Speaking Lesson "Elaboration" - Observation and Feedback

Participation Activity no. 8 is a lesson observation assignment that should be completed by logging into our EdPuzzle class (class name: TLSPG 2018; class code: tewluja). The lesson observation and feedback activity can be conducted during class time on Thursday, 25th October. The deadline is Tuesday, 30 October. The lesson will serve as content for instruction and discussion on both the skill of Speaking as well as Lesson Planning.

The lesson is a Secondary 2 double lesson specifically on the speaking strategy of elaboration. In the lesson, the teacher aims to teach the students how to elaborate specifically and effectively in order to increase the length of time they can discuss a topic.

Watch the lesson on Edpuzzle. The video of the lesson is divided into three parts. After each part, there are two questions asking you to 1. specify the most notable strength and 2. make a specific suggestion. The three parts of the lesson are: 1. Input; 2. Preparation and Practice; 3. Group sharing and Feedback

The lesson plan is here.

When you have finished watching all three parts, write a 50+ word comment about your observation of the lesson in the comment box of this post. Possible comment topics may include: What did you learn from the lesson about how to teach speaking? How can a teacher motivate students to speak more actively? Is it important to make speaking activities authentic/realistic? Can fluency be taught as a strategy or must it be learned by practice? Is there anything about this lesson design that would help to improve it significantly? You may also want to reply to your classmates' comments.

Designing Listening Activities with Edpuzzle

Blended Learning and Edpuzzle

Although many e-resource applications and activities are new, we don't want to abandon traditional approaches that work very well, including face-to-face teaching, reading books and watching videos. These often-used approaches all allow students to practice authentic communication skills and strategies. The Blended Learning approach aims to provide lessons that integrate the best of new and traditional resources, "the best of both worlds".

EdPuzzle is one online e-resource which helps teachers do the blending and balance the benefits of readily available video content with the advantages of teacher-made comments and questions. Using Edpuzzle, teachers can use any teaching video resource and convert it into a teaching tool or stand-alone listening activity by inserting audio or text notes, multiple choice or open-ended questions. EdPuzzle helps teachers to assign and monitor student activity through advanced organization and supervision tools. Moreover, it's free!

In today's workshop, you will first try out EdPuzzle from the student's perspective. Then, using a teacher account, you can create and share your own EdPuzzle listening activities.

When you're finished, paste the link to your own EdPuzzle video here as Participation Point 7.

Let's give it a try!

Participation Point 6 - Exploring Innovative Curriculum Alternatives: "Mastery Learning" by Sal Khan

One of the qualities of an effective English teacher is ongoing reflection and professional development. Teachers practice this every day as they reflect on their planning and teaching, analyzing what they can do differently and better the next time. Another way they do it is by staying up-to-date with local and international research and trends in education and language teaching. Actively looking for articles and information about what is happening in the world of education and language teaching allows teachers to learn from the experience of colleagues in the international teaching community. This video is an introduction to a powerful new principle that educators are now considering carefully.

"Mastery learning" is a mindset toward learning that changes the paradigm of when students should move forward in the curriculum. Traditionally, students move from one topic to the next when their class does, "all-at-once". Their class advances together simply as they age from one year to the next. Mastery learning suggests an alternative, which is that students should move forward from topic to topic or skill to skill as they learn what's required. When students have reached an acceptable level of "mastery", they go on to the next topic, level, or skill - whatever the curriculum defines as a unit of learning.

In this TED talk, Sal Khan, the founder of the successful "Khan Academy" approach to teaching students mathematics, discusses the concept of Mastery Learning. He explains why we now have the capacity to organize learning in a way that will allow everyone to learn at a level that was previously unimaginable.

Participation Activity (Point 6)

Watch the TED talk video and reflect on how mastery learning might be implemented in the English language curriculum in Hong Kong secondary schools. Do you think it would work? How? Would it be an effective alternative approach to the current approach? What do you think the advantages and disadvantages might be? Write a 1-2 paragraph response (any number of words) in the Google form explaining your thoughts about mastery learning approach. Also, share your opinion in the survey question.

The deadline for Participation Point 6 activity is 12:00 midnight, 17th Oct. 2018 (Wed)

After watching, submit your reflection paragraph and the survey question here.

Reminder: Point 5 activity "Writing a Reading Lesson Plan" is also due at 12:00 midnight, 17th Oct. 2018 (Wed). That lesson plan should be completed and placed in your shared Google Folder. The detailed instructions for Point 5 activity are found in the link "Participation 5 Activity - Writing a Reading Lesson Plan" found in the right column and HERE.

"Your Body Language May Shape Who You Are" a TED Talk by Amy Cuddy