FSU TEFL 120 Fall, 2023

     Date/Time: Wednesday September 27, 2023 / 3-5 p.m.      Location: CIES Building     Topic/Skill: Grammar (writing/punctuation)     Feedback provided to tutee: I helped Fatima review and edit a writing assignment she had. She had to write a research paper about mindsets, so we read over the sample paper and article the teacher provided and we created an outline to start her paper. I would answer any questions she asked,  especially where/when to use commas, and gave her tips on how to cite. I mainly focused on correcting her grammar throughout the tutoring session, when to use commas, periods, sentence structure and how to structure her paper (creating an outline).      Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned: I noticed that she mainly uses periods and not as many commas, so she ends up with either a very short or very long sentence. I learned to be familiar with grammar rules and how to provide...

Date/Time: Friday September 22, 2023 / 12:30 - 2:30  Location: CIES Building Topic/Skill: Reading (Pronunciation)  Feedback provided for tutee: I helped Fatima study and practice for her pronunciation assignment. I compiled a list of words for her and we went over each one carefully, focusing on the specific sounds a letter makes and how putting specific letters together changes the sound it can make. I always encouraged her to keep practicing the pronunciation even if she got it wrong the first few times.  Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned: One of the words she struggled with the most was 'epitome,' and the difference of pronunciation between 'bitter,' 'better' and 'butter,' but she would keep repeating it until she got it right, and did the same with any other word she struggled with. We also went over any definitions for words she wasn't familiar with. I learned that she usually skips over certain letters or adds a letter if sh...

  October 22, 2023   Date/Time: October 22nd, 2023. 9:30 AM-10:30 AM Tutee: Dojun Location: ZOOM Topic/Skill: American Foster system/ Reading Comprehension Feedback provided to the tutee: In this session, we focused on reading out loud and pronunciation while building skills to comprehend the context/meaning of words and phrases. The majority of feedback I provided was pronunciation correction of certain sentences. I also encouraged him to guess phrases, and then we went over them together.  Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: I learned he works better when he is encouraged to talk and explain to me the reason behind his answers.

     Date/Time: Wednesday September 20, 2023 / 3-5 p.m.     Location: CIES building     Topic/Skill: Reading (Pronunciation)     Feedback provided to tutee: Read article about the World's Greatest Places. I helped correct pronunciation as she read the article, mainly if it changed the intended meaning of the article (ex: Yosemite, Island, Puerto Rico). Overall, I provided positive feedback as she read the entire article and encouraged her to keep reading. Answered any questions she had regarding pronunciation and grammar rules.      Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned: I noticed that she would skip over certain letters or add unnecessary letters as she read specific words throughout the article. She also mispronounced the 'p' and 'b' sounds (ex: represent, park, landscape). I learned to focus on certain sounds letters make in English and try to demonstrate how to pronounce them correctly, taught that a 'p...

      Date/Time: Friday September 15, 2023 / 12:30-1:30 p.m.     Location: CIES building      Topic/Skill: Speaking (new vocabulary)     Feedback provided to tutee: Minor corrections on her pronunciation, especially with words consisting of 'p' and 'b' sounds. Played Tapple , a board game where the player chooses a category and has to find a word that starts with a specific letter based on the chosen category. She enjoyed the game a lot and learned new vocabulary (ex: learned the word 'incense') and learned the correct spelling for certain words.     Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned: The way a word is pronounced in English can confuse ESL students on how it may be spelled out (ex: knife -> nife). Silent and double letters is what she struggled with the most, but overall she had a lot of knowledge about the specific vocabulary we went over. I learned that it's helpful to write down new vocabular...

