How to Tie a Figure Eight Follow-Through Knot

Microteaching Self and Peer Assessment

The BOOPPPS Method: I found the BOOPPPS method (Bridge, Teacher Objectives, Student Objectives, Pretest, Participation, Posttest, Summary) to help keep my lesson organized. The bridge particularly was helpful, and is something that I think I might have overlooked otherwise, focusing strictly on the procedure and not the importance of the Figure Eight Follow-Through Knot.

Positive Relfections: My group found my presentation to be informative and relevant, which let me know that the bridge was very effective. They all mentioned that they really liked doing the participatory section was exceptionally “hands on”, which helped them learn.

My biggest surprise was that all of my students let me know that they really enjoyed the post-test. Rather than have them reproduce the knot that they had learned in the participatory activity, I had each of them recall one of the student objectives by posing a question to them:

“To create a Figure Eight Knot before looping through the carabineer, what steps need to be taken?”
“To create a Figure Eight Follow-Through Knot, which additional steps need to be taken?”
“ How do you safety check your knot?”

Truthfully, I had originally intended to have them do a “hands on” test, but when practicing my lesson a few days earlier, I realized that I needed to cut down on time, and made a conscious decision to change my post-test. I did not expect it to be the highlight of the lesson. I realize now that the post-test of the lesson does not need to put pressure to perform on my students, but simply reinforce the student objectives in a non-stressful way.

Negative Reflections: Two students mentioned that I talked to quickly, and my original instruction could have been done a little slower. I know this is a problem I have when I am nervous, and I will make every attempt to slow down in the future.

One student mentioned that the lesson would have been more effective if they had each been able to tie the knot several times, rather than each student taking turns tying the knot a single time. In reflection, I wish I had purchased another length of rope for the students to practice with.

Interesting Notes: Before I started the microteaching exercise, I did not believe that the pretest and posttest sections were a necessary part of every lesson. As I mentioned earlier, I was pleasantly surprised with how effective the posttest was. I am looking forward to seeing an occasion where the pretest section also surprises me with its effectiveness.