Mary Brennan

10-Minute Lesson Reflection

1.) What decisions/challenges did you face during the planning process?
For this assignment, I found it challenging to decide how much information to
present and how to integrate assessment. Because many of my teachers in both the
past and presently have been very lecture oriented, brainstorming examples of
assessment integration was a bit more difficult because I wasnt really sure of how to
assess knowledge and comprehension without a test or quiz format. In addition, while 10
minutes seemed like a decent amount of time at first, I quickly discovered that the lesson
had to be compact in order to get the info across and be able to assess the
comprehension of my peers. For future lesson plans, I will aim to explain the concept in
multiple ways to enhance the students learning and I hope to be able to integrate
assessment into lesson better.
2.) When planning a lesson, you imagine the way it will go. Did your lesson go according
to this "image"? What was different from this "image"? Did anything really surprise you
or catch you off guard?
Because I was nervous for the public speaking aspect of the lesson, I practiced a
few times for my friends in an attempt to find a rhythm and flow for my lesson. Needless
to say, my lesson was taught a little differently each time I presented it, including the time
in class. I thought that my presentation of the lesson in class was a bit too fast spoken
and I was surprised by the fact that I found myself wishing that I had an exact script of
what I wanted to say in front of me. While I felt confident in my knowledge of the topic, I
was nervous and therefore the information was relayed more choppily than I would have
liked. Although I know that my confidence and timing will get better with experience, I
think I will write an exact script for the next lesson in order to calm my nerves and keep
on task.
3.) In your opinion, what went really well during your instruction?
I thought that my assessment at the end of my lesson went well because most
people in the class were able to correctly identify the given bacterial morphology or
arrangement when presented with two choices. I chose this method of assessment
because I thought that it would allow the class to make an educated selection based on
the material that was taught. If I was able to do this lesson again, I would try to engage
the students more by asking questions during the lesson like my peers did.
4.) If you were to do the lesson again, what would you change/add/remove the second
time around?
If I were to do the lesson again, I would breakdown the material more and
integrate assessment in better. When planning this lesson, I was initially worried that the
content of my lesson was too little. However, based on the feedback given, I am now
more aware that the material could have been sectioned off into two lessons in order to
present the information is more comprehensible manner. In addition, by watching the

assessment techniques of my peers, I would aim to increase the level of assessment in

my lesson to encourage engaged learning. Upon reflection, I realized that while the
information was pertinent for context, the fact that I didnt iterate the material may have
made the later assessment difficult for some because they may have forgotten the name
or definition of the term given. As a result, I would try to present the material more like a
conversation and less like a presentation.
5.) Did you achieve your objective? How can you be sure?
Although I presented too much material in my lesson, I thought that my objective
of teaching the class how to identify bacterial morphologies and arrangements was
successful. By the end of the lesson, most people were able to answer the assessment
correctly. However, to determine whether the information was retained, I could try and
give the same or a similar assessment this week and see if the results mirrored the ones
from last week.