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Thursday, March 30, 2006
i know..this is a ridiculous name..jiniwin. sounds like chicken wings. oh well. i came across this nick in this book called when pigs fly. loved it and haf been using it ever since. this is not the saddest post, nor is it the happiest post. it is a mixed post. mixed becos i know tt when my prac ends..i may never get to teach lit anymore as the demand is so low.
just want to devote this post to thank God for the abundant flow of blessings coming my way. i've been blessed with such nice cts..My lit ct has been nothing but sugar sweet. he has not only given me alot of constructive feedback but has given me no minuses whatsoever in my apt forms. i still cannot believe tt he gave me a proficient for lesson planning n lesson delivery.
i cannot believe it cos i really think tt i'm not quite there yet. oh well. he has also lent me his mic, given me lots of sore throat lozenges, sent well wishes via sms-es when i was sick but has also really helped me to build confidence as a beginning teacher. it certainly helps tt he even wanted to help me cover relieve for one day when my sup came to observe. where else can u find such a nice ct? i feel tt he is a star teacher. no wonder he enjoys excellent rapport with his classes.
the only down side is tt his classes dun take to me so quickly. and tt is a drawback. not like the 2b class i had in my sch exp sch..a bunch of easily friendly angels. so perhaps i should not haf asked for a change in cts. ha ha. oh well. this is perhaps the only time i can get to talk abt lit..and after this experience..i may end up teaching only geog. sigh.
went for food tasting with dear on tues for his bro's upcoming wedding. time flies..and very soon my own wedding will come. but when? i wanna save save save..hehe. *sends a prayer to heaven*. the one thing i am looking fwd to in this job..it allows me to save save save. ha.
lots of crazy ideas i haf for lit lesson now. just tt i'm thinking thru what to do n what not to do. hehe. i am sure i will make a gd lit teacher. in due time.
enlightened apvunsoul- 3:11 AM |
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Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Lord if you really are looking out for me cause me not to falter and grant me the desires of my heart now take away my sickness my worries my white hairs and i pray you take me to a place of shelter and take me where you know i can survive
enlightened apvunsoul- 2:38 AM |
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Tuesday, March 21, 2006
As my dear friend Shouwee had blogged in her blog about the students with a whole new toilet (ha ha), I find myself thrown into a whole new world this week. Suddenly I feel like Harry Potter, soaring up on my broom and leaving the ground to seek the Other, the unknown. Sitting in my HOD's SS lesson was one of the best things that happened this week.
Mrs Wadhwani delivered a wonderful and engaging lesson on the introduction to Northern Ireland to a NA class. Her lesson was so fun and interesting, with all the soccer images and serene songs and an in house DJ to rock the class. The kids had the pleasure of working in groups to draw images that explained the causes of conflict while the music was playing. I could see that the kids really enjoyed the lesson as they were attentive and having fun doing the group activity.
If I ever get to teach SS, I hope my students will not be turned off by the subject. SS is something so new to me, content and all. My fellow geographers, we all must press on and not die halfway. :P Speaking of which, my SS lesson plans for Kenneth! I need to think about how I am going to teach!! Arghh..Stress comes when you are least prepared for it.
The other lesson I got to observe was my CT's lesson on scrambled eggs. Well, it basically involves the students trying to piece the pieces together and getting the sequence of events right from the strips in front of them. The kids really had fun doing the activity, this sec 2 class. I think what I observed was the rapport with the kids. My CT had excellent rapport with his classes. As Ms Yee had pointed out earlier, rapport with students is important. She even prides it above her relationship with her colleagues. It is indeed challenging to build rapport with a class that has obviously established good rapport with my CT. This practicum is bringing me alot of challenges that I have never faced before, not even in my school experience at AHS. I still miss the kids there. Lovable, adorable, SUPER MOTIVATED. Week 1 of sch experience-all could finish filling in the summaries for the entire lit text in 1 lesson. I miss teaching them.
enlightened apvunsoul- 5:13 PM |
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Monday, March 20, 2006
I'm suffering from melancholia, induced by an allergic reaction to this thing called school. I wake up and I shudder. And I worry. Say my prayers but my tears say it all. I dun cry out loud. I'm crying inside but i dun think anyone cares. There goes my chance and only chance of improving my competence..
Nothing but inner turmoil and uncertainty that plagues me everywhere I go. My thoughts are crappy. There are alot of if onlys swimming in my head now. Why must this happen to me? I hate this sinking feeling.. Only reminds me of the time Ms Irene Lim scolded us for doing badly in Lit and not doing our homework. I like lit but I cannot seem to teach it well. Like a condemned nutcase...you know what my cousin once told me? He said I was not cut out to teach lit cos I am not the ra ra type and I am very passive. I am now seriously wondering if that is true. I'm feeling so blue.
enlightened apvunsoul- 3:38 AM |
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Sunday, March 12, 2006
Thank God it's Friday. This is the one and only time I can actually use this phrase and feel happier than my students. *evil laughter*. Friday was a gd day for me to really reflect on my lit lessons where my ct sat in and gave me precious feedback on how to improve the lesson. Thankfully for Ms Yee's classes as well because I actually thought about how she conducted her lessons last year in NIE and I tried them out in Friday's lit class.
