Writing Lesson Plans according to strict formats

[andrewgessman]

I’m a ESL teacher in training, and nearing the end of my pre-practicum coursework. I’m certified to teach in another area besides ESL, and so have taken a lot of training courses. There’s a lot of redundancy, but that’s to be expected and I don’t mind it so long as what seems repetitive is worthwhile “review” of best teaching practices. One area that I do find nagging is the subject of formal lesson planning. I understand how important it is, but different teaching courses and training institutions recommend different lesson plan formats. They all are fundamentally the same, but each version must be followed to the letter. They’re all unnecessarily redundant in my opinion (though as a novice my opinion doesn’t count for much). Does anyone else feel this way? It feels like I’m doing my taxes every time I write a lesson plan. Are there any experienced teachers out there who still follow this strict, training-wheels variety of lesson planning? Or am I right to assume that the form-like redundancy is for training purposes only, and with time and experience can be shed for more personal and efficient models?