LTS Literacy Lessons | Post-Assessment Session

2:24 AM Eunnah 1 Comments

Note: I will not be reflecting on the last session (session 10) because my original tutee, Jayven, was absent. I was not able to actively teach or even build rapport with a child because there were too many of us (four) who were assigned with only one child.


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LTS Literacy Lessons | Session 9

10:53 PM Eunnah 0 Comments


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LTS Literacy Lessons | Session 8

9:38 AM Eunnah 1 Comments

Tutee’s basic information:
Name: Kledan Ilomibao
Sex: Male
Age: 9 years old
Grade level & Section: Grade 2 – Isaiah

 

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LTS Literacy Lessons | (Not a) Session 7

12:57 AM Eunnah 1 Comments


After over thinking for quite a while, I have finally decided to just blog about the unsettling feelings and lingering guilt of unintentionally not attending the session last April 3.


I want to start this by apologizing to both my student and my teachers. I’m sorry po. I really didn’t intend to suddenly not show up last Monday, but I’m not going to excuse myself from my mistake. It is my duty to be present in every session because I have a student whom I am responsible for. I’m sorry po. I made a promise in the beginning of this semester that I will always be in attendance unless there is a plausible reason against it. Shamefully, the reason why I was absent last session doesn’t have any hint of reasonability. Truth be told, I was absent because I missed my alarm(s) and overslept. I’m sorry po. It is really embarrassing for me to admit this seemingly silly reason, but it’s the truth—something that I’m adamant not to repeat again. T_____T

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LTS Literacy Lessons | Session 6

4:32 AM Eunnah 1 Comments


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FGD Insights | Session 5

4:26 AM Eunnah 1 Comments

Last March 20, I was one of the unfortunate student tutors who were not able to catch up to our tutees who were on their way home. Apparently, our tutees were dismissed early because if I’m not mistaken, it was the last day of their classes.

I was extremely saddened by this because if it were their last day, then does that mean Jayven wouldn’t come to school EVER again? Was last week’s session our very last session? But I haven’t done that much impact to his learning yet. Aside from that, we haven’t even said our farewells yet! This is an unfinished business!

These are the thoughts that were running in my mind. I almost had the urge to ask Jayven’s homeroom teacher about his residential address so that I can go fetch him myself. Before I could carry this out however, our professors advised us to finish our Focus Group Discussions instead—something I wasn’t able to participate in because I was running late that morning.

That being said, I decided to head back to College of Education to continue the FGD with my other supposed group participants. Once I arrived, however, my supposed group was already discussing. Hence, I didn’t have a choice but to create my own FGD with another lone person who didn’t have a group—Raeven.

Raeven and I share the same sentiments when it comes to the weaknesses and needs of our tutees. Both our tutees have a very little phonological awareness with vowels, and they often interchange e and i, and o and u. Thus, we both felt the need to provide supplementary activities that can help resolve this.

Unlike my tutee, one of Raeven’s tutees always seems to get distracted. And Raeven’s insight on how she handles this struck me the most during our FGD. According to her, she uses the behaviourist approach which is using reinforcements to make her tutee more attentive in their sessions. Hearing her use this strategy wasn’t the thing that shocked me; it was her negative outlook towards using it. It was as if she was embarrassed of herself for using operant conditioning as a strategy to get the attention of her tutee.

In a way, I realized how some strategies are perceived as “bad” by a lot of education students probably because of how these strategies are presented in their respective classes. I just wish that this connotation would be eliminated because for me, this is a misconception. These strategies exist and continue to thrive for a reason, and this reason goes to the fact that they are effective to some students.

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LTS Literacy Lessons | Session 4

4:23 AM Eunnah 0 Comments

1. Jayven’s engagement in the literacy lessons with regards to:

Attention, Effort and Attitude

          In this particular session, Jayven was remarkably engaged as he asked me questions about the instructions of the activity worksheets. He also suggested some alternatives on how we could do the “pabitin” activity more exciting for him.

