Addendum...

Well, I am glad that is over.

The course promised a lot and delivered little. There was much talk at the start of the course about how it was going to be an engaging and interactive experience, utilising new technology and teaching approaches such as Google Groups, video conferencing and email support, but ultimately the Google Group was shut down mid-course, the video conferencing never happened and the email support was almost non-existent.

The course tutor seemed woefully inarticulate and, though there was much discussion about learning styles, inclusive teaching and differentiation non of this seemed to actually occur in the sessions. How can I be expected to learn and write about something I have not seen? It should have come as no surprise that upon returning from the half-term break he class was greeted by a new tutor who advised us that the old one no longer worked for the college.

The new tutor was far more engaging and really seemed to know her stuff. Far more articulate, when she spoke about teaching I actually believed in what she was telling me, not something I could say about her predecessor. It seemed that the damage had already been done to the course, however. Things we were told by the previous tutor turned out to be completely wrong and despite one of the course units specifically stating that it should be divided between the group, the new tutor advised that we would each have to cover all of the assessment criteria. The microteach session was highly enjoyable - me in my element - and the feedback received from tutor and peers felt rewarding.

Ultimately I got what I wanted from the course - a new job. As of this writing I have just started a full-time training job which provides me with a greater challenge, more responsibility and better pay than my previous role. Whether or not I now get a passing grade seems almost redundant... unless my new employers ask for the certification.

I learned at least one thing about myself in the short time of this course. I confirmed that I learn best by doing. Work experience has always given me the strongest skills in the fastest time. Sitting in a classroom and talking about abstract theories and concepts just isn't for me.

I could not recommend this course to other people, at least not with the same college. If you are a professional trainer, perhaps a CIPD qualification might be better.

-- Gav

Week 14...

This was our final session before the Christmas break and also the final microteach of our group. Jackie, with whom I had delivered the group presentation, presented a session on Steganography which I had not heard of perviously.

It was a fascinating presentation about hiding coded messages within images. Jackie had designed a website which we all accessed from our computers and used an online system to hide our own coded message in the form of a spam email. Jackie hit the delicate balance of presenting a complex subject whist keeping it simple and engaging.

Finally this session we were given our final deadline to hand our work in which will be 12th January 2015, which due to the busy Christmas period I expect to find extremely challenging!

Week 13...

It was my turn to present my microteach this week. I did my very best to ensure I went last and I was entirely successful in this endeavour. In hindsight this may have come with its draw-backs as I think by this point everyone was a bit tired.

The session has started earlier than usual to try and fit everyone's sessions in and because of the time I finish work this meant I arrived half-way through the first session, presented by Chantal. Her microteach was centred around beauty therapy and involved the group being able to make their own body scrub from baby oil, salt and scented oils. It gave everyone a nice practical activity to take part in, as well as having a memento to take away at the end of the session. This is something I had incorporated into my own session and reinforced my belief that it was a good approach.

Joe delivered a presentation on cinematography which, as a cinephile myself, I found fascinating. There wasn't anything physical to take away, but Joe had designed a quiz / assessment based on the content of his presentation which was a great way to assess the group's knowledge and also to introduce a bit of friendly competition- a nice touch!

Juanita, who works as a chef, delivered a presentation based on the health and safety considerations of using different coloured chopping boards for different produce and was very adept at answering the questions the learners had.

Finally I delivered my microteach session on juggling. I will cover this in more detail in the written report, but for now I am happy to say that I believe it went well.

I had learned from the lack of preparation in my group presentation for Unit 1 and taken the time to rehearse my microteach session, timing how long each section would take and adding or removing parts which detracted from its effectiveness. I managed to have a practice run using my long-suffering girlfriend as my learner and found that I was able to keep the session within the 20 minute time whilst still covering everything that I wanted to.

I started by addressing the possible health and safety risks in the practical section of the presentation, before providing a brief history of juggling throughout that ages. This was delivered lecture-style, though in my assessment feedback the tutor quite rightly pointed out this could have been made more interactive and engaging as a Q&A.

Next was a video which I had sourced from YouTube showing different types of juggling, which even before the presentation I had my concerns that it might be too long at around two minutes. Feedback from my peer assessments confirmed this and tutor feedback that I could have asked the learners to take mental notes of details of the video makes perfect sense.

