In-Class

Teaching Observation
Instructor Name: Danielle Friberg CTLE Consultant: Preston Tanner
Course Number & Name: OC TH 6140-001 (Occupations and Practice Skills 1)
Date: 9/26/16
# of Students: 32 registered; 30 in class
Yes/Mostly/
Category Partially/No/ Comments
Not Applicable

CLASS ORGANIZATION

Warm-up/Review
Class begins on time
Greets students Yes You were very welcoming to students, and you were well-
Lets students know class is starting Yes organized prior to class, which allowed you to start on time.
Lesson outline given at the beginning of Partially Objectives were presented, and they followed the topical
class, verbally and visually (e.g., on board, flow of class, but an outline of the lesson was not presented
slide) early in the lesson. A broad overview of what the lesson will
entail can help students understand the big picture context
of the lesson, and how elements of class fit together. A
lesson outline would be useful for a class such as this.
Elaborates upon prior courses, lessons, Partially At the start of class, you mentioned previous assignments
assignments, and/or readings and asked if there were questions, but in general this class
session appeared to be a standalone lesson separate from
previous sessions or upcoming lessons. Explicit connections
to previous course sessions can help to provide flow from
week to week and month to month.
Presentation and Practice Phases of Lesson
Draws upon student experience, current Yes There were several moments in class when you made clear
events, and/or scholarly sources connections between this lesson and the students
experiences in clinics with clients. This was helpful for
making students aware of disorders theyve seen with
clients but may not have fully recognized at the time.
Pace and flow of lesson supports learning Mostly In general, the flow of this lesson was reasonable. However,
(not too fast or too slow, suitable for note toward the end of class, the pace began to hasten, and
taking, questions and reflection) there was too little time to fully accomplish your third
lesson objective. The timing issue may have been due to the
atypical projector issues that you experienced for a few
minutes midway through class.
Lesson content, activities, and materials Yes The content appeared to be at an appropriate level for the
are appropriate for student level students.
(not too simplistic or advanced)
Uses a variety of teaching techniques (e.g., Yes This lesson was primarily lecture-based, but it involved a
lecture, discussion, demonstration, small self-awareness sensory-motor preference checklist activity,
group work, film/audio clips, etc.) opportunities for student-instructor interaction, video clips,
and hands-on examples of items used for working with
clients.
Appropriate active learning:
Provides an application component Yes You passed around several examples of items that can be
(e.g., students can connect theory to used with clients who have sensory disorders. This
practice, demonstrate a personal effectively helped students tangibly understand how they
connection to course content) may help clients who have sensory disorders. The sensory
Adequate time provided for completion Yes checklist was also useful to facilitate discussion about the
of in-class activities topic, and it made course content personally relevant for
the students.
Provides appropriate breaks (for classes Yes
longer than 80 minutes)
Wrap-up
Finishes with an overview of what was No The end of this class was rushed so there was no time left to
covered finish with an overview of what was covered. This may have
Class ends on time Yes been unusual, but its worthy of consideration. This class
Closes lesson appropriately (e.g., Yes session would benefit from a summary of key takeaways. It
bidding farewell) would help students recall the content again, and it would
provide closure to the lesson.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Provides action-oriented learning Mostly I would recommend a small change to your learning
objectives for lesson objectives. Be sure to state them in an action-oriented
format. For instance, your 2nd objective was for students to
Learn about occupational therapy intervention approaches
for sensory modulation including In what ways would you
like them to learn about these approaches? For instance, by
the end of class, do you want them to be able to remember
them, understand them, apply them, evaluate their
practical utility, or to learn them in other ways? Consider
the cognitive level of learning that you want students to
achieve (Blooms taxonomy levels = Remember,
Understand, Apply, Analyze, Evaluate, Create).
Number of learning objectives Yes You engaged students in the application of the first and
appropriate for session length second learning objectives by using hands on examples, a
Lesson content matches learning Yes sensory-motor preference checklist activity, and discussion.
objectives
Engages students in application of at Yes
least one learning objective
In-class activities are explicitly linked
to lesson objectives
INSTRUCTOR INTERPERSONAL SKILLS
Teacher presence:
Maintains eye contact Mostly You certainly appear engaged and interested in the course
Appears engaged/interested in Yes material. Your body language is open to engaging and

