My Second Teaching Observation at RUPP

I have observed another teacher today. This time the class I went to is not so far from where I parked my car but it is so high from the ground. It's on the sixth floor of building A. I wish there had been an elevator or escalator.

I was a bit late for the class. I didn't how the teacher started the lesson, but I bet he might have directly gone straight with the book. The first hour I was in the class I heard no students' response. The students were extremely passive. Only the teacher talked. He kept talking and talking and didn't seem to care about encouraging students to talk. What else? The teacher seemed like a translator than a teacher. He just read the text then translate key words for the students. Besides, he didn't even touch the board. To avoid misunderstanding, he should have written something on the board whether it was the date, the title of the lesson he was teaching or the answer of the exercises.

My first observation on RUPP Teacher of English

Today I left my home around 1:30PM to observe an English class at RUPP which started at 2:00PM. I went there a bit early because I had to do two things. First, I had to make copies of some documents. Second, I didn't want to be late on my first observation class.

The class that I had to observe is in Building C which is quite far from where I parked my car. I had to walk to the class under a hot sunny day. It was terribly hot inside the class and mixed with the noise created by the students, the atmosphere just didn't make me feel alright. Having been in the classroom for a few minutes, I finally saw the teacher coming into the class. His name is Song Sokun. He's wearing a smart dress and eyeglasses. My first impression on him told me that he is an experienced teacher.

A high season of school work

December marks the last month of the year. It also signals the start of the new year. Most people do not want to start their new year with lots of workload. One of my teacher, likewise, said that he did not want to begin the new year with many more things to do such as correcting students assignments and tests. He wanted to have time for himself to enjoy some of the things he likes so that he can have a fresh start.

A wake-up call

It is very interesting to know that my writing ability has degraded so fast. I don't even realize that it has been so poor like this. It took me only a mere 10-minute duration to write a short paragraph a few months ago while I was practicing my vocabulary everyday, but now it takes me more than half an hour just to produce a short passage. I questioned myself too whether it is because the subject that I am writing now is much more difficult than the subjects I wrote before. The answer is not much. The point is my stock of vocabulary has decreased as I haven't practiced much lately. Anyway, that's a wake-up call for me. I should restart my vocabulary learning.

Challenge is a fact of life

Everyday I face with new challenges. They are neither what I want nor what I hate. They just come into my life sometimes unconsciously to make me a stronger, more intelligent, more adaptable and more optimistic in my life. Change, Hate, Anger, Learning, Love-seeking, Emotional management, Never Give up, and Empathy are the the things that come to my mind when I hear the word 'challenge.' Admittedly, they are challenges in my life, perhaps other people's life as well.

Year 3 Vacation

Just realized that I started school the other day, I am now going to the final year of my undergraduate study, Bachelor of Education. My year 3 vacation lasted roughly about two months starting from mid-July to mid-September, but I did not get a two-month full vacation because I have still been having to study at the other university, the University of Cambodia. Normally, I would study only three subjects during a summer course at the University of Cambodia, but I was advised to take four subjects during this summer course, which means I need to study both in the morning and the afternoon. The morning class is every Tuesday and Wednesday.

My teaching experience

It has always given me a great feeling to recall my good past memories. Thinking of my teaching, I feel that I should write something down here.

When I stepped into my teaching classroom for the first time last year, I was so nervous seeing many eyes looking at me. I felt that way because it was the first time I was playing a role as a Teacher of English. I did not expect my students to love or like me very much because I was an inexperienced teacher. What I needed from them was their passion in learning from me. After I had been teaching for a week, the number of my students had decreased noticeably. The reason that many students left my class was perhaps because of my appearance--I looked very young, and of course I was just 18. A few of my students were even older than me. However, the decrease in number did not discourage me. It gave the power, the strength, the enthusiasm and the passion to keep the gusto and teach the rest of the students well. A week later, I could see the result of my effort. The number of my students stabilized, and they really enjoyed my teaching.

The point here is that nothing can stop you from being successful as long as you have the passion and perseverance in doing your job.