Chapter 3

The goals that we want to achieve have to be very clear for us at the time to design a curriculum. With those goals clear we are going to identify in a better way if they are developing in our classes in order to get the results that we want in our students. We are going to get “desire results” if we are able to have concrete objectives.

“Big ideas are at the “core” of the subject; they need to be uncovered”

With this quote we must to work in order to get better acquiring of contents.  The student has to be connected with the knowledge to generate motivation. What I mean is that if the student can identify the importance of learning something, the process is going to occur naturally and with few problems. That is our hard work; we have to make them feel the connection with the knowledge in order to make them think.

As the text said, students have to ask themselves why they have to learn something. And we have to guide them in that process. The idea is make their brains ask:

-          What is most important here?

-          How do the pieces connect?

-          What should I pay most attention to?

-          What are the (few) bottom-line priorities?

If our students are able to make those question is because we are in the correct way. We are motivating them making a close relationship between knowledge and their experiences that they are living in their daily routine.

Chapter 2

It is important to know the differences between knowledge and understanding. With these two concepts clear we are going to be able to know if we are giving subjects in the right way. First of all we have to give in the appropriate way the information that a student needs to know. At the time of evaluations we are going to know if they have that knowledge. However we cannot be sure if they understand this knowledge.

In my personal opinion we, as future teachers, have different ways to evaluate more than only knowledge. We can make them questions in which they need to analyze information and we are going to identify if they understand the subject.

Also we have to know if they have the necessary tools to ask themselves and find explanations about a theory for instance. We can give them the information and we have to teach them how to use that information in order to create an answer or an opinion.

Understanding by Design - Chapter 1

In my personal opinion, the most interesting part of this chapter is when the author talks about the Stages of Backward Design. In this part we, as future teachers, are going to orientate our lessons in order to achieve the proses of learning in an optimal way.

 The main focus of this chapter is very useful to our practice as teachers. I think that is important to think and answer first some questions that are important before to plan a lesson. It is completely necessary to ask ourselves about the contents that we are giving to our students and how are we going to give to them. The message has to be clear and understandable. It is important also has a result of the contents, and check the learning in students. With that information we are going to be able to evaluate our work. We are going to know if we are doing things right and we are going to be able to correct what we are doing wrong.

It is very important at the time to plan a lesson to put the student as the main character in our classes. This is going to help us to aim our classes in the principal objective of the curriculum and a class that is the student and spread knowledge properly.

Writing Process

I think that blogs are not necessary, in my personal opinion; I don’t like blogs, because you have to dedicate them a lot of time. However, I have to say that this blogging experience improve my English, now I can feel that I’m a better writer; moreover, we learn a lot of new things. I don like post to others an that kind of things, but I did all work with my blog, I mean, I commented to my classmates and I did my post.

In some cases I felt that this activity was funny and sometimes I enjoyed posting to others, because when I read my classmates’' opinions I always was laughing about things that they said. I think that this writing process was very good for me and all my classmates, because now we can write well than before (at least in my case).

BeRnY's bLoG!

I’m reviewing Bernardita’s blog; we are always posting to each other. The blog’s name is “kbernita.blogspot.com”, and I really don’t know why! But I think that the name is comic. In the majority of her post, she has comments of my classmates, and of course I had posted her several times, I can see 4 comments in each post approximately. Bernardita is very creative, that is the reason that I visit her blog, I like the way that she said things, that things make me laugh. My favorite post of Bernardita is the football post, because when I read it, I was very pleased about she enjoyed the Chilean football games. And it was very funny read it.

Bernardita is very good at English, she has to write more, but she has fewer mistakes in her posts. I think that she has to focus in grammar mistakes, they are not much, but are very importants. In my personal opinion, Bernardita has to make her blog more interesting, she hast to put photos about the topics that she talks, and maybe she has to propose her topics, what I mean is that she has to talk about educations, music that she enjoys, her favorite books, etc.

We have to be better students.

I think that the person that wants to learn is going to put effort in classes; at least he/she is going to participate in classes. If somebody didn’t do anything, is because is a lazy student, or maybe he/she is not interesting in English pedagogy.

In my case I don’t do all homework, but if I didn’t bring one homework I do the homework in classes and I can participate like if I would done it.

I’m not feeling desmotivated, I really enjoy the classes, Miss. Beatriz knows, such an example, that I don’t like work in the blog, but I do my best, and I’m always finishing first in this kind of works.

I think that I can’t improve my English, because nobody wants to work in classes, so if a teacher tell us that we have to improvise, I know that nobody is going to do it, then I’m going to say: “I want to do it”, and if I make a mistake, some of my classmates are going to laugh, they are people that are not helping to others, they don’t improve and don’t let to others improve their shyness. I strongly believe that you can learn a better English if you learn it with people that are around you, because we are in the same conditions and nobody is going to laugh of anybody (we have to try it).

I think that this is a group problem; we have to correct it, because is going to give us tools for oral exams. If I have to make an oral exam, I’m going to study, and I’m not going to get a good mark, but if everybody help me and I can help others, the marks are going to be better.

Why we are Chileans.

In my personal opinion, Chileans are Chileans because they have a lot of singular characteristics that other people in other countries don’t have. If you look the typical Chilean man, that is called “Huaso”, has a nice behavior, and is a joyful person that enjoys his life. Chilean people have a lot of characteristic of this typical character. Other things that make us Chilean, is the food, the “empanadas”, the “mote con huesillo”, and a lot of other things that are delicious. The typical barbecues with all family, a nice celebration in September 18^th, and a lot of games, are things very important in our country. These games have to be more considerable by all Chileans, because we don’t play so much these games; the only exception is “el volantin”. The typical Chilean drinks in a considerable way. This is something bad for society, but is part of the culture. Other bad things that have Chileans, is that in some cases they are very shy, what I mean is some people can’t do some things, because they feel embarrassed. In my opinion, Chileans don’t have to be shy, my grandparents and my Dad are Spanish and they have a lot of personality and don’t feel embarrassed for things that they don’t have to, like me.

I think that Chilean lost they way to speak, because we don’t have an absent. If we talk correctly, we can found that we have an excellent way to speak, but it is neutral. We loose the way to speak when we travel to other Latin country, because all of them have a strong absent, and we use to imitate to other countries.