     Date/Time: Wednesday September 13, 2023 / 3-4 p.m. / Tutee: Fatima      Location: CIES building     Topic/Skill: Introductions (Needs Analysis/Assessment)      Feedback provided to tutee: I explained what our tutoring sessions would consist of. Minor corrections to the pronunciation of some of her words (ex. bitter -> better). Overall provided positive feedback for keeping up a casual conversation and getting her point across.      Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned: I learned that Fatima wants to mainly focus on speaking, especially in a more casual way to be able to understand new people she meets. She also stated that she  struggles most with listening, depending on the speech rate and accent of the person/video she's listening to. She also enjoys listening to English songs from Alec Benjamin because his speech rate and accent are very easy for her to understand and enjoy. 

       Date/Time: September 14, 2023 / 2:00-2:50 p.m. / Ah-young Kim      Topic/Skill: How to write a lecture summary (listened to a lecture video)     Teacher presentation: The instructor started class going over the agenda to get students familiar with the lesson. The instructor went over notes with students and gave them tips on how to write a lecture summary and a lesson summary to help them get ready for college. The students were then shown a lecture video.     Classroom Management: Teacher would ask students questions to get them to participate in the lecture. After playing the the lecture, the instructor would give students extra time to finish their activities if it was needed. Always asked students for reassurance if they understood the lecture and what she was explaining, if not she would go over the issue carefully to explain it in a way students can understand.     Materials: YouTube, whiteboard, handout...

Date/Time:  October 22, 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm Location: Tutee's Apartment Topic/Skill:  Composition Feedback provided to tutee:  We went over the traditional five-paragraph essay format and reviewed what an elevator pitch is. I helped the tutee figure out how to organize her pitch for a composition assignment as well as aided her in understanding the present perfect tense and the present perfect continuous tense.  Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned: The tutee finds the present perfect to be a little difficult to understand, so I took a good bit of time to explain it to her and make sure she could form sentences with it. She could pick up the present perfect continuous more easily after I explained the present perfect. She finds that the continuous tenses are the easiest to learn. 

      Date / Time: September 13, 2023 / 11:00 - 11:50 a.m. / Angel Rios     Topic / Skill: Figure of speech and vocabulary (read an article)     Teacher Presentation: The instructor chose an article about entrepreneurship for the class to read together. Before reading, he had underlined new vocabulary words from the article and defined and gave an example for each of the vocabulary.      Classroom Management:  The instructor called on students to read the article and helped them with the vocabulary they were confused about. He asked the students questions about the article to make sure they were following along and understanding. He used examples and language that the students knew so help them understand the article and the new vocabulary better such as talking about Real Madrid, the super bowl and Apple products. He catered more towards what the students knew to get them interested in the material.       Materi...

Date/Time: October 17th, 2023. 4:30 PM-5:30 PM Tutee: Shrouq Saied Location: McDonald's on Tennessee St Topic/Skill: Spoken vocabulary in-context Feedback provided to tutee: Overall feedback on student performance and comprehension questions throughout the conversation Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: I learned that one of the most rewarding parts of being a tutor/guide is watching your students progress and improve throughout a period of time. Shrouq has made some incredible progress throughout my tutoring sessions, and I am quite proud of her accomplishments!

       Date/Time: September 12, 2023 / 1:00-1:30 p.m. / Ryan Flemming      Topic/Skill: Descriptions (Games and presentation)      Teacher Presentation: The instructor began the class with a game of 'Guess Who' where students had to describe a character and the other student would have to guess who it was based off of their descriptions. The instructor then modeled how to give a descriptive presentation using a topic he was familiar with which was traditional U.S. southern food. He assigned the students homework to make a descriptive presentation that they'd have to present in front of the class.      Classroom Management: At the beginning, he asked the students for a recap of the last class and the topic. The instructor did a group activity with the students on the board which consisted of True/False questions and fixing grammar mistakes in prewritten sentences by the instructor based off his presentation...

