Reflection on Session 3

Wow! It was another overwhelming session! The lesson pace was quite fast. Personally, I think an effective learning environment will encourage the students to actively participate in the tutorial discussions and freely post their queries as they feel that the environment is non-threatening. They are not afraid of making mistakes but are willing to learn from their friends. This will encourage more of student-centred learning environment. However, an ineffective learning environment will discourage the students from paying attention in class and reluctant to participate in the tutorial discussions. Hence, it will be more of teacher-centred learning environment.

We also had our group discussion on our session 2 group collaboration activity using the articles on Maths learning environment and Chemistry learning environment. In addition, we discussed on “Does the assessment-centered learning environment exist in Singapore context and why?”

Lastly, Dr Quek went through to explain the following with us in class: What are the key components of a learning environment, what are the inter-relationships of components in learning environment, and how to differentiate various types of learning environment. It was really useful for me. She also asked us if we would like to be observed by a detached observer (alpha press) or a group of people (beta press) in our lesson (the two new terms learnt in this session and also from my reading on the article: Science Learning Environments: Assessment, Effects and Determinants by Barry Fraser – Alpha press and Beta press). My answer was I would prefer the beta press as this group of people would know the learning environment better and they are readily available in school. However, being observed by alpha press has its own advantage as well such as he or she would have a different and non-bias perception of the learning environment and feedbacks. Currently, our department has carried out a few termly surveys to gather feedbacks from our students regarding our lectures, revision packages, and individual teaching approaches and learning environments. I find this to be useful as I can find out what is it that I have done that encouraged more effective learning and what improvement do I have to focus on in creating a better learning environment for my students. However, I feel that some feedbacks can be bias and non-constructive as the students may have some misunderstanding towards the teacher beforehand.