Job Discussion Forums

[mcl sonya]

I'm teaching 10 spoken English classes a week, and for whatever reason three of them are huge - from fifty to sixty kids. The smaller classes are fine, the kids listen to me and they get into the activities, but the big classes are almost uncontrollable. If I have them speak individually, the rest of them get bored and chat; if I have them do group activities, they chat instead of doing the activity. To get them to talk I have to walk around and drag English out of them individually. In general the class seems to be a waste of time, and most of them just sit around watching little TVs, playing games on their cell phones, or chatting. A few lonely souls just sit there and look dazed in the noise.

But, I noticed that during the break in one class, when a French person called me and we conversed in French, the chatter suddenly fell silent, and everyone intently listened to me then asked each other what language I was speaking, so I have a feeling that some part of their brains actually are tuned in to what I do all the time. After their presentations I made up a sentence with a lot of v's, w's, and l's, and had them repeat, and all of them repeated it in unison, paying attention to my instructions on pronunciation. It was a bit miraculous. When the chatter reached its peak and I threatened to move people and was singling out culprits - who were really embarrassed, and mostly behaved well afterwards - the students, who I think are 90% convinced that I don't speak Chinese (since I have been busy deliberately butchering Chinese words with an English accent), whispered to each other to be quiet, the teacher's mad.

So I think the kids are really ok, it's just the class is way too big and everything I can think of doing really doesn't work in such a big group. What can I do then? I tried splitting them into groups in one class, to no avail. The activities that work well in my smaller classes are just abandoned by the students in the big ones - I think they think they can hide in the crowd. Should I assign a lot of written work then, to make sure they're doing something - anything - to communicate? I was thinking of having the really big classes learn songs, since they're good at repeating things, and most them like English-speaking pop music - for whatever reason, a lot of Chinese girls like Avril Lavigne. Can anyone give me some advice?

[arioch36]

50 or 60 classes isn't that big, really! But it doesn't make it easy for your first time (or any time)

Don't let them know you speak Chinese well.

Written homework means a lot more work for you. I am foolish, I might have them write their own dialogue about a very specific topic.

One thing about groups, even when I know I will be doing mostly pair work I divide them into groups. I make sure that the boys are equally assigned to groups, and break up any cliques. This helps.

In a class of 160, I take phones away on the first use. Like most kids, the natur is to press the limit to what they can get away with, even if they don't really want to do it.

5-10 minutes pronunciation each day, with tongue twisters. If you can, pick out one or two students with problems, and let them speak, others listen, and help them.

10 minutes of a song

four students talk each day (they can do two person dialogues, 2 minutes each)

a proverb each day and you have taken care of almost 45 minutes
I strongly feel it is important from the start to control the class, and then later things can lighten up

Don't set your expectations too

Don't let them see you sweat

I like groups of four, because if they are okay, they can talk in apirs. If one is really bad, the other three can still talk. Then you just roam up and down the aisles with your ear ready to catch too much Chinese, or for the slightest suggestion at improvement (Which is usually quite well received), or just to encourage

Good luck

Oh, once, I had 60 students, the first hour they would all be in they same classroom. The second hour would be their time to talk, and I split them into two classrooms so they could actually hear each other

PS This will be bashed by music "purists" here, but after hating anything resembling backstreet boys, I am sold on Westlife. Their english is good, their voices clear and the lyrics good english, easy to sing (duh!) and the Chinese know the songs

[laska]

Have the whole room count off 1-2-3-4 into groups of four. Give each member a job. 1s have to make sure everyone stays on task. 2s make sure everyone participates. 3s make sure everyone speaks English. 4s write. Tell them if they the other members don't follow the rules. they should throw them out the window (humor). Then have them work. Dialogs. Introduce each other. Break the groups of 4s into pairs. Regroup in different pairs. Organize cross-group role plays. After they've finished an activity, have a couple groups perform in front of the whole class. As you go, notice good and bad things. Give some positive feedback (not too positive -- they don't expect it) and then write a bunch of mistakes on the board and correct them as a class.

You'll get used to it. Learn to perform. Be big. But learn to play with space and silence as well. Listen to the heartbeat of the class.

[mcl sonya]

hey, great, great, thanks

Westlife - I'm checking out clips of their songs on iTunes. I've never heard of them, but they sound ideal. Much better than playing Avril Lavigne..

how do you present the songs? I don't have a projection screen or a printer/copier, so I'm thinking of dictating the lyrics to the entire class... I'm worried, would they still be able to follow the words?

[Anda]

It sound like you have a TV where you teach! Get the latest DVDs that are suitable for the age group you are teaching. Use Chinese subtitles and use a hand control to stop start and ask questions and have them repeat statements like "He is running" You are actually using big flash cards by using the TV this way.


