ClassObservation&TeachingManner•Inwhatwaysdoyouthinkclassroomobservationcanassistteachersinenhancingtheirteachingperformance?•Whatshouldyoudoifyouaretoobserveothersteach?Whatshouldyoudoifothersaretoobserveyouteach?1.TheImportanceofClassObservation•Classobservationisacollaborativeprocess.Boththepersonbeingobservedandtheobserverhaveimportantrolesbefore,during,andaftertheobservation.•Observationcantakeplaceinvariouscontextsforvariouspurposesincludingassessmentofteaching.However,itsmostimportantfunctionistoserveasalearningtool.2.WhattoobserveInalanguagelearningclassroomthereisalottoobserve:teachingbehaviorandlearningbehavior,patternsofinteraction,differentlearningstyles,differentteachingstrategies,etc.Itisimpossibleforustofocusattentiononsomanydifferentthingsthathappenduringalesson.Ifobservationistobeeffective,itneedstolimititsfocusononeortwoobservationtasks.Thefollowingissuesoftenappearinthechecklistofclassroomobservation:•Physicalfeatures•Learnerbehaviors•Language•Teachingskillsandstrategies•Classroommanagement•Theuseofteachingaids3.Howtoobserve•Toensureobservationtobesystematic,objective,andnon-reactive(observershouldnotaffecttheobserved),itisimportanttofamiliarizeoneselfwiththeformandprinciplesbeforeaclassobservation.Someobservingprinciplesneedtobefollowed:3.1Principles•Abasictrustinmotiveandprofessionalethicmustberespected.•Observersshouldtakeeverycaretominimizetheintrusion.•Theobservingexperiencehastobemeaningful,rewardingandnon-threateningtoallinvolved.•Otherfactorstobetakenintoconsiderationincludesomepreliminarycollaborationandco-operationwiththeteacherwhoisgoingtobeobservedbeforeobservation.3.2Methods•Usingobservationsheets(seethehandout)•Usingchecklists•Usingvideotapes•Reflections4.Aspectsofteachingmanner•Itisnotonlywhattheteachersaysintheclassroomthatisimportant,butitishowshesaysitthatcanmakethedifferencetostudents.Nonverbalmessagesareanessentialcomponentofcommunicationintheteachingprocess.•Teachersshouldbeawareofnonverbalbehaviorsintheclassroomforthreemajorreasons:First,anawarenessofnonverbalbehaviorwillallowhim\hertobecomebetterreceiversofstudents’messages.Second,shewillbecomeabettersenderofsignalsthatreinforcelearning.Last,thismodeofcommunicationincreasesthedegreeoftheperceivedpsychologicalclosenessbetweenteacherandstudents.Wewillnowlookatsevennon-verbalskillsthatteacherscanusetomaketeachingmoreeffective.4.1Eyecontact•Eyecontact,animportantchannelofinterpersonalcommunication,helpsregulatetheflowofcommunication.Anditsignalsinterestinothers.Furthermore,eyecontactwithaudiencesincreasesthespeaker’scredibility.Teacherswhomakeeyecontactopentheflowofcommunicationandconveyinterest,concern,warmthandcredibility.4.2Facialexpressions•Smilingisapowerfulcuethattransmitshappiness,friendliness,warmth,liking,andaffiliation(collectionwithothers).Thus,ifyousmilefrequentlyyouwillbeperceivedasmorelikable,friendly,warmandapproachable.Smilingisoftencontagious(spreadquicklytoothers)andstudentswillreactfavorablyandlearnmore.4.3Gestures•Ifyoufailtogesturewhilespeaking,youmaybeperceivedasboring,stiffandunanimated.Alivelyandanimatedteachingstylecapturesstudents’attention,makesthematerialmoreinteresting,facilitateslearningandprovidesabitofentertainment.Headnods,aformofgestures,communicatepositivereinforcementtostudentsandindicatethatyouarelistening.4.4Postureandbodyorientation•Youcommunicatenumerousmessagesbythewayyouwalk,talk,standandsit.Standingerect,butnotrigid,andleaningslightlyforwardcommunicatestostudentsthatyouareapproachable,receptiveandfriendly.Furthermore,interpersonalclosenessresultswhenyouandyourstudentsfaceeachother.Speakingwithyourbackturnedorlookingatthefloor,thebackwall,orceilingshouldbeavoidedbecauseyourstudentswillbelievethatyouarenotinterestedinthem.4.5Proximity•Peoplefromdifferentcultureshavedifferentideasaboutwhatisacomfortabledistance.Theteachershouldlookforsignalsofdiscomfortcausedbyinvadingstudents’space.Someofthesignalsarerocking,legswinging,tapping,andgazeaversion.Movearoundtheclassroomtoincreaseinteractionwithyourstudents.Increasingproximityenablesyoutomakebettereyecontactandincreasestheopportunitiesforstudentstospeak.4.6Paralinguistics•Thisfacetofnonverbalcommunicationincludessuchvocalelementsastone,pitch,rhythm,timbre(qualityofsound),loudnessandinflection.Ifyouasateacherwantmaximumteachingeffectiveness,youhadbetterlearntovarythesesixelementsofyourvoice.Studentsthinkteacherswhospeakinamonotoneareboringanddull.Studentsreportthattheylearnlessandloseinterestmorequicklywhenlisteningtoteacherswhohavenotlearnedtomodulatetheirvoices.4.7Humor•Humorisoftenoverlookedasateachingtool.Laughterreleasesstressandtensionforboththeteacherandthestudents.Youshoulddeveloptheabilitytolaughatyourselfandencouragestudentstodothesame.Itfostersafriendlyclassroomenvironmentthatfacilitateslearning.•That’stheendofallmylectures.Ihopeyoucanbenefitfromtheminyourfuturecareer!