Record of Observation or Review of Teaching Practice
Session/artefact to be observed/reviewed: Last Seminar (recap seminar of theories and make the grade) for FMK Year 1 students
Size of student group: 30
Observer: Rebekah Guo
Observee: JoJo (Georgia) Provatidou
Part One
- What is the context of this session/artefact within the curriculum?
Seminar recap of theories, report structure and visuals before submission
- How long have you been working with this group and in what capacity?
10 weeks
- What are the intended or expected learning outcomes?
Of the session – ask any last questions before submission related to theory, framework, report structure and artifacts.
- What are the anticipated outputs (anything students will make/do)?
Work on finalizing their work before the summative assessment.
- Are there potential difficulties or specific areas of concern?
No
- How will students be informed of the observation/review?
Lecturer to inform them at the beginning of the session
- What would you particularly like feedback on?
In writing
- How will feedback be exchanged?
In writing via email
Part Two
Context of the session:
This seminar was a recap session for first year fashion management students, it is designed to clarify theories, report structures and visuals in preparation for their upcoming submission. JoJo lef the session focusing on providing 1-2-1 support, and addressing questions.
Introduction to the session:
The opening of the session was really reassuring for students and setting a calm, supportive tone. She opened with questions like, “How do you feel about the assessment? “ “ Are there any questions form the lecture you had?”. Students were responding actively, as these questions encouraged them to voice any of their concerns and engage with the session.
First of all, JoJo emphasized the goal of the seminar was to finalise their submissions and provide any necessary guidance before the deadline. Her communication was clear, and ensured students understood the expectations for the assessment. She highlighted the issues that other students might encounter by addressing individual enquires, students started to discuss the issue their peers, this created a collaborative atmosphere at the start of the session.
Clarity of Instructions and Use of Examples:
While explaining the key requirements of the assessment, JoJo helped students to locate essential resources, and used examples to enhance their understanding:
For example, she highlighted what not to do (“Be concise and critical in your report. Avoid writing too much, because you will need to condense it afterwards, and it is harder.). She also gave positive examples, such as focusing on structuring and finalisng the report.
This approach really helped students to understand the do’s and don’ts of their task, that builds their confidence as they worked on their assignments.
Creating a Relaxed Environment:
What I enjoyed in JoJo’s session was her thoughtful approach to reduce student’s stress level during this could be a high-pressure period for them. She offered to play background music and asked students what type of music would help them focus, even encouraging them to play their own music if they preferred. Although no music was played due to Wi-Fi issues, the gesture itself contributed to a calm and relaxed working environment.
The seminar room was organised with three large tables, and students were seated at two of them, leaving the middle table empty. JoJo moved around the room, ensuring her voice was well projected to both sides of the room.
Students appeared very comfortable as they worked, some eating snacks, discussing their ideas, and exchange feedback while JoJo doing the 1-2-1 tutorial.
The second part of the seminar was individual support, Jojo asked to put some music on, ‘ any type of the music would help you focus? She’s intention on creating a relax and calm study environment.
1-2-1 Support and Critical Thinking:
During the 1-2-1 tutorials, JoJo provided tailored feedback by examining student’s work page by page. She used leading questions to inspire critical thinking, such as:
“why don’t you think about…?”
“Are there any important milestones for the brand?”
“What’s happening in the current industry, and why?”
These questions really encourage students to think , reflect on their work, and consider alternative perspectives, helped them understand their research in a deeper level.
I love how she balanced the constructive critique with positive reinforcement, frequently affirming students progress with comments, like: “This is well-structures” or “Looks good.” I can tell students were enjoying share their idea with JoJo, and this positive feedback helped reduce their anxiety and guided them towards improvement without overwhelming them.
Time management and classroom dynamics:
JoJo managed her time really well, and allocated around 10-15 minutes per students on 1-2-1 support, ensured all students received equal attention.
At one point, the noise level in the room increased, which slightly disrupted ongoing individual support, JoJo reminded them to lower their voices in a friendly way, maintained the positive atmosphere without causing tension.
Conclusion:
JoJo’s seminar was well-structured, engaging, and supportive. Her ability to balance group discussions, individual feedback, and stress-relief techniques really created a productive learning environment. I also gained valuable insights from this observation session.
Suggestion:
Incorporate Reflective Tools
This might be something that already exist, I think providing a reflective tool could be beneficial for students, especially before their submission. Such as a list of leading questions, a simple worksheet or check list, that helps them self-assess their progress against the assessment brief. For example:
- Have I been critical enough in my analysis?
- Does my structure follow the recommended format/
- Am I writing too many words? If so, what’s the core information that I need for the report?
- Are my visuals aligned with my research and report messages?
This checklist can help students evaluate their work independently before coming to the individual support sessions. For instance, I noticed you suggested one student reconsider their visual selection and add more visual references to better communicate the brand image. A checklist could help students proactively identify similar gaps in their work.
Such tools could save time during tutorials by helping students identify the improvements by themselves.
Part Three
Thank you Rebekah, I agree that a checklist is one that we should be using more in the classroom possibly even on every seminar. As a course, and in every unit, we districute (online) and go through in classroom time a Make The Grade list towards the end of the unit. We ask students to use this list and make sure that their work ticks all the boxes before submission. But, bringing elements of this checklist in our session every week during the seminars would definitely help and print a few copies to be available in the classroom for those who need them especially during tutorial time or before submission. In terms of their visual work, I believe that a checklist is something that they go through during their IT sessions with another team but of course we guide them with that part of their work as well so we might consider revisiting the list the IT team is sharing with them during our sessions too as a reminder especially for our Year 1 units.
And this could also become a game or a quiz that will also be colour coded which is extremely helpful for our students with dyslexia. You gave me something to consider for sure and thank you so much for your lovely notes.