Phase 5 – Reflections on the results as a basis for new planning

 What results did you obtain with the development of your proposal and what was its impact?

            Now that I rewind and start connecting the dots backward, I realize that Extensive Viewing is something I have been doing for quite a great deal of time now with all of my students without even realizing what was it that I was doing and how important and effective it is as a strategy to aid apprentices to boost their motivation, change their negative attitudes and/or behaviors, broaden their lexicon, and enhance their listening skills. I have always been curious and observant, and I have always paid attention to minimum and even insignificant details (some people might refer to them as such) such as body language, changes in intonation, the swing of moods, facial expressions, among other paralinguistic features which do tell a lot about a person, even more than spoken and written language. Now that I have gained more valuable knowledge and experience thanks to this wonderful Masters program, I know how to better channel this strategy in order to help my students not only to fall in love with the language and its culture but also to aid them in their cognitive processes when it comes to learning it as a foreign language. It goes without saying that the impact it has had on all of my students has been positive and of ultimate importance to their cognitive processes and affective filter towards learning English as a foreign language. We are sentimental and emotional beings, emotions do have an enormous impact and play a pivotal role when it comes to learning. We as teachers, educators, guides, facilitators, etc., cannot ignore this fact and it is our duty to render a positive or a negative impact on our students’ lives.

Which were the most meaningful changes in your pedagogical practice?

            As stated, I have been implementing this strategy for some time now, thus the changes have been gradual as with all processes and changes in life. Yet, some are:

·       A change of negative attitudes towards positive ones.

·       A change of undesired behavior towards a desired and positive one.

·       Boosting of motivation in the apprentices, both extrinsic and intrinsic.

·       Reduction of anxiety, nervousness, shyness, and fear.

·       Reduction of the affective filter.

·       Augmentation of students' vocabulary.

·       Boosting of students’ listening skills.

·       Making students fall in love with the language.

·       Deletion of previous negative experiences and/or even traumas regarding learning English as a foreign language.

·       Generation of autonomous learning.

What reflections derived from the implementation of your proposal let you to introduce modifications in your pedagogical practices?

Undoubtedly, when people do something because they like it and not because they are forced to do it or for example, because they have to comply with certain guidelines, criteria, requirements in terms of education, work, etc., things most of the times if not always, turn out in the best possible way and the outcomes are just spectacular. Also, as I have clearly stated in the former activities, where there is joy, excitement, emotion, motivation, passion, love, etc., there is learning. Hence, the main reflections derived from the implementation of my proposal that led me to continue introducing modifications to my pedagogical practices are those related to the emotional and affective components of a person. For example, a former student recently told me the following: "Teacher, I was scared of English because of previous negative experiences related to one of my former English teachers, but because of you, I have gained confidence, I have learned to like the language to the point of falling in love with it, and I have overcome my past traumas regarding English." This is just priceless!

What were the main difficulties you went through? And how did you overcome them?

            As a matter of fact, the main difficulty I have been going through since last year with the implementation of this strategy (meaning with new students) has actually nothing to do with the strategy itself but with me, since I think I bit off more than I could chew, so the follow-up process this time has not been as comprehensive, thorough, detailed, and deep as I am used to doing it. Sleep deprivation has taken its toll. However, because of the pandemic and the sudden and unexpected change to E-learning caused by it, among many other important and strong changes, some students have had connectivity-related issues, which have not allowed them to attend to all of the sessions all the time. Albeit, among the things I have done to tackle with this shortcomings are as follows:

·       Record the lessons.

·       Give them access to my Netflix account.

·       Grant them extensions of deadlines when necessary.

·       Being available during the great part of the day, every day through different communication channels to help them solve their doubts, queries, questions, and so on.

·       Give them mobile data services.

·       Make sure they are granted one of the laptops and other electronic devices and mobile data services the university offers them on loan.

Did you reach the purposes you intended to achieve with the proposal?

