Portfolio

Portfolio



Since it has been too late to start completing my portfolio, along with some other stuff to finish it seems to me that I would be able to put FEW things on my portfolio (as the term ‘few’ suggests it may not be enough), including some general points about various topics, in which I found interest during the semester and my understanding toward them. Also I’d like to say my opinion about the whole thing we done during the term and its implications and applications, some of which happened in my own classes and some may happen soon or late. Moreover I’ll try to demonstrate my own teaching philosophy.

I can vividly remember the first session when I felt I was bombarded with lots of assignments and requirements. I hardly could believe I’ll be able to handle them all by the end of the semester. I didn’t have a strong background in the course which constantly was duplicating my worries. I felt being stranger and extra. It’s difficult to describe the controversial feeling I experienced .Anyway after all I have been teaching for two years I really liked my job. So the least thing that the courses could provide me with, was to help me to be a more successful teacher.

Anyway there were lots of ups and downs, there were sessions I really couldn’t get through the material and requirements and which left we with a feeling of incompetency, which I never experienced before. Of course there were other times which I was prepared before and I did go through the material after the class assistance stage.

Considering the material covered during the term I did learn lots of things. The class most of the time gave touch on some delicate ideas, which defiantly needed further introspections and search on the part of the learners. I can list the most topics which triggered my mind as follows:

The ideas of negotiated curricula and also the one of having intelligence tests in my classes attracted me the most. I’m looking for an opportunity to use them at least once to see the outcome myself. Although I know that just by one experiment I can’t come to a fair judgment but I’m just very curios to try them coz I never had such an experience in my own classes(neither as a teacher nor as a student).When I paid more close attention to my sts,I could get some interesting ideas of their intelligences. Maybe it doesn’t seem rational, but it seems possible to get to sts dominant intelligences ,through getting intimate with sts and knowing their likes and dislikes, and provide opportunities to touch them while planning a lesson.

The other idea was what the instructor mentioned about Widowson’s philosophical thinking which was neatly critical. The Widdowson’s skeptical point of view on the concept of authenticity also made me more curious to work on the CLT ,how can we improve it to meet it’s complete potentials.

I really wish to be able to have a critical thinking, observing things from new angles and accommodate them, rather simply assimilate them. The ability to link different ideas and theories which demonstrates the beginning of the critical thinking which I feel I lack

Considering the delicacies mentioned for a good teacher to acquire to always make me wonder about the ways to improve my teaching abilities and to master all the tips and tricks which will make me able to have a desirable class for my own self and my sts.I try to reach the necessary qualifications while hoping to have the innate talent for that.

The other nice thing I remember was the discussion we had on grammar and its unquestioning importance. Grammar is form, meaning and use. By form we mean type or elements of a language. By meaning we mean the actual use.In consultations sessions we have in our classes I tried to demonstrate this fact in simple ways for sts neglecting the importance of grammar and motivate them to pay more attention to this crucial element of language. I learned that in teaching grammar what helps the most is problem solving task in which the teacher is not in the center and the sts try to discover and infer the use and function of grammar rules. The teacher must not simply put the rules on board and explain them in terms of sub,obj,v,n.But facilitate -ting the process of learning and help them to use inductive approaches to discover the rules on their own.

One session we talked about learners and their role in the process of learning and teaching. The main point for me was the emphasis made on the individuality of the learners. I definitely believe that each person is a universe and is special so it really is a delicate job to deal with learners considering their differences in terms of preferences ,desires, purposes, goals, motivations, styles and the rest. A teacher must be aware of all the factors that affect the learning process and according to them facilitate the learning process which fulfills the students’ needs. Learning a new language involves learning a new self which definitely needs the teacher’s help and mentorship.

The other thing which I really felt useful and complete at least in terms of theory was the true demonstration of the step by step process of lesson planning which is of great importance in order to have a well-ordered class in which everybody can get sth.There are many factors to be considered while lesson planning which seem overwhelming and difficult to fully follow. But if takes place it’s a good pace toward the class which everything is predetermined and prespecified making the teacher able to confront and handle any unpredictable situation. Of course implementing the lesson plan is of equal importance to the stage of planning itself.

Considering the changes took place in language teaching and learning area ,from traditional up to contemporary time,there came upon cahnes for better in the curriculum design as well as the teacher’s role,the sts’s role,the type and tools for assessment and evaluation and many others.

