6B-Observations

Observing for my Inquiry I feel is going to be extremely beneficial. As I am new to teaching, I am very enthusiastic in watching as many classes as possible. I believe the best way to learn something is to see it with your own eyes. Actually, before even seeing I believe doing, but this is definitely the second best thing and something you must do before you can have a go at it yourself.

I have recently started working for a drama/dance school and as part of my training to work for the company I had to observe many classes which has come in very handy for my inquiry. As a new teacher I feel like there is so much to take in but I also imagine for any teacher who may take a step back and observe a class every once in while would be extremely helpful.

I also have been into a dance school were I have taught before and observed some of these classes. It is interesting to watch a class you have once taught from a different view.

Although I feel you can learn an awful lot from observing there can also be a downfall that there is a lot of information be taken in all at once. I will need to select carefully the information that I choose to use.

It is also imperative to consider the ethics here as I will be observing children under the age of 18. I already had to speak with the head of the school and get permission to observe the classes before hand. Something I didn't do but understand I must in my actual inquiry is to get permission of each child's parent/guardian.

In my recent observations I have been talking a pad and pen and noting everything down, sometimes I am trying to write so many notes my handwriting can become un-readable and I might have missed events in the class I should have seen because my head was down at the piece of paper. I think a good idea to help over come this problem would be to also video record some of the classes I will observe.

Observations for me are going to be a key point in my Inquiry but can take up a lot of time having to observe many different  classes/different  teaches etc and then reflecting on the event afterwards so this is something I will have to consider when planning my time. Also getting back parent consent forms! I will need to give these out way in advance to ensure I have them back before trying to watch the class.