practice teaching observation in yoga class

17.2. Self-Reflection while Instructing
One of the most important communication skills is reflective listening. Reflective listening involves reflecting (or verbally restating using similar words) the feelings and information from what you heard the other person saying. This can help determine whether a message has been understood. It also conveys the intention that a teacher understands and accepts what has been said. If done well, it helps the person to clarify their own thoughts and feelings.
 
As well as requiring practice in focusing on what the participant is saying, it will also require an element of trust to find good solutions, rather than wanting to convince them of your own. It is a skill which effective facilitators, group leaders, counselors, consultants, sales people, health professionals, teachers and parents use more than any other skill.
Reflective listening may also be referred to as:
•The empathic ear
•Active listening
•The understanding response
•Verbal pacing
•Paraphrasing

1. PRACTICE TEACHING OBSERVATION

2. Guided practice teaching is an integral component of all strong teacher-training programs and an essential part of learning to see and guide students in their asana practice. Over the course of your training, you will ordinarily teach an increasing number of similar asanas, then more complex sequences that involve different asanas, and eventually a complete mock class. Start by teaching a single asana to one other participant. Simulating the reality of an actual class, one partner takes the teacher role, and the other partner takes the student role. Using what you know (staying away from instructions you do not understand), guide your student into the asana. Go through the same process described above for asana laboratory observation, except that you are now observing and cueing. Start with purely verbal cues. As you become more comfortable in simultaneously observing and giving verbal cues start to practice demonstrating while guiding your partner. Take your time (while honoring your partner's needs), staying attentive to what your partner is doing and giving verbal cues based on what you see and understand as the principles of the asana. Begin to weave verbal and physical cues together, always speaking to what you are encouraging with your physical cues.

3. As you progress from teaching one asana to one student to a few or several asanas to a small group, notice what happens to your observational practice, cues, and demonstrations. You will now experience seeing each student doing something slightly or very different from others in your group. Use this opportunity to hone your visual observation skills. Continue to give initial attention to the areas most at risk.Try to address those risks while maintaining your awareness of what is happening with others in your group. Notice the tendency to become so absorbed in something with one student that you momentarily lose sight and connection with everyone else. Here we come to a place where our personal practice of concentration and attention—being simultaneously focused and broadly aware—has tangible benefit in teaching. Let your observational skills deepen as you progress into apprenticing and independent teaching. Apply them the moment you first meet and greet a new student. While not doing the comprehensive observation described above, notice the student's natural posture as you ask about his or her background. One benefit of bringing a class into Tadasana (Mountain Pose) at or toward the beginning of class is that it allows you to easily observe students' basic posture. Then expand your observation asana by asana. Notice how the tendencies evident in Tadasana likely manifest in more pronounced form as students move into more complex asanas. Use this observation to further refine your understanding of how different asanas increase the challenges seen in the more basic positions.

4. Throughout this process of learning to see and relate to students, remember that you are teaching yoga, not trying to get people into poses. Keep coming back to the principle of yoga as a practice of process, not of attainment. Try to look at each student as the unique and beautiful person he or she is in the moment.Explore how you can share what you are seeing in a way that helps that student to see more easily and clearly and to feel his or her own body, breath, and practice. Remember the principle of sthira , sukham , asanam . Apply it to yourself while encouraging it in your students. Keep watching, keep breathing, feel your heart, and keep practicing your observational skills. 17.1. Positive feedback on student practice Feedback is essential for both the teacher to give, and the participant to receive. When delivered positively and with sincerity, it can encourage people by letting them know they are performing well. The following may offer some guidance when delivering positive feedback:  •Give general positive statements throughout the class, e.g. “good”, “great”, “terrific”, “fabulous” •Use non-verbal positives, e.g. nodding, open body expressions, smiling, hand gestures •Give positive feedback with specific information, e.g. “good straight back” •Consider that too much corrective feedback can create an error-centered climate •Consider that specific correction can be effective, e.g. “knees over toes”, “contract your abdominals more” •Give four positive feedback statements to everyone correction • Personalise positive feedback where possible by using names •Maintaining eye contact with a smile is one of the most simple and effective forms of positive feedback. Be careful of non-verbal cues which create negative tones, e.g. frowns, rigid posture, facial expression

5. 17.2. Self-Reflection while Instructing One of the most important communication skills is reflective listening. Reflective listening involves reflecting (or verbally restating using similar words) the feelings and information from what you heard the other person saying. This can help determine whether a message has been understood. It also conveys the intention that a teacher understands and accepts what has been said. If done well, it helps the person to clarify their own thoughts and feelings.   As well as requiring practice in focusing on what the participant is saying, it will also require an element of trust to find good solutions, rather than wanting to convince them of your own. It is a skill which effective facilitators, group leaders, counselors, consultants, sales people, health professionals, teachers and parents use more than any other skill. Reflective listening may also be referred to as: •The empathic ear •Active listening •The understanding response •Verbal pacing •Paraphrasing

6. Because communication is a two-way process, it means that it is as important to be a good message sender as it is to be a good listener. While hearing is an activity that requires little physical effort, to do it properly can be challenging. Listening properly, however, is not easy. To summarize, use reflective listening to communicate:  •Desire to understand how the other person is thinking and feeling •Belief in the person’s ability to understand the situation, identify solutions, select an appropriate choice, and implement it responsibly •Belief the person is worthwhile •Respect and/or willingness to accept other people’s feelings •Desire to help •Willingness not to judge the person 17.3. Student Feedback on Your Class On completion of the class, the teacher should feedback to participants on their efforts. They should also ask for any feedback on the class, as this can be invaluable in improving future teaching skills. To ensure classes are effective and meet the needs of all participants, the review of the session should involve all members of the class. Types of questions that could be asked include:   •What did the participants think of the teacher’s ‘teaching style’? •Did the participants enjoy the session? •What have the participants achieved during the session? •What would they suggest to improve the session?

7. Any information gathered should then be used to determine if the session has met expectations and, if not, what can be done to rectify this in the future. It can also be used to plan the progression or modifications of future classes.   To further improve teaching abilities, it is important for the teacher to evaluate and reflect on their own performance by asking themselves the following questions:   •Did the session meet the aims set out in the session plan? •Did the session meet the needs of the participants? •Were all the health and safety aspects addressed during the session? •Were all resources used adequately (e.g. mats, blocks, straps)? •Were the asana adapted appropriately for the relevant participants? •Were professional codes of practice adhered to?   This ‘personal reflection’ would include noting any improvements which could be made to the original class plan. This will help the teacher to explore ways to progress planning and delivery skills. When evaluating own performance, a teacher should not be too hard on themselves; selecting just one or two areas that can be worked on over the following few weeks will serve as a useful starting point.

8. Feedback from peers is another useful and constructive means of progressing teaching skills. An experienced teacher can often offer suggestions to further improve teaching skills and to increase a new teacher’s confidence by identifying strengths in current teaching practice.   All aspects of the evaluation should be recorded in order to assist the continued professional development of teaching techniques. Following the review, it may be necessary to update existing plans utilizing any feedback and suggestions made, to ensure continued participant satisfaction and retention.   17.4. Evaluation and reflection of personal practice Every month or at planned regular intervals, the yoga teacher can look through their personal practice diaries and reflect on what they have learned. It is especially useful to note any difficulties that have been experienced as these can be shared with the class (where relevant), especially if participants are experiencing similar issues. This may be related to asana, breathing practices, meditation, or concentration issues. Everything that is experienced is valuable for the teacher and may be something that can be shared to benefit and enrich the yoga class participants.