     Date/Time: September 11, 2023 / 10:00-10:50 a.m. / Olivia James      Topic/Skill: Simple present tense (showed a video)      Teacher Presentation: The teacher explained and defined what the simple present tense was. She then showed a video Take a tour of the international space center to the students and asked them questions throughout the video of the astronauts daily routines during their time in space.       Classroom Management: She went over the agenda at the beginning of class. Throughout the video she would ask the students questions to make sure they were paying attention while helping them structure their thoughts and sentences if needed. She called on students who needed the extra push to participate throughout the lesson and went to them if they needed help, or had any questions.       Materials: YouTube video - Take a tour of the international space center, worksheet based on video and ...

  October 15, 2023   Date/Time: October 15th, 2023. 10:35 AM-11:40 AM Tutee: Sandra Location: ZOOM Topic/Skill: Reading Comprehension/ Everyday life conversations  Feedback provided to the tutee: Throughout the session (as Sandra would talk) I would write down exactly what she said (she could see what I wrote). That way, when she made a mistake she would correct it, and if she did not notice it I would go back to the writing. I also wrote things she was struggling to say but that were correct and congratulated her.  Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: Today I learned the effectiveness of writing down the errors of the students as they talk because they get to see how to correct themselves.

  October 15, 2023   Date/Time: October 15th, 2023. 9:30 AM-10:30 AM Tutee: Do-jun Kim Location: ZOOM Topic/Skill: Listening Comprehension/ Halloween and Catching Clues  Feedback provided to the tutee: In this session, I provided my tutee with vocabulary that tends to have a double meaning. I provided feedback on certain vocabulary usage (positive) there were no mistakes.  Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: I learned that for the next session, I have to develop a more challenging lesson. The last lesson was perfect but I believe Dojun can approach a more difficult level. 

  Date/Time:  October 11, 6:15 pm - 7:45 pm Location: Tutee's Apartment Topic/Skill:  Reading Feedback provided to tutee:  We reviewed the reading for her final exam and went over vocabulary and reading comprehension questions. I provided the tutee with a simplified overview of the article to increase her understanding.  Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned: The tutee finds reading to be one of her most difficult subjects, but it is also really hard to teach, especially when the subject matter is so complex. The reading was on the branches of the government and their organization and functions. This was very difficult to explain in a simple way with simple vocabulary.

 Date/Time: October 13th, 2023. 10 AM-11 AM Tutee: Shrouq Saied Location: CIES Lounge Topic/Skill: Vocabulary in-context and culture lesson Feedback provided to tutee: Implicit corrective feedback Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: I learned that the choice of environment for tutoring lessons is important and should not go unnoticed. Shrouq felt much more comfortable in a space she recognized than one she was not familiar with, and that lowered her affective filters greatly.

 Date/Time: October 13th, 2023. 9 AM-10 AM Tutee: Shrouq Saied Location: CIES Lounge Topic/Skill:Vocabulary in-context Feedback provided to tutee: I taught Shrouq new vocabulary and comprehension skills in the context of a level-appropriate activity (Apples to Apples). Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: I learned that casual board games can lower ESL students' affective filters, making them more open to learning new words and even making mistakes. I will be incorporating many board games in my future lessons, depending on the students' level.

  Date/Time: October 11th, 1 PM - 2 PM Tutee: Sujin Yang Location: Student Union Topic/Skill: Listening skills and culture lesson, pt. 2 Feedback provided to tutee: Implicit corrective feedback during speaking. Linguistic support for culture vocabulary as well as low-frequency idioms. Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: I learned that students are much more open to learning culture when there is a mutual enthusiasm and interest from the teacher as well. It's important for ESL teachers to always be respectful of their students' cultures, especially when teaching in a host country.

  Date/Time: October 11th, 12 PM - 1 PM Tutee: Sujin Yang Location: Student Union Topic/Skill: Listening skills and culture lesson Feedback provided to tutee: Implicit corrective feedback during speaking Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: I learned that sharing food makes students much more keen and open to learning about new cultures and culture words. In other words, it's a great way to lower their affective filters!