The practical part of the session, where I gave a brief demonstration of juggling three balls before asking the group to open the parcels I had placed under their chairs before the session. Parcels contained three juggling balls, a foam red clown nose and a set of printed instructions I had prepared beforehand.

My intent was that, to cover differentiation within the group, learners could choose to follow the printed instructions (which were also displayed on the big screen) or they could follow my own instruction and demonstration as I moved within the group providing one-to-one coaching. However, on reflection I feel that providing the printed instructions was unnecessary and only confused things for the learners. Certainly they were good to takeaway, but needn't have been included in the session.

I was also surprised that there were some learners who were reluctant to take part in the practical exercise and felt a little dejected by this. I made an effort to get everyone involved with varying degrees of success.

My peer feedback was extremely positive and didn't really criticise anything I didn't already feel could have been better or had doubts about going in. In particular, comments about the pace, presentation and delivery echoed those made about my part of the group presentation, which I feel reflects my experience as a trainer.

I feel I have learned a lot from this unit, particularly in regards to the design and planning of a teaching session, of which I have had very limited experience previously. I believe this is something I will find very helpful in future.

Week 12...

This was the first week I got to view some of my peers microteach sessions. The variety of subjects presented was amazing and the effort Karen had gone to in setting up the learning space for her napkin folding presentation was fantastic. Everybody had the opportunity to try some napkin folding and had something to take away.

Afeefa had also brought an amazing collection of models and provided a very interactive session. I think that for some in the group this proved to be a little over-stimulating as there was a couple of times where Afeefa lost control of the group, with some learners (quite rudely, in my opinion) holding their own conversations while Afeefa was attempting to address the group.

I recognise this could be a challenge in my own session, which is scheduled in for next week. And I still have so much preparation to do!

Being able to review and assess the work of my peers is providing me with an amazing opportunity to fine-tune my own microteach session; ideas and approaches I hadn't considered and things that could go wrong.

Week 11...

Due to a severe migraine I was unable attend the session this week, meaning I missed the first of the microteach sessions; something I feel very badly about.

Looking back to the group presentation, I recognise that peer assessment is invaluable in one's development as a teacher. I strongly regret not being able to help my peers with this and hope that there is still a good turn out when I present my own microteach session.

I have decided on the subject of juggling for my session, which I intend to have as an interactive experience where learners will have the opportunity to try their hand at juggling up to three ball after a brief tutorial delivered by me.

I intend to provide everyone with a pack of three juggling balls which they can use in the session and also take away with them as a keepsake, should they wish.

I am both excited and terrified about delivering my microteach session.

Week 10...

This week we delivered out group presentations for Unit 1. Jackie (my fellow learner, not the old tutor) and I had developed our slides independently and sent them by email to Halah, who added them to her slides and brought the whole document to the session.

Halah presented her slides first, then myself and finally Jackie. Our tutor had provided everyone in the group with peer assessment forms with which we could note the things we liked or disliked about each other's presentations. Our presentation ran far over the designated 20 minutes (almost double!), despite each of us attempting to plan out the time it would take to cover each of the assessment criteria. I honestly could not say how long my section of the presentation took as it seemed to be over very quickly. In hindsight, rather than just guessing how long it would take me to cover the assessment criteria (and thinking "it'll be alright on the night") I should have actually practiced it beforehand.

All things considered, after reviewing the feedback from my peer assessment forms I think it went pretty well. My feelings that my personal experience evidence was strong seems mostly to be reflected in the comments from my peers. I was particularly happy to read some positive comments about how I delivered my part of the presentation, such as being clear and maintaining good eye-contact as I wasn't sure if I had succeeded with this at the time.

I certainly feel that I have learned a lot from this unit and intend to use the experience and the feedback I have received towards my microteach session (when I finally decide what I am going to do!).

Week 9...

Today we were given some more information about what is expected in Units 4 and 5 of the course. I have still not decided what subject to cover for my microteach session (Unit 4) though I am leaning towards a juggling presentation. My skill in this juggling is limited - amateur at best -  though I cannot think of anything in my professional role that I could deliver in a 20 minute presentation.

I didn't get the opportunity to discuss this with the tutor this week. We have quite a large group, even though a couple of people have already decided to leave the course and begin it again in January. I recognise from my own experience that teaching a group with too many people in it can mean that it it difficult to ensure that all the learners receive the necessary attention. That being said, I do need to make an effort to speak with the tutor in more detail soon.