Teaching Class | 03.26.15

Last Thursday’s activity served as the culminating activity for the course. After all the classroom activities and modules, we were finally given the chance to apply everything we’ve learned in an hour of teaching. As such, our target audience were the year 3 PT students and our planned activity was to teach them a few exercises through circuit training.

One of the most important things we’ve learned as a group during the implementation of our instructional design was the importance of flexibility. We spent days polishing our instructional design, even meeting a few hours before the actual activity to plan out and rehearse the things that we’ll do. Thus, we were very surprised to learn that the interns also had a different activity prepared for the year 3 students. In a short time, we had to collaborate with them to make everything fit in one hour. Sadly, we had to scrap most of the things we worked on in order to come to a compromise.

Although discouraging, we tried to adapt to the sudden changes and we realized how important planning was to a teaching activity. During that time, we had to demonstrate exercises that the interns taught us 15 minutes before the start of the class. We had a hard time because we weren’t prepared for that activity and I think that we weren’t able to give our best.

Another important thing to know is the attitude and capabilities of your students. We already knew that the year 3 students were physically active and fit and so, we prepared the exercises according to that. However, we underestimated them and learned that they were far more fit than we had anticipated. To be fair, we had only one chance at assessing and teaching them. Still, the importance of understanding and knowing the client before the session was given emphasis.

I think that all these lessons can be useful in future practice. The same concepts also apply when treating clients. I also think that it’s important to learn from one’s mistakes in order to become better at what they do. I hope that in future practice, even if I do make some sort of mistake, I will be able to take that into account and use it to make myself a better therapist.

experience is your best teacher

Last Thursday we had what I consider the culmination of our course in Teaching in Physical Therapy. My group was assigned to teach a wellness activity to the 3^rd year PT students. Our topic was about circuit training and the general flow of session was a short lecture for the first fifteen minutes, followed by the exercise proper. Then the interns also came in to have an activity scheduled at the same time. Despite the unexpected incident, our group was able to accomplish the objectives we set on our instructional design except for the affective domain which was not possible to accomplish because of time constraints. We had delivered the lecture part clearly and within the time frame, but we could have added more visual aids such as pictures and exercise tools aside from the power point presentation, and used music to engage the interest of the audience. For the psychomotor domain, our group was able to begin the group activity with warm up exercises and demonstrate some of the exercises included in the interns’ program, and able to teach the proper forms, it just that the game was taking too long to finish that’s why we didn’t have the chance to close the session properly. 

Personally I was shocked when I learned that the interns are making a lot of last minute changes to our plans. I wasn’t ready to accept what was happening in front of me but I chose to stay silent and go with the flow. I just felt that it was unfair for our group since we put our thoughts and efforts into designing an instructional design specific for that population, time, and event. The big lesson here is that we have to consider ALL possible contingencies and never forget to include external variables when preparing for an activity. We could have at least asked more questions about our audience and their availability. Also, we could have inquired about their level of physical fitness so that we may have thought of a better exercise program to introduce. 

This is one unforgettable experience for me because I learned valuable lessons that I can keep for life. I have learned that, in any circumstance that we are about to face in our future practice we have to think quickly to make room for some last minute changes. In real life, not everything goes according to plan and that is why we have to be adaptable at all times. Should unexpected things happen, we always have to maintain composure and try to think from an outside perspective. That way, it would be easier to improvise. I am honestly grateful that it happened at this time so that in the future, I can always go back to this experience and remind myself to prepare better for my clients and my audience, and think further and outside the box. It taught me that flexibility and thoroughness is an important thing in life. Finding the right balance in giving way to changes and at the same time still sticking to the original plans, and having not just plan A but also plan B and C are crucial in ensuring the success of a project or presentation. 

Above anything else, I must remember that there is always room for improvement and teaching can be learned, not over night, but over time. Experience is indeed the best teacher.

A Glance of Internship

From a learner to a teacher, every little thing depended on this moment. It was do or die. The activity was an integration of everything I learned in teaching.

It was Friday afternoon. I was anxious about teaching my client how to catch a ball. I prepared flashcards, games and demonstrations. But before my session, I was informed that a new client was assigned to me. I was petrified even more. I planned everything. If I strayed from that, what would happen? Luckily, there were PT interns to help me and another classmate of mine was also assigned to the same client. I eased a bit. Maybe, I could really do it.