Usually if you are at a goverment place you can get handouts printed. I think it's called a B3 page but you can cut down 4 A4 sheets and fit them onto one B3 sheet front and back. I use stories written by kids off the internet. I just get my students to read after me.

[mcl sonya]

no no - little TVs like little pocket things, that they can try to hide when I pass by. I didn't confiscate any TVs or cellphones the first class.. there aren't any TVs or projectors that I can use, though one class does have a computer and a projection screen (that's the biggest class.. will be making use of the comp for sure)

[jwbhomer]

If you're using the computer in your classroom, be aware that it's probably full of viruses, trojan horses, worms, etc. It's unwise to plug a flash card into your school system and then into your own comp at home. If you want to use files now on your own comp, save them on a CD.
Similarly, don't plug your laptop into the school's system.

[arioch36]

The school most likely has multimedia rooms that they have not told you about. But before I knew this, things worked great. I would download a couple copy of the lyrics, two songs or more to a sheet of paper (front and back) and tell the class leader to make sure everyone makes a copy. Schools always have tape recorders you (your class leader) and sign out. So usually I just use a tape recorder and have them make copies of the lyrics.

If you want to go all out, make a whole cassette of english songs and the lyrics and let the students make copies.

Sometmes we talk abou the lyrics, sometimes just sing. I try not to impose my musical tastes too much, but adapt to them. So yes, the first song we usually sing is Carpetners ( is that their name) "yesterday once more" It breaks the ice, they all know it.

For my writing class on metaphors, we always do "the Rose" I use Bette midler's. I like Mike and the mechanics "The Living year" because it connects, especially with the boys who almost never see their fathers. The only rap song ever is "where's the love y'all" or the rap from Sister Act"

Sorry to you purists who would want me to try to get them singing to unsingable stuff. Eidleweiss is hugely popular.

West Life ... they all know "My Love", and it is singable. They love "seasons in the Sun" Just don't tell them it is about a boy dying

[mcl sonya]

hey great, thanks for all the song ideas.

[malu]

I second Arioch's choice of a bit of choral pron practice each lesson. It's a bit old fashioned and teacher-led but it gets everyone on task so that you have their collective attention immediately afterwards - though don't squander the chance as you have literally milliseconds of attention span to work with!

Competitive English activities involving football team sized groups are rowdy but possible. At a summer school I got over my loathing of the Harry Potter books enough to split up a load of moody teenagers into the Houses of Hufflepuff, Slithereen etc. They loved scoring points off each other.

[ChineseChris]

Two things that may help. Firstly I use show and tell. Two students a day. I was blown away with this as was the rest of the class. They actually looked forward to it because they had no idea what each student would bring and talk about. I had one student bring a Kangaroo skin, had the whole class in raptures. Secondly I split them into groups of 4 and give each group a product - eg toothpaste, ice cream, bike, running shoes, orange. I tell them they are a new company and they have to sell this new product, they have to give it a brand name, logo, price, colour, taste and work out how they will advertise it. Their job is to sell it to the class. This covers many things and it runs for about 6 weeks. Each lesson will focus on a different component like logo, then brand name etc. Their presentation to the class to sell it is to do a TV ad which all team members must act in. You cover heaps of new words and teach them about the real world around them which they have never thought about. I had kids in their presentation bring ice cream samples for the kids to eat, paint up one of their own bikes with their brand name and logo. I give them no restrictions so can perform their ad inside the classroom or outside. They love this freedom and it does inspire them. This is the best thing I have ever done with my classes and I have never had a failure. One year I got them to do a market survey with the other half of their class. They got really serious with this and were very inventive. I also give a prize for the best presentation which the class votes on.

[arioch36]

Chinese Chris,

Good Stuff, but what size classes?

[ChineseChris]

Class sizes I have had are between 20 and 60. Obviously the smaller the better as you can give more attention but even doing this business exercise with 60 the kids really get into it. I think it is because I have always tried to teach what I call street english. Things that are happening now rather than out of the book english. The kids can relate to everyday things around them. They even head off to the supermarkets by themselves to start getting ideas about prices, brand names, logos and advertising. Of course the presentation TV ad is the best part of this but they learn sooooooo many new words with this exercise it is worth doing. A lot of prep for the teacher but once you have done it once it is just a matter of photo copying. I even make up huge posters for the walls of the classroom showing brand names, logos etc and have the other teachers collect shopping bags prior to doing this with english on them and string these up in the classroom prior to starting so the kids can see english is all around them. I always dress up the room over a weekend so the kids do not see it and when they come in on a Monday morning they are blown away with the room all dressed up. I have to admit I get a real kick out of their reaction which makes all the hard work worth while.

[arioch36]

Chinese Chris

[ChineseChris]

Yes I have my own classroom with my own key. Nobody else uses the room which is great. The chinese teachers marvel at what I do with the room and visiting teachers from other schools are always shown my room. I know the school looks at it as a way of showing off but the kids are the things that matter so I do not mind.