          Essentially, Jayven’s attention to the lesson, effort to accomplish the tasks, and attitude towards me and others have been vastly consistent. As a student majoring in Special Education, I am exposed to kids with short attention span to no task commitment at all. But with Jayven, I never had to think of strategies that I need to incorporate when teaching the lessons because he already has an attitude that is attentive and determined to learn. But even though Jayven doesn’t require me any teaching quirks to learn effectively, I noticed in this session that he would sometimes take a peek at what Claire, another student tutor, and her tutee was doing whenever Claire would bring out stickers and other fun bonuses. I realized here that I should step up my game so that Jayven would really enjoy our session and not see his every Monday as a “boring extracurricular learning” day.

2. Jayven’s display of:

a. Understanding of the lesson

Jayven doesn’t have any problem with the letters Mm and Aa. He has shown his competency by correctly uttering the letter sounds and by sorting various images according to the beginning letter. We went through every activity in our lesson plan smoothly and with ease.

b. Motivation and interest in learning literacy skills and others

In this session, I somehow observed how Jayven wasn’t that enthusiastic anymore with the activities compared to our previous sessions. I think the reason behind this was because the activities more or less have the same concept: reading wordless picture books, grouping pictures according to beginning sound, encircling pictures that start with a particular letter, and so on. And honestly these activities do not challenge Jayven. Thus, I had the feeling that Jayven was “stuck” doing these activities that do not really benefit him anymore because he already knows them.

There were even moments when I would emphasize the sounds of the letters Mm and Aa (because that is the objective of the lesson plan) and Jayven would display a look on his face as if saying, “paulit-ulit nalang, naaral na natin yung letter M na yan.”

3. Challenges and strategies during the literacy lesson + 4. Changes


As I have mentioned above, keeping Jayven challenged is a challenge for me especially when the topic of the lesson plan does not challenge him at all. Jayven has certain weaknesses with letter sounds that are not met because the objectives of the lesson plan provided target something else entirely. As usual, I provide him supplementary activities whenever we finish early (which is all the time). In this particular session, we played a game wherein my objective was to expand his vocabulary and widen his phonological awareness with vowels. This game is called, “eye spy” with a twist. So the gist of the game is that we would “hunt” for objects around the court that starts with the vowels a, e, i, o, u. All in all, I think the game helped strengthen Jayven’s phonological distinction between e and i.

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LTS Literacy Lessons | Session 3

7:30 PM Eunnah 1 Comments

Name of Tutee: Jayven


1. Jayven’s engagement in the literacy lessons with regards to:

            a. Attention to the lesson and tasks

            Before our session has started, Jayven momentarily approached a classmate close to our spot to merely say his regards. Then, we went back to my side to simply wait for an activity. That was the only time that he had his attention on others. By the time our session has started, Jayven was once again completely engrossed in our lesson. There was even a time when a random kid went to our spot, looked at what he’s doing and urged him to play with him. But he didn’t even bat an eyelash to the kid, so the kid went on his way. When I asked Jayven who the kid is, he just shrugged his shoulder. I can tell that was really keen in finishing his tasks and was hungry for more academic food than the physical snack that I was offering him in-between the session.

b. Effort to accomplish a task

Jayven usually does his best when finishing the tasks required of him. However, there was this particular activity wherein his input seemed short, forced, and not deliberately thought of. In this activity, he has to tell a story based on a picture book using his own words. Jayven did not look excited when I asked him to do this task. Instead, he looked burdened. While telling the story, his body language and tone of voice gave me the impression that he did not want to do the activity. He also seemed to give me the look saying that I should have been the one telling him the story, and not the other way around.

Apart from that activity, he seemed to be exerting a 100% effort in completing the rest of his tasks, especially when an activity involves coloring/drawing.

c. Attitude towards task, teacher, and others

Like I said before, Jayven is generally a sweet child. He pays respect not only to the older people around him, but also to the kids of his age.

2. Jayven’s display of:

a. Understanding of the lesson

Jayven has either studied the lessons before or is naturally a fast learner. I can say this because our pace moves pretty quickly to the point that we can manage to finish a session for about 48 minutes on average! Except from the storytelling part last Monday, Jayven generally accomplished every task with ease.

