GYM OBSERVATION

Mary Kate Tentoco
Teacher Academy 4
8 January 2013
Class Observation
Gym Class
Before I stepped foot into the Mr. Gugliemos fourth period gym class that period, I expected only a few things. First, I expected the class to be awake and full of energy. Secondly, I expected the students to be more aware of what was to come in the class most especially because the objective was written on the white board. Lastly, I expected the class to know what they were to do that day in gym. I expected all these things because I also have Mr. Gugliemo for gym but during first period. But sometimes, expectations can be proven wrong.
The day of the observation, I walked into the gym with my expectations and automatically expectation one was proven wrong. The boys were not changed for gym nor were they planning to I later find out. You would think that a boys gym class would be so active but it was not like that at all. Instead of playing or warming up with a few exercises, the boys sat around and texted. Soon after, my second expectation was proven wrong as well. The boys did not bother to look at the objective nor agenda that was clearly written on the white board near the bleachers. They did not bother to look, they just waited for further confirmation of what they were suppose to do. I thought that boys at this age would not need to ask, they would just know. Specially since they have been playing flag football for awhile. At this point, I was waiting for expectation number three to be proven false and soon after it was. When the boys finally got up to play, they picked teams, and I witnessed a very disturbing thing. A boy refused to play on the team because he said, "I dont like that african kid on the team." Not only did I mark that down as bad sportsmanship but also disrespectful and incriminating. But no one said anything, the game went on and the kid who refused to play received a zero for that day. But asides from that, I also saw students who were dressed and ready to go. They new what was next after attendance and they showed excellent sportsmanship whether it was towards their own team mates or the opponents.
After the observation I thought to myself, "Observing gym was not such a great idea." Going in there I didnt know what to look for and who to observe, the students or the teachers. I decided on the students because I wanted to see how a student would act in a gym class that was not my own. I learned that sometimes, the students can be mean, rude, and not want to participate at all. But there are some who do try to earn a grade rather than just showing up, changing, and getting an A for the day. Going into this gym class I expected and got let down. But I also came out with a new perspective that I was not even thinking about. I learned that a student can be in a less structured learning class and still give the same effort as an AP class asides from those that would consider gym a "free period."