JOURNAL Entry 1 Tasks Teachers Perform in Classes

Before starting your Class Observation Period, list the tasks you
think teachers perform in classes. After visiting your school class for
the first time, contrast your list with what you observed.
I think teachers carry out the
following tasks in class
-

Listen and complete (with an

audio)
Writing exercise related with
the topic of the unit.
Speaking activities such as
presentations of certain topics.
Filling the gap activities.

These are the tasks I observed the

teacher carried out in class
-

Bingos
Musical videos repeating the
lyrics of songs.
Filling the gap activities, but
with vocabulary showed in
class.

Personal Reflection

The teacher focuses more in writing activities, but there are almost
no speaking activities. Not all teachers focus on the four English
skills.

JOURNAL Entry 2 TASK 1

The role of the teacher: Bibliographic research

Write down the sources you used for the bibliographic research you carried out.
Remember to use APA Norm.

Vilar, B. (2001). ROLES OF TEACHERSA CASE STUDY BASED ON: DIARY OF

ALANGUAGE TEACHER (JOACHIM APPEL 1995). Jornadas de foment de la
investigaci. Universitat Jaume.
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JOURNAL Entry 3 TASK 2

Observation on a teacher in a university class

Observe one of your teachers at the university, using one of the Classroom
Observation Tasks introduced in classes. Insert below.

CLASSROOM OBSERVATION TASK 2: The teachers position and body language

Note the teacher`s position and movement. Draw a ground plan showing the teachers movement
during the lesson.

When and where does the teacher sit?

- In any sit he finds available around the class.
When and where does the teacher stand?
- He is almost all the class standing up walking around the room.
How near does the teacher approach the learners at different parts of
the lesson?
- When he explains to someone a specific thing que approach very
close and when he is explaining to all the class he stay in one place

where everyone can see him.

When does the teacher move around?
- He moves around the room almost everytime he start talking or

explaining something.
Does the teacher project to all the learners?
- Yes, he does. He looks for a place where everyone can listen and see

him.
Can the teacher be heard and seen clearly by all the learners?
- Yes, he can.
Does the teacher use gesture effectively?
- He often uses gestures effectively.
Does the teacher make eye contact with individual learners?
- Only when a student is talking too much or distracting other students.

CLASSROOM
OBSERVATION TASK 3: Interaction

Observe the different interactions in each lesson and complete the table. Then answer the questions.

What is the predominant type of interaction?

- Teacher whole class
Does it seem appropriate to the aims of the lesson?
- Yes, it does.
In which interaction were the learners most productive?
- Learners in group.

Interaction pattern
Teacher whole class
Learners in pairs
Learners in groups
Learners working individually
Other

Amount of time spent

%50
%10
%30
%5
%5

JOURNAL Entry 4 Classroom Observation Task 1

Options and
decisions

The term classroom management refers to the moment-by-moment

decisions made and actions taken by the teacher in class, e.g. writing on the
board, giving instructions, organizing the class into pairs, etc. For every
decision made, there will have been other options that the teacher did not
choose.
For each of the following headings:
1. Note one example of a classroom situation in the lesson you are
observing. What does the teacher do?
2. Note one or two options that the teacher had at that point in the lesson,
but did not choose.
Example: Dealing with unexpected problems
Situation:
A student arrived twelve minutes late for the lesson.
Action:
Teacher said hello politely. (The student then sat down quietly

and found out what was going on from his neighbor.)

Other options: Teacher could have asked why the student was late.
Teacher could have pointed out the time to the student.
Student participation in the lesson
Situation:

A student does not want to

participate in any activity.
Action:
Ask him why he does not want to
participate and find a solution.
Other options:
Do not do anything and ask him at
the end of the class.
Grouping of students; arrangement of seating
Situation:

Action:
Other options:

The sitting arrangement is not well

distributed and the teacher cannot
walk to monitor.
The teacher makes students change
the arrangement so he/she can walk.
The teacher organizes how students
will arrange the sits before starting
activities.

Setting up activities; instructions

Situation:
Action:
Other options:

Students do not understand the

instructions in English.
Teacher has to say it several times
and sometimes use words in Spanish.
Show images so this way it would be
easier to explain.

Board; classroom equipment; visual aids

Situation:

Action:
Other options:

The teacher cannot use a data

because it does not work with macs
and cannot show the images to teach
animal vocabulary
Ask other teacher to borrow his/her
notebook.
The teacher may use the screen of
the mac even if it is small.

Dealing with unexpected problems

Situation:

Only one student has the homework

Action:

Other options:

complete.
The teacher asks students why they
did not bring the homework and after
that she says that they have to finish
in class.
Do not ask them anything and tell
them that if they do not bring their
homework again she will start to
evaluate homework.

Teachers role and participation

Situation:
Action:

Other options:

The teacher participates with student

in a bingo activity.
She tells the students that every
people in the class must participate
so this way it would be fairer.
Explain students why is necessary to
participate in this activity.

Personal Reflection
The teacher knows how to solve problems that happen suddenly and
manage correctly any problem.

Taken from Scrievener, J. Learning Teaching. Macmillan Publishing Limited,

2005
JOURNAL Entry 5 Classroom Observation Tasks 2 The teachers
position and body language
Classroom Observation Tasks 3 Interaction
CLASSROOM OBSERVATION TASK 2: The teachers position and body
language

Note the teacher`s position and movement. Draw a ground plan showing the
teachers movement during the lesson.