Certainly. Yet, as I stated in one of the aforementioned questions, this is a process, and like with all processes and changes in life, one must be patient to see the final outcomes. In spite of this, the main purposes I intended to achieve with my proposal have been reached to the best of my current abilities since I am planning to learn more and more so as to offer my students the best at all times.

Do you want to introduce new changes to your pedagogical practices, according to the results of this experience?

Definitely. Like I said before, my plan is to continue learning more and more, as much as possible in order to be able to offer my students and the community the best of me not only as a teacher but also as a person, for the construction of a better society and for the greater good. We, teachers, students, parents, stakeholders, citizens, etc., are in this together. We, English teachers, have a great responsibility to the world. It is our duty to break the linguistic barriers that multilingualism poses; it is our duty to bridge the world together by teaching people and aid them to master the lingua franca of the current era.

Final report

Speaking of the results and impact of the implementation of Extensive Viewing as a strategy to 1) aid students to broaden their lexicon; 2) boost their motivation; 3) enhance their listening skills; 4) get them interested, attached, and in love with the language; and 5) help them overcome previous negative experiences regarding learning English as a foreign language, all I can say is that up to now it has proved to be successful.

            Regarding the most meaningful changes in my pedagogical practices, they are related to the emotional and affective components of a person, as aforementioned. Sigmund Freud coined the following quote “We are made of flesh, but we must live as if we were of iron.” But it does not have to be like that. Like the song says “No matter who you are, no matter where you go in your life, at some point you’re going to need somebody to stand by you”. We are sentimental and emotional beings, emotions do have an enormous impact and play a pivotal role when it comes to learning. We as teachers, educators, guides, facilitators, etc., cannot ignore this fact and it is in our hands to render a positive or a negative impact on our students’ lives. We have a great responsibility regarding this.

            When it comes to the reflections derived from the bibliographic references of the course and the implementation of my proposal, I would like to pinpoint that I enjoyed reading each and every single page of all of the suggested bibliographies for it proved to me that I have been doing things in the right fashion and because it has helped me to gain more valuable knowledge to improve my teaching practices. The more I read the more I realize I have to read more. All I know is that I know nothing.

            In regards to the main difficulties I have been going through and am going to go through, the one that excels in is not even regarding the implementation of my proposal itself, but it has to be with a lack of time and sleep deprivation. At times it feels as if I had bitten off more than I could chew this time. Yet, my aim is to continue studying and working hard to complete my Master’s to the best of my abilities. About the implementation of my proposal, the one “drawback” I have encountered (problems do not exist to me nowadays; to me, they are just opportunities for learning and growing, and love tests) is the connectivity-related issue that some students have faced. As aforementioned, some of the things I have done, and that I will continue doing if necessary, to overcome this tiny issue are as follows: 1) Record the lessons; 2) Give students access to my Netflix account; 3) Grant students extensions of deadlines when necessary; 4) Be available during the great part of the day, every day through different communication channels to help them solve their doubts, queries, questions, and so on; 5) Give them mobile data services; 6) Make sure they are granted one of the laptops and other electronic devices and mobile data services the university offers them on loan.

            About self-assessment, I would like to say that one of my life objectives is to be a better man in all aspects of my life day after day. Ernest Hemingway said once “There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow men. True nobility lies in being superior to your former self.” Hence, I want to congratulate myself for having complied with this objective daily for there is always something to be enhanced, something new to learn, something to change, something to stop doing, and something to start doing. This also applies to my role as an English teacher, for I always try to be better on a daily basis and more now that I am studying this beautiful program.

            To conclude, I would like to recommend not only English teachers but also people, in general, to try and be as sympathetic as possible. We do not know the storms and hells others are living and one of the best things we can do for our own kin is to offer them love, understanding, affection, tenderness, and so on. It is not our duty to judge, it is our duty to understand the reason(s) why people are the way they are, say the things they say, think the things they think, and behave in the way they behave. We should always try to put ourselves in others’ shoes. In addition to that, I would like to advise teachers to be open-minded for the only constant in life is change and, want it or not, we have to learn to be flexible and adapt to the changes. We do not teach for the past, we teach for the future.