Post Practicum Reflection Final Part

The approaches that I used for classroom behavior management are:  

1. Assertive approach which proposed by Lee and Canter 
2. Behavior Modification Approach which proposed by B. F Skinner

      The Assertive approach shows the class who is the boss. Pupils who disobey receive one warning and then are subjected to a series of serious sanctions (as cited in Burden, 2006). For example, the ‘Angry box’. The idea is for the teacher to respond to a pupil’s misbehavior quickly and appropriately. The ‘Angry Box’ is used regularly during my lesson. Pupils who misbehave, despite the first and second warning, their names will be written down on a piece of paper and to be put inside the box. The box will be sent to the discipline teachers for further actions. The ‘Angry Box’ is amazingly effective to control the classroom behaviors. The pupils fear the box.

     Behavior Modification Approach by Skinner suggests that behavior is strengthened by immediate reinforcements which are positive and negative reinforcements. Examples of positive reinforcements are, (as cited in Kauffman, Mostert, Trent and Hallahan, 2002):

1. Social, such as verbal comments (“You are right”, “That’s correct”, “That’s good”), facial expressions, and gestures, 
2. Graphic, such as written words of encouragement, 
3. Tangible, rewards such as pencils, erasers 
4. Activity, such as appoint the good pupils to be a leader or monitor for the group work.

        Rules are established and enforced. Pupils who follow rules are praised and rewarded. Punishment can be used to reduce inappropriate behaviour, but sparingly. I often asked the pupil to explain to me why he or she was engaged in that behavior. I think it is important to give pupils chances to explain themselves. Every day, I reminded my pupils to be disciplined, be good.

Post Practicum Reflection Part 3

        Some of the misbehaviors that I observed in the classroom during the first month of practicum are answering back, annoying others, poor homework, nonstop talking, yelling, not paying attention, moving around the classroom and blurting out the answers without raising the hand. Misbehaviors include behavior that interferes with your teaching and interferes with the right of others to learn (as cited in Burden, 2006).

the most mischievous kid in my class. very cheeky. 

        So the next months, what I planned to do, before the lesson starts, I wrote the classroom rules or expectation I have for the class on the blackboard. If the pupils insist on not listening or talking, I raise my hand (cueing) and I give them the ‘look’ until they be quiet and have their attention. Then I said, “everyone’s eyes on me and shut your mouth” something like that. I didn’t ever start the teaching if a pupil still talking. I demanded respect from the pupils. It is very important for me to teach not only from the front of the classroom but from everywhere, from back, sides. This makes the lesson more interesting, and often I can keep eye on the pupil as a whole and pupils will know I am paying attention to them. So they will not try and do something else.

okay folks, to be continued

Post Practicum Reflection Part 2

        When I first taught the classroom it was difficult for me to get all pupils’ attention. They were very talkative and it was hard for me teaching while they were talking and doing other things. I realized that you have to know pupils and know their names to get their trust and control the class.        

       Grabbing the attention of the pupils is also another issue that is vital when working as a primary teacher. This is because the English language is foreign to them and therefore as the teacher, I had to make the learning process of this language as interesting as possible. Therefore, to prevent boredom and pupils’ distraction, I prepared interesting set inductions in my lesson plans. My analysis of the class showed that this class had not done anything before that involved a warm-up activity. Therefore, when I introduced the set induction activity, they showed an interest to the lesson. Furthermore, I used picture aids such as PowerPoint and flashcards to help them learn some words and phrases. One of the advantages of using pictures in teaching is its ability to attract the attention of the pupils and enhance their ability to retain everything they have learnt in class, especially when introducing new words. 

        Group work is another issue faced during my practicum days was related to classroom management. Since I believe pupils should be able to roam freely, the classroom environment became much more chaotic. This type of cooperative learning environment also fosters an increased noise level, which seemed to disrupt other pupils. I will be better prepared to overcome such dilemmas in the future. It is very important to keep the classroom under control during the group work. I provided the signs “We Need Help” to reduce the noise level during the group work. Pupils need to hold up the sign with their mouths closed if they encounter any difficulties. I will go to them and give guidance to them when necessary.

To be continued...

