Job Discussion Forums

thrifty · Joined: 25 Apr 2006 Posts: 1665 Location: chip van

Enlighten us all Alex, how many decades have you spent teaching?

Baba Alex · Joined: 17 Aug 2004 Posts: 2411

Golightly · Posted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 3:27 pm Post subject:

I've just completed my 13th year in the job.

thrifty · Joined: 25 Apr 2006 Posts: 1665 Location: chip van

B�y�k Ge�miş olsun

yeovil50 · Joined: 17 Aug 2006 Posts: 13

I sympathise with you totally.

Two weeks ago i started teaching at a local kolej.

The first week, being the newby they gave me a bit of a rough time. However this week i have used bribery and works wonders.

I started the lesson by given them all their homework (about 2 hours worth). Which was met with moans and groans which i knew it would be.

Then asked them if they knew baseball?. Some did of course and knew the word STRIKE. So i wrote 3 lines on the board. 1 for each strike. Told them that their 2 hours homework was in their hands. If they survived the lesson with 1 strike then I would take back the homework and they would have none! They misbehaved once then one strike was gone.

Within 30 seconds someone said something then straightaway one strike was gone, so they could see i was serious. For the rest of the lesson they managed themselves, because as soon as one person played up they others shouted them down, of course not wanting extra homework.

Also i used a ball ( an old sock in a black plastic bag wrapped in sellotape) and when i wanted a student to answer i threw the ball to him/her they had to answer and throw back. The first person threw it back so hard and went flying past my head. SO another strike gone. For the rest of the lesson and since then they have been as good as gold.

Not sure this will work for you but certainy worked for me.

Good luck

Otterman Ollie · Posted: Fri Oct 20, 2006 6:04 am Post subject:

Lots of advice offered here Tevik,some of a pratical nature and some the usual useless kind from B.A and others ,now perhaps you could give us a bit more background info about the place you are at and the age of the kids themselves ,if thats not asking too much .

Baba Alex · Joined: 17 Aug 2004 Posts: 2411

Sheikh Inal Ovar · Joined: 04 Dec 2005 Posts: 1208 Location: Melo Drama School

I remember an American consulatant once telling the whole staff that if we really wanted our students to learn, we must motivate them to such an extent that homework wasn't seen as something negative ...

This guy was getting paid for saying this!

dmb · Joined: 12 Feb 2003 Posts: 8397

And probably paid very well. How does one get those jobs.

Otterman Ollie · Posted: Fri Oct 20, 2006 1:06 pm Post subject:

D.M.B I think to answer that question to the full extent that it deserves its gonna need a whole new thread ,so why don't YOU start it ? I think I can manage at least a couple of pages about how the most incompetent people seem to land the plumb jobs ,while the rest of us are treated like something on the bottom of someones shoe,sound familar . Usually if you have good use of L1 it opens all kinds of doors for you regardless of your ability,now that really is a crime in my book if you ask me ,but then again noone does .

FGT · Joined: 14 Sep 2003 Posts: 762 Location: Turkey

My L1 is English, it had better be good in this job!