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 material interacting with your students. Overall, your teaching
Body language indicates confidence, Yes presence is very effective; however, during this session, you
willingness to engage, comfort in you made eye contact primarily with students on one side
teacher role of the room (to your left, toward the windows). Try to make
Demonstrates knowledge of student Yes contact with all of the students throughout class by
names or is in process of learning scanning the room regularly. The space at the front of the
names room was a bit crowded so it tended to force you to the side
near the entrance. As such, you focused on teaching toward
the opposite side of the room. To create more space that
would allow you to move more freely in the room, Id
recommend moving the portable whiteboards out of the
front of the room if possible.
Language is respectful and inclusive Yes
Students stay after class to interact with Yes
instructor
STUDENT BEHAVIOR
Students academic maturity & focus:
Quiet easily when instructor begins Yes Students were attentive for the most part. A couple of
Are attentive (e.g., not chatting or Mostly students were surfing the web and shopping online during
surfing the web) class though. Additionally, the temperature was warm in
this class so students began trying to open windows (very
loudly) during your presentation. This was a major
distraction for the class, and it was not entirely respectful of
you or their classmates. In this situation, I would
recommend extending the break or pausing lecture to
resolve the issue so that all students are seated and
focused.

Arrive on time Yes/Mostly Only one student arrived late to class, but all students
Stay until session finished Yes stayed until the session was finished.
Students interpersonal conduct:
Participate in turn-taking and listening Yes/Mostly Students were respectful of one another and took turns
to each others comments/questions speaking; however, a few students were surfing the web so
Use respectful and inclusive language Yes they did not appear to be listening to their classmates.
INTERACTION
Instructor checks or is aware when Yes You posed questions to determine if students had heard of
students are lost or hurried (asks content the the types of interventions, used them, or seen them
comprehension questions, monitors used previously.
during group work)
Instructor questioning style:
Asks one question at a time Yes The questions you posed were clear and students had
Questions are clear Yes enough time to respond to them.
Provides ample wait time (10 secs) for Yes
student answers before repeating,
responding or moving on

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Instructor response to questions:
Aware of raised hands and answers Yes There was one instance that a student asked a question and
question that was asked you did not know the answer, but you appropriately said
Verifies that question was answered Yes that you would ask another instructor who might know the
to students satisfaction answer. You also discussed the question from possible
Reacts appropriately in the event Yes alternative perspectives, which was helpful for the student
he/she doesnt know answer (e.g., who quickly took notes and clarified her understanding of
writing it down to respond later or your response. This was quite effective.
asks the rest of class to attempt a
response)
Instructor fosters engagement and
participation:
Instructor uses appropriate methods Yes Students volunteered their participation in this class
to generate participation session. This is an appropriate method to generate
participation.

