Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Self-Assessment

I can provide a good learner model, teach language-learning strategies more effectively, supply learners with more information about the language, anticipate language difficulties better. I can be more empathetic to the problems of Arab learners, make use of the learners’ mother tongue. I have a better insight into the linguistic and cultural needs and I have a detailed awareness of how English and Arabic differ. I am also very good at creating a safe learning and teaching environment for students to learn in a challengeable yet non-threatening manner and where they can discover their potentials and grow towards a more lifelong learning concept of learning. I have successfully taught many tutorials and remedial classes to help underachieving at-risk students. My responsibility in this respect has been to help raise the general English Language proficiency of these students in order to function well in their classrooms . My knowledge of motivation theory and techniques, in addition to language pedagogy and the peculiarities of local UAE students, has helped me in motivating a large number of reluctant students.

Areas of Improvements

I feel that I need to acquire a more profound educational knowledge by starting an MA of Education program. I need to work on improving my skills in creating authentic, valid, reliable, objective and culturally appropriate test items. I am trying to learn more about computer languages to be able to create useful web pages where I can link the activities, material, links that I have amassed over the years. I am trying to create more refined CALL lab materials that enhance learners’ autonomy and encourage life long learning in a communicative and interactive way. I sometimes get out of my way to help my students or my colleagues and that affects my performance as I try to make both ends meet. Therefore, I am trying to stay focused on the tasks given to me first before helping others.