  Date/Time:  October 10, 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm Location: Tutee's Apartment Topic/Skill:  Composition and Grammar Feedback provided to tutee:  We reviewed further grammar questions having to do with her composition. Additionally, I helped her with forming sentences with multiple grammar components.  Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned: The tutee has a very good grasp of complex grammar, but tends to make basic grammar mistakes. 

  Date/Time:  October 9, 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm Location: Tutee's Apartment Topic/Skill:  Worked on Grammar and Composition Feedback provided to tutee:  I helped the tutee with adding complex sentences to her composition as well as explaining word choice and how it relates to complexity. Additionally, we went over her grammar final exam requirements and crafted practice sentences using the required grammar rules and skills.  Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned: It is really difficult to create complex sentences with specific pieces of grammar in mind. For the future, it might be better to prepare multiple sentences ahead of time for if the tutee needs further clarification. 

  Date/Time:  September 28, 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm Location: Starbucks near Tutee's Home Topic/Skill:  Worked on vocabulary and composition.  Feedback provided to tutee:  I helped the tutee revise her composition both in sentence structure and vocabulary. She gets caught up in trying to use bigger vocabulary words and forgets the grammar associated with them.  Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned: I learned that the tutee knows a lot of good vocabulary, but doesn't always know how to spell it or use it grammatically. 

  Date/Time: October 06th, 2023. 5:30 PM - 6:25 PM Tutee: Sandra Location: ZOOM Topic/Skill: language experience/methods to practice English on a daily basis Feedback provided to tutee: I mentioned that it is not a good idea to translate from Spanish to English for there is a difference in meaning. I did congratulate her on correcting herself when she made a mistake while talking. I told her it is a great way to learn English an further advance.  Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: since this was our first meeting, we focused on conversation so I can see what level she is in. I noticed that her grammar is good, but her vocabulary is limited and pronunciation. 

  Date/Time: October 06th, 2023. 9:30 AM-10:25 AM Tutee: Do-jun Kim Location: ZOOM Topic/Skill: Reading Comprehension/ Intensive reading strategies  Feedback provided to the tutee: this session was focused on reading comprehension. The feedback provided was on taking specific notes while reading and practicing pronunciation by reading out loud.  Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: In this session, I learned the importance of being ready thoroughly before starting. It is also important to provide links and sources just in case a student wants to review the material by her/himself. 

Date/Time: October 4th, 2023. 1 PM-2 PM Tutee: Sujin Yang Location: Student Union Topic/Skill: Listening skills and vocabulary comprehension Feedback provided to tutee: Linguistic support with low-frequency words and vocabulary. Comprehension assessment after watching the Gilmore Girls scene. Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: I learned that advanced students struggle the most with idioms and American pop culture references. However, providing adequate linguistic support before the listening exercise can make a world of difference! Students feel much more confident in their listening skills when they already know some of the more challenging terms.

Date/Time: October 4th, 2023. 12 PM-1 PM Tutee: Sujin Yang Location: Student Union Topic/Skill: Speaking skills Feedback provided to tutee: Implicit corrective feedback on minor grammatical mistakes and pronunciation. Introduction to new culture words. Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: I learned that advanced students will have a harder time correcting themselves while speaking since they have grown so used to making those mistakes over time.

Date/Time: September 30th, 2023. 10:10 AM-11:10 AM Tutee: Do-jun Kim Location: ZOOM Topic/Skill: Pragmatics, pronunciation, and American phrases/slang Feedback provided to tutee: I provided examples of how a small vowel/letter can change the meaning of the sentence. Not that he made that mistake but I was reviewing the types of mistakes that could be made depending on the native language.  Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or tutee: I learned that each person has a learning method and personal goals for learning a foreign language. It is better to ask and take notes on what someone wants to learn. Dojun expressed his interest in conversation and his desire to visit the US. Therefore, I focus a lot on connecting with him and having a conversation where he can talk all he wants and I give him my 100% attention. While conversing with a tutee is also important to keep asking questions so they can expand their conversation skills.