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johnslat
Joined: 21 Jan 2003
Posts: 13859
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
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 Posted: Sat Mar 17, 2012 4:58 pm Post subject: |
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Dear sharter,
I agree - BUT although they lack discipline, discipline can be imposed. Maybe it's because I never taught military students, but in all my years there, I had zero discipline problems.
Now study skills - well, that's another matter. I mean, you can't go home with them - which, actually, is fortunate in many respects. 
Regards,
John |
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Grendal
Joined: 13 Aug 2009
Posts: 861
Location: Lurking in the depths of the Faisaliah Tower underground parking.
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| Posted: Sat Mar 17, 2012 11:27 pm Post subject: Re: yep me too -till I asked 'em |
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| cmp45 wrote: |
| sharter wrote: |
I was chatting about this to some Arabs the other day and they said that it's a word they use when they're pleading/begging for something. Saying please is a kind of loss of face.....if I understood them correctly.
I agree with you tho'. Arabs are very polite in public and the more you learn about their culture, the more you know it if that makes any sense.
I think a lot of teachers can't make the adjustment to their culture. Arabs are excitable, they do chatter and they do often lack discipline. It's just the way they are. They also lack study skills and it's not really their fault as it starts early doors in school. I like them. |
Yes, they certainly are a chatty bunch, well at least when they have a western teacher or 'expat" teacher. However, I have noticed when walking past classrooms with a Saudi teacher the students were actually quiet and well behaved. |
That's cause the Saudi teacher knows how to threaten better than the expat. Plus he can threaten in Arabic. I threaten in English and my students ask me what "thrown out of class" or "I will give you zeros" means.
Grendal |
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cmp45
Joined: 17 Aug 2004
Posts: 1475
Location: KSA
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| Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2012 3:34 am Post subject: Re: yep me too -till I asked 'em |
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| Grendal wrote: |
| cmp45 wrote: |
| sharter wrote: |
I was chatting about this to some Arabs the other day and they said that it's a word they use when they're pleading/begging for something. Saying please is a kind of loss of face.....if I understood them correctly.
I agree with you tho'. Arabs are very polite in public and the more you learn about their culture, the more you know it if that makes any sense.
I think a lot of teachers can't make the adjustment to their culture. Arabs are excitable, they do chatter and they do often lack discipline. It's just the way they are. They also lack study skills and it's not really their fault as it starts early doors in school. I like them. |
Yes, they certainly are a chatty bunch, well at least when they have a western teacher or 'expat" teacher. However, I have noticed when walking past classrooms with a Saudi teacher the students were actually quiet and well behaved. |
That's cause the Saudi teacher knows how to threaten better than the expat. Plus he can threaten in Arabic. I threaten in English and my students ask me what "thrown out of class" or "I will give you zeros" means.
Grendal |
Perhaps speaking Arabic has some advantage, but I think overall most Saudi students just have more blind respect for their Saudi teachers than expat teachers.
I think most Saudi students (ESL student's in general) despite their limited English can recognize when a teacher is angry, upset or displeased by noticing facial cues, body language as well as tone of voice...therefore, this lack of recognition is just blatant disrespect for non-Saudi teachers.
I acknowledge that there is a barrier of differences that lay between the expat teacher and Saudi students that needs to be broken down somehow, to find some commonality. Expat teachers have to work much harder at gaining the student's respect and control by other means than speaking in their native language and even if one could, I wonder if it would be all that effective... most often it remains a continuous struggle just due to the fact that we are non-Saudi and some how 'inferior' to them. Granted there are a few enlightened ones...but they are by far the exception. Perhaps as well they're just "young" therefore immature and lacking any sense of what is proper behaviour in a classroom setting.
I also for the most part enjoy teaching them, on most days...but somedays, I'd like to send the whole lot of them to the moon! |
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JerkyBoy
Joined: 12 Jan 2012
Posts: 485
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| Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2012 4:58 am Post subject: Re: yep me too -till I asked 'em |
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| cmp45 wrote: |
| Perhaps speaking Arabic has some advantage, but I think overall most Saudi students just have more blind respect for their Saudi teachers than expat teachers. |
That was generally the case in Thailand. Automatic and unquestioned respect for HCNs.
| cmp45 wrote: |
| ... most often it remains a continuous struggle just due to the fact that we are non-Saudi and somehow 'inferior' to them. |
They probably presume moral superiority on grounds of their belief that theirs is the true faith. That was certainly the case in Thailand with the Thai Buddhists. |
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desert_traveller
Joined: 28 Nov 2006
Posts: 335
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| Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2012 9:46 am Post subject: |
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| JerkyBoy wrote: |
| ultraman111 wrote: |
| They learn quickly and are ideal students when the learning environment is condusive. |
Please elaborate. How do we engage Saudi students effectively? |
you let them play with their mobile phones
no other strategy will do the magic as well as this one. they will be quiet little angels in your class
they will not participate in the lesson or learn anything, but they would not do that anyways so no major difference there |
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cmp45
Joined: 17 Aug 2004
Posts: 1475
Location: KSA
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| Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2012 9:55 am Post subject: |
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| desert_traveller wrote: |
| JerkyBoy wrote: |
| ultraman111 wrote: |
| They learn quickly and are ideal students when the learning environment is condusive. |
Please elaborate. How do we engage Saudi students effectively? |
you let them play with their mobile phones
no other strategy will do the magic as well as this one. they will be quiet little angels in your class
they will not participate in the lesson or learn anything, but they would not do that anyways so no major difference there |
Now, the secret is out!
Class management strategy when all else fails... Tis sad, but true |
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JerkyBoy
Joined: 12 Jan 2012
Posts: 485
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| Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2012 12:27 pm Post subject: |
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