Building rapport was the most important thing I learned. My client and I exchanged pleasantries and high fives. We dribbled and played catch with each other. It was a form of socialization. During the activity, she was able to do the skills but had compensations so I had to modify. I reminded her about her hands when catching, using verbal and visual cues. A firm, yet not too firm, tone was necessary, so she could follow my instructions. She was cooperative and had a game face on. I saw how she loved the activity and it made me realize that I love what I was doing.

Now, I knew that not everything planned could be put into action.  There would always be modifications and these should be based upon the client. But in order to give modifications, one has to be observant to his/her client. To know whether the client was doing the task right or s/he having a hard time doing it, it was up to the therapist to take these cues into account. The activity felt like it was a glance of internship. It was challenging but it was all worth it.  

Motivated

Once I read my assigned case, I knew I was in for a challenge. My patient had a TBI d / t MVA, he also has expressive and cognition problems. I've had several experiences in handling kids with disabilities. However, I was wary of handling the geriatric population. I was scared from the start. Scared but determined. 

My patient, BG, had a TBI d / t MVA, he also has expressive and cognition problems. I was disheartened at first glance. However, I was able to psych myself up. I perceived this as a challenge and this newly found motivation gave birth to several of my strong points. Two days to the night before my treatment, I've prepared powerpoint presentations loaded with relevant images for both cognitive and psychomotor my objectives. I've strategised for the best possible way to teach, including the provision of cues, rest schedules and other techniques. But of course, nobody can ever be prepared for the real thing. 

ver and established rapport. I found out that she will be leaving BG's family this upcoming Holy Week so I asked her to take notes of my lectures and self stretching exercises; I asked her to convey the information to BG's wife. The caregiver complied well. During the session, I was also able to establish rapport with the patient. Both BG and his caregiver apt paid attention to the lecture. The caregiver also took down notes as instructed. Also, when asked if he understood the topic, BG nodded his head. The lecture was concise, straight to the point and loaded with visual cues as appropriate to BG's condition. I've also had a steady tone of voice and smooth cadence in speaking, these also facilitated the smooth learning experience.

My weak points lie in the teaching of self stretching exercises itself. Initially, I was not able to gauge the level of cues needed to be given to BG. Since he has comprehension problems, he also was not able to follow immediately and must be taught patiently. Also, I've learned that one must not be a perfectionist in the field. The patient had 80% of the forms correctly, however, I wanted 100%. When I gave him feedback, he became discouraged. So I opted to sacrifice the 20%. Better than 80% of the patients not perform the self stretching techniques at all. I had the most difficulty in getting the patient's reaction. At the start of the activity, I established that once he feels a stretching sensation, he should raise his right hand. This did not follow through in the actual performance of the techniques. I also consistently asked if he feels okay, and he nodded. I found out after a round of exercises that these nods were not reliable. There were times that he was in mild pain, it was apparent after each technique.  At the end, I decided not to push through with the last self stretching techniques since it was too difficult for him. The conclusion of the activity was also a bit sloppy because there was a bit of a hurry for me to finish. There were some good points here as well, I've lowered the intensity of the activity if the patient was not able to perform well. I've also terminated the activity if needed. Professionalism was also maintained during the activity. I've seen the patient frustrated easily, it would not do well if we were both frustrated so I kept my calm during teaching. I've also provided tactile cues as necessary and also encouragement in order for the patient to do a return demonstration on his own.

After the session, I had a debriefing in the CS room. Unknowingly, I've been frustrated during the activity but it was pent up. I did not have untoward feelings to the patient or the caregiver, in fact, I felt that I just gave an 'okay' performance. I was frustrated because I did not gave them the best. Fortunately, my proctor highlighted some of my good points so that uplifted my spirits a little. I could have demonstrated first while the patient was seated. I could have provided cues systematically. I could have gauged the patient's reactions better by tactile cues. I could have provided two exercises instead of three. I could have prepared for evaluation of adverse reactions, in this case, the visual analog pain scale or the Wong Baker's pain scale. I could have provided ample rest periods. I could have been better.

