Week 6: My Experience

DISCUSSION: Engaging Students

True learning occurs only when the learners get chance to do something by themselves. For this the students should be engaged rather than the teacher gets everything done. Like in small class, even in large class, same techniques can be adopted, whereas sometimes different techniques should be taken on. This week, after reading the article on Teaching Large Class" in the link: http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/earlycareer/teaching/LargeClasses.html" , I found some useful tips to handle the large class effectively. Some of them are: 
-Interactive lectures

-Just in Time Teaching (JiTT): Assessing the students' prior understanding on the topic using brief web-based questions before a class.

-Effective tasks in the middle of lesson(in class exercise) and at home (Out-of class group assignment)

-Getting and keeping students' attention and giving them opportunities to review and apply important concept

-Using interactive technology

-Co-operative and collaborative learning

Then I read another article given by our instructor in our course guideline in the link:" http://tep.uoregon.edu/resources/largeclasses/usingtechnology.html". It was effective guideline for us to carry out the large class with technology.
Online assessment using "Blackboard" tool is motivating one for the learners.
Use of computer, projector and power point slides is now essential aids for the modern teachers.

The information provided by our classmate in the nicenet discussion thread was also really a great milestone. Again I want to remember the project based learning (PBL) and Webquest as the effective tools to get the students engaged in the language learning.

TASK: Create an *Interactive* Power Point

Another significant leaning of this week is, no doubt, creating power point slide show for the language class. I learned some new application such as hyperlinks/jumps to other sections of the PPT or to link the internet websites for further information, blank slides to shift attention, jeopardy game or interactive story. To learn these, the links provided in our course was really helpful. I viewed some of my classmates' power point slides in wiki page in the power point section where I also uploaded my PPT. I found some of the PPT really helpful for me.

PROJECT STEP: Implement the Change

As my instructor has approved my proposed issued and plans to solve those issues/problems for my project work, I began to implement the things I mentioned there. I am taking my students to the computer lab where there is a projector and internet service. I have introduced them a couple of websites where they can read stories/fables, and told them to read a story each week there and write it in their own language, then submit their task to me. I am preparing rubrics for their guideline to write and for the assessment as well.