Week 4 Reflection - Co Curricular and Mentor Meeting

In week 4 (my second week at BMIS), I was still making observations in the secondary section. Well, the lessons learned were relatively the same as the first week's so I feel obliged to avoid redundancy and highlight the new experiences I had.

Mentor Meeting:

I had my first formal meeting with my mentor, Tom Craven, the head of Braeburn Mombasa. Together, we reviewed the course expectations as per the PGCE (i) and Braeburn requirements. The focus area of the meeting was on lesson planning.

1. Lesson Planning

Mr. Craven categorically stressed on the importance of lesson planning. His insistence on this area was because of the expectations of a teacher in the classroom and how the achievement of these expectations are tied to proper planning.
One of the things I learned was that lesson planning is not just about highlighting the things you will do in class but actually going an extra mile to ensure that every detail is captured in the lesson plan. Even examples to be used in the class should be planned for in advance.

2. Modeling 

What differentiates an exemplary teacher from the rest is simply good modeling. In the meeting, Mr. Craven dwelt much on the importance of modeling in the classroom as opposed to giving instructions to students on what to do. As part of the teaching expectations, he challenged me to ensure that modeling becomes my base of teaching English.

Co-Curricular:

MUN
In my second week, I was struggling to find suitable clubs where I could make meaningful contributions. With the absence of a debate club in the school, I opted to join Model United Nations (MUN) club.

Friday Football
I was also interested in football but I could not get into the field because I had not carried my sports kit. However, I knew football was going to be an activity that I would participate during my placement at BMIS.

Week 3 reflection - the secondary experience

Experience in Secondary (Years 7, 8 & 9)

During my first week, I was primarily involved with learners in the key stage 3. 

Well, my initial thoughts were that the classes were relatively small compared to the national schools in Kenya. However, I found the classes to be extremely small; all the three classes had five (5) students each. I had mixed feelings on the effectiveness of teaching a small number. I will review my feelings as I highlight the differences between the Kenyan national curriculum and the international curriculum taught at BMIS. 

Major differences observed were:

1. Teaching methodologies

Observing all the lessons in key stage 3, I noted the use of child-centered methodologies. The learners played an active role in the classroom, where the teachers only modeled the lessons based on the learning objectives (LO). 

Less teaching and more learning took place in the classes with the learners showing clear involvement with the lessons. 

My feeling about this approach has always been positive because I recommend its use as opposed to other methodologies of 'banking' that put the teachers as the only source of information with the learners playing lesser roles in the learning process. 

Therefore, I was impressed by the use of a learner-friendly approach to teaching and would be more than glad to implement it in my classes.

2.  Number of students in a single classroom

This was one of the most noticeable differences. I expected a class of about 20 students, which according to my personal experience would have also been a small class. However, with an average of five students per class, I realized the number had a lot to do with the teachers' choice of the teaching methodology. Without an option, the teachers had to engage all the learners. So I put this on the pro side of a small class. Furthermore, keeping close attention to the learners is easier with a small class. 

One of the drawbacks I recorded was lack of a variety in the classrooms. With a small number, there was less that learners could learn from each other.

3. Use of ICT and resources 

As expected, and of course very different from our national curriculum, there was good use of ICT and resources in the classrooms I observed. The resources were quite helpful in stimulating learners involvement in the class.

Take away:::

The takeaway lesson I learnt here, which my mentor also stressed on later, was the need for proper planning. With proper planning, there is less room for error and the outcome becomes measurable. 

These were the major differences (in classrooms) that I observed comparing to my former exposure at the Kenyan national school during my teaching practice. 

Extras:

Learners involvement in learning boosts their confidence and also helps them to improve on their language skills more especially in speaking and listening.  

Week 3 Reflection at Braeburn Mombasa - Settling in

This was my first time in an international school. Having been schooled in typical national schools with no touch of international education, you can imagine the kind of anxieties that filled my mind! 

The school headteacher, Mr. Tom Craven was assigned to me as a personal mentor during my training at the school. We had a brief discussion, which was mainly to set the dates for our regular mentor-trainee meetings.

With the help of Miss Laetitia Mkok (Head of Languages), I was able to, swiftly, familiarize myself with the international curriculum used in Braeburn Mombasa. She took personal responsibility to ensure I have all I need to settle; and indeed I settled well. 
Her help has been unimaginably great, fast-tracking my swift adaptation to the school.

I was also glad to meet Mr. Kamana, who is a former PGCE(i) student. He shared great insights into the course and offered some valuable tips for balancing between school work and PGCEi coursework, which has been quite overwhelming.