And I promise to be better. I was disheartened but I will not give up. I will treat this as a learning experience, never to repeat the same mistakes and bank on my strong points. I believe I am not ready to be a teacher. But who is ever ready? I will become ready once I'm in the field. And when I meet BG again, I swear I'll make him smile at me. 

a double-edged sword experience

When we were asked to pick out a number for our teaching, I have picked up a harmless number 2, not knowing that it was the group assigned for the community teaching in San Mateo, Rizal. We were asked to teach about hygiene. Ideas came rushing to our minds, from taking a bath, proper brushing of teeth, to proper hand washing. But it boiled down to proper hand washing only considering the time constraints and the immediate need of our target population.

We were there on time and already set but the kids are nowhere to be found. I was worried at first for I thought they will not show up at all, for some are asleep, playing or doing another thing. Then kids started to show up, I was nervous for I do not know if we can handle 20 kids and if they will listen to me during my story telling. But when only 4 kids show up, I was kind of sad for I thought that only these 4 kids will learn about the proper hand washing, which is crucial for their age.

First things first, we established rapport with the kids to breakdown any barriers they might have. Then we proceeded with our instructional design which was not fully followed, because we need to make changes and address the needs of our learners. Some are shy, others are too participative, overshadowing others, some just ran as far as they can and hide.

Those were the moments that, I realized that we should adapt to whatever is offered to us. We should be open to changes and analyze what they need and give it to them to establish trust and respect, even if that means that we need to get out of the plan.

A Series of Unpredictable Events

Last March 26, we had our wellness activity for the third year students as an implementation of our instructional design. Planning for this was more difficult than we initially thought. While other groups had to consider their clients' conditions, our group was   challenged by how fit our clients were. Personally, I was worried whether I'd be able to demonstrate the exercises we prepared knowing how deconditioned I was. I believe my other groupmates also shared the same sentiments. 

Things got even more challenging when just minutes before the actual activity we were informed that we had to work alongside the interns, who had something else planned for the thirds years. We were shocked, of course,  and clueless how we were going to go about our plans and objectives. In the end, we agreed to adopt the game the interns had prepared into our activity since it was also their last day of rotation. 

It was hard incorporating bits of our objectives into the game since it involved more instances wherein the students had to run around the campus and less time actually performing the exercises listed. Good thing the students participated well with the activity allowing us to demonstrate warm up and some of  "easy" and "hard" exercises. We also got to give them feedback and correct their forms. We also got to ask them the muscle groups targeted per exercise they performed. Overall, we were still able to achieve most of our objectives despite the changes that occurred. 

This experience was a good reminder of how things don't always go as planned. It doesn't mean that you didn't prepare well enough but that some things are naturally beyond our control. This is why we always have to be flexible and quick to bounce back because we really wouldn't know when your plans will backfire. I guess it's also another thing to be able to think ahead a come up with several backup plans. This also shows flexibility. 
Another important thing, that was emphasized from this activity was competence as a teacher. It's one thing to be able to know your learners well but it is also the teacher's responsibility to be good enough to teach them. Through this experience I was able to really see how important it is to be physically fit in this profession. Of course, there will always still be limitations to what we can do. We need to acknowledge what we can't so we can build on the things that we can. 

Lastly, creativity can definitely give you an extra mile. Sometimes we think that this is something that disappears when all you're studying health-related stuff but the truth is that is doesn't disappear. Actually, there are many opportunities to be creative in the health setting. Not only does it increase the compliance of our patients but it is also an effective tool to use for better learning. 

So do I think I can be a teacher now? Hmm, definitely getting there. There are still so many ways how I can improve and so many things I can still learn. Things may not have turned out the way I envisioned it, but still, I think I did a fairly well job at my first shot at being a teacher. 

Teaching in PT | 03.25.2015 | First Practice

Finally, the day has come that we now apply the new knowledge we've learned in PT 138. We were tasked to teach a fitness activity to the some members of the CAMP Administration. After the ID workshop, we made a consolidated design: an Aerobics dance class. We first had a lecture about the exercise, its benefits, and its general sequence. Then we proceeded to demonstrate all the steps of the exercise before actually starting the dance session. Then, after cool-down, we let the members reflect on how they can continue exercising.

