Mayfield High School Observation

This was my last visit to Mayfield High School. I observed a biology class, a zoology class, and a chemistry class.

The biology class was supposed to watch a video during the period, but the computer broke at the start of the period so they had a change of plans. They ended up having to fill out their notes in small groups using the books. The teacher improvised very well and made the lesson work even though they didn't have the computer. They were learning about the structure of DNA and the teacher had a huge model that she used to show all of the different parts. I think this worked much better than just drawing DNA because they got to go up to the model and point at the parts and see it in 3D. I was impressed with ow quickly she changed her plans, but I think that is an important part of being a teacher. Things don't always go as planned.

The second class I observed was a zoology class and they were dissecting a mud puppy, a type of amphibian. This is the same class I observed a few weeks ago when they struggled to follow the directions and perform the dissection correct. This week they all seemed a little better and had to circle the structures that they saw. The teacher knew what they would be able to see and what they would never be able to see so I think this was a great way to tell who actually did the dissection. The teacher is also very attentive during the dissection and really seemed to know what she was doing, which was different from when I was in high school. My biology teacher didn't really help with structures and couldn't identify the structures herself. It is important for a teacher to be able to do the things they expect from their students.

The last class I observed was AP chemistry. When the students walked into the class they all had questions about the lab they were supposed to be doing that day so the teacher last minute decided to post pone the lab and answer the questions as a class because the majority of the students were confused. I think this showed how much she cares about her students learning. Any other teacher would have just made them do the lab to stay on schedule, but this teacher wanted them to understand the lab before and really know the meaning of everything they were doing during it. This teacher is someone I really look up to and admire how much she cares about her students.