The Outcomes of Imperfection

Last year, we were given the opportunity to observe teachers in real classrooms. I loved this experience that I want to tell you more about in this post! While we read a lot about methods, philosophies, and techniques, we tend to forget what can be really applied in a real classroom. We learn a lot in different courses but all what we learn is research-based. Nothing can be more authentic than seeing what is taught in class in real life! Fortunately, this experience opened my eyes to the real world where I could merely see  how  methods differ in different classes and with different students. I saw the techniques that I learned about in books applied in a real classroom. So, here is an overview of what I have learned, so far.

“The Outcomes of Imperfection”, many of you would ask why I chose this title. Shouldn’t it be more positive?! Well, I see the outcomes of imperfections blooming ahead to light up my future as a future teacher. All the “imperfect” moments I experienced throughout the semester had actually shown me how to improve. "You learn from your own mistakes", and when you experience things, you are more likely to learn from your own mistakes. This is commonly known, but what if you were given the opportunity to learn from other teachers' "misleading" techniques? One would be solely blessed! I was able to observe other teachers and learn from what they do, whether good or bad.

  I now know that we take in books as "a so perfect method" of teaching isn’t suitable for all learners. Students are of different interests, backgrounds, styles, levels, and cultures. Therefore, the teacher has to shape her lessons according to what best fits students’ personalities. We did learn a lot about the different intelligence, style, and way of learning but we didn't learn about our actual students, what Lebanese students (our students in our culture) like to learn about. In class, one can learn how to present certain topics in a way that our students would accept. He/she can also know more about students in this culture, what they like to read about for example...
 I’m hopeful  after this experience, I will develop my teaching skills.  Expectantly, when I gain more experience as a teacher, I will add to what I have here as a basic reference. Some other imperfect moments are ahead holding many morals that will expand my strategies in teaching and educating different students!  I have taken the first step and I’m ready to reach thousand miles of success and progress. I won’t forget all the moments that I experienced throughout the semesters.

Webinars: Where You Meet Colleagues from Different Continents!

This semester we were introduced to webinar. Webinars are seminars but they are online! Because we can't attend all the seminars around the world, we now have webinars! Now, we will stay updated with all the information we tend to miss in seminars around the world.
This experience was amazing. I personally loved how you get to attend a seminar with so many people around the world, express your thoughts, and ask questions while you are at home in your pjs! The webinar that I attended was loaded with information. The presenter was talking about spelling which I consider the most challenging task for young learners. Well, after three years in the domain, I could observe how much the students struggle in spelling. Teachers overwhelm them with huge paragraphs that they have to prepare for dictation in class. "Unlocking the Mystery of Developmental Spelling", my eyes laid on this title when I was surfing the internet to look for a topic that I would like to know more about. 
We, as teacher, usually stress students especially young learners with spelling. Our intention is to help them write and advance in writing, but are we doing the best job? Do we know our students' level of development that can highly affect their performance? In this webinar, I learned that students actually don't learn how to spell if they weren't ready for it. For each age/level, there are certain strategies that teachers must follow to help students fulfill their spelling tasks.  But first, to know student's level, there is a technique that the teacher can follow: she pronounces the word, and then asks the student to spell it. Accordingly, she/he assumes the level of development for this student. Then, the teacher starts scaffolding him/her. For example, if a student represents the word with only one letter, the teacher expands the word with him so he sees the other letters in the word...  The presenter talked about the different strategies that teacher can use while scaffolding students, like blending consonants and expanding vowels... 
I personally look forward to attending other webinars because I enjoyed the experience! Not only did I learn a lot from the presenter, I also communicated with other teachers around the world who were also answering my questions!