Honestly I didn't expect that the admin could be so participative; they had a lot of insight regarding exercise and the activity. I was worried at first on how to establish rapport with them, but we did pretty well in that aspect. But, we had to balance using a tact, respectful tone of instruction with a light, casual and encouraging mood. Overall, the participants did quite well in performing the exercises, and were receptive to our feedback when correcting their form.

In the reflection, I also learned about being more sensitive to what the clients really value and what's important to them. We realized that they expressed issues with stress in work, or lack of time for exercise, but we were not so responsive to address these issues. We were so focused on a script. But I believe that in real practice, we would eventually wean off of the scripts we make in our heads before patient interaction. After all, humanities is also needed in the profession, in a sense that you get the subtle cues and understand the individual and respond accordingly.

A minor thing I reflected on is that I had trouble remembering their names. There were only about 5 of them. Then again, it's PT "practice." And, these experiences help us become more aware of what to improve on, so that next time, we do better.

Sir L

At the end of the teaching session, my patient is supposed to have learned the following: the correct performance of the skill (relaxation technique), importance of the skill to his condition (post CVA, hypertensive) and when to use the technique. Looking back, I think I can say that our session was successful. It went better than expected and I believe this is partly because I came to our session prepared - and this is one of my strong points in the activity conducted.
Before the teaching session, I was able to talk to sir Laddie and to know more about his condition. I was thus able to better relate the technique to his condition, so he readily understood the importance of technique to his health. We got off in a good start, so we were able to establish rapport (as good as a 10-mins session could allow) and I was able to introduce the technique appropriately. While teaching the relaxation techniques, I was able to use facilitatory voice, encouraged questions from Sir L and utilised visual aid. I prepare an aid that has a diagram of the relaxation response by Dr. Herbert Benson.
If there are points I could have done better, I think I could have thought of going to a quiet room before starting the introduction. Since I was going to teach a relaxation technique, it was wise to prepare my environment accordingly so it can facilitate the activity. Ma’am Dana suggested it before we got into the teaching part per se, so we were able to transfer. I think I said too much information in just one sentence and this is also one of my weak points. Another one was that I didn’t realize that the way I used my hands to express myself could have been distracting for the patient. I also could have used concrete examples to answer my patient’s questions regarding possible movement to do when he feels “nangangalay”. I could have also better demonstrated the technique if I completed the 5 mins required for the technique and asked him to return-demo in a similar fashion. I also could have facilitated relaxation more if I asked him to use his imagination to rid himself of distracting and stressful thoughts.  Also, I could have taught him proper deep diaphragmatic breathing before the relaxation response itself.
Sir L was very cooperative and amiable. This, added to ma’am Dana’s experience with him, I think it’s safe to assume that we were able to target the cognitive, psychomotor and affective domain in our session. Referring to my instruction design for him, I can say that I was able to follow it; from the objectives, content, strategy, resource and evaluation. I was also able to conclude our session well and parted with sir L in good terms. Before leaving the clinic, I said my farewell to him. I think it’s safe to say we both learned something from the activity. Only, he didn’t know that he was teaching me too - even more that what he has gotten from me.

Group Teaching

For the class’ fieldwork activity, the group on which I belong was assigned to teach a fitness program to some of the members of the CAMP administration. Our group made and agreed upon a consolidated instructional design we were to implement before the actual activity. As a for the fitness program, we chose to conduct an Aerobic dance workshop for our five clients last Wednesday, March 25. We started the workshop with an interactive lecture about aerobic exercise, its health benefits, and what our clients could expect during the exercise. Then, a demonstration of the aerobic dance steps was done to help our clients familiarize themselves with the steps included in the dance proper. Consecutively, the warm up, aerobic dance, and cool down exercises was performed by our clients as they followed the demonstrators. A small group discussion wherein our clients shared their insights of the workshop concluded our fieldwork activity.

The activity has given me a whole new experience for me. Not only did I taught exercises, but I had to instruct a group of adults who I see almost every day. It was nerve racking at first but we, me and my groupmates, were able to build a rapport with our clients. Fortunately, they were all receptive and participative all throughout the workshop and they seemed to be enjoying the activity as well. They were able to follow and imitate each of the instructors and we were able to correct their form and steps. It also takes a lot of courage and confidence in correcting a client. You must always remain tactful and you should observe the tone of your voice warranted for an effective communication. We as professionals must find a way on how to express our thoughts to our clients in a casual but respectful manner especially if they are older than you but you want to make the atmosphere light and fun.

