Job Discussion Forums

[ghost]

Yeah folks....Date Thursday 18 December...a teacher at this school teaches a class from 6-9pm.

Tonight was the 4th lesson with the students and out of 11 students at the start of class, 8 of them left after the second break at 8pm (when one hour of class remained).

Some of the students mentioned that there was an important football match this evening (Fenerbahce with another team). But still - 8 students leaving before the end seems uncalled for and a slap in the face.

Other teachers at the school mention that there is a lot of absenteeism in their classes. One South African teacher had a delegation of students from his Elementary section go to the principal to complain about the way he was teaching. The students claimed that the South African teacher was giving them too many 'other materials' (like crosswords etc...) and they were very unhappy. The South African teacher also reports high levels of absenteeism from his classes. Seems to be a Turkish phenomenon.

Another teacher at the school reports that the Turkish students are 'unable to think in a creative way' - that is to say...if the students are asked to voice opinions on anything out of the ordinary, they are unable to do so. In short they lack imagination and insight. Stereotypical thinking one might say.

Having taught previously in many Latin American locales, one did not see these things happening.

We are using the Headway Series...and presently doing the pages to do with National characteristics. Pages 37-42.

When teachers prepare diligently for the classes and get the above results it really makes them question why they should bother.

Just want an opinion from others teaching in the language schools on the general subject of absenteeism and motivation in general. Some of the students here just sit there with blank faces. The South African teacher reports the same depressing attitudes. And one student ran out of his class berating him because he objected to being told to stop chatting in class. Remember these are University students at one of the Turkish top 10 Unis. ...they are the future leaders of the nation?

No smart alec remarks please...

[dmb]

What sort of remarks would you like?

[FGT]

I was teaching tonight from 6.30 to 9 pm. None of my students left. We use Headway. All students were involved. I encourage them to chat in English.

[yaramaz]

I didn't teach last night so I can't comment on the game and its effect on attendance. However, in my evening course, 2 hrs a night, 3 nights a week, I have pretty consistent attendance. My students are business men and women, most in their 20s and 30s. After a lot of shuffling during the first few weeks- people coming and going and sitting in to see if they were interested- it has settled down to exactly seven very happy students who are only absent due to illness or business trips. It is a 2 hour conversation class at the end of a usually very long business day and my students are often exhausted but they put in a lot of effort and so do I because I know how hard it is for them to be there. We have no text book so all the material is my own, pulled from all sorts of sources. We have great discussions and often very engaged activities (they were particularly enthusiastic about one last week where I had them pose as journalists and their choice of historical figures in a press conference... George Bush, Sultan Mehmet, Tarkan, and Sophia Loren were a hoot!!!!)

I don't think Turkish students are any lazier or stupid or uncreative than my students from other countries (though admittedly, I loved it when my Mexican kids used to compose 4 part harmony songs about a reading passage we covered)... I mean honestly, it takes creativity and humour to somehow decide that GW Bush is a direct descendant of Sultan Mehmet and to weave a great story around it.... and it takes non traditional thinking to talk about my subject from earlier this week: ghosts, ESP, the unexplained, etc. It was so popular that we spent 2 days on it. Brilliant stuff.

And I live in a city infamous in Turkey for its conservatism, materialism, and narrow mindedness.

[ghost]

Today a veteran teacher (a Turkish guy) at the 'Amerikan K�lt�r Dernegi' in this city told us that if students come unprepared for his KPDS classes (advanced English) - he sends them home. The Turkish teacher further recognized that it is easier for him to be authoritative because he is Turkish, but that his brand of discipline would be difficult for foreign teachers to apply because the students in Turkey view us differently to the Turkish teachers. One may infer from the above that they (the students) respect us less.

Further - the Turkish teacher of English (KPDS classes) told us that his students are learning every word in the Dictionary by heart...yes you read it.....EVERY WORD....This teacher usually makes the students learn the words by telling them to learn all the words under 'A' for one week. Then the next week they move on to 'B' and so on. These students might know more words than we (natives) know at the end of the course. But this is further proof about the soul destroying, boring, methodology prevalent in this country.

The Turkish teