Teacher Observation Essay

In order to see what it’s like to teach in a school setting, the proficient way of doing that is to go observe a teacher with students in a classroom. In my case, I‘ve spent twenty-five hours throughout this semester observing three math teachers at Bayside High School located in Queens, New York. To be considerate of each teacher’s identity, I’ll be referring to their names as Teacher A who teaches geometry, Teacher B who teaches algebra, and Teacher C who teaches pre-calculus. I’ve taken extensive notes on the diversity of students, the issues of poverty, the methods of how teachers present information along with managing classrooms, and their expectations of their pupils. There are students whom make up Bayside High School of diverse

Moreover, teachers provide materials such as textbooks and calculators to students who are unable to afford them. However, there are times where teachers have certain limited resources and cannot provide tools to all students. In fact, teachers ask students who already have tools like protractors to share with others who don’t have one. One more aspect of teachers understanding the consequence of poverty is the hunger students are dealing with. I heard a male student state that he was hungry and asked Teacher C for a piece of her cake. The teacher did not give him a piece of cake, but instead sent him to the cafeteria for a free bagged lunch. This action shows that teachers are accommodating of students who are unable to afford food and they are aware that hunger affects their energy level, as a result disrupting their education. When I become a teacher, I will do my best to approach students who are struggling to deal with poverty the same way these teachers did. I’ll attempt to find ways of providing more resources to ensure every student has whatever materials they need to succeed. No student should have to worry about relying on other students for their class tools. At times, it may interfere with their learning or embarass the child who cannot

All three teachers use multimedia by using Smart Boards. They are technological boards that teachers use to write and present information which is shown to be beneficial. All of the teachers use Power Point presentations to not only inform, but also to entertain students with pictures that relate to the learning material. Sometimes, the teachers will use the chalkboard to write additional information that will emphasize what’s important when it comes to learning new concepts. For example, Teacher B wrote the definition of the word slope, which means the rate of change. He drew a box around the word to show how important the definition was for students to understand, especially since the New York State Regents uses it as well. The teachers lecture by reading the notes from the board so their students are listening and paying attention. Like Power Point presentations, teachers inform and engage students in lessons by communicating verbally. For instance, Teacher C lectured how using logarithms in mathematics can be useful outside of class for applications in business and biology. Teachers, who display information on the Smart Board, as well as explaining themselves, demonstrate how they accommodate students with different learning styles. Aside from using multimedia methods and lecturing, teachers have students work with each other in small groups.