Aside from being able to build rapport with our clients, we fairly did a good job in connecting with our clients. Despite the age difference of most of our clients, I think we were able to seize their interest and undivided attention all throughout the workshop. The lecture was interactive and went on smoothly as we used simple understandable terms. We have also used songs according to our clients’ preference. The steps we chose were fairly easy to remember and execute easing the dance proper performance. Also, we were able to get our clients insights and reflections about the workshop and their suggestions on how they could possible continue exercising even without such workshop.

Maintaining a teaching class as casual as possible may help in picking up our client’s mood and interest but we must also know our boundaries. Our conduct whenever we are teaching must still remain professional.  We ought to finish our sentences with a complete thought and avoid talking in fragments to avoid confusion and misgivings on our clients. With that, we must take Ms. Rodriguez’s advice that if we catch ourselves lost or confused with our own words, we should pause and clear our thoughts first before continuing with what we were saying. That way, we can avoid misunderstandings and irritating or perplexing our clients.

Another point where our group could improve is for us to maximize all the resources that were given to us. We could still have improved our set-up into using the whole room instead of using less than half of the room’s space. Also, we forgot to put the light back on during the small group discussion. We were so immersed with our plan and in observing our time table that we failed to notice the cues and prompts for clarifications and further explanation that our clients were giving. In the end, we were unsuccessful in being as flexible as we hoped to be during our teaching session. It was something that I must remember every time I am faced with a client.

Our clients, members of the CAMP administration, showed that they did enjoy our aerobic dance workshop. They even wanted to have it every week. For such reason, I commend our group for accomplishing our fieldwork activity better than we expected. I am hoping that I could to the same when I begin teaching my very own client by myself as I keep all of my learning from the fieldwork activity.

03-27-2015

I was quite nervous about the teaching fieldwork. My groupmates and I were assigned to conduct a wellness activity for 3^rd year PT students. It wasn’t really my first time teaching exercise to a group. But I have been sedentary for a long time and I’m pretty sure this is the first (and hopefully the last) time I taught fitness activity to a group of students who are considerably more conditioned than I am. The exercises we planned were advanced given their high fitness level. I was just thinking, “how can they learn from me if they’re significantly better at the thing I am going to teach them?”.

We didn’t know that we will be conducting the activity with the interns, so we made a lot of last minute changes to our plan. We were able to achieve all our objectives except for the affective domain. The activity went smoothly and the students were very compliant. We gave visual, auditory, manual and verbal cues during the psychomotor part. They were able to follow the instructions and demonstrations we gave. The teaching session itself was good although I feel like there are a lot of things we could have done to improve it. We could have provided more interesting visual aids like adding more pictures in the powerpoint or showing some equipment (e.g. theraband, vestibular ball etc) that can be used for training. I feel that would get them interested because they are incoming fourth year students and would want to know what to expect. We were originally planning to play music during the exercise to keep the atmosphere lively. But we didn’t use it because we deem it best to just count during the exercise so that we could immediately proceed to the game that the interns had planned. We should have set up the music prior to the session.

               

Overall, the activity is a good learning experience for us. I know now that no matter how much you prepared for an activity, it will never go exactly as planned. There are just so many considerations that it is almost impossible to take all of them into account. Teaching (like everything else) requires flexibility so that you could still have a successful teaching-learning experience despite unexpected circumstances. I know this experience would help me grow as a teacher.

Fieldwork

Last March 25, we had our fieldwork where we were assigned to teach a certain audience using our own instructional design. We were assigned to teach proper hand washing to the children in the community. We expected at least more than 10 learners but only a few showed up so we had to modify a some plans.

