Moya Daly » grid

Ok Ok so it’s finally over-the Dreaded Presentation has been delivered, and you have no idea how relieved I m feeling! Well, if you’ve been reading this,then perhaps you will be able to imagine the relief at least. I’d love to be able to say that it was worth all the stress and hard work………..but I’m sorry, it wasn’t! Not that it didn’t go well, because it did(thanks to the combined effort of our group, not least H, who designed the powerpoint stuff, and M, who operated the changes of page throughout this nerve-racking ordeal) I have no idea if that is actually a verb….to page-change??? It seemed to be quite successful. A couple of overlapping points, one part where I prayed no-one would ask a question because I had totally forgotten what a phrase meant, and one amusing point where I reverted into teacher mode and started the elicitation process ‘…..can anyone tell me………?’ Went down well, however: I acknowledged how as teachers we seem to do this naturally, and laughed it off.
Secretly we thought ours was the best….well, we would, wouldn’t we? However I still can’t accept that it was worth the sleepless nights-my older daughter remarked, ‘I always hated presentations at Uni;I still maintain it was the tutors way of getting the students to give the lesson instead, thus saving them work.’ Now,I did not say that, remember, SHE did!!! I have to say at this point that this course deals quite strongly with the famous student-centred/student-led lesson theory. I have really enjoyed the input sessions on the various views on methodology, and have managed to read quite a lot of the famous Geoff Petty.Much of it is very interesting, and I can see why things have veered away from the dated and traditional methods. I must say, however, that regardless of the million and one surveys and investigations,I have yet to be converted to the theory that lessons should be completely student-centred. Peer correction can never be 100% effective, despite being productive in that it promotes L2 speaking. Students, regardless of age and background,will nearly always expect their ‘two penn’orth’-i.e. teacher direction and teacher correction. Uh-oh!! I said the C word-a very dirty word in this very enlightened era! Heuristic is the buzz word. They must DISCOVER things for themselves!!! However, as one student was so quick to point out to me (when I applied my taught methods of self correction and smugly asked,’Now, what do you think is wrong with this here?’ ,rather than telling him)……….’You are teacher-you tell me what is wrong!’You have to laugh, don’t you?
So,presentaton over, and all that remains is….well, the rest of the course basically, which includes this assignment INCLUDING the b****y grid, the next 9, the 6 observations, the 5ILPs,the portfolio in all its glory and probably the loss of my sanity. Hallelujah! Oh, by the way, I have another (unassessed) mini presentation to research for next week-this time on audiolingual teaching-so interesting at least-AND my first observed lesson will be on Friday 23rd March, so watch this space-I now have something new to stress about. March is a very busy month for me-Piano Festival with youngest daughter, trip to Suffolk to see my Mum on Mother’s Day-of course,my very first Sikh wedding on 25th,and an overdue visit to Northampton to see my younger son. Easter cannot come soon enough for me!!!!!!!!

Good news….I found a website to appeal against the ****** parking ticket, and lodged my appeal online, informing them I have proof of payment. Bad news………..I lost the ticket proving payment!!!!! Good news…………found it again today!
More good news………..I have been reading Geoff Petty’s ‘Evidence Based Teaching’(it’s the in thing, you know)and ‘Teaching Today’, which has reassured me that I am actually doing quite a lot of the recommended ’stuff’ already. This boosted my confidence no end. Bad news………..first observation looms!!!!
First half of the input session was about reflective practice followed by best practice. We had to take in a lesson plan we had taught and scrutinise it for good and bad points…….hmmmmmm yes,well……. moving on……..
As the session went on, we discovered more and more ’stuff’ we are required to include in our observed lessons. Class profile,for example must contain notes for each student (!!!) on level,background, learning style,assessmnet to date, and any relevant detail which could affect the teaching or learning! So that’s fine, then-no problems!!!!!! I felt close to tears.
Thank goodness for the second half-feedback on the mini task from last session. Very interesting-and no,sadly I did NOT shine, as I thought I would;actually my effort was very mediocre. The final nail in the coffin was when I had to ask what ‘inflected’ meant when referring to verbs!!! I’m sure everyone knows that-I, unfortunately, did not and this did nothing to boost my already drooping confidence.
On a (slightly) lighter note, (I use that term rather a lot, don’t I?)I have at least managed to log sixteen and a half hours of lesson plans. Only ninety-seven and a half to go then!
The presentation looms-(shivers in fear)-it’s no laughing matter, really.I just need to find the Tomlinson report somewhere, summarise it, pick out the important parts, match all these pats to the corresponding column in the grid, and think of an entertaining way of presenting these rivettingly interesting facts and figures to the rest of my class.
How could I ever have thought that CELTA was easy???????
More bad news……I missed my daughter’s school parents evening two weeks ago, rather than miss a week of the course. Now I find out that the Year 9 Options Evening is also on a Tuesday-next Tuesday, in fact. Had a very nice letter from her head of year saying how sorry she was not to have seen me at Parents Evening, and hoping I could make it to the Options Evening. So I had to make myself look totally uncommitted to the course by asking my tutor if I could leave early next week. She said that of course I shouldn’t miss this event, that it was very important, but of course the paranoid side of me was convinced that the words were uttered through clenched teeth, and I swear I could hear what she was really thinking……..useless, uncommitted, drama queen. I just KNOW she was!!!!
I need to start planning all my observed lessons well in advance. I am sooooooooooo scared.
Meanwhile, I must sleep, perchance to dream and all that. Just hope that damned grid assignment doesn’t make an appearance!
Until next week, then-bye!