Job Discussion Forums

[golfsuper41]

Getting ready to finish my first full semester at a University in San Juan del Rio. I has been great for the most part but also challenging in a few ways.

I am just wondering what others feel about student attendance and grades. I have 5 classes that I teach from Basic uo to preparation for the PET test. I have one class of upper intermediate students which started with 12 students and due to various reasons, 9 of the students have quit. I have learned that none of these students progressed from the basic level up to the intermediate, they all just took the placement test and were given this class level.

I have been told that the students can only miss 10% of the class time and yet still after continually talking with students from all class levels to come to class they do not. They pass the tests but have not met the required hours to pass and being a ¨hard ass¨ Marine do not plan on passing them.

Also, I have students from a local Prepatory school, who supposedly have 2 years of English under their belts and are in an advanced Conversation class on Saturdays. Not one of these students have come remotely close to passing the tests, written assignments or the required workbook material. They did not pay for the class like the other Ädults in the class have and find more of a social 5 hours.

I have spoken with the Director of the Language department and he is supporting my decision to not pass the students and keep with the ¨status quo¨of high grades for minimal effort, which I am thankful for.

Just looking for additional insight into this area and what more experienced teachers have been through regarding this.

Thanks in advance for any comments.

JP

[esl_prof]

[golfsuper41]

Thanks for your response. I have been struggling to think of it in a different view as my Mexican wife has been trying to tell me also. One of the students told me she has spoken English from a very early age but yet is in my Basic II class. I asked her if she wanted to move to a higher level and she told me no.

I feel that the placement process is seriously flawed and since I was not involved in the process, did not due an initial test myself to see if the students were at a comparable level for the class. I plan on doing it different next semester to see if the class level fits the students or not. I´m not sure if other teachers due this is or not, or just rely on the initial testing to judge the students.

[esl_prof]

[golfsuper41]

Yes, I am lucky as a new Director took over the language department and he informed me during the interview that he was not happy with the way the ¨seasoned¨ Mexican teachers provided instruction as well as grades for the students. He held a meeting with everyone and informed us of his changes to the department. He also highered 3 American teachers for class instruction and brought in another from England to specifically help with Conversation and speaking, so it has been good from that stand point.

[esl_prof]

Having a supportive supervisor is huge. Unfortunately, that's not always the case. Hopefully, he will be successful in strengthening your department.

[BadBeagleBad]

I think if a student can earn a high grade without attending, well, they stil have the knowledge - regardless of where/how they got it. If they are cheating, that is a whole other issue, but in the case of someone who already knows the material through previous studies or experience, if they don't really need the class. That does seem to show a flaw in the material.

Not completely germane to the discussion, but may be a small insight. When I was in college I had a teacher who gave/took off points for attendance. During the semester I got pneumonia and missed over two weeks of class. I had a high grade in that class up to that point, and kept up with the reading while I was recovering, yet she say fit to lower my grade by an entire letter grade for just that one thing - despite my excellent work in the class. I fought the grade, and won, but I had a lot of resentment towards that teacher because I had mastered the material (and then some) and yet people who did lackadaisical work but came all the time got the same grade as I did. So be a hard ass where it counts, but don't get too caught up in the details.

I also took Spanish classes all through college, starting with Spanish 101, even though I am a native Spanish speaker, it is nice to have something you already have mastered to balance out the stuff that is hard, so maybe that is what your advanced English student is doing. Doesn't hurt your grade point average either. And because I was on an academic scholarship I always had to keep that in mind and find a way to balance the grade in Physics and other classes that were required and VERY difficult for me and keeping my scholarship.

[esl_prof]