"A good teacher can inspire hope, ignite the imagination, and instill a love of learning." - Brad Henry

 Mini-Observations

The two teachers whom I observed for my mini-lesson both teach Social Studies.  One being a 6^th grade teacher and the other being a 7^th grade teacher.  The three lessons I observed with the 6^th grade teacher involved Ancient Egypt, writing poems about the gods, and Egyptian Writing.  The three lessons I observed with the 7^th grade teacher involved The American Revolution, The Constitution, and a review for a test.   All lessons were observed at different time periods throughout four weeks. 

I went into each classroom with a clear objective to watch and listen to everything going on in the classroom.  I kept repeating SOTEL (Marshall’s observation tool) over and over in my mind.  Safety and engagement were easy to remember.  That involved looking around the classroom to see if it is physically and psychologically safe for all students.  It is also easy to observe if the students are engaged in the lesson.  The objective of each lesson is written on the board but depending upon when I entered the classroom, I couldn’t tell if the students clearly understood the objective.  The two most difficult things for me to observe during these lessons were teaching and learning.  I felt it was hard to define since I walked in at different points of the lessons.  A few times I entered a classroom the students were copying notes from a power point presentation or they were working on a t-chart.  The teachers were not asking any questions just waiting for the students to finish copying their notes. 

The length of the mini-observations varied.  It was hard to stay for the designated time period.  I tried to stay between 5-7 minutes but found myself interested in the topic and remained there longer than I should have.  I got so involved with one lesson that when I looked at the clock, it was 15 minutes into the lesson.  Some of the lessons were truly fascinating and I found the students agreed; they were taking responsibility for their own learning.  I also found that when I observed one teacher at the beginning of the lesson, the seven minutes were over before the lesson even began. 

I found note taking after the observation to be difficult and frustrating.  It is easier to jot down notes at the time of the observation.  There is much activity going on within the classroom that it is difficult to remember everything – good or bad.  I did jot down some words on my hand and had to remember what I wrote when I got back to my desk.  After one observation, I became side tracked and didn’t make it back to my room for 20 minutes.  I felt that I lost the whole mini-observation.  I had to really think about what went on and went back to the classroom to speak to the teacher about part of the lesson.  I also found that during the lesson I was focused but once I stepped out of the classroom, my mind drifted to other things that I had to do.

I enjoyed providing feedback to both teachers.  I felt that overall; the lessons were proficient, some even leaning on expert.  We spoke about why the teachers asked certain questions, how they assigned their reading groups, and how the students were engaged in each lesson. Before I even began one of the informal feedback conversations, the 6^th grade teacher explained to me what she was going to do differently for one of her lessons.   She felt the lesson didn’t go as smoothly as she liked.  This is where I felt challenged.  I wasn’t there long enough to know what the teacher was talking about.  It is hard to give feedback on all parts of SOTEL.

After I provided the feedback, I replayed the conversations in my mind.  I felt that I ensured both teachers that they did a great job and that the students were engaged in the lessons.  When I talked to each teacher about one thing that could be done to enhance their lesson, they listened and told me how they plan to implement the suggestion.

There are both strengths and challenges of using this method of observation.  I found that by observing a teacher at different times throughout the day, you get to really know what is “going on” in the classroom.  An observation done at the beginning of the day is very different from an observation done at the end of the day.  Also, observing the beginning of a lesson is much different than observing the middle of a lesson.

I did find some things to be challenging.  It is hard to see all parts of SOTEL during a mini-observation.  The length of the observation is so short.  It doesn’t allow for the observer to see the entire lesson.  I found myself wanting to stay for many of the lessons.  I wasn’t always able to see the teaching and learning.  I also found not writing notes during the observation to be rather difficult.  It is much easier to jot something down than to remember it after the observation is over.

I did enjoy observing the teacher three different times.  I did get a feeling for how the teacher runs her classroom during different periods of the day.  If a teacher is consistent on how they run their classroom, he or she should not feel threatened by mini-observations.  I also enjoyed the informal feedback.  The feedback was done both promptly and in a thoughtful manner.  In fact when I spoke to the 7^th grade teacher, I met with her in the hallway and quickly went over her lesson.

I do plan on using this observation tool when I become an administrator.  I will however, have to learn to watch the clock more closely and learn how to jot down notes immediately after the lesson.