Checking out the Science Wing!

Last week I had the opportunity to observe a Science Class here at Conneuat Area Senior High! I sat in on an Environmental Ecology class made up of 14 freshmen. The objectives for the day focused around the vocabulary for the next chapter. 

They started the class by going over their weekly agenda. Next, the students took a daily quiz which was then graded by their peers. The rest of the class period was spent going over vocabulary words and their definitions on the over-head projector. All of the students took notes on their iPads however they did not seem to be fully interested in the lesson. 

The teacher tried to focus the students’ attention on the presentation by asking questions and getting them involved in the lecture. I feel the students would have been more likely to be interested if there was some variability to the lesson. Students spent the entire class in their seats either taking a quiz or taking notes. This may not be how every class goes but you can tell that the students were not fully engaged in what was going on that day. 

Even though the students were not super active, the teacher tried to capitalize on student interest or experiences by relating the subject matter to things that the students would know more about.  He also showed a lot of enthusiasm for the subject matter which helped to make the lecture more interesting. Also, the teacher had great clarity when discussing what he wanted each student to do. For example, he was also checking for understanding to make sure each student was following along and understood what they were doing before he moved on to the next item of business. 

Overall, observing this class has helped me to realize the importance of variability in the classroom. Getting the students up and moving or even switching up the way you are conducting class can keep the students interested and more engaged in the lesson. It was great to see another teacher at work!