THE ACT OF TEACHING CHAPTER 6 SUMMARY AND REFLECTION 1

Summary

Chapter 6 of Act of Teaching focuses on the importance of detailed lesson planning.

I. Pros and cons of Instructional Planning

Planning has a lot of pros especially for new teachers, however one of the most

commonly considered cons of instructional planning is the requirement of time in

doing so. Finding time to plan specially for elementary students is a struggle

because it entails more time to think of fun activities.

II. Planning is Especially Beneficial for New Teachers

Planning is useful for new teachers or student teachers simply because of the lack

of experience. New teachers or student teachers would usually have the feeling of

unsureness or doubtfulness, therefore having a detailed plan is helpful and would

usually result into a creative and fun teaching.

III. Deciding What to Teach

According to the book, teachers occasionally have their way but in planning a

lesson, determining what to teach should be the first on the list for obvious

reason. The book organized state standards on how it is developed which are

1. Factors influencing state requirements

2. Societal expectations

3. The nature and needs of learners

4. Professional societies with interests in education

IV. Instructional Objectives

After figuring out what a teacher should teach, instructions for obtaining the

objective should be included in the lesson plan. An instructional objective must be

THE ACT OF TEACHING CHAPTER 6 SUMMARY AND REFLECTION 2

a set that describes what learners must know and be able to do. The book also

pointed out that instructional objectives vary in specificity, kind, and level. Some

instructional objectives would aim towards cognitive learning, humanistic

learning, or behavioral learning. There are also two ways of writing an objective:

specific or general. Specific objectives are helpful for new teachers, meanwhile

experienced teachers seldom writes their objectives specifically and would

sometimes plan it mentally and write brief notes of the steps.

This section of the chapter included unit planning, the parts of it, how to prepare

it, and its benefits. Along with unit planning, this section also included what a

lesson plan is and its parts which are objectives, resources, set induction,

methodology, assessment, closure, and reflection. After preparing the lesson plan,

evaluating it is advised by the authors.

Some teachers have the habit to plan every detail of their lives and would bring this habit into

their teaching causing specific and detailed lesson planning to be of great ease and help for them.

Meanwhile, some are not into planning and would consider specific and detailed planning as an

addition to their stress. However, detailed and specific planning is advised and is a prelude to

good teaching as what the authors said.

THE ACT OF TEACHING CHAPTER 6 SUMMARY AND REFLECTION 3

Reflection

During my experience as a teacher, I would always find my teaching unsatisfying

at the end of the lesson. I realized that I lacked planning in my lesson which

resulted to a disheveled lesson and study time. Detail in planning is a must for an

unexperienced teacher such as I. However, one of the obstacle or problem I see

for a good instructional planning is when the teacher does not become flexible

and would strictly stick into the plan even though it is obvious that the students

need something else. Instructional planning requires practice. I can see that

instructional planning might be a failure during my first times, but I believe that it

will greatly help me in my teaching. Effective planning will result into students

understanding and remembering the lessons very well.