Would you record yourself to aid reflection?
Would you record yourself teaching to help you reflect?
Do you have a mobile device with you in class? (iPad, chrome book, phone)
If you do have one, have you considered using it to record yourself teaching?
I did this earlier this week and it’s a surprisingly useful little ‘reflection hack’!
All I did was set up my iPad on my desk, aimed it at me at the front of class and pressed record! Simples!!
‘Oh goodness, I hate watching myself back‘
Once you get over the ‘Oh goodness, I hate watching myself back‘, it’s actually very useful and an easy to set up way of reflecting.
Just imagine you’re not you, you’re watching a colleague. Suddenly, you will spot your strengths and quickly identify some areas to improve.
My strengths:
Students responded well to 5,4,3,2,1 count down when I wanted to regain focus.
Students understood the aim of the activity and engaged with it well making good progress.
My areas to improve:
Even though I asked some good questions, I was surprised at some opportunities to dig deeper into learners’ understanding that I missed. So next time my aim is to ask further questions of each student. ‘How do you know?’ ‘Can you tell me how that works?’ will be additional questions I’ll use.
I also spent much too much time at the front, something I know I shouldn’t do, so even though I may have the video running to record me, I need to work on my placement in the room as I may have begun to stay at the front too long. Starting tomorrow, I’ll be more conscious of the need to move to students, stand with them as I pose questions and build on their answers with them.
Try it yourself?
Sound like something you might easily try in your class to enhance your reflective practice? Give it a go, I promise it will help you tweak your practice!
Happy teaching!
