Alexandra CO #2

            On Thursday afternoon, May 11, 2017, from 1:00pm to 1:50pm, I observed Ryan’s 1A speaking class.  This was quite a contrast from the advanced level that I observed in the morning.  These students were beginners, so Ryan had to speak very slowly and simply to the students.  He had to repeat himself many times.  I was very impressed with his patience and encouragement to the students.  They seemed to respect him even as he asked them questions and gave them feedback. 

            The class had a quiz in which they had to speak for forty-five seconds in answer to a prompt.  Ryan gave them time to review, ask questions, and then practice for the quiz.  They also went over important class questions like “What is this called?” and “How do you spell that?”  One student kept calling Ryan “Teacher” rather than “Mr. Ryan,” but he gently kept reminding her of her error.  He explained that Americans do not say “Teacher” and used this as an opportunity to talk about cultural differences.  I felt I learned a lot from hearing the students speak and observing how Ryan guided and instructed the class.