Self-evaluation 1

     In this blog entry, I would like to focus on self-evaluation connected with my teaching. I want to write something about my potential as a teacher and also about the organisation and implementation of a didactic process.

A) MY POTENTIAL AS A TEACHER

     It is not easy to write about my potential as a teacher because I know that I still need a lot of practice to learn how to be a good teacher. 

     I am absolutely sure that I would like to enter the teaching profession because working with children gives me a lot of energy and satisfaction. In this work, I can use my imagination to create many interesting lessons and tasks for children.

     However, I know that this is a very hard and responsible job. Unfortunately, it does not look like many people think that the teacher works only 4-5 hours a day and does not have to do anything at home. In addition to working at school, the teacher needs to devote a lot of time for preparing lessons or checking tests. Because of that, during my internship, I needed to learn how to work under pressure and how to prepare lessons quickly.

     Another important thing is that I needed to start accepting criticism from other teachers. In the beginning, it was not easy, but now I can see that it brings me a lot of useful hints connected with my teaching. After getting feedback from someone who observes my lesson I know what should I change.

     As a teacher, during my practice, I also needed to be flexible and open to others' needs. Each child is different so I had to adjust the tasks to the needs of children and their language level. It was not easy, especially when it comes to my CLIL unit, because it is very difficult to find materials. Most of them, I had to create myself. Sometimes it turned out that some tasks cannot be done with children so I had to look for something else quickly. I also had to try a lot of different methods, especially regarding working in groups to find the right one for each class. It was not an easy task, but somehow I managed to do it, although sometimes I still have a problem with maintaining discipline while working in groups. That's why I know that I still have to learn a lot to become a good teacher but practice makes perfect.

B)ORGANISATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF A DIDACTIC PROCESS

     During preparing my lessons plans, I needed to form appropriate lesson goals and objectives. In the beginning, I needed to observe my students to see how much new knowledge and skills they can absorb during one lesson. After that, I could form objectives and goals for my lessons. 

     When it comes to selecting appropriate methods and teaching materials I also need to get to know a group a little bit to know what they like, what kinds of activities are good for them and thanks to what methods they learn best. When I look for materials I always choose things that are interesting for children, on appropriate language level and without any mistakes. Sometimes on the internet, we can find a lot of worksheets full of mistakes, so it is important to read everything before giving them to a child.

     During classes, I try to use different methods and then I can see which ones are good and which are not. During my internship, I was trying to find a solution to my problem with organizing group work. In order to do that I tried a lot of different activities and methods for creating groups. Finally, I found my main mistakes and how to deal with them, so it is good to experiment in order to improve something. 

     When I am teaching I always try to make my lesson interesting for kids, so I try different forms of students' work like; group work, pair work, individual work or whole class activities. Thanks to this children can see that lessons do not need to be boring and that they can learn in different ways. During each activity and each form of work, they can practice different skills. 

     When it comes to motivating students to learn I try to find interesting activities, games or topics connected with things that are now fashionable for them. Unfortunately, it is not easy and does not always work. Sometimes I try to use motivational systems but I cannot do this all the time because children will start doing things only to get an award. Giving feedback can also motivate students. At first, I always try to tell children something good about their works and then what they can improve and why. I try to encourage them to work harder by showing them that they are making progress when they are trying.