Frankly speaking however, Jayven’s phonological awareness is not perfect. In fact, there are several sounds of the letters in the alphabet which he gets confused with. As his Tutor, I will surely make sure that at the end of this term, he will be able to improve, if not perfect his phonological awareness skills.

b. Motivation and interest in learning literacy skills and others

Jayven is determined to finish the required tasks concerning literacy, but he was more willing to carry out activities that involve his interests: coloring and drawing.   

3. Challenges and strategies during the literacy lesson:

            The most perceptible challenges from last session were: (1) Jayven’s discomfort in conducting the storytelling; (2) His poor inner representation to the sounds of the vowels in the alphabet; and (3) Our tendency to finish the lesson early, causing him to be bored for the rest of the meeting.

            For the first challenge, I tried to lift up the atmosphere first. Since I did not know the cause of his discomfort, I experimented for a bit. I initially joked with him and asked him to remember how I did my storytelling with “Ang Pamilya Ismid” and I asked him to just copy how I do it. Then, I urged him to take his time in analyzing the pictures of the book. I gave him ample time to familiarize himself with the book so that he won’t forget what to say when the storytelling starts. I think these strategies helped him, because the second time that he conducted the storytelling, he wasn’t as bland or as pressured any longer.

            For the second and third challenge, I will incorporate some lessons next meeting when we finish early so that I will be able to help him improve his phonological skills and at the same time, keep him preoccupied with a purpose.

4. Initiatives in literacy // and 5. changes in my teaching and in the student’s learning

             When it comes to Jayven, I usually tend to teach him according to his interests. During our free time last Monday, I actually asked him for the first time to do an activity which is not part of the lesson plan. This activity is for him to make a story that uses the words that start with letters M and A. To make it enjoyable for him, I asked him to represent these words using pictures. Thus, he has to draw and color which are his favourites. The reason behind this is because I wanted to know if he is capable of telling a story properly and equivocally if given time.

            Surprisingly, he asked me if he could also tell the story in written words. Of course, I agreed. However, when he was done with the supplementary activity, I found out that his story was even more confusing in written form. This has caused me to be confused with the story of his drawing as well. I’m not even sure if the drawing and the written story in words have any correlation at all. Despite this, I was very much proud that he took on the initiative to do something that CAN improve his literacy. He is usually a timid child, so having him volunteer to do something that I didn’t require him to do is a milestone for me.

            Jayven is a work in progress. Now that we’ve spent a lot of time together, I can now see little bits of academic struggles that he might have, but that doesn’t stop me from focusing on his potential and what his determined spirit is capable of doing.

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LTS Literacy Lessons | Session 2

11:29 PM Eunnah 1 Comments


Name of Tutee: Jayven

1. Jayven’s engagement in the literacy lessons with regards to:

            a. Attention to the lesson and tasks

            Jayven was wholly responsive in every aspect of our session. He had a presence of mind and concentration which he only locked on what we were doing. He never once looked at the other cluster of people surrounding us nor entertained a few of his classmates who would pass by and take a peek at our activity. The only time that he stopped doing an activity and looked around was when his neck ached from crouching in order to write on the ground. He then asked me if we could go to the side of the covered court where there is an elevated floor for him to use as a makeshift table. Unfortunately, that side of the court was greatly exposed to the sun’s harsh rays. So I just urged him to endure writing on the ground in the meantime and assured him that I will bring own travelling table so that he will not have any trouble next time.

b. Effort to accomplish a task

I see Jayven as a naturally determined child. Unlike some other kids, he does not seem to force himself or even “try” to exert effort because it is already natural to him. He is relaxed and at ease during our session which made me consider that maybe these kinds of activities is in his comfort zone. Although there were some details during the session that he sometimes missed, these were literally too small to take note and would not debunk my impression that he generally never had any difficulty finishing the tasks at hand.

c. Attitude towards task, teacher, and others

Until now, it still surprises me how well-behaved Jayven is. He has this sense of understanding towards himself and his environment. He knows what kind of behavior is appropriate during a particular moment and what is not. He also does not take advantage of me and would always insist for me to buy him just enough food when I offer to buy him a lot.

