After a lesson is complete, you may feel elated or even discouraged. Evaluating your teaching is an important, often neglected, step that can help you improve as a teacher. Evaluating your lessons is the "report" part of the Return and Report pattern taught in the temple. Reporting, by asking questions of yourself, prayerfully consulting the Lord, speaking with another teacher or leader, or blogging experiences, can help you develop
Here are some tips that can help you evaluate lessons and develop a plan to improve poor experiences or reproduce great teaching experiences.
10 Themes to consider after a lesson
- Was my level of preparation adequate? Did I read each scripture reference? Did I check LDS.org for music, videos, or general conference talks? Did I pray for the influence of the Holy Ghost before I planned my lesson? Did I spend too much time on lesson preparation?
- Did I greet each student by name? How might I improve my relationship with my students? Do my students know I love them?
- Was the classroom set up in a way that encourages participation? Did the classroom arrangement support the activities in my lesson?
- At what points during the lesson did those I teach seem most willing to participate? When did they seem less willing to participate? Did everyone participate? What teaching methods can I use that will provide opportunities for each student to participate next week?
- What kinds of questions did my class answer? What kinds of questions resulted in blank stares?
- How did I respond to a disruption? How could my response have been more Christ-like?
- Which parts of the lesson related most to students' lives? Did my lesson encourage students to apply gospel principles in their lives today?
- Did I point out times when I felt the Spirit to help others learn to recognize it? Could students feel my love of the Lord and testimony of his love and life?
- Was my lesson rushed? How can I pace my lesson better so that students have time to ponder and share thoughts, and yet still have time for a strong conclusion?
- Did I have a clear lesson objective? Was it achieved?
Other ways to evaluate a gospel lesson
- Blogging - I blog about my teaching experiences as a way to provide feedback to myself. Writing what worked and what didn't is a way for me to do better tomorrow, and my posts might also help another teacher.
- Ask a Leader for Feedback - Each of us has a Sunday School President, SI Coordinator, Primary President, or other leader who can provide valuable ideas and tips for improving gospel teaching skills. Use them!
- Pray - Ask your Father for help identifying areas where you can improve as a teacher. Ask Him to inspire you as you serve His children.
Plan a lesson
Check out our plan a lesson page for exciting and easy ways to make improvements to your gospel teaching.
