Matt CO #2

On Wednesday I observed Marilyn Sohan's elementary Speaking class. The students were comfortable but focused and without exception were engaged throughout the lesson.

Marilyn's teaching style attempted to strike a balance between direct instruction and hands-off observation and facilitation, with a greater emphasis on the latter. In this session, Marilyn simply outlined the day's activity – speaking with one another about the rooms and furniture in their homes – and then left the students to their task, observing and providing support when needed. Marilyn's speech when giving instruction was clear, almost painfully enunciated, and slow – in stark contrast with the Advanced reading group I observed last week. After taking note of this, I realized I had made a basic faux pas in my tutoring session the night before: though I had been careful to keep my speech simple in content, I spoke very quickly and likely with my natural accent. Another tactic I observed was Marilyn's insistence on eye contact. Before speaking, Marilyn made sure to have her students make eye contact. In this way, she ensured her students remained attentive and receptive while she gave instructions

During the students' activity I circulated the room, observing and guiding students toward communication with each other. This process was very helpful for me. After my somewhat shaky tutoring experience the night before, being able to genuinely help students communicate provided a sorely needed boost to my confidence regarding teaching. I think the structured nature of the lesson made the difference – being on sure footing helped to focus my attention and practically quash my anxiety. I noticed myself unconsciously adopting Marilyn's faucet-drip pace, which seemed to make a big difference in the students' level of comprehension. I even had to sort of shake myself of the habit afterward. When meeting my girlfriend after class, I had to check myself from talking to her like she didn't understand English.

In short, this straightforward lesson showcased for me a basic but effective approach to teaching ESL students still grappling with the fundamentals of the language.