Marmara Elt Resources

A Simple, Guided-Discovery Learning Activity
Ichiyama Yoko 
 QUICK GUIDE

Key Words:Guided-discovery learning activity, grammar
Learner English Level: Adaptable
Learner Maturity Level: Adaptable
Preparation Time: 30 minutes or less
Activity Time: 20 minutes
Materials: A reading passage and some example sentences

As a junior high school teacher, I have often found students to be passive and unmotivated in grammar lessons where teachers rely heavily on a deductive approach. However, on one occasion I found that students not only acquired the grammar rules more easily, but also actively participated in the process of acquiring target grammar rules when they were asked to work out the rules for themselves.

In order to encourage students to be involved in the process of discovering the rules of the target grammar items, I decided to introduce a simple guided-discovery learning activity to my class. As a result of the incorporation of guided-discovery learning into the classroom, students’ attitudes towards grammar learning have greatly improved. Read the rest of this entry »

The Benefits of Self-Evaluation

One of the goals of many teacher support and inservice programs is to provide teachers with instruments that direct and facilitate reflection. It is through such processes that teachers grow,that that teaching moves from being pursued as a trade to become a profession.Teachers who are already “converted” do not need to be convinced of this; they know that self-evaluation is highly beneficial. As for skeptics, we hope that this list of the benefits of self-evaluation will persuade them to join the army of teachers who now engage in this process:

• Self-evaluation facilitates learning and development of self-knowledge.
• It directs professional development and career planning,with resulting increases in professional satisfaction.
• It enhances feelings of job security and opens the door to growth and promotion opportunities.
• It arms teachers with tools for raising their awareness about their teaching and identifying problem areas.
• It ensures systematic and ongoing work on improving teaching patterns.
• It helps teachers better comprehend and articulate the rationales behind classroom behaviours, activities, and events. Read the rest of this entry »
  Posted in Useful Articles No Comments Tags: benefits of self-evaulation, elt, elt articles, inservice programs, self-evaulation

Peer Observation in the Classroom

To see what is happening in the classroom more clearly -particularly if access to video or audiotaping is not available - teachers may need asssistance from their colleagues. Peer observation has long been considered conductive to teacher learning, especially if the teacher observed is an experienced one and the observation is followed by conferences adn analysis of findings. Over the years,ideas for peer observation have been revised and new methods and possibilities have been developed. Observation can be conducted in pairs or groups; a second observer may be invited to class to ensure  objectivity; all parties may write diary entries or fill out checklists or observation report forms to elicit all perceptions of the lesson. Whatever the form, thevalue of peer observation comes not only in learning gained bye the observer through watching another teacher’s methods, but also in follow-up sessions. It is postobservation discussions that we draw conclusions that help improve our teaching patters and boost our professional growth. Read the rest of this entry »

The main problem faced by today’s teacher is that they feel students are loosing interest in studies. If we look from the student’s perspective then students feel that whatever is taught to them in schools is boring. Being a teacher, I faced these problems and tried to solve them. Based on my experiences, some of the solutions to increase interest and curiosity in students towards studies are:

1. In a class of 30-40 students there may be more than 20-25 hobbies now the teacher’s job is to correlate these hobbies with their studies. Suppose a student has a hobby of collecting stamps. The History teacher can ask the students to bring all stamps with Famous personalities printed on it and with the help of these stamps, the lesson can be made interesting. Other student may like something else that can make our classroom teaching well.
Read the rest of this entry »