Effective Lecture

Effective Lecture

Ashford University

EDU 653: Teaching in Higher Education

Course: LIT 201: 19th Century Literature

Lesson: Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre

Narrative

• Graphic Representation
  • (Attention Catcher) Opening film, Jane Eyre (2011) (To be viewed after students have read the text outside of class).
  • Brief slideshow with pictures.
• Procedural Direction
  • Group discussion after film.
  • Tie in themes similar to Bronte’s Wuthering Heights from prior lesson and review text read before class (Jane Eyre)
  • Ask for opinions and thoughts about Jane Eyre
  • Pause lesson on slides for breaks to discuss material and answer any questions.
  • Informal assessment for understanding
  • Engage students using film/previous text to create parallels
• Signposts
  • Introduction: “This week we will cover the text you read over the past week and a half, Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre”
  • Video: “To better visualize the text, we will watch the modernized film based on the text.”
  • Linking with prior lesson (post film): “Charlotte Bronte also wrote Wuthering Heights, which we covered earlier in the semester. Let us reflect on similarities and differences…”
  • Lead-in: “After watching the video… what parallels can be drawn between text and film?”
  • Summarize: “Putting together the texts by Bronte and the film we have watched, what can we draw from these items?”
  • Conclusion: “What are the main points we have taken away from Charlotte Bronte’s work?”
• Transitions
  • “Having read the text and watched the video, do you see any similarities or differences?”
  • “I would now like to look into how Bronte’s works made you feel.”
  • “Moving right along, as we view these slides what can we take away from the text? Where do you see reoccurring themes and if applicable, does Bronte appear to draw from her own life in her writing?”
  • “Having considered the film, the texts, and our discussion; is Jane a sympathetic character?”
  • “I want all of you, with this lesson in mind to write your own version of this text before next class. Consider all that we have read and discussed to write your version of Jane Eyre for a modern audience.”

  (I was having issues creating a separate narrative on PowerPoint, so unfortunately, I will need to write it out here. Apologies in advance.)

  The classroom that this lecture is designed for would be a small to medium sized physical classroom with no more than 50 students. Considering in this scenario that my students will have already read Charlotte Bronte’s Wuthering Heights earlier in this semester, the students will already be familiar with her works. Because of this familiarity, I will have the students spend roughly a week and a half reading Jane Eyre outside of the classroom. The students will then be able to watch the film adaptation of the book in class as an “attention catcher” activity.

  After watching the film, students will then go through a short slide presentation paired with a discussion to further engage each other and the instructor concerning the material. Some slides will include additional information on Bronte herself from the Bronte Parsonage Museum to provide background for the assignment at the end of class. To help facilitate the discussion I will employ some of the techniques listed in our text. The students will learn to “evaluate the logic of and evidence for their own and others’ positions.” (McKeachie & Svinicki, 2014) This will be done by asking students how they feel the film and the text were similar and how they were different. In addition, students will be able to compare the previous text they have read by Bronte to the current text and discuss if Bronte wrote sympathetic characters or if those characters would hold up in modern day society. These exercises will help students be able to articulate the things they have learned while receiving real-time feedback.

  In students being able to discuss how these works made them feel while simultaneously comparing and contrasting them, they will be able to better understand the text itself and the motivations of the author. By utilizing engaging visuals and a classroom discussion, students will be able to stay engaged and through their answers, I will be able to make sure they have a grasp on the material we have covered. If there are any issues, I will be able to troubleshoot in real-time. This lesson by and large functions as an informal assessment of what the students have learned. The formal assessment will come at the end of the class where students will need to apply the text, the film, the discussion, and their own creativity to write their own short version of Jane Eyre for the modern-day audience.