It was good that we were able to change plans quickly to adapt the situation and to match it to the learners’ interest. It was good that we started the session by building rapport through introductions and dancing activity. We made sure to have enough activities so the learners would not get bored. Instead of having a discussion, we had an interactive story telling. We also had visual aids. Through this strategy, we were able to make the learning interesting for them as well as encouraged them to participate. We also demonstrated and provided step-by-step instruction of the steps in proper hand washing. We asked them to follow while one of us demonstrated. We were able to focus on each child and individualize the teaching to facilitate better learning. It was also good that we made them perform the steps by themselves with actual water and soap and only provided instructions when they needed it. We also gave them stars and commended them for doing good. It was also good that we provided them handouts so they could practice at home.

Since we had to change some plans, we somewhat became unorganized on some things. We weren’t able to follow the original plan where each of us was supposed to be assigned to a group of children. Also, we weren’t able to properly sequence the activities because towards the end, they started to lose focus.

Our session would have been smoother if we were able to organize ourselves and assign each one of us to a child to better focus on them. We should have arranged the activities where the most interesting ones are done at the end. Also, it would better if we were able to think of other activities where they could learn without them realizing we are teaching them. And the way we handled their behavior could still be improved.

I felt more of a learner than a teacher as we were teaching the children in the community. I learned a lot from the experience and at the same time the children learned something from us too. I never thought I would have so much fun teaching others because I was always anxious about speaking in front of an audience but during the fieldwork I was happy. The fieldwork was tiring, but I had so much fun.

Fit to Teach

Last March 25, my group members and I implemented our comsolidated instructional design. Our teaching activity was a fitness program for CAMP administrators. Five of them attended. We started our activity approximately 4:15 pm and it lasted until 5:20 pm. The following sequence was the flow of our activity:
1. Registration and gathering of vital signs
2. Lecture: benefits of exercise, rationale of sequence of exercise
3. Demonstration of steps
4. Dance aerobics
5. Gathering of vital signs
6. Reflection

The good points of our group are the following:
• We built good rapport and our activity was relatable to the clients.
• The intensity of the activity fitted the level of the clients.
• We were able to ask their reflections and insights about the activity.

The bad points of our group are the following:
• We were not able to maximize the space given to us.
• Sometimes, we made mistakes and was out of sync (during the dance part) with each other.

Our points of improvement are the following:
• We should be more confident when we teach.
• We should master what we teach so we would not make any mistake to prevent confusion.

Through this activity, I learned that it really is important that you plan and organize everything down to the last detail so your activity will go smoothly. Even though we were given a short time to prepare, we were able to successfully execute our plans. Making a consolidated instructional design really helped in planning the activity. Our group also divided the work so each of us can teach a part of the activity while the others were giving feedback to the clients. I also realized that it is important to communicate well with your clients so they can easily follow your instructions and accept your feedback.

In the future, I’ll try to be more confident when I teach. At first, I was shy because they were older than me and I did not want them to feel that I was imposing. As the activity progressed, I learned that they were very approachable people. I will practice my interpersonal skills so the clients will feel comfortable talking to me. Of course, I will continue making instructional designs for my teaching activities because it is an effective planning tool.

10 Tips on How to Teach Zumba … or rather, to Lower Blood Glucose Levels!

One of the questions I encountered this week was, “What are you doing today that will be remembered after 10 years?” After everything I saw during our Teaching Fieldwork, seeing those tired yet happy smiles from our Camp Admin’s faces, I know now how I want to answer that question. I am teaching the people within my reach the importance of physical fitness and how it can improve the quality of life! 

Our group taught some of the CAMP Administration staff about physical fitness, exercise, and their importance in their lives, and got them dancing Zumba moves last Wednesday. This brings me to 10 Tips on How to Teach Zumba.  

1.  Follow an Instructional Design
The team consolidated their individual instructional designs and arrived at one that is meaningful to their students. Preparing this beforehand also made the flow smoother.

2.  Don't forget the Importance of the Environmental Set-up
This aspect was kind of a weakness of the team for they weren’t able to turn the lights on and to maximize the space.

3.  Establish rapport
You might only be given an hour or so to be with them, that’s why it’s important to build a connection with your students. The team was successful in this by conducting themselves professionally and developing a trustworthy façade.

4.  Ease them into it with a Lecture
was witty that it’s called Instructional Design for it demands all your ingenuity.

5.  Make it relatable
The team was clever when they used marriage and stress to explain the concepts; it spark interest in their students.


