Job Discussion Forums

[midnightpariah]

I have been told by one of my bosses that I cannot play games with the kids for more than 5 minutes a lesson. Boss wants me to read and have them repeat the whole time or ask them questions and have them answer while sitting in their chairs. The only problem with this is that the kids (especially the ones under 8yrs.) get really bored and then start to act up.

I tried to make it fun by having them change the speed of the sentences (fast/slow) and pitch (loud/quiet). This backfired when Boss walked in the room and yelled at me in front of the kids for not speaking at a "natural" speed. (Boss often comes into the classroom and interrupts what I am doing to tell me what I'm doing wrong and how to do it better.) While I make no claims to be more knowledgeable than Boss, I am not a noob when it comes to teaching. I have a BA in Elementary Education with emphasis in Theatre and Language Arts. I have taught for 3 years in the US and 1 year in Japan. All of the training I have ever been given goes against what I am being told to do. I will, however, do whatever Boss wishes, even if I disagree.

Does anyone have any recommendations on how to keep my kids interested and Boss pleased?

[my_way]

i would not be able to tolerate your situation....and you should have no problem believing that you are more qualified than your boss, because clearly you are!
maybe try a point system to make things more interesting......
i would have a talk with the Boss and make it clear to him/her that teaching english to young learners must be active and fun or they will learn NOTHING!
why won't you disagree with the Boss?

[midnightpariah]

Every time I try to explain my point of view, Boss suddenly loses their ability to speak English.

[ShioriEigoKyoushi]

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[mhard1]

wow thats a tough situation. I used to have a similar situation while I was teaching in South Korea. Extreme micromanagement made for an impossible teaching environment. I stayed about 4 months and then I was out. How long have you been with this position? It could be that you are new and that the boss is just keeping a tight leash early. It is a bit odd that your boss just showed you up in front of the class.

There is no way the kids, especially that young will keep their attention span that long if they have to go through mendokusai stuff all class long. You are definitely fighting a losing battle

In my experience, usually the boss is pleased when the customers (kids) are pleased. Which naturally would lead you to do more fun things, to include games.

I suggest you start looking for new work with the new school year just around the corner. Good luck!

[midnightpariah]

Shiori:

Boss doesn't teach any kids lessons, so there is no way for me to watch him. The classes that he does teach are grammar classes to high schoolers. They are usually one-on-one classes.



mhard1:

I have been working at this school for less than 6 months. Boss always finds a way to pop his head in. Sometimes he's "grabbing a book" or "looking for his lost cell phone". I just feel super board sometimes repeating the same sentences over and over. There are classes where Boss is busy or not there, so I just do whatever I want, but most of the time he is sitting just beyond the divider of the two rooms listening.

[mushroomyakuza]

Midnight, that sounds awful. Where are you working?

[ShioriEigoKyoushi]

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[trickster]

I had a similar situation myself last year. I teach in a small school and I teach groups of kids and my boss teaches 1-1 lessons with high school kids. My Boss has so far given me almost no input in to my lessons. There is no syllabus, few resources and zero support. So, I had to be creative....

After a few months, my Boss decided that I was making too much noise and that the kids were having too much fun. I was using a lot of TPR (Total Physical Response) in my lessons and the kids were running about, slapping letters of the alphabet, jumping around and generally having a lot of fun. At the same time, I noticed how much more they were learning by using these techniques.

However, due to the weak sound-proofing within the school, my lessons were causing some disturbance to the other classes. My Boss decided to communicate her displeasure by slamming my door and then writing a terse email detailing exactly how much I had upset her.

In my reply, I stated my case and told her that the kids were learning much more by using these techniques and also made what I thought to be positive alternative suggestions. This was clearly a mistake as she barely spoke to me for the next four months. Her only input was to suggest going to the 100 Yen Store and buying some plastic fruit and vegetables and creating lessons out of those. Hmmm, thanks.

Anyway, it may be that you are causing too much noise and disturbing other classes and this could be the main issue. I would try and find out if this really is the problem. Be wary of going head-to-head as it can make your life miserable, mine certainly was for a time.

It also depends on definition of "games". What is your Boss's definition?

An example of something that has worked for me is this:

Target: "Do you like ..............(s)?"
12 animal flashcards on the table.
Kids ask "Do you like..........."
If they ask the question incorrectly - without the "s", don't answer.
If you say "No I don't", another kid asks another "Do you like?" question.
If you say "Yes, I do". The kids have to slap the card with the correct animal on it.
This tends to keep them focused on the task in hand!

However, I agree with the other posters. Maybe it's time to look for something new...

[my_way]

i've been in the same situation as trickster......no curricilum and told i have the freedom to do basically whatever i choose to do, within reason of course....cool with me and cool with the boss...the kids were learning and happy, i have a pretty solid repertoire after teaching elementary for many years......the boss even complimented me, several times.....but she always had some problem and i just couldn't take her crap......she fired me illegally and i got 2 months pay!
i think this is just a control issue that probably happens at many schools.....you have to either deal with it or quit.
i've learned my lesson and after several years i just can't go back to it.....but i have a visa so it's easier for me i guess.
good luck

[midnightpariah]

Trickster:

The games I am playing are similar to yours. I play a slap game, go fish, a memory game, and BINGO.

There is no excessive noise and there aren't other classes going on the same time as mine.

[starteacher]

Can I ask that when games are being played, in their frenzy, do the students speak in Japanese or in English ? Because if the former, and the walls are thin, it does not sound good. Whereas in a "controlled" environment where the "game" is more of an activity it is more effective.

Try it and see, I used to get people telling me about the noise, but I toned down, did more focused activities, and now the students have gotten used to it, they actually feel great because they can see the improvements made, want that mental challenge for themselves and fromtheir peers, and a few other vital third parties such as parents and bosses are happier too, so there students also feel the praise too.

You're just a teacher.


With regards to the OP's method for teaching reading, maybe make flashcards of all the words that need to be read and jumble them and get students to make sentences and read, play various activities related to these flashcards, snakes and ladders where each square is a reading sentence, blackjack with words, etc etc.

[flyer]

Yes, I really feel for you in this situation. I can't say I have had anything like that? I suppose, he is the boss so you just have to hang in there until you find a better place to work
ie, I would start looking elsewhere

[crankyjiji]

Get a new job!

Let`s be blunt. Your boss is moronic, unprofessional, and socially retarded. Do you think anything you say will change this?

I`ve been in similar but not quite as dire situations and you`re wasting your time and energy thinking it will get better.