Asks a variety of question types (e.g., Partially The majority of your questions were closed-ended. Your
factual, application, opinion, critical) questions were primarily comprehension check questions
Builds off student answers/comments Yes (e.g., Do you have any questions? Any other questions
Encourages dialogue, discussion, Partially about the sensory stimulation protocols?), or experience-
student-student interaction (engages based questions (e.g., Anyone else notice sensory-motor
more than just a few students) characteristics you didnt realize previously?). By phrasing
In light of incorrect response, remains these questions in an open-ended format, you may be able
respectful, not immediately negative; to stimulate more discussion from more students (e.g.,
turns into a teachable moment What questions do you have about sensory stimulation
protocols?). I would also recommend using a variety of
question types in order to challenge students to think from
multiple perspectives. For instance, you could ask questions
that are relational, evaluative, factual, opinion, action,
priority, or summary-based.
AUDIO-VISUAL AIDS
Uses effective visual medium for Yes
material and classroom
Visual aids complement, illustrate or Mostly PowerPoint slides that illustrated the concepts & techniques
explain material were more visually appealing than slides with only text even
Visuals are uncluttered (e.g., Yes though an appropriate amount of text was used on the
appropriate amount of text per slide, slides. Visuals can serve as a mental reminder of the
whiteboard content clear and content discussed, and some students learn better visually.
organized)
Pacing of visuals appropriate Yes You integrated a video clip, showed books, and passed
around tangible examples to complement material. These
was useful strategies for bringing concepts to life and
illustrating the concepts.
SUMMARY
Strengths of lesson overall, including:
Lesson planning (e.g., objectives, Your teaching presence and the environment you create in your class are
activity selection, pacing, assessment) quite effective for your class. Additionally, your lesson plan effectively
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 Teacher presence integrated several interactive elements, discussion, and appropriate visual
Teaching & learning methods aids.
Opportunities for growth, including:
Lesson planning (e.g., objectives, Opportunities for growth within your class include managing the pacing of
activity selection, pacing, assessment) content. The pace felt a little slow initially and became quite rapid toward
Teacher presence the final part of class. It felt as though there was too much content
Teaching & learning methods planned for this session. However, part of the change of pace may have
been due to the atypical technological issues that occurred during the
session. A second opportunity for growth would be to find a way to engage
all students more frequently throughout class. Your eye contact, lecture
style, and conversation with the class was largely directed toward one side
of the room. It would be useful to move about the room a little more and
connect with all the students more frequently. Lastly, I would recommend
diversifying the types of questions that you pose to your students in order
to challenge them to think about content from new perspectives.

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Dear Ms. Friberg,

Thank you for the opportunity to visit your classroom. My general comments about your class are below.

You are an engaging presenter, and you create a very comfortable, welcoming classroom environment. I appreciated the
organization of your lesson, which included multiple strategies for engaging students. By including active learning
elements (i.e., the sensory motor preference checklist activity, discussion questions, a video clip, and tangible examples
that were passed around the room), students had the opportunity to explore course material in multiple ways through
participation. These were effective for keeping students attentive in class, and you might even use more video clips to
highlight the sensory modulation intervention approaches. This generated interest, questions, and comments from the
students.

Based on this class session, I also see a few opportunities for growth. First, through the majority of class, the pace of
content was reasonable for students to take notes and process information. However, the last 15-20 minutes of class,
the pace noticeably increased, and you acknowledged it. This may have been due to the unusual circumstances with the
projector shutting down for a period during class. However, it may also have been due to the time spent on the sensory
preference checklist activity or the amount of content that was planned overall. Be sure to manage the time in your
class and consider adjusting the amount of content you provide so that you can effectively accomplish all of your lesson
objectives.

A second opportunity for growth would be to make sure that you engage all students more frequently throughout class.
This classroom was wide, but not very deep, and there was not a lot of space for you to move at the front of the room.
As a result, you spent the majority of your time at the podium on one side of the room facing the broader side of the
room. Your eye contact, lecture style, and conversation with the class was largely directed toward that side of the room,
and those were the students who primarily participated in conversations with you. It would be useful to move about the
room a little more and to intentionally connect with all the students more frequently.

Lastly, I would recommend posing a variety of question types when you interact with the students. For instance, you can
ask questions that are relational, evaluative, factual, opinion, action, priority, or summary-based. This would help you
meet students at various learning levels, and you can challenge students to think about the material in more ways.

Overall, it is clear that youre very knowledgeable about the content. It is also obvious that you care about the material,
and enjoy interacting and engaging with your students.

Thanks for letting me observe you. Let me know if I can be of more service to you for your teaching.


Sincerely,

Preston Tanner
Graduate Fellow
The Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence

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CTLE
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