Friday, September 29, 2006
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Pre Micro-teaching Thoughts
My micro-teaching topics would be on Rocks and Weathering. There are many areas to cover in this topic, and I find it hard to focus on 1 thing that I want the class to know/learn.
I think that to pen down the objectives of a lesson is one of the hardest things to do. Blabbering on about something is certainly easier than having a particular outcome for the lesson.
I would likely head to the MOE syllabus to make sure that the lesson would be useful to the rest of the class. Perhaps the lesson should be padded with a little more information to match the intellectual level of the group that I would be dealing with.
The tools that were introduced to us in the teaching of geography i.e. cartoons, video clips, pictures etc., I would definitely consider applying.
I think that to pen down the objectives of a lesson is one of the hardest things to do. Blabbering on about something is certainly easier than having a particular outcome for the lesson.
I would likely head to the MOE syllabus to make sure that the lesson would be useful to the rest of the class. Perhaps the lesson should be padded with a little more information to match the intellectual level of the group that I would be dealing with.
The tools that were introduced to us in the teaching of geography i.e. cartoons, video clips, pictures etc., I would definitely consider applying.
Saturday, September 23, 2006
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
"What's the BIG IDEA?": Thoughts on Concept Teaching
The "big idea" concept was certainly a breath of fresh air. I found that it was a very refreshing way to teach geography.
Most students think that learning geography means memorising information and find it boring. However, with concept teaching I can finally show them that geography is not a dead subject, that theories can be applied and memorisation is a bare minimum. Once the concept is understood, there is no need to regurtitate information, but answer questions with understanding instead.
Concept teaching does require the teacher to know the work inside out in order to weasel out that key concept. We have to first uncover the "Big Idea", which has to have connectedness and is transferable to students, as well as productive.
The Inductive Enquiry approach is an excellent way to get students thinking and for them to construct their own knowledge. In doing so, they learn faster and remember better. Afterall, as babies, we learnt by discovery and that seems to be the best way about it.
Scaffolding the learning for students is important, firstly by topical facts, then abstract concepts and finally overarching frameworks which cuts across a variety of topics. Helping students with seeing the big picture might help them relate geography to their lives and activities around them. Teaching them how to think and find patterns in learning geography is tantamount to teaching them to fish.
Most students think that learning geography means memorising information and find it boring. However, with concept teaching I can finally show them that geography is not a dead subject, that theories can be applied and memorisation is a bare minimum. Once the concept is understood, there is no need to regurtitate information, but answer questions with understanding instead.
Concept teaching does require the teacher to know the work inside out in order to weasel out that key concept. We have to first uncover the "Big Idea", which has to have connectedness and is transferable to students, as well as productive.
The Inductive Enquiry approach is an excellent way to get students thinking and for them to construct their own knowledge. In doing so, they learn faster and remember better. Afterall, as babies, we learnt by discovery and that seems to be the best way about it.
Scaffolding the learning for students is important, firstly by topical facts, then abstract concepts and finally overarching frameworks which cuts across a variety of topics. Helping students with seeing the big picture might help them relate geography to their lives and activities around them. Teaching them how to think and find patterns in learning geography is tantamount to teaching them to fish.
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