Week 7 - Classtime reflection

In this week's class, i found the part in which the guest speaker gave a talk about how to utilize the library resources very relevant and helpful. Still, one thing i noticed while searching for reference materials during the process of doing the multigenre research paper is that while the online databases offered in the library website are very diverse and large, the books related to ESL in the library catalog are comparatively limited and somehow it is hard to find those that relate to our topic. I am now still trying to figure out the most effective way to look for library books and it would therefore be great to be receiving advice regarding this matter.

Also, i enjoyed Rachel's presentation and the way she divided the class into two groups of girls and guys to "compete" against each other. As both groups were very excited to answer the questions, get points for their group, and more importantly protect their gender pride, it brought it home to me that sometimes it can be helpful for teachers to conduct activities that aim at arousing students' self-respect, so that they are more motivated to get involved and prove themselves.

Besides, the following activity of revising the lesson plan of another group was also very helpful for me. I could learn a lot from my classmates while we talked and discussed with each other. What's more, even though i did make some lesson plans before, the way things are organized here are quite different from what i previously learned. Therefore, activities like this give me a good chance to practice and get used to the lesson plan making process.