Week 6 - 05/11/13 - One small step for man, One giant leap for... Karl

After the nerves I experienced prior to half term, this week I felt much happier. On reflection, I feel it was as a result of seeing numerous sessions played out that first week... It eliminated that "fear of the unknown". As a future tutor ( hopefully ), it drew to my attention the value of practically demonstrating a new exercise in class. Our minds have a remarkable ability to build up a mild query into a nerve shredding cataclysm, actually allaying many of the perceived worries by seeing it played through and witnessing the participant survive the ordeal and perhaps even enjoy it! Surely this has to help confidence.

So, back to the mini teaches... Again, it was a week to admire. Without exception, all tutors demonstrated a well rounded understanding of their subjects, while maintaining a relaxed, friendly atmosphere. 

I was particularly watching for techniques that would transfer to the BSL field. Hattie utilised a large box of lego - always a winner with me. This was coupled with an element of competition. I can imagine using such tools as this to teach and practice various aspects of BSL, such as colour, size and placement - the latter being a tricky skill to master. Having a visual creation at the end on a session is a great way to assess learning too. Imagine, for example, one student signing a description of something he has built, while one or more others would build what was being described. At the conclusion, the resulting "Lego masterpieces" would indicate how well the signer did, or how much the others understood.

Finally, it was my turn...

I really enjoyed it, once the initial thirty seconds had passed. 

I introduced an exercise that allowed the class to mingle and practice some phrases on each other :

1. My name is...
2. How old are you?
3. How are you?

At the conclusion of this exercise, I walked about the class asking - through sign - what information students had gleaned from each other.

We concluded with a lively debate on the following deaf cultural issues:

Overall, I was happy with the content, pace and flow of the mini teach, although I would have preferred longer on the vocabulary section. I don't feel that the lay out of the room was entirely suitable either, especially when you are encouraging students to get up and wander about, tables become obstacles.

Thankfully my peers were very complimentary. Still, a couple of suggested areas for improvement were given : 

• Some more worksheets demonstrating how to sign phrases would have been helpful - a fair comment, although how one person might record how to sign a phrase may be very different to what prompts the memory of another.
• One or two were a little confused when I started by signing and speaking, they felt that their minds kept drifting from what I was saying to " Oh is that the sign for that..?" Worthy of consideration, perhaps by watching the faces of my future classes, I will be able to gauge whether they are with me or I have lost them.

The mini teach was just fifteen minutes in one week, but for me it was a massive moment. I got to put some of the skills into action, I realised that perhaps I can do it.