6.  Listen to what they have to say
Once they were able to relate, they may have a lot in mind going on. These are manifested in subtle cues the team wasn’t able to catch – like how they were always saying something about time and we failed to address it.

7.  Avoid wordy lectures!
The students came in for a Zumba class! That’s why, if they find your explaining a bit bothersome, they won’t really push themselves to enjoy. Indeed, a reminder for the team.

8.  Keep it casual 
Simple terms used for instructions were used by the team to teach Zumba. How easy was it to make the students follow when everything sounds simple! But remember to do this making sure to avoid talking in fragments.

9.  Give feedback
Since we taught a small class, there were enough teachers to give one on one feedback to the students to correct their form. Tactile cues were given to some, while to others, the teachers preferred verbal cues for the pelvic movements.. Because you know.. It's better that way.

10.  Practice, or better yet, Get licensed
It was awesome, mainly because the Zumba teachers were also first-timers in dancing Zumba! If you’re going to teach Zumba, better practice so the instructors won’t be out-of-sync and won’t be confusing.
The reality is, however, you may practice all you can but until you get licensed, you may only claim that your classes teach “Aerobic Dance”.

It was a lot of fun, and yet, in my opinion, it was a noble gesture. To teach the CAMP Admin something that will be valuable to them after 10 years is something that, indeed, will always be remembered. 

The best part of it all? It lowers the blood glucose levels. (For more information about this, please see Ma’am Fe.)

Passion for Change

Passion, (n.) a strong feeling of enthusiasm or excitement for something or about doing something  

Teachers have always been admirable people for me. They can be the most dedicated, most patient and most hardworking people. The most passionate. Often, they are overlooked.

                Freedom Writers told a story of transformation. Mrs. Gruwell, an English teacher, was assigned to teach a class of failing students. What seemed to be an impossible task was met with enthusiasm and perseverance. Mrs. Gruwell tried and tried until she got her students to listen to her. She got to know them and learned what interests them. Again, this movie reminded me that in order to teach effectively, knowing your learner is essential. I liked the part where Mrs. Gruwell tells her students that they helped themselves, that they did the change for themselves. It made me realize that in order to see change in oneself, a learner must believe he/she can change and then be the change. Teaching is a two-way street. In the end, Mrs. Gruwell and her students were successful. Working together, they achieved change. The class in Rm. 203 went from hating each other to working together, and from sticking to their groups to being united in their passion for change. Individually, the students worked to transform their lives and change for the better.

This is what I am going to take from the movie: For change to happen, you have to want it to happen and then work hard for it. There has to be passion. There has to be belief that change can happen. When I become a PT, I will always remember this. When I work with my clients, I want to instill passion in what we are doing and we will work hard together towards success.

Radiance

Just by reminiscing the experience we had in teaching the children in San Mateo, Rizal puts a smile on my face. It’s not surprising though since it was undeniably the best experience I ever had in a community setting so far. Seeing those children smile while giving their best effort in performing the activity was something that gave me a valuable joy as one of their teachers.

Being a facilitator of learning to those children was very fun yet tiring experience because we need to match the level of their energy all throughout the session. Good thing that we managed to be flexible enough in dealing with them. It was good that we planned a variety of teaching strategies early on to accommodate any unexpected occurrences before and during the teaching session. We considered the importance of having activities that were suitable for the age range of the learners. Also, it was good that we provided a dance activity at the beginning of the session because it built the bond between the teacher and the learner thus motivating the children to engage early on. We also provided tokens to motivate them to participate fully while incorporating the lessons in a story which caught the attention of the children to listen and learn at the same time.

Things to improve include team work and how we should end the session. It would be more fitting to end the session right after its peak which is in our case after the hand washing activity. Because we noticed that the attention of the children slowly drifted apart after engaging on it. Moreover, since there were only 4 students, delegating one teacher per child would maximize the opportunity to guide individual learner throughout the session.

Lastly, it would be suitable to just prepare for the unexpected.

Openness to Change

On March 26, 2015, we had the opportunity to teach the year 3 physical therapy (PT) students a wellness activity. We prepared for this activity very well. However, an hour before our activity, there were unforeseen changes that happened. First, we had to change our exercises because the interns already planned a program in the form of a game for the students. Second, the students told us that they were not expecting a lecture since they thought that the interns were the only ones who will be handling them.

