GUIDE
How to prepare for a Micro-Teach/Presentation
So, your recruitment consultant has put you forward for a great teaching role and you’ve been invited to interview. You’ve also been asked to deliver a micro-teaching session to demonstrate your skills, knowledge and understanding in your area. Your micro teach will show your potential employer the kind of teacher you are and give you the opportunity to receive feedback on your teaching technique. It can be a daunting prospect but here are some tips on how to plan and deliver a successful micro-teach session.
September 03, 2020
Planning
Create a clear plan with a start, middle and end. Include your aims and objectives to ensure your learners achieve your desired outcome. It helps to know how many students will be in the class, where the lesson take place, what resources will be available, what level the students will be and for how long (Micro-teach sessions usually last from 15 to 30 minutes). This is all information you can request if it is not given to you.
Create a Plan B, sometimes you may run over or under. If you have extra time what are some things you can add to the lesson? Or, if you’re running overtime make sure there are things you can shorten if necessary.
Assess
Before starting your session, make sure to assess your learner’s prior knowledge. Although you will have found this out ahead of the session, it is worth assessing this yourself in the opening of the session. If the students seem knowledgeable about your subject, you can quickly adapt your session to suit the learner’s abilities.
Define
Define your aims and objectives to your students, this will not only keep you focussed and on track, but keep the learners engaged knowing what they are working towards something. You can start the session by saying “Today we’re going to learn about.... By the end of the session, we should all….”
Deliver
Now you have made a plan, assessed your students and defined your outcome, you are ready to deliver your session. Remember to keep your students engaged with activities or open discussions. You may also take this time to participate with the class to get a feel for the students and the school. When running activities, make sure to stay in control of timing. Activities can tend to run over, so make sure you keep the lesson moving to get to your end goal.
Ending your Session
At the end of your session, make sure to pack everything away and open the floor to questions.
Now you have everything set out, make sure to practice your sessions in front of family, friends or colleagues so they can give you constructive feedback before your session. There could be things that you’ve missed or areas you could work on.
Don’t forget to stay relaxed and always remember to enjoy the experience.
Ready to plan your micro teach? Here is a free micro-lesson plan template to get you started.
