For the Second Task of the TSL 3109 Managing ESL Classroom

TSL3109 MANAGING ESL CLASSROOM 2014

For the second Task of the TSL 3109 Managing ESL Classroom, I was required to

observe an ESL classroom teaching by an in service teacher in my practicum school.

The task assigned to us was not only to observe but also to write a report on which

relevant theories she might have use in managing her classroom. I am llucky that

teachers whom teach ESL classroom in Sekolah Kebangsaan Bukit Payong Marang,

Terengganu were all very cooperative and friendly. I managed to get teacher Adzalina

permission to complete this task. She is the head of English panitia in this school. The

class that I have entered to is class 6 Arif. This means that I would not be commenting

on the kssr curricular but kbsr instead. Despite being the product of kbsr curricular many

years ago during my primary school’s years I have totally no ideas on how exactly the

lesson was being carried out. So this observing experienced actually reminds me of all

those years I have been through in schools. Throughout the lesson I tried my best to

relate her teaching to all the relevant theories that is approved by the authorities in the

field of education and children psychology.

As per any other class in the muslim and malay classroom the class started with the

teachers greeted her pupils with ‘salam’ and prayers recital. It is a norm instilled upon

them based on Islamic teaching. The teacher then asked her pupils question pertaining

to their activities with their family during their leisure time. This question help teachers to

not only asses her pupil’s prior knowledge but also help her to arouse pupil’s attention.

After a series of questions and answers, teacher Adzalina pasted a picture of cupcake

on the whiteboard. The class begins to roar in excitement. Teachers tap her hand twice

and the class again regain its composure. I was amazed that a simple to time tap of

hand would actually made the class behave accordingly. Then I remembered that

setting up the class rules on your first day with the class is very essentials. According to

Canter, it is vital for teacher to set up the classroom set of rules for class behavior. This

if to be used with Dreikur’s democratic classroom allows the flexibility of the classroom

management where teacher have the right to teach without being interrupted and pupils

had a right to learn in a calm and orderly manner. Plus involving the pupil’s in chartering

the class set of rules pays it dividend as pupils’ feel that they belong to the class and will

1 MUHAMMAD SYAUQI BIN ZAMRYPISMP SEM 5 TESL3


behave in accordance to the set of rules agreed upon with teachers. I guest she had

really been able to implement these theories into her teaching.

Next, she asked pupils to describe and share the taste of cupcakes that they have ever

had. One pupil after another started to raise their hand and shared their story on

cupcakes and how it feels like. After that, the teacher asked if anyone know the step to

bake a cupcake. Only a few could actually raise their hand to show that they knew how

to bake a cupcake. Then the teacher introduces and displays the instruction for baking

cupcakes. She also introduced the sequence connectors such as Firstly, combine

flour…., Secondly add…, Thirdly, add eggs….. , and then, beat on…. . Only then I get

the ideas of what she was teaching at that time. She was teaching emphasizing the

thinking skill of sequencing through reading. The real purpose was off course to teach

grammar skill which is imperative sentence (verb + nouns).

As expected from an experienced teacher, the teaching transition process occurred

smoothly without any abrupt stop or interferences. However the main traits of kbsr

which is repetitive and drilling clearly took place during this stage. I did understand that

drilling and repetitions actually condition pupils to the expected objectives as proposed

by the exponent of behavioral theories but it also make the lesson dull and boring. From

what I have learned, Kounin states that momentum and smoothness in the delivery of

the lesson are important factors to prevent misbehaviors in the classroom (Balson,

1992). The lesson proceeds from the set induction to presentation smoothly but too

much repetition during the presentation stage might have reduced the momentum. I

noticed that the class changed from participating to slightly passive over the next stage.

From this, I can agree with Kounin that lack of momentum may cause boredom in the

class, which either leads to less active pupils or misbehaviours. Plus the lesson was in

much way teacher oriented. With less part and roles to be played by the pupils, they

became passive learners.

Personally, I think the lesson could be made into a more interesting and involved active

participation by the pupils if the teacher use a large template of how to write the recipes

of baking a cupcakes on a mahjong paper. Then she could provide the imperative



sentence for the pupils to arrange and paste onto the mahjong paper. I believe that by

having this activity pupils will be able to focus and learn in a more interactive ways.

While her transition between the set induction and presentation was smoothly done, the

presentation itself could be more fun so that the pupils will not be bored. Luckily, the

pupils were behaving nicely, so it was not too much of a trouble for the teacher.

Moving to the practice stage, the teacher clearly instructed the class to write the

cupcake recipe on their own. She however provides the sentences to be arrange and

used by the pupils. I noticed that she deliberately write an imperative sentence wrongly.

By doing so, the pupils seem to be alerted that a mistake had been done thus try to

correct their teacher. This tactics discreetly made her pupils to focus back on the lesson

when they were started to lose their focus towards the lesson. The awareness shown by

the teacher personify the term ‘withitness’ that was proposed by Kounin in his theory.

‘Withitness’ is the term used by kounin in his second research in 1971 to explains the

teacher abilities to displayed a constant awareness of what all her pupils were doing in

the classroom at all times. This can be as simple as making scanning looks around the

room every once in a while. Kounin said that is was not necessary for the teacher to

know what is going on, but for the students to perceive that the teacher knows. I used to

think that all my primary teachers had an extra eyes on the back of their head as they

shown constant awareness of what were happening throughout the classroom even

when they are writing on the blackboard.

She also blends the theories of canter assertive teaching and kounin theories together

during this stage. She definitely mastered the instructional and questioning techniques

very well. In giving instruction, she became a very assertive and firm teacher. Playing is

a big no-no thing to do. This trait according to Canter theory was based on the three

response styles a teacher uses in order to manage a classroom. These three response

styles are the non-assertive, hostile and assertive.




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For the Second Task of the TSL 3109 Managing ESL Classroom