When and where does the teacher sit?

When and where does the teacher stand?
How near does the teacher approach the learners at different parts of

the lesson?
When does the teacher move around?
Does the teacher project to all the learners?
Can the teacher be heard and seen clearly by all the learners?
Does the teacher use gesture effectively?
Does the teacher make eye contact with individual learners?

CLASSROOM
OBSERVATION TASK 3: Interaction

Observe the different interactions in each lesson and complete the table. Then
answer the questions.

What is the predominant type of interaction?

Does it seem appropriate to the aims of the lesson?
In which interaction were the learners most productive?

Interaction pattern
Teacher whole class
Learners in pairs
Learners in groups
Learners working individually
Other

Amount of time spent

%
%
%
%
%

Taken from Thornbury, S. & Watkins, P. The CELTA Course. Cambridge

University Press, 2008.
JOURNAL Entry 6 Classroom Observation Task 4 How can a teacher
influence the learning environment?

The table lists some ways a teacher can influence the environment in which
students learn. Choose four of these headings.
Observe and make detailed notes about what the teacher does/doesn`t do to
help learning. Where possible, note specific concrete examples of techniques,
e.g. what precisely does the teacher do to help create a warm classroom
atmosphere?
Aspects of the learning
environment
1. Classroom atmosphere

The teachers role

The teacher can help establish and maintain an

2. Organization
3. Encouragement and support;
promoting participation
4. Monitoring
5. Informative feedback

6. Authority

7. Provision of samples of
language
8. Presenting content information
Aspects Chosen
4. Monitoring

6. Authority
8. Presenting content
information

3. Encouragement and
support; promoting
participation

appropriate , warm, focused working atmosphere

The teacher can take an active role in organizing
how time, space, materials, etc. are used.
The teacher can provide positive, realistic support
and encouragement to take an active role.
The teacher can monitor what is happening in
class.
The teacher can offer objective information that
may help the learning process; e.g., information
about errors made, information about how
language if formed or used, information about how
a task was performed, suggestions for future work,
etc. The teacher can notice and help to draw
attention to progress made, problems
encountered, etc.
The teacher can use her/his authority where
appropriate, e.g. to make decisions, to close
activities or discussions, to require certain actions
from individuals, etc.
Instructions, comments, questions, stories, etc. in
the target language provide language exposure for
the learners.
The teacher can explain, lecture, answer
questions, etc. on areas of the learning content.

The teachers role - comments

The teacher gives an activity and immediately
starts going around and asking students if
they have doubts. After that she sits and waits
students to finish.
The teacher reclaims her authority as a
teacher to tell a student to stop talking and
pay attention to the activity.
The teacher present the topic about things
used in a bathroom and students ask why it is
call that way. The teacher answers with clear
examples why it is call bathroom, separating
the word in two and defining.
The teacher start asking question related with
the activity the students were doing. When a
student answer the teacher gives a positive
feedback and after that tell the student what
was wrong. Then, she tells the student more
positive feedback to give confidence.

Taken from Scrievener, J. Learning Teaching. Macmillan Publishing Limited,

2005
JOURNAL Entry 7 Classroom Observation Task 5

Error and Correction

Note down any instances of learner error, the teachers response (if any) and
the learners response, e.g. self correction.
Learners error

Teachers response

Learner`s response

Learner said that it was

12 :30 in the image, but
it was 12:00.

You are close, think

again and watch the
image again.

Oh it is 12:00 oclock.

Taken from Thornbury, S. & Watkins, P. The CELTA Course. Cambridge

University Press, 2008.
JOURNAL Entry 8 Classroom Observation Task 5

Teacher Questions

Monitor the teacher`s questioning techniques and answer the questions.

How many real questions does the teacher ask? (These are questions for
which the teacher does not know the answer, such as what did you do at
the weekend?)
-

How many display questions does the teacher ask? (These are questions
the teacher asks in order for the learners to display their knowledge,
such as what is the past of the verb go?)
-

The teacher does not ask many real questions to student.

The teacher tries to ask many display questions even when students
do no answer.

What is different about the stages in the lesson when there is a high
proportion of real questions, as opposed to stages which are dominated
by display questions?
-

That the stage where is a high proportion of real question is at the

beginning of class and when there is more display question is in any
time of the lesson.

Taken from Thornbury, S. & Watkins, P. The CELTA Course. Cambridge

University Press, 2008.
JOURNAL Entry 9 Classroom Observation Task 7 Teachers in-flight
decisions
Observe a lesson for which there is a detailed lesson plan. Keep a record of how
closely the lesson follows the plan and answer the questions.

a. Are there any points when the actual lesson departs from the plan?
-Yes there is.

b. Does the actual timing differ from the anticipated timing of the lesson?

- The time is close to what it was planned.

c. Can you account for these differences?
d. If possible, talk to the teacher after the lesson. How does your account of
the teachers in-flight decisions compare with his/her own?

Taken from Thornbury, S. & Watkins, P. The CELTA Course. Cambridge

University Press, 2008.
JOURNAL Entry 10 Implementation Class 1 at school Personal
Reflection

Strengths

Weaknesses

Personal Challenge

JOURNAL Entry 11 Implementation Class 2 at school

Strengths

Personal
Reflection

Weaknesses

Personal Challenge