After encountering all these changes, I honestly felt sad but not because I knew that some of our objectives would not be applicable anymore. I felt sad because the students showed no enthusiasm to listen because they were not expecting any lectures at all and were very much looking forward to the game. I noticed this as the game was being introduced and the students suddenly became attentive, like a bright sun shone upon their faces. I also observed it during the demonstration of one of our exercises. When the students realized that one of the exercises we were teaching was not part of the game, I even heard one of them saying, “Ano ba yan, ‘di pala kasama ito. Wag na yan!”

I know that it was our duty to engage them. Actually, we did do our best to really engage them and augment their enthusiasm. We were even calling them by their first names. We thought that knowing their names will be beneficial to the lecture and so before the lecture, we procured a list of the students in their class. However, even with the efforts, their interest in the lecture did not change. Despite this, I would still want to thank some students for being participative by answering some our questions adequately. Maybe we also lacked in our part because we could have done a game instead rather than a lecture if we knew that the interns would be planning such activity to the students.

Amidst all the setbacks, I still felt grateful for the experience because I was able to concretize one of my passions – teaching. Even for a day, I had the chance to experience what it feels like to be a therapist who will educate the students about wellness. I would also like to thank my hard-working groupmates who, even with unexpected circumstances, were still able to deliver to the best of their abilities.

The most valuable lesson I learned during the activity was really adaptability. As a future PT, I will be faced with instances wherein I have to change everything I planned for my students. Through this activity, I was able to embody this trait; I adapted effectively to the changes that happened with grace and confidence. In addition, I learned that success is not really about carrying out my plans and getting what I want. It is all about my ability to adapt to the changes in my plans because of unpredicted circumstances. It is through my openness to change would I have a true opportunity to get the most from every experience.

Power of Dedication

"Kung ako ang tatanungin, bibigyan ko kayo ng 9." (non-verbatim)

Hearing this from Ma'am Ishtar, I cannot help but feel proud of my group. Personally, I really think we did a great job in implementing the plan we finalized the night before. Although what really transpired was not what we had in mind, the group was able to adapt immediately.

We were initially expecting at least more than 10 kids to join us in our activity albeit only 4 kids arrived at the clubhouse. We immediately had to engage the kids in an activity to build rapport so we proceeded as planned. Introductions were given and the kids were invited to participate in a dance. I think this activity was also able to help us settle ourselves in the situation and think "Okay. This is it. We're finally starting."

Afterwards, we sat down for a storytelling to show the kids the importance of hand-washing. This was the turning point of our activity. The kids started to show interest and actively participated in the activity. Through token reinforcement (awarding stars), we were able to maintain their attention and encourage them to answer our questions. At that moment, I knew I felt genuine joy in doing something that was originally just a requirement (for me).

To teach the steps in hand-washing, a leader showed a demonstration of the steps on how to do it properly while the rest of the group assisted the kids. In this activity, repetition was important to ensure that the kids will learn the skill. However, although there was an attempt to simplify the instructions to them, I think the group can still improve on that. Nonetheless, we were able to see them perform the steps correctly (with assistance for younger kids) when we progressed to practicing the skill with actual water and soap. The funny thing was most of them wanted to wash their hands again after their first try.

Things were going smoothly and as planned until after this activity. Since it was the highlight of our session, the kids started to behave differently and were not really listening anymore as we taught them when to wash their hands. In the end, we were not able to follow the planned closing activities and the quiz bee.

For this reason, I realized that in a community, especially when teaching kids, your session will not go as you have imagined it would be. A session does not always follow the introduction-teaching activity-closing flow. Hence, as always emphasized, the ability to adapt and be flexible is really important.  It would have been better if we taught all necessary knowledge beforehand and as a closing activity, ask them to repeat the story told earlier to reiterate the important things to remember. In that way, we can evaluate their learning without introducing another set of information and instructions.

I guess the main lesson I learned from this is the power of dedication. Going to a community takes a lot of time, money, and patience but it was a really fulfilling experience. Even though I was tired and worried of other deadlines I need to meet, I was happy. I hope the rest of the class enjoyed their own experiences and also for the younger batches to appreciate this activity in the future.