Post Practicum Reflection Part 1

I'm back. I'm so sorry that i don't blog much these days. it's just that I don't blog for people to read anymore. I only blog for self-satisfaction. If I have something really worth to share, I will share here. Right now, I'm going to share about my post practicum reflection. FYI, I finished my practicum like 2 months ago. since that, I've been really busy with Induction course, Bina Insan Guru and stuff. So I totally forgot about existence of this blog. ha ha

     So, my experiences in SK Aman Jaya have been a real eye opener in terms of the theoretical classroom versus the real world classroom. During the first month of practicum, I struggled with classroom management and behavior management. I was so tired of yelling and nagging inside my classroom. There has got to be a better way to manage the children. I hope I manage to find it over the coming months. It is hard enough when they don’t understand me speaking in English but it is harder when they are misbehaving. My cooperating teacher, Sir Yusuff advised me to be strict and just make them fear you. 

       I identified my own weaknesses and strengths throughout the practicum days. I struggled with the time management. The planned time for every stage seemed to run off. The presentation stage for several lessons was done too quickly, usually lasted for only 10 minutes. I should be able to provide more inputs during the presentation to cover those 15 minutes. Perhaps, I should carry out Q and A session with the pupils and try to elicit answers from the pupils. The production stage usually took more than the given time. An example of a scenario, half of the pupils didn’t bring the scissors and glues. Therefore, they took longer time to finish the task I assigned to them.

     Besides, what didn’t go well is my voice projection. There were 36 pupils in my classroom. The pupils at the back complained that they didn’t hear me really well. I really need to work on my voice projection so that pupils at the back won’t be left out and missed my instructions. According Brown (2001), a good teaching requires a good voice projection where you do not have to have a loud, booming voice, but you need to be heard by all the students in the room.  

okay folks,  to be continued :)

First week of practicum

Kids nowadays. what's wrong with our education system? poor cat. well, a pink cat is very rare to find one right? haha

I really hope something really2 interesting will come up in the second week. Looking forward to it.

the first meeting.

Hi there, because my blog is dying so I decided to post something here. I was asked by the cohort leader to write this reflection. why me? well, i accepted this responsibility with an open heart :)

Time: 11.00 am - 1.00 pm
Date: 25 June 2012
Venue: Dewan Farabi
Content: Collaborative Workshop: Headmasters, Cooperating teachers, Supervisors, Student-teachers

Before the first meeting with the headmasters and cooperative, I thought about so many things and also I went through many emotions like nervous, excited, panic etc. I had so many questions running through my mind. What will they be like? Will they be supportive? My partner and I were very nervous at first. I was worried that our cooperative teacher and us would not get along. When the time came for us to meet with the headmaster and the cooperative teacher, all I could do was hope and pray that things went smoothly. I soon found out that any worries I had were no longer an issue.Cikgu Amir, the headmaster, and Cikgu Yusuf, the cooperative teacher were very friendly and supportive people. If my partner and I had any question, they always had an answer. Both of them made us feel comfortable and respected. They were also eager to know more about my partner and I. They asked lots of questions about New Zealand. Like, What are difference between primary education in NZ and Malaysia? They were very impressed with the answers that we gave them. Cikgu Yusuf, our cooperative teacher, was eager to see what were the new things, theories, practices that we could bring to the school and perhaps we might be able to apply them successfully. They were very impressed to know that we studied 2 years in New Zealand and we even had teaching experiences there. We were very flattered to hear their compliments and hoping that we could do all we can to impress them at school. Cikgu Yusuf, recommended that during the first week of practicum, we could start coming into the classroom and teach the students, although, he's being informed by our lecturers that during the first week, we were not required to teach yet. He said that it would be great if we could start early and be familiar with the pupils. My partner and I did say nothing about it. We thought of that as a challenge and a good start for us. The meeting ended well and we bid them goodbyes. They were expecting to see us soon at school. we can't wait too!

am i ready?

am i confident enough?

am i wise enough?

am i prepared enough?

i can only give the same answer to every question . which is NO.

OMG OMG practicum is next week. i'm gonna die. help me Lord. i'm freaking scared. i'm totally shaking. these negative feelings have been boiling up inside me that i feel i could explode at anytime. huwaaa. i'm so nervous like hell. chill chill.

alright this quotation really helps to ease my pain a little. by remembering Allah, everything will be fine. Insyaallah. Qistina Fahimi. you can do this. fighting! this might be my last post at the time being. i don't know. i don't feel like blogging anymore. currently, i've been busy tumblring, tweeting and stalking Zayn Malik. oopps.  tumblr is so much fun ya know. with all those beautiful, animation gifs and images, i just can't resist tumblr. RIP blogspot. heh. that's all for now. 

till then, cheerio.