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.