Job Discussion Forums

[ashanmari]

Its been a year since I have taken my TEFL course, and its been over a year since I graduated leaving my left brain slightly under stimulated for quite a while-- I'm taking my first contract in January and as I am trying to prepare myself I realize that I have no idea what to prepare for.

I am a bright individual, though I am most definitely, predominately right brained, I adapt easily, but I don't want to feel ill prepared for teaching.
I have done ESL tutoring and TAing for college level classes, I am sort of an untrained professional--

I guess my real question is, what is something that helps prepare you for starting a new job as a teacher? Everything in my life is about to be turned upside down, I am prepared for this, I relish in these situations, but I want to feel slightly like I know what I am getting into teaching wise--

Should I come with lesson plans, handouts, a big book of ideas?
Any tips/sites for brushing up on grammar?
Is this just the noobie nervousness overcoming me?

What has helped you in the past?
I deal well with culture shock, its the being put on the spot as a teacher pressure that worries me...

[Chris_Crossley]

People gain confidence in their new positions, no matter what the nature of the job is and/or where in the world it may be, especially if it is outside their home country, once they become aware of the lay of the land and how everything is (or at least how a lot of things are) supposed to work, and that includes being thrown into the pool at the proverbial deep end.

What works for a lot of new people in any profession (and I am sure that TESOL is no exception to this) is to keep an open mind and to make sure that one listens and learns from those who are in the know. Nobody expects one to become perfect or else near-to-perfect overnight, yet being able to adapt quickly to new people and circumstances is definitely of paramount importance here.

I knew very little about China and the Chinese people before coming to the Middle Kingdom eight years ago. My experience of Chinese people was limited virtually to the fact that eight of my MBA classmates in 1998-99 were of Chinese origin, namely those from mainland China, Taiwan and HK.

That partly meant realising how, as a people, these individuals virtually cocooned themselves in what seemed to be an ethnic clique they formed around themselves and how they had obviously come to the UK without really being prepared to undertake a UK university master's degree because their didactic education system is just so different (as well as being outdated) from the social-constructivist Western system that we are so used to.

On the positive side, of course, Chinese people can be generous and hospitable to a fault even if they do not fully understand the way we think and do things, and they also appreciate any effort you make to try and make some attempt to get to know the local language and culture, including, of course, the food.

Regarding the practical tools needed for survival in the classroom, especially in one's first few weeks, relying on books and materials may not necessarily be the best (or only) guide, especially if you may be expected to use whatever the school provides you with; certainly, private chain language schools like EF English First, for which I worked for my first two years in China, may expect you to use theirs, at least most of the time, although you are always free to use yours so long as they are relevant and, especially for young learners, fun to use.

As for brushing up on your grammar, only you will know if there are any areas to brush up on! If you perceive there to be any deficiencies in your own knowledge, then it is up to you to plug the proverbial gaps. Regarding "noobie nervousness", that is only natural so it is perfectly understandable, believe me!

Knowing something about people and life in general helped me to adapt to life in China, but I certainly did not come with pre-conceived ideas or expectations; in that way, I did not have to become disillusioned with what I found because such-and-such a book or article said this, that or the other and I found that, say, the complete opposite was true. It is basically a question of taking things as they come. At the same time, reading about people's stories on forums like this one can certainly help newbies; as they say, "forewarned is forearmed".

[Glenski]