If most of us recall, there was this debate thingy we did with "The Bet" where two sides debated in a cetain timing. However, now I'm not teaching PGDE kids, but I'm teaching a bunch of kids who may not even know what a debate is like. Anyway I thought hard about how to go about giving clear instructions and how to conduct the debate. I amso glad my efforts paid off, because I could see that the kids really had fun in the debate. My ct also ended up laughing with me as we listened to some of the things that were being said in the debate. This is one cool lesson that really made my day. My ct also said that although the first part of the lesson was boring and all teacher talk, he could see that there was a logical flow in my lesson and one thing led to another rather smoothly. To me, a successful lit lesson is when the students have fun learning and they leave the lesson knowing that there is a purpose for why they do what they do in my lesson.
I want to make all my lit lessons fun and inspiring. Not to please Ms Yee, and certainly not to please anyone else. I hope that I can learn from Ms Yee's classes and my ct's advice in order to develop a style that is truly mine. That will be something no one can take away from me.
enlightened apvunsoul- 8:15 PM |
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Thursday, March 09, 2006
I am in hot soup becos my first lesson obs by my soup is bad. Alot of minuses and few pluses on my apt form. I not only stared blankly but I also broke down when I saw my form. Ms Yee also offered lots of constructive feedback, to be fair to her, she did. However, she went a step further by comparing my lesson plan to a fellow trainee's, whose lesson plan was so interesting and went so well. Anyway, my lit ct has been very patient and nice with me. He sat in my class today with 2/3 and it was not as bad as yesterday's lesson.
I guess these are the things I want to look into for my next observation and subsequent teachings:
- ability to engage the kids with student-centred activities.
- building rapport with kids
- showing enthusiasm for my subject
-being a less passive person, how to teach lit if you are passive??
- thinking of less boring activities to do
- creative pedagogies
Pure geog class with 3/2/4...our class was rudely disrupted by the horrid emergency drill practice. When we finally settled down in class, my students as usual were rowdy and some groups paid me little attention. However, there were others who genuinely cared about their test tomorrow and wanted me to explain some concepts again. I feel that the topic on natural vegetation is really easily readable. If the kids cannot sit down and read it for themselves, then I do not know how else they can study and know the topic for themselves.
Rapport with the class is slowly building, although some groups are still turned off and totally disengaged in my lessons. i guess from now on i want to be reflective in my geog lesson preparations so that i can be a better teacher.
enlightened apvunsoul- 12:40 AM |
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Friday, March 03, 2006
Melvin, Elaine, Bro, Sis, Jes and me at the extreme right.
Me, Jes and Pin Pin in Jes's room looking cute.. :P
Jes n me wish everyone a prosperous new year!!
Nice or not? *_*
DEAR N ME !!!!! @ liquid kitchen
enlightened apvunsoul- 9:10 PM |
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The end of another week at BGSS. Last week ended on a not so gd note, as I had walked out on my class just before the bell rang. I was so irritated that they could not bring themselves to listen to the lesson. Haiz. Thankfully this week things are getting better. The same sec 3 class asked me if I was still angry with them about last week. I told them to forget about the previous lesson and start anew. They clapped and cheered.
Sometimes, these kids really surprise me. I dun really know what to anticipate from them. I am just glad that this week, they were a little more receptive towards the geog lesson. I just googled one of my student's blog and was very heartened to know that she likes geography now and is studying for my upcoming test. I am so so so so happy.
Thanks be to God who guides my steps and lesson planning. Although I still dunno how to complete ALL my lessons on time, I am so glad that my students are showing more signs of receptivity to me. Just want to make special mention of all my CTs. They are such nice people. My main CT tells us that if we really work hard and prove ourselves, we can get a credit for the prac. I dunno boy, I just hope to do my best. My lit CT just returned from reservist this week, and i only got to see him on thurs. But I am really thankful for all the guidance and help from all of them.
It really is strange that I find myself liking my job more and more. It is certainly amazing. Never felt this way so strongly when I did my school experience, maybe because back then I was not so confident of myself. And can you believe it? I am taking Kai Jie's class!!! Ha ha ha! He threatened me u know, by saying he will complain to Cindi if I dun give him high marks for lit. Sorry I dun take bribes!!! Ha ha. Oops. ^_^
enlightened apvunsoul- 8:33 PM |
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