Online Microteaching

By: Tawonga Banda

Online Microteaching was a completely new experience for me, and I am grateful for the opportunity because it expanded my understanding of how teaching and learning can take place in a digital environment. Teaching online challenged me to think creatively, manage technology effectively, and remain conscious of learner engagement in ways that differ from face-to-face teaching.

One of the strong aspects of my lesson was the PowerPoint presentation I designed. The dark, muted colour scheme was intentionally chosen to resemble the tone of the Spanish Flu era. This visual theme contributed to the atmosphere of the lesson and helped learners contextualise the content. The introduction was successful and set a meaningful foundation for the rest of the lesson. When I asked the learners to share one word that described their experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, they all participated actively, giving responses such as “bad”, and “isolating”. This activity encouraged emotional connection, activated prior knowledge, and allowed me to draw direct links between their lived experiences and the experiences of people during the Spanish Flu pandemic.

Throughout the lesson, there was learner engagement. I asked probing questions such as what they understood by the terms pandemic and epidemic, which encouraged them to connect concepts to real-life events. I also continuously linked COVID-19 to the Spanish Flu by discussing similarities in transmission, symptoms, and containment measures. This comparative method made the content more relatable and fostered deeper understanding. At the end of the lesson, all the learners successfully accessed the Google Classroom quiz. Their answers demonstrated a high level of understanding and confirmed that they achieved the lesson’s objective.

The main challenge I encountered was time management. Although the lesson was planned for 15 minutes, the introduction and the highly engaging discussions with the learners extended the lesson to 19 minutes. The added time came from meaningful engagement, but it highlighted the difficulty of balancing interaction with pacing in an online environment. I addressed this challenge by shortening the teaching and learning phase, maintaining clarity without rushing learners. I also shortened the conclusion slightly, ensuring that the essential learning took place while still allowing time for the quiz. This experience taught me the importance of practising the pacing of online lessons, anticipating discussion time, and having flexible backup strategies to maintain flow.

The lesson clearly met the objective. The learners actively participated in discussions on how the Spanish Flu spread, how it was contained, and how it affected the world. Their ability to compare it to COVID-19 demonstrated deeper reasoning skills. Their performance on the Google Classroom quiz further confirmed their understanding, as they responded accurately to all the questions.

I selected ICT tools that were both appropriate and effective for my online lesson. The PowerPoint presentation supported visual learning, allowed me to display relevant images, and included animations that helped control the flow of information during discussions. The visuals, such as a child coughing, crowded military camps, and the hospitals, helped strengthen the learners’ ability to connect new information with their existing experiences. In addition to the slides, I used a Google Classroom quiz, which was easy for learners to access and provided immediate feedback once completed. This quick feedback reinforced learning and also saved time. The use of this quiz supported digital assessment, an increasingly important skill for learners in the modern classroom. Overall, using these ICT tools showed me how technology can enhance comprehension, accessibility, and engagement when it is used intentionally and thoughtfully.

This microteaching experience taught me several valuable lessons about teaching in a digital environment. I learned that lessons can be adapted and broken into manageable chunks, which is especially important online where learners’ attention spans can shift quickly. I also discovered that learner engagement must be consistently prioritised because it helps maintain interest and ensures deeper understanding. The experience reminded me that learners’ personal experiences are powerful learning tools; despite being young during COVID-19, their memories helped them relate meaningfully to the Spanish Flu pandemic. I also recognised the importance of clear visual design, structured questioning, and flexible pacing. Through this experience, I gained confidence in using ICT tools to support both teaching and assessment.

I incorporated feedback from my peers, mentors, and learners by planning lessons more intentionally, as I did with this one. I will make a conscious effort to include learners’ experiences in lessons wherever relevant, as this helps make the content more meaningful and relatable. I will also continuously check in with learners to ensure that they find the lesson helpful, clear, and engaging. Additionally, I will reflect on my time management and adjust future lessons to prevent similar challenges from repeating. Most importantly, I will remain open to constructive criticism and use it to continually improve my teaching strategies, presentation skills, and the use of ICT in the classroom.

TASK 1 MICROTEACHING LESSON PLAN 2025.pdf

Download PDF • 285KB

TASK 2 MICROTEACHING LESSON RATIONALE AND SLIDES.pptx

Download PPTX • 8.33MB

My online microteaching lesson link, enjoy: https://youtu.be/692A6QffjHE