Teaching
Preparing to teach in the lifelong learning sector (PTLLS)
Reflective Journal – 1
Nikki Wharton 17.9.09
The main points I have learnt from this session are: -
Reflecting on my learning experiences in the first session on the PTLLS course, I have summarised the areas covered below: -
• Warm up/ ice breakers
We started our session by participating in an ‘ice breaking’ exercise. This involved interviewing another colleague to establish the answers to some basic questions about themselves i.e. their name, the borough of London they resided in and the name of an inspirational person etc. The exercise was timed and the aim was for both parties to gain enough relevant information about one another to introduce them and relay these facts to the class. Although I missed the beginning of this exercise, I found that listening to the introductions very useful, information. This swiftly eradicated any initial inhibitions that I had felt when entering the classroom.
We went on to learn another ice breaking technique. This involved the whole group to stand in a circle and throwing a small ball to another member of the group whilst calling out their name. I found this particularly helpful in learning and reinforcing peoples names. It was interesting to observe that, as a group the ball tended to be thrown to people that knew each other previously or to students with more unusual names i.e. Angus, Fatima etc. I have learnt that these styles of exercises are essential in establishing relaxed and friendly group dynamic.
• Establishing ground rules
In this exercise we formed groups that were given the task of brain storming to formulate a list of ‘ground rules’ that we would like to adhere to for the duration of the course. Our group worked well and was quite forthcoming with several suggestions. At the end of this activity all groups pooled their information and our tutor assisted us in compiling a self-generated list. I found this exercise...
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