Dr. Sewell teaches her ENGL 1101 class in a standard classroom setting with rows of desks facing the front. She begins class by having students complete notebook entries and then discusses with them how to narrow down relevant information for their essays. Students then work in pairs to discuss their progress and get assistance from each other. The goal of the observed class was for students to develop a classroom analysis for their upcoming essay by learning to distinguish relevant from irrelevant information. The observer notes that Dr. Sewell makes herself approachable to students and takes a step-by-step approach to helping them understand assignment requirements.

1. Cierra Jones
Classroom observation 2
Sewell 1101
March 10, 2014
Start time: 9:00 AM
Classroom Description
Dr. Sewell’s ENGL 1101 class is held in a standard classroom. The standard classroom
consists of desks that are arranged in rows, a podium for the instructor and a projector
screen for facilitation of carrying out lectures. This set up is ideal for 1101 students
because it makes it easier to engage in classroom discussions and address concerns for
students who are not quite familiar with the writing process. Compared to the previous
classroom I observed (computer lab), this set up generates more focus from the students
because they are not distracted by computers nor are they hiding behind them to talk or
text.
Classroom Activities
At the start of class (first 5-10 minutes), Dr. Sewell has the students complete a notebook
entry regarding their observations for the class that they are analyzing. After students are
done completing their notebook entries, the instructor then discusses with students and
answers questions that are relative to what is required for completion of the class
analysis. She walks students through the necessary precautions for exploring information
that is relevant to their search of what is needed for the essay. After a 25-minute
discussion of how to narrow done information that is appropriate for the essay, Dr.
Sewell has her students work in pairs to discuss their progress, address concerns, share
ideas and assist each other with techniques to further develop their progress in executing
this process.
Instructor/Student Behavior
The vast majority of students from the moment class began were very attentive and under
every command of the instructor. Out of a class of about 20+ students, I only heard 2-3
speak to each other when it was not necessarily appropriate to engage in conversations.
The students in this class were very reserved and seemed to treat the instructor with the
utmost respect. In comparison to the last classroom observed, Dr. Sewell’s 1101 students
made teaching look fairly easy. In my opinion, they are the ideal students a teacher may
want to have in a classroom from a behavioral standpoint. The majority of students in the
classroom only spoke when they had questions or when Dr. Sewell instructed that they
discuss their progress in groups.
Dr. Sewell’s behavior was interesting. For this class to take place so early in the morning,
I thought she was as animated as 9:00 AM after Daylight Saving Time would allow.
That’s actually a pretty refreshing quality to have in my opinion because if the instructor
acts as if he or she is excited to be in class, it could convince students to be just as

2. excited. That could have been a rare circumstance, however, it is what I observed so I can
only assume that is the way she behaves on an every-class-session basis.
The Goal
The goal for Monday’s class was primarily to get students to work toward developing a
classroom analysis for their third essay. After the class session, students were able to
decipher relevant from irrelevant information as it relates to the classroom they will
analyze.
What I Liked/Could Borrow
1. I really liked that Dr. Sewell was willing to take time out of her discussion to
answer any questions that a student may have had. I think its important for
students to be comfortable enough to ask their teachers questions in general, but
the fact that any concerns are addressed immediately is especially admirable.
 Dr. Sewell makes the classroom comfortable because she is an approachable
teacher. In fact, I believe she is an ideal teacher for first-time college students
because she exhibits the sternness of a college professor, but at the same time
she also has the same kind of hospitableness similar to that of a high school
teacher; she would make the transition from high school to college much
easier than many other instructors.
2. Dr. Sewell essentially took the students through a step-by-step process to help
them better understand what kind of information to look for and what to stay
away from. That’s important because there have been many times when teachers
of mine never specified what they were looking for in an essay nor the best
methods to search for what was needed.
3. I like how organized classroom sessions are. I like how the daily classroom
agendas are prepared and how students are able to view them as well because then
the students also know what to expect from class meetings.
What I Disliked
1. The only thing that I had a concern with was that the instructor did not have
individual conversations with every group. Most groups were addressed but the
time spent by the instructor at each group varied which ultimately led to not being
able to speak with everyone.
2. I was not introduced .
My Reflections
I really enjoyed observing this class because I was able to compare the way Dr. Sewell is
with her 1101 students to how she is with her 4640 students. The dynamics are different,

3. but not by much. In the 1101 class she seemed to be genuinely concerned with how
students are progressing with their assignments; this isn’t much different from the 4640
class but she swore a lot less in 1101. I also enjoyed observing because I actually learned
something from her lecture that I can apply to my own studies. Thanks for discussing
triangulation, I had no idea what that was until it was mentioned.
End time: 9:48 AM