Last session, when we finished early, I saw how Jayven interacts with his classmates. Even then, he was still a sweet boy. He would smile and wave his hand at them and that would be it. He did not ask me if he could go play tag with them. He also did not force me to play tag with him unlike the other groups. He did not become envious of what the other groups were doing which is what I expect from an 8-year old boy. Personally, I think Jayven’s psychological maturity is quite unique and is something that I adore.

2. Jayven’s display of:

a. Understanding of the lesson

It is apparent that Jayven already has the knowledge of the lesson outcome. He has shown this by going through each activity smoothly and by accomplishing each task correctly and independently. Thus, the only matter that I have to emphasize during the session was the simple directions of the activities that he has to accomplish. Having said this, my primary goal last session was not to make him understand the lesson but to go beyond that. This means, to reinforce and refine his knowledge of the lesson and to somehow expand it.

b. Motivation and interest in learning literacy skills and others

Jayven demonstrated his drive and interest to learn the lesson and to learn more than that by actively participating in the session. He did not just do the activities because I ask him to, but because he wanted to. He validated this by asking to do more activities when he managed to finish everything already. He also offered to play some riddle and word games during his snack time.

Jayven enjoys and is very interested in stories. He likes reading and being read to. I think reading comprehension is one of his strengths. But more than that, he also thoroughly enjoys when I ask him to draw or color something during an activity. I think this gives him a break and helps him to think of the session as fun and exciting.

3. Initiative in literacy (reading, understanding & writing) learning

            Jayven revealed to me last session that he likes reading books at home. He especially likes riddle books and even shared some of what he can remember with me. I see this as an initiative in his part because not all children are curious enough to read on their own. Reading riddle books is a great start for Jayven because as he grows older, I know that his interest will expand to other types of books.

4.     Challenges and strategies during the literacy lesson:

            The most prominent challenge that I can remember during our session is my struggle with using the right words and language that he can understand. I am not used to speaking in straight Filipino. And most of the time, when I teach literacy lessons to kids, I use terms in English because I was more exposed to it. For example, I don’t use the word “titik.” Instead, I use the word “letter.” This little detail is a nuisance to me because I mostly have to pause while speaking and think of the right Filipino word. Sometimes it also distracts me from my train of thought and causes me to not explain things properly to him. This is why I’m grateful that Jayven is very patient and sensitive to my difficulty because he usually tries to guess what I was trying to say, making it easier for us both. Honestly, the only solution that I can think of in response to this challenge is continued practice. Maybe apart from daily conversations, I should start using Filipino more often in my academic performance.

Another thing that I realized during the session is how important variety is. This is in order to maintain the child’s enthusiasm towards the lesson. Ensuring a smooth transition is also important to keep the child’s focus within our own little bubble.

5. Changes in my teaching and in the student’s learning

            From last week’s session, I’ve learned that emphasis in teaching goes a long way in the child’s learning. Before, I thought teaching the sound of each letter of the alphabet doesn’t need a lot of time. But because of this session, I realized that it actually has to be established to the child so that he wouldn’t be confused in the later stages of his academic life. Creativity also matters. In presenting a lesson to a child, I realized that you have to think of different ways in presenting them, and not just sticking to one.

            With regards to the child’s learning, I can say that even though he already knows the lesson, reinforcing it still gives him progress in terms of his vocabulary and phonological awareness. Last time, we played a game wherein we have to take turns in saying a word that starts with the letter M. This game really urged him to think through and I believe, really improved his literacy skill.

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LTS Visitation + Assessment | Session 1

12:30 PM Eunnah 1 Comments

     

      
      1. Describe the community you are working in. What is it like?

Visiting Barangay San Vicente was akin to entering a whole new world. It is quite astonishing to think how my university campus is merely a few steps away from a community of a completely different background, culture, status, and civilization. Although part of the urban society, it seemed to me that life were simpler and unpretentious in this humble village. Its atmosphere and ambience have a provincial vibe to it, which reminded me of my roots and for a moment, detached me from my westernized reality.

