French teachers' reports

Report about discussion with visiting French student teacher and teacher

Before the visit

In both teaching units, one about the equality of fractions and their reduction in a 5th form class and the other about the introduction of Pythagoras’s theorem and its demonstration in a 4th form class, there was a fruitful cooperation (dynamism, didactical and pedagogical reflexions, making the other feel confident…) between the student teacher and the teacher during the preparation sessions but also during the achievement of the units at Santa Caterina Institute in Pisa. Their reports show in the same time this common work but also the differences equally linked to the contents of the chapters dealt with, to the mastery of the Italian language, to the experience of each of them and to their personalities. The preparation sessions were focused on three fields: the cultural dimension of a teaching unit in Italy, including the particular aspects proper to the social and cultural background of Santa Caterina Institute, the mastery of the language (common language, common idioms in conducting a class, mathematical idioms and vocabulary) and the mathematical contents to be taught.

Historical and cultural aspects of teaching in Italy were taken into account through exchanges with the host teacher, before and meanwhile, of documents provided by the host teacher, through observing 9 hours of lessons at Leonardo da Vinci Italian high secondary school in Paris, through work on extracts from Italian books handling the chapters dealt with, through studies of the education system and personal readings.

Before going to Italy, each of the two teachers tested his teaching unit in the presence of the trainers.

During the visit

They adapted their teaching units by practicing a subtle balance between their professional practices in their classes in France and the teaching practices in the host classes. For example, during their sessions in class, they intelligently knew how to combine the management of space: the teacher’s circulation in the classroom, with a customised help to the pupils Videoclip1 - Videoclip2 - Videoclip3 individual work in class as they practice it with their pupils and the lesson dialogue performed by the host teacher almost during the whole session.

A very particular care was paid to the writing of the written and video displayed documents in their didactical and pedagogical dimension, but also to anticipate any difficulties linked to the practice of the language.