TESOL Certificate Programs

Observation Notebook

Observation Report Form

Name of Observer : Rebecca Hur Observation # ________

Date Observation Class Skill/Content Level Teacher
Environment*

4/7/17 Online Japanese Japanese 1 Grade 5

Grade 5 Margaret Pyer

*Include the URL if the class was online

WRITE THE OBJECTIVES ACCORDING TO THE OBSERVATION GUIDELINES:

1. GREETING
2. ROLE PLAY
3. GESTURE
4. CARD GAME
5. WORKSHEET
6. POSTER
7. PAIR WORK
8. CULTURE
9. GREETING

Notes while observing:

greets class class in Japanese - 2 students come ip the the classroom and call
attention/ lead in a greeting
body language
lays out lesson plan on board - whats coming up/whats expected of them
in target language - to get most exposure
uses props, body language, acts out the vocabulary - vocab. of daily life
roleplay - captures attention of students - uses pictures, posters, background-
signifying to students authentic material - realistic
card game - logical and listing component
worksheet - formulate assessment
lost of pair work
interactive and involved classroom

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TESOL Certificate Programs
Observation Notebook
uses pictures - comprehensible input- lets students say and hear it one more time
before practice
guided practice
poster activity - pair work
work with new partner each time
positive reinforcement
film strip - acitivity introducing partners schedule - application of assessment
comparing culture - similarity and differences in American and Japanese culture
uses volunteer skit group
inspire students to be interested in learning the Japanese language outside of
class
ends class with greeting

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TESOL Certificate Programs
Observation Notebook
What did you learn about teaching or learning from this lesson as it relates to the
theory you have studied in your TESOL classes? Include at least one reference (with
an in-text citation) to support your response. (250-500 words)

Rebecca Hur

TESOL Frameworks and Methods

April 7, 2017

Online Observation Report

The classroom of interest in my online observation was a Grade 5, beginning

level, Japanese language class located at Clarendon Elementary School in San Francisco.

The student body consisted of both heritage speakers and first time learners. In this class,

I focused on the lesson plan and how the teacher, Margaret Pyer, would present and carry

out the lesson plan. Mainly, I directed my attention to how the instructor carried out her

lesson plan and the various methods she used to test the students comprehension.

The instructor incorporated the essential stages of a lesson containing the

following: opening, sequencing, and closing. I believe that the opening is one of the key

components in presenting the material to the class as it will set up the mood of the

classroom and it is essential for clarity so the students will be aware of the expectations

of them for the lesson. To exemplify, in my online observation, I observed that the

instructor for this particular classroom called up two students to lead the rest of the

classroom in a greeting. The students would, in Japanese, signal for the students to stand

up and then bow emulating how a classroom in Japan would begin their class. By doing

this, the children are being exposed to both the Japanese language and culture at the start

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TESOL Certificate Programs
Observation Notebook
of the lesson. Then, the instructor wrote down the lesson plan in Japanese on the

whiteboard and went over the objectives of the day to lay out the plan so the children

would know what was coming next and their expectations.

Sequencing refers to the manner in which a particular lesson is presented to the

class. A traditional language lesson follows the sequence of P-P-P: presentation, practice,

and production (Richards and Farrell, 2011). As opposed to a traditional lesson, the task-

based approach to a lesson plan consists of a sequence consisting of pretask activities, the

task cycle, the language focus, and a follow-up task (Richards and Farrell, 2011). I

believe that the instructor in this observation implemented a task-based approach to her

lesson plan. After presenting the objectives of the lesson, the teacher then preceded into a

pretask activity in which she utilized the target language and enacted a role play of a

daily schedule while using the actual objects in order for the students to make an

authentic and realistic connection with the vocabulary. Afterwards, the instructor had the

students follow the model of acting out the target vocabulary of this lesson while saying

it. This is intended to help students retain information and help them understand the

differences and similarities between Japanese and American culture. In addition, in order

to give the students more opportunities to practice, the instructor provided many partner

activities in the task cycle. For example, one of these tasks included having students at

different stations with a picture and a clock in which they would take turns telling their

partners their daily schedules. This allows the students to have time to practice the target

vocabulary while applying the knowledge to their own lives while giving the students the

opportunity to practice and help correct one another. Overall, the underlying objective of

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TESOL Certificate Programs
Observation Notebook
the lessons were reflective of this instructors teaching objectives. According to Richards

and Farrell, a lesson achieves meaningful outcomes (Richards and Farrell, 2011). The

instructor stated that her goal was to have the students leave her class with an intrinsic

motivation to learn the language outside of her classroom and to be genuinely curious

about the Japanese language. Also, I believe an objective of a lesson should be able to be

possible to assess a students mastery of the intended lesson.

Lastly, the closing phase of a lesson is very important in that it should leave the

students feeling that they have successfully achieved a goal they set for themselves or

that has been established for the lesson, an that the lesson was a worthwhile and

meaningful lesson (Richards and Farrell, 2011). A way in which the instructor

implemented this into her lesson plan was her ending exercise which had the students

listen to the instructor say out the daily schedule in Japanese while they wrote the

according sequence. She noticed that sometimes the students would not recognize the

vocabulary unless she acted it out; therefore, she was able to deduce that the students

need more guided practice and comprehensible input. Overall, I believe that the task-

based approach is effective in a language lesson as it gives students many opportunities to

have direct practice with the target objectives while allowing them to make mistakes and

then correct them.

Last Updated: 8/19/2016 2:38 PM

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Observation Notebook
References

Richards, J.C. and Farrell, T.S.C. (2011) Practice Teaching A Reflective Approach. New

York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

Video Link: http://www.learner.org/libraries/tfl/japanese/dyer/index.html

Last Updated: 8/19/2016 2:38 PM