Riham’s Pedagogy Knowledge

This is the first time in my life that I stand in front of thirty students and teach them. The first time, my heart pounded hard and my voice trembled, but I quickly recovered and began to use the methods I had learned. I have learned a lot this year and in this book, I will show you many things I have learned.

Which lectures do you think were particularly helpful?

The websites that we used related to teaching English to primary students were very useful. Through them, I learned many ways to teach new vocabulary through games and activities. In my opinion, it contained a lot of ideas related to teaching different subjects to primary students. The lesson planning that we spent a lot of time on was very helpful. Planning lessons is a skill that I will use throughout my career. In addition, the lessons presented on the Ministry of Education website about teaching English were very useful. Through them, I saw how to teach a whole lesson and the methods used in each lesson are very useful. For example, repetition, using songs and videos, writing, and using different activities.

What did you find useful in relation to your practical training at school?

The lesson plans helped me to know what I will teach. Through the lesson plans, I learned how I could build a lesson. Introduction, lesson body, activities that I can use during the lesson, and lesson summary. In addition, discussing with the cooperation teacher at school and using the ideas she suggests helped me very much.

Is there anything that was not discussed in the lectures, but you would like to study next year?

No, there is nothing we haven’t learned this year. We learned many topics that will help me start my career as an English language teacher. I learned how to teach students writing, listening, and reading skills. In addition, with the help of the curriculum of the Ministry of Education, which contains all the topics that we should teach students. The curriculum is a compass for the teacher. If the teacher uses the curriculum with his own methods, he can teach the material in an excellent way to the students.

Is there anything that you would like to learn about in more depth next year?

Next year I want to learn ways to deal with students. Next year I will teach high school students and teenagers. The method of dealing with elementary students is very different from dealing with secondary students. In elementary school, I could easily dominate the class. You can encourage students to learn and participate in class activities through a piece of candy or fun activities, but the situation is very different in secondary schools. Dealing with teens is difficult and in order to be a successful teacher, I must learn how to deal with teens and motivate them to learn.

General comments

During the year I have learned a lot in class and through training at school. Dealing with the cooperation teacher at school was very difficult. We have faced disrespect many times and have complained about this situation. I hope that next year the situation will be a little different. Where I can know the topics that I should teach a week at least before the lesson, to know if the teacher will be at school today or not, I hope that I will have an opportunity to decide what subjects I would like to teach the students and I start teaching from nine o’clock instead of eight.