It is apparent that the majority of this community’s population is composed of the less fortunate. And although it is not the typical type of community that I am acquainted with, it is fortunately something that I am already exposed to. As a daughter of a church planter, I was already immersed in a community that is extremely similar to this. Thus, I think it would be easy for me to blend in and interact with the people in this community.

2. Describe the school you are working in. What is it like?

Honestly, it is very much the same as the school that I have attended for two years in elementary, which was also a public school of a barangay. Thus, as an insider who had experienced studying in a similar school, all I can say about San Vicente Elementary is that it is pretty decent for a public school in a community like that. I have actually seen worse in Quezon City, so I felt that their school is already well-off. Although some parts of their building needed more attention in terms of cleaning, I felt that the school as a whole was kind of well-maintained and was given enough funds as evidenced by the school’s wide space and the design painted on their facilities.

3.      3. What was your first encounter with the children like?

Heart-warming. Sometimes it is easy to forget why I chose the path of becoming a teacher. But seeing the happy faces of the children in San Vicente Elementary reminded me of my purpose. I had the sudden urge to take note of their differing personalities and think of strategies that may help them. It is unfortunate that I could not mingle with them all. But seeing them waving their hands at me as we come across the hallway was enough joy for me.

4. Briefly describe your student. What were your initial impressions about your student?

---One-on-One

The first time that I laid my eyes on Jayven, I earnestly whispered my prayers to God that he may be one to be assigned to me. I was so glad that I had the courage to raise my hand when Teacher Shari called out his name during the delegation. To be honest, I’m not exactly sure why this particular child caught my eye. It’s just that I discerned something special in him that I did not feel among the other students. Jayven oozes passion in his eyes when he smiles. He was really precious, even from a distance. And I was right. Jayven is one of a kind. I think he may be one of the kids that I would never forget. He is really nice. Aside from that, we share a bunch of interest. We both have the same favourite color which is purple and blue. We also like the same stuffed animal which is a panda bear. All in all, I appreciate him as my tutee. And I’m sure he does the same.

5. How did your student perform in the assessment? What did you notice the child can do? What can the child not yet do? Which part of the assessment did he find easiest to answer? Most difficult to answer?

Jayven is a bright kid. Honestly, it made me wonder why he is undergoing this program when he clearly doesn’t need it. He can identify, name, sound, match, and write the alphabet on his own. However, there are some letters that he sometimes interchanges such as the letters “U” and “O” which is perfectly understandable to me because he was from the province. He is also not that familiar with the letter “Q” which I think is due to the lack of Filipino words that use that said letter.

Jayven enjoyed the story of “Ang Pamilya Ismid.” I personally think that he has a high reading comprehension because there are some parts that I failed to emphasize due to my unpreparedness but he still managed to give me the best answer. There are also some questions that I didn’t even need to explain further because he already know or is already writing the answers.

6. What kind of challenges did you encounter last Monday?

I think the greatest battle that I experienced last Monday was with my own self. I was extremely unprepared and weary when I did the assessment. That morning, I was even contemplating if I was going to class or not. The reason behind this is because I had a camping for my PE, where we did a lot of strenuous activities, the day before this assessment.

My unpreparedness actually unsettled me and made me feel guilty up until now because I felt that I wasn’t able to give my best which my student, Jayven, deserves. I know this is a mistake on my part. But on the good note, this helped me realize that I should be saving all the energy that I could muster on the weekends so that I’ll be able to utilize this when I’m teaching my student. This mistake of mine is actually a learning experience for me to do better next time.

7. In what ways will the result of the assessment help you in teaching your student?

The main purpose of the assessment was to know what page my student is on and what we can do from there in order to move forward. It helped me to know the strengths, weaknesses, abilities, capabilities, and interests of my student which will all contribute in making the individualized lesson plan for our next sessions. It will also help me develop strategies and routines that I can employ while teaching him.

8. What are you taking away from this experience?


The most significant lesson that I have learned from last Monday’s experience is to be WELL-PREPARED.  This does not just mean merely knowing your lesson and your materials. It means knowing the flow of the session bit by bit and having not just one back up plan in case something goes wrong, but having unlimited options. Because teaching does not just require a script, it requires wit and a presence of mind, heart, and spirit.

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