The point is that the teacher must specify her own philosophies and beliefs on teaching ,learning ,learning styles and learner’s roles, and according to them can bring the changes to her classroom. Whether She believes that language is learnt through meaningful interaction or is learnt by the presentation and practice of pre-selected items her classroom will be reflected in her classroom. The same thing can be said about the curriculum design, teacher’s role, the sts’s role, the type and tools for assessment.

The other point to be considered is that, there may exist some cultural, economic, religious ,educational boundaries in the target country ,willing to stay and not to depart it seems so difficult to have and make these changes happen in our classes. But we can make them happen to a degree with some effort.As teachers we must be able to make some kind of change.

And to cut a long story short,I believe that language classes should focus on meaning rather than grammar.Of course grammar has it’s own importance but negotiation of meaning is of primary importance to.It also seems to me that sts learn better trhough analysis rather than resynthesizing separate pieces of information. Moreover it’s better for a student to think directly in L2 rather than translating from L1.This point is difficult to achieve in elementary levels but emphasis must be put on it from the beginning. it is important to build an atmosphere of trust and reliability in the class to have a positive circumatances.The clt process must focus on both accuracy and fluency since the separation of two levels does not lead to a desirable learning.The teacher must always be there as a facilitator providing them with enough feedback, and moreover help them to be autonomous and develop self-reflection and self-evaluation skills in order to be aware of their own weaknesses and strengths and the whole process of their learning.

The mentioned ideas were mainly about the covered material in the class.However my own paper on portfolio assessment was of interest to me.The ideas that this research provided me with can defiantly help me toward a better evaluation on my sts . All in all,I came to the conclusion that with the information on the basic concepts as well as the strengths and weaknesses of portfolio assessment, the integration of this form of assessment in an ESL classroom to be more appropriate than trying to replace existing forms of assessment completely seems more appropriate. As a language teacher, it is important to know the elements of both traditional and alternative assessment. We need to have options on what kind of assessment tool we would like to use based on the needs of our students. We cannot dismiss the significance of the traditional assessment. In fact, portfolio assessment can enhance traditional assessment. For instance, the assessment of a non-native speaker’s writing ability with merely one piece of writing can be supplemented by the numerous drafts and other related writing assignments that are collected in the student’s portfolio. Before we have further research results showing the reliability and validity of portfolio assessment, we need to be aware of its strengths and weaknesses. The most important consideration is to involve students in their learning and to help them to learn through assessment. There will always be strengths and weaknesses of all kinds of assessments, and a perfect model does not exist. Nonetheless, if teachers work with their own experiences and review the existing literature on portfolio research, they may be able to design a better assessment tool, even when it may be a mixed form of assessment.



Also the other assignments such as designing a weblog was really a fun, though the awful speed of the net really derived me crazy a couple of times. I always meant to design a website or weblog to increase my technological abilities. This was an impetus to do so. I even was motivated to design a website for my husband’s business, though I couldn’t find time to complete it. I really enjoyed the task which seemed novel and different. Keeping a diary was also was a helpful device which forced lazy sts like me to review the material every week, and really found that working. So the natural outcome was that the materials would not be complied. However the start of mid-term exams which took a whole month made it difficult to accomplish the task fully. Of course the exams were just one side of the coin.

The other interesting experience was the observation project, which seemed too demanding on the part of most institutes. By the way I must express my gratitude to MR.Mirzaee who kindly provided the opportunity for me to videotape a class. I was observed by a couple of time during my profession and observed some the classes before begging it. Now it seems to me it’s an easy job to find problems and defects in the teacher’s job, while finding real solutions to help and improve the process of teaching and learning is a more difficult and more important one.

The next one was the designing a unit, using technology. This was also a novel and interesting project, which needed a good deal of innovation and creativity on the part of the learners. I think if had enough time I could design a better unit, but considering the time shortage( which of course was caused by my ill-management)I tried to do my best. Moreover the same thing applies to the review papers, which I’m not satisfied with.

This was not all I was supposed to to write and all I wanted to,but due to the shortage of time this seems to be the end.
Although there were some thongs which bothered me in some kind of ways ,the final point that remains is a gratitue to my classmates and instructor of the course,the former for the helps and cooperations and the latter for the the guidance,assistance and the inspirations.