OBSERVATION OF CO-ST: TEACHER KYRA 15 November 2018 - Journal Entry #8 I observed Teacher Kyra’s Health class, with 9Gold as well at 3:30-4:30pm, an hour after I observed Sir Paul’s Chemistry class with them. Teacher Kyra teaches Health in all three grade 9 sections, and two sections of grade 10. All of her classes are of 60 minutes. I chose to observe one of Teacher Kyra’s classes for the same reason I chose Sir Paul: we both handled grade 9 and I thought it would be helpful to find I’m not alone in my experience with the grade 9 students. As Teacher Kyra and I waited for Gold, she mentioned that they’d usually arrive about 5-10 minutes late from their Science class. Their lesson for the day was about CPR o cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the Heimlich maneuver. She expected that the class would be late, so she decided to allot the first 20 minutes of the period for the class to finish their comic strips per group. By 3:50 PM, she started with announcements re: their agenda for the day and their practical test which will be held next week. Her classroom setup was simple and efficient. Compared to my laptop and projector combination, she used manila paper for her visuals and two dummies which will be used to demonstrate the two first-aid procedures they were to learn in class today. It was clear that she was also well-prepared for the lesson in terms of content and strategy. She also does her best in engaging the class, even roaming around and approaching different parts of the classroom to ask if anyone had further questions or clarifications. One thing I also particularly liked was when she connected the timing of the CPR compressions to the Bee Gee’s Stayin’ Alive. As for classroom management, like what I’ve mentioned, most if not all grade 9 student teachers share a consensus that Gold seems to be the most challenging in terms of classroom management. And to be honest, I figure I’d be struggling if I was in Teacher Kyra’s shoes (just like I would if I were in Sir Paul’s shoes during his class). But perhaps I’d do some things things differently. I think one factor that might’ve positively affected Gold’s behavior would be
their seating arrangement. Teacher Kyra mentioned she let them sit wherever they like due to *reason that I forgot po huhu sorry*. But looking at how they were dispersed in class, it was clear to see that the inner circle, i.e. the literal circle seated in front near the teacher were the ones being the most engaged in class whereas those seated on the chairs, especially those in the back weren’t paying much attention. ď Œ I guess if we look at the bright side we’ll get to appreciate the kids who really seem to want to learn. But of course, we also hope that all of them would eventually adopt the same attitude towards learning so they won’t take their schooling for granted. đ&#x;˜Ź