This document discusses the use of reflective lesson plans to help improve teaching. It explains that reflective lesson plans involve writing notes after each class about what worked and how the next class could be improved. This allows the teacher to test changes and learn through a process of trial and error. The document also notes that reflective lesson plans help teachers be more efficient with their time by reducing extra activities like journals or surveys. Overall, reflective lesson plans form a continuous cycle of reflection, planning, teaching and observing that can help move teachers from novice to professional levels of practice.

1. R EFLECTIVE LESSON
PLAN
EI-320 A NÁLISIS DE LA P RÁCTICA DE LA
E NSEÑANZA DEL I NGLÉS
S ECONDASSINMENT
Eduardo Hernández Rangel
03/05/2011

2. 3-5-2011
REFLECTIVE LESSON PLAN
This paper explains the way that an inexpert or pre-services teacher can
improve their teaching through the use of reflective lesson plan.The use of this
instrument can be helpful as a systematic and organized class. Reflective
lesson plans is a way to learn and improve during each cycle that is applied and
it consist on writing down entries in the diary or reflective notes about the basis
of teaching (principles, beliefs and teaching needs). After the first teaching,
teacher should changes based on the ideas about what happen in the first class
in order to improve the next class. These actions improve the lesson plan in a
reflective way.
The procedure of reflective lesson plan should be called “test and error
procedure” because it shows that the lesson plan should be improved after the
teacher already tests the first plan. Exactly, it is what happens with my classes I
teach. When I am preparing my class, I did a reflection about what happened in
previous class. This permits to me correcting timing, content or
activities.Ianalyzed whether the time was adequate for each topic or activity. I
analyzed about the students’ behavior and a lot of things that are important for
the students and me. I think it is a natural way that should follow and inexpert
teacher even tough experiment teacher.
In the first class I planned, I focused on grammar and when I was preparing the
second class, I added more activities. During the class, we did a fast reviewed
about the previous class, and we saw a very little grammar.The time was not
enough and I really felt bad because I could not fit the exactly time with the
class I prepared. Next time, I prepared the lesson plan and I re-evaluated the
timing, and I wrote down the time I need for each topic. It was not enough too,
but I learnt that the timing is just a reference about how you are spending the
time. Four weeks later, the timing continues being a problem but I do not worry
anymore. The important thing is that I think deeply about what happened in the
previous class, when I am preparing the next class.
W AYS IN WHICH REFLECTIVE PRACTICE HELPS
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According to Belinda Ho, a reflective lesson plans apply effectively the theory of
reflection in the action research cycle where the lessons are arranged
automatically, and the teachers identified the troubles and force the teachers to
adjust the lesson plans in order to look for a reflective solutionin the subsequent
lesson. This cycle force to the teachersin reflecting, planning, acting and
observing what happens around the class.
Richards (1990: 4) as cited in Belinda ho identified the micro and macro
approach in which said that micro dimension involves teaching as observable
characteristics and what teacher do inside the classroom. Another aspect that
Richards pointed out that macro dimension involves that generalization, and
inferences can be observed in a quantifiable classroom process. Both
approaches should be taken in account in order to observe the reality of the
classroom teaching.
During my first class, I spent more than forty-five minutes in grammar.
Immediately, after that class I change the plan, and I paid more attention to the
activities. I divide the class in three parts: grammar, activities and conversation,
because this permit to involve the students in the three aspects that they need
to practice. I am applying changes because in a certain way I am reflecting
about my lesson plan and teaching. I planned my lesson plan and applied the
changes, after that I applied the changes and finally, I observed what happen
with those changes in order to restart at the beginning. I think this method of
action research applied to the reflective lesson plans can result in a continuous
improvement cycle in the learning process.I am new in this, but constantly I am
doing changes.
TIME AND WORKLOAD
The difference of other ways of reflection such as teaching journals, audio,
video recording, peer observation, action research, surveys or questionnaires,
are that reflective lesson plans help teachers to take advantage of the time
invested in the teacher’s teaching routine because they can reach the same
results without doing those activities. Providing the opportunity to use the same
lesson in more than one class. Using reflective lesson plans helps teachers and
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pre-service teachers to development a reflective way of thinking, especially in
real school situations.
The time that teacher invests in preparing lesson plans, classes, activities, and
after that, to evaluate the students, require a lot of extra time and it causes an
overwork in the teaching learning process. For this reason reflective plans help
us to reduce the amount of time we invest in order to reach the
classes' objectives. In my case, I spend one hour organizing my class and most
of this time I think careful about how I am going to give my next class taking in
account how was the previous class. I correct the lesson trying to remind all that
happened in the classroom, taking in account the errors, suggestions and even
tough remembering the faces of the student during each activity because their
emotions are very evident.
In conclusion, Belinda Ho pointed out that there are three factors that determine
the success of this procedure. Teacher’s desire to grow up in a professional
way of self-development, teacher’s willingness to do important positive chances
in their attitudes toward the teaching process, and teacher’s support in order to
be open to receive help from the others. All of this is necessary in order
to improve the professional practice in the early stage. For me, the most
important factor is the desire: the desire to be professional, the desire to pass
quickly from novice to professional and the desire to become an expert after
becoming a professional. The desire and the process of reflective lesson plans
are the two elements for passing from being novice to being professional.
REFERENCES
Gebhard, J., & Oprandy, R. (1999). Language teaching awareness. A guide to eploring
beliefs and practices. Cambridge.
Ho, B. (1995). ELT Journal. ELT Journal, 4911.
Richards, J., & Lockhart, C. (1994). Reflective teaching in second language classrooms.
Cambridge.
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