Observation Assignment
Setting and Background:
I choose an online video on YouTube for my observation. The video is one hour long, based on an elementary special education lesson. In the video, the class is comprised of five children, three boys, and two girls, and a teacher, Ellen Shupe, is in charge of them. I chose to observe the children as they are sited from left, Robert (Student #1) Tyrone (student #2), Jason (student #3), Janet (student #4), and Anna (student #5). From my observation, the children are aged between 8 to 12 years. Robert, (student #1), Jason (Student #3), and Janet (Student #4) are African American, Tyrone (Student #2) is of Caucasian origin, and Anna (student #5) is an Asian. I was able to observe that the class was orderly with each student sited separately and completing their work in a systematic manner. The attitude presented both by the teacher and the students identify with the seriousness that relates to a learning environment. Miss Shupe informs the class that the lesson would be based on the activity previously done.
0:18- The teacher tells the students that they are to carry out a similar activity to the one done on a previous Monday. Janet (student #4) moves about her chair while preparing to engage in the lesson and does so by answering with a yes to the instructions provided.
0:21: Miss Shupe leans towards Janet and asks what she was doing. While she is aware of what is expected, Janet responds by confusing the arrangements of the model. Nevertheless, she can identify that she should develop the provided counters into three equal groups of the model.
0:58: The teacher walks to Robert, Tyler, and Jason, and she realizes that Robert and Tyler were situated close to each other. Thus she asks Tyrone to create space between the two. Robert (student #1) seems a little lost on the activity, although Miss Shupe asks him to do his best. Jason is doing well, and she commends him for keeping it up.
1:12- The teacher notices that Anna was doing excellently with her task, and appreciates the effort she was putting into the accomplishing the task. The approach used by Miss Shupe, by addressing each student by name and commending their work is her system of motivating them through appreciation.
1:28- The teacher notices that Tyler (student #2) had not grasped the idea of forming groups. He fails to arrange the counters into groups properly. Tyler points to the seven counters arranged into a straight line when asked to identify his groups. He moves his left hand to his mouth and touches his lower lip with the index finger as if trying to figure out what a group is. He brightly opens his mouth and moves the finger off his lip with a smile when he seems to understand finally. Tyrone smiles because he knows that he won’t fail the teacher, and also, he knows how to arrange the counters into groups.
2:25- Miss Shupe notices Janet (student #4) was also confused about the aspects of items and groups. Janet tries to show the teacher that she is aware of the process. However, she had not arranged the counters into groups but items. When corrected, she quickly adjusts to the provided information and uses it to form the groups needed in the activity.
2:50- Anna seems to make better progress even though her reading skills slightly fail her. She can form the groups, identify the items, and formulate the calculations needed. She is asked to get a book to read.
4:16: Robert can read and understand the provided instructions. Also, after getting the instructions right, he forms groups and counts the items in the groups. I was able to observe that he was disciplined in carrying out the task as required. His engagement levels implied that his behavior and attitude towards understanding what was needed propelled his abilities. After completing the activity, he gets a high-five from the teacher and is commended. He is asked to get a book for further reading.
5:51: Janet, Jason, and Tyrone are left behind in engaging with the calculations. They are only able to complete the grouping and identification of the items under instruction. When Janet is provided further instruction and guidance from the teacher, she fidgets about in her chair in a manner to imply that she was becoming comfortable.
8.40: Jason, when asked to read out loud from his paper, he makes slight mistakes but can read it through. While reading, whenever a word became complicated, he moved his right hand around his ears and cheeks. Also, he uses a finger to pinpoint his reading progress.
10:51- The teacher introduces the children to a new method of dividing without the use of counters. I observed that by use of the items, they could easily form groups, make divisions, and tally items in each group.
13:00- As Miss Shupe explains the new method of division, the students are all engaged and observant.
14:39: Janet (student #4) and Jason (Student #3) are seen leaning on their desks keenly listening and observing the provided instructions. Her body language shows Janet’s concentration; she is leaned forward with her right hand supporting her chin from the desk. I made the observation that each student’s body language and level of concentration equated.
15:40: Tyrone (student #2) sits while leaning backward on his chair with his arms folded on his lap. He seems engaged in the lesson; however, he does not make the impression that he is interested in. He seems comfortable and can be easily distracted from the class.
17:02- Janet (student #4) can understand the new method of performing division in numbers. When a question is asked, she quickly raises her hand. From this behavior, I observed that Janet was a quick learner and was influenced by her attitude and behavior in class to portray a disciplined personality.
Cited video:
Venckus, Cindy. “Early Education Enrichment one hour of class observation.” Youtube, 29 March 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSQFJipws4g