Formal Observation

1. 1
SECONDARY: School Experience Observation Standards Sheet
Academic Year:
Student Teacher Name: Date:
School: Visit:
Professional Standards, Targets & Directed Activities. Please: comment on each of the Standards headings at each observation,
taking into account the practice observed, documentation, and discussions with the student teacher and relevant school staff; check and
comment on progress towards meeting previous targets and set new ones; check and comment on Directed Activities.
1.Set high expectations which inspire, motivate and
challenge pupils
2. Promote good progress and outcomes by pupils
3. Demonstrate good subject knowledge and
curriculum knowledge.
4. Plan and teach well structured lessons
5. Adapt teaching to respond to the strengths and
needs of all pupils.
6. Make accurate and productive use of assessment.
7. Manage behaviour effectively to ensure a good and
safe learning environment.
8. Fulfil wider professional responsibilities
Strengths Targets (up to 3)
Please use continuation sheet if necessary.
Judgement For this stage of the PGCE you are:
making the required progress □ not making the required progress □
Judgement is made in relation to performance at this point in the PGCE. This must be filled in.
Signed ___________________________________ Mentor / University based tutor
Signed____________________________________ Student
2015-16
Jeremy Tang
Queens' School
11th March, 2016
Huw Ingles
There is considerable evidence from your teaching of this
class that you understand that they are able and need to
be stretched. You have established very good classroom
rou/nes which mean that latecomers don't disrupt the ini/al
reading. See note about HW in the commentary.
You are aware of the class' ability, and begin the big topic of
religion, producing an interes/ng and thoughRul discussion,
though this might have been allowed to develop for the light it
sheds on the play. You use sophis/cated Lang-Lit terminology
to enhance their understanding of the shared sonnet.
You have taken an interes/ng stylis/c approach to the sonnet,
but also consider aspects more tradi/onally literary. Please see
some of my notes on pronuncia/on, pentameter, octosyllabics,
and the context for reading.
This lesson was well-constructed, featuring a variety of tasks and
approaches to maintain pupil interest and mo/va/on. One
target, on the other hand, might be to plan and even script
the transi/ons between ac/vi/es to ensure pupils always have a
sense of the end product, where all of this fits in to the larger plan.
Good. This is an able class with no SEN pupils, so you pitched it
just at the right level to provide challenge. See note in the com-
mentary, though, about this class incorpora/ng all of the quotes
they have found in their diary entry.
Please make folders available to observers so that they can
look at marked work and iden/fy the progress the class has
made. Beware homework diaries: nothing from English record-
ed in the last two weeks. They should always have something
on the go.
You managed a varied lesson, with lots of discussion,
extremely well. The standard of behaviour in evidence here was
excep/onally impressive, especially given that this was p 4 on
a Friday morning, when pupils can become restless.
Classroom management; willingness to experiment - for instance,
with a more literary approach here; devolving much of the
learning to pupils through discovery ac/vi/es.
It might be worth reading some cri/cism before lessons like this -
there are many books on Shakespeare's sonnets in the library.
Work on transi/ons between ac/vi/es.
Doing something more with the ini/al reading - eg book
recommenda/ons, including your own.
Huw Ingles
Jeremy Tang

2. 2
SECONDARY: Lesson Observation Commentary
Stage: AP1 / AP2 / AP3 (please circle)
Trainee Name ……………………………………………………..
School……………………………………………
Class……………… No: in class………………. Lesson Time………………….
Observer (s)…………………………………………………………. Lesson Theme…………………………..
Narrative of Lesson Observed
Observer’s Signature:……………………………………………………………………… Date:……………………
Trainee’s Signature:………………………………………………………………………… Date:……………………
Jeremy Tang
Queens' School
8NE 28 12.20-1.25
Shared sonnet in R and J Huw Ingles
The class enters with liYle fuss; pupils used to hand around the copies of 'Romeo and Juliet'. The 10 minute reading period means that inevitable latecomers from
the N side are not disrup/ve of the start of the lesson. Everyone reading in silence at 12.27.
(Two ques/ons here: How o]en are pupils allowed to take their books home to do homework on the play? You might also invite comments and recommenda/ons
on the basis of what they have read today.)
You move briskly on to the main theme of the lesson. See above, though, for fostering a love of reading.
They are to understand the speech in terms of its religious imagery and body parts. You check their memory of what you discussed yesterday. Good - they have
remembered a lot.
(Pronuncia/on of 'Ethiop' -extra syllable; 'unworthiest'; iambic. Spelling of 'reminiscent' on the board. More, it is expressive of her devo/on. Later,
'reminiscing the': you mean, 'reminiscing about the...')
They discuss what is meant by religion. There is a spider diagram on the board: what they associate with the word 'religion'. Interes/ng and mature thoughts. You
congratulate them for their 'brilliant' and 'original' thoughts. You might have pursued this further in rela/on to the play, perhaps si]ing the most per/nent ideas from
the lesser.
You display an image from the produc/on (palms touching). They copy their classmates' ideas from the board.
You deal with the ques/ons well from this percep/ve class: they are obviously keen to get things right. Hadassah characteris/cally adds her two pennies' worth.
Work on transi/ons between ac/vi/es whereby you sum up what they have learned, explaining what they have learned.
The paired work begins: some fuss. It might be worth giving the instruc/ons before allo`ng the pairs, and before announcing it will be a discussion ac/vity.
You read the sonnet: very clear. However, try to modulate the delivery, and if possible differen/ate the characters (male and female). They are surely, also, speaking
quietly, even whispering together, in the middle of the party, and not aYrac/ng aYen/on.
You give the class a minute to iden/fy the seman/c field of religion, then the body parts. You move on to the form of the sonnet - OK: good that they know this, but
what about the research they have just done? What is the significance of the imagery? Sorry - you do get to this at 1.00.
Discussion of the sonnet would benefit from a copy of the poem being displayed on the board. This way, everyone would be able beYer to see the rhyme scheme;
it is almost impossible to ascertain the metre without displaying the poem on the board.
Why does Sh use iambic pentameter? It is tetrameter, octosyllabic lines which are more commonly found in song and humorous poetry. Pentameter is used in
Shakespeare because it suits the English spoken sentence: the actor can take a breath at the end of the line and thus not become overstretched in a long speech. It
also contributes to the naturalism of the speech, producing the illusion of an actual person speaking.
They are to consider the religious imagery. The feedback is helped by images on the board. A 'shrine' is a place consecrated to a par/cular saint. Excellent response
from Sam T, explaining the symbolism well. Also, see his later analogy - vivid example.
(Watch some of the type on the board, which can't be seen under this light; also, lighter board pen doesn't really work.) You show a version of the scene, instruc/ng
pupils to take some notes. Be specific here: you later ask what they are feeling.
Teaching of wri/ng. You are aware that the diary entry form might produce work which is slightly thin, so reinforce this with four bullet points. OK here, though why
2-3 quotes? This class could incorporate them all. Good: there is a 'challenge' which might extend the brightest of using other religious imagery. This might have
done with a modelled sentence, either given verbally or displayed on the board. 1.23. Everyone working in silence. Very orderly dismissal. Be careful: there is no
English homework recorded for the last two weeks. Even if they are not finishing wri/ng, they should be doing something - eg dra]ing - in prepara/on. Parents will
begin to ask ques/ons.
Huw Ingles 11th March, 2016
Jeremy Tang 11th March 2016