Lidiando con el conductismo, Práctica Profesional...

Name of student: Camila Gómez Valdés
Name of School: Colegio niños Cantores de Viña del Mar.
Number of students: between 5 and 8 (primary), around twenty (high school).
Date: april, 21^st. 2010.
Class: 7º grade of primary school, 3º grade of high school.

The School and Learning Environment.

“Colegio Niños Cantores de Viña del Mar” is a private school, it is located in Viña del Mar (San Pablo De La Cruz Street, #401. Recreo). This school is not too big, in fact in primary are about seven students per class and in high school about twenty. Students attend to school at 08:30 to 17:30 hrs.

This school is very special because here the students do not wear uniforms to attend classes, they use daywear instead. It gives the school a very comfortable environment, because students feel like at home. Moreover, teachers in general are very young and the relationship between each other is very close. We can say that “personal presentation” is not the great worrying in this school, because they referred about this theme in their vision as the following:

“¿De qué nos puede servir perder valiosos, valiosísimos minutos en discutir sobre el largo del cabello o la cantidad de aros y baratijas en las orejas, narices y lenguas de nuestros jóvenes?

¿De qué nos puede servir entonces perder el tiempo discutiendo nimiedades, insignificancias ante los problemas que en el mundo real hoy nos abruman?
Estamos ante una gran encrucijada y no se trata de ser más o menos pesimistas u optimista. Muy por el contrario, ser realistas, descarnadamente realistas ante los problemas y desafíos que nosotros y con mayor propiedad nuestros hijos, tendrán que afrontar.”

(http://colegiocantores.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=61&Itemid=73).

Talking about classes I can assert that these are like the typical ones, I mean the seats are organised in rows into the classroom, the students are in front of the whiteboard, etc. the positive point is that classrooms in general have good illumination; they are big enough for the number of students per class. But I have the impression that the school does not have too many technological resources to use in classes, that can be consider a point against.

As I mentioned before, teachers in this school are very young and that produces a very close relation between students and them. So, the students behave properly in the class, they respond every task that the teacher gives them, no matter how creative it could be (classes are not too motivating really, but the students participate anyway). In my opinion the classes are not learner-centred exactly.

There is a data show available in the school and a computer classroom, but during my observation stage I didn’t see any class using that media. ´Teachers use just sheets of papers, the whiteboard and that’s it.

Student’s learning

First of all, I consider important to clarify that in 7º grade students has two teachers of English (apart from me). So, that’s why in this report I’m referring to “teachers” sometimes, instead of “the teacher”.

I think that students are used to have the same kind of classes all over again. They are used to answers worksheets; they are used to have human-dictionaries, who answer everything that they need to know (teachers); they are used to do what teacher says (automatically) without suggesting new ideas, etc.

Despite of that, it seems to be that students are really motivated. I mean they have the disposition to work and to learn, BUT there is something missing: a motivating class, in which could be produced an effective learning.

I’m not saying that teachers are the only “guilty”. They put a lot of effort in classes too. All of us know how difficult is to hook our students the whole class; it is almost impossible. But, on the other hand teachers are not worried about the “special cases”, he/she just teaches, with very good disposition, but that’s it.

There is something worrying. In both classes (7º grade of elementary and 3º grade of high school) the students have really different level of proficiency. There are students who know a lot, they can talk in English very properly and they understand most of the instruction in English, of course those students are highly motivated to participate in the class. But, on the other hand, there are students who have several problems to understand what the teacher says, they don’t know the elementary aspects of English according to their level, so they feel completely lost, and of course they are not willing to learn because they feel a sort of hatred to the class.

Moreover, in the 7º grade class there is a deaf student who, from my point of view, is not integrated in the class. Considering that she has a special learning need, she is supposed to be treated in a different way because she has to put double effort to understand English. But it doesn’t occur; the teachers don’t invest more time in teaching her. That is very worrying for me because I have a deaf sister, so I really understand what that student feels when teachers behave as she weren’t in the class. I really repudiate that!

Another student from the same class seems to be hyperactive. The curious point is that he is always moving around, but when he has to do some work for the class he takes very long time to do it. I thought that hyperactive students work very quickly, so I, as a teacher, were supposed to prepare extra material for those students. But with this boy it is completely different; in fact he is always the last in finishing the tasks. This situation gets me confused.

Now, talking about third grade of high school’ class, well it seems to be a “normal” class. But, there is a student who suffers nervous breakdown, he can’t be forced to work in group, I can’t forbid him to go outside the classroom any time he needs, etc. It is the first time that I face that situation, the teacher has gave me some pieces of advice about how to deal with it, but I feel kind of insecure to be honest.

I’m very concerned about all these situations. If I were the permanent teacher I would separate the class in two, either according to the students’ level of proficiency in English or according to the special learning needs. But I’m not sure if it is proper to do that for just one semester. The students are not used to the new teacher (me) yet, so making that great change so abruptly could be harmful instead of beneficial.