporate a vartiety of digital tools and resources to enhance the learning experiences of my learners. Additionally, this form of teaching allowed for creativity when designing my powerpoint slides as I tried to make them as engaging and as interactive as possible to make up for absence of in-person interaction. The ability to record sessions for learners to review is also a significant advantge of online micro-teaching as in doing so, the learners are able to review the lesson and go through materials at their own pace. While there were aspects that I appreciated, there were severeal aspects that posed challenges for me. I found the limited in-person interaction challenging as I was not able to gauge student enggaement as effectively as I would in a face to face classroom. Due to the limited in-person interaction, both the learners and I had feelings of isolation and a sense of disconnectedness at first. Once we had all adapted to this space and navigated around the platform together, both the learners and I were more at ease. I therefore noticed that within this space, a bigger effort needed to be made on checking up on the learners. Whether this be through constant questioning, self evaluation, polls or the simple use of sending emoji's through the chat box. Aside from the lack of personal interactions, another dislike of working within the online space is being faced with the obstacle of technical issues which intrupts a seamless teaching experience. As previously mentioned, both the learners and the teacher may face a learning curve when adapting to online teaching which creates a sense of overall uneasiness if this process is not familiar.
What new skills did I learn through this experience?
Through this experience I learnt to be flexible in my teaching methods as the lesson may not always go as one plannned, especially when working within the online space, one has to be able to think quickly under pressure. At one point in my lesson, I had explained different types of pronouns. Only after one of the learners had asked for clarity, I had realised that it was not explained in the manner that I had hoped for. I then had to take a moment and change my approach on how to explain the concept to the learners in a better manner than I did before. This experience was unplanned and forced me to think quickly on the spot. Another skill I learnt through this experience was that it aided me in becoming digitally literate as I was able to incoprorate online teaching tools and learning management systems. I also developed a more acute sense of time management and a more concise way of teaching content.
What would I do differently ?
If I had the opportunity to present a lesson again within the online space, I would definietly try to slow down and not to rush. I personally felt very nervous at the start primarily because this was the first time presenting an online lesson. Next time, I will also have a smoother approach in navigating the online space and platform now that I have the knowledge of what each feature is used for. In saying this, I would also try to incorportate more interactive activities that allow for collaboration amongst learners such as group discussions and break out groups.
Did I choose appropriate tools to teach my online lesson ?
Aside from working on the learning management system - blackboard collaborate - I found it challenging to choose appropriate tools that would align with my chosen theme of "Space" however, instead of incorporating an online tool, I chose to incorporate an online space game that focused on parts of speech that would test what was learnt throughout the lesson.
In my view, the pronoun game was a perfect consolidation of the lesson as it tested the learners in a fun way which catered for varying abilities. If the learner was feeling confident, they could compare all the parts of speech (nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs) whereas if the learner was unsure, they could compare just two parts of speech. The decision remained on the learner for what they were comfortable with choosing. Additionally, I tried to make my lesson as engaging as possible by incorporating lots of examples to be completed as a whole class while incorporating extension work throughout as well.
How has this experience developed me for teaching in a school?
With the shift towards technology and using technology in the classroom, this experience is highly beneficial in accomodating the 21st century learner and their needs. It enhanced my adaptability and versatility in teaching methods, which are valuable in a rapidly evolving educational space. Moreover, this experience reinforced the importance of clear communication which are transferable skills that can be applied to a school setting.
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Scan the QR code to go view my peers comments on padlet about my micro teaching lesson.
Please see my link below to my comment on Jenna Evan's micro teaching blog post https://jennaevans020.wixsite.com/teaching-blog/post/online-micro-teaching-blog?commentId=f4de9559-3f25-4e28-94fe-b523df926e87
Thank you
I loved your lesson. You have reflected on your lesson and experience accurately and detailed. I really appreciated how prepared you were for your lesson. This really showed in your resources such as your slides as well as the game you played.
When teaching your lesson I am sure there were nerves, as I had them to! But you quickly where able to calm yourself and ensure the success of your lesson.
well done for all your effort it was such a fun and engaging lesson.
- Jenna Evans
Please see my link below to my comment on Amy-Leigh Wilkinson's microteaching blog post https://amyleighwilkinson.wixsite.com/my-site/post/online-microteaching-blog?commentId=720b7141-a99b-4819-a6fa-d5b940ad6f1c
Thank you
Your online microteaching blog is very insightful and i enjoyed reading it! I can definately tell that effort and thought was put into your entire microteaching session, with extensive thoughts on how to best teach online and what lesson would most suit the online space 🤍
When first doing the micro teaching, I could tell that the engagement was a difficult process at first when you were teaching but you soon became confident with the online interactions and that confidence created a very welcoming and fun environment to be taught in.
Overall I really enjoyed your microteaching blog and I feel like you will only increase your skills from here to become the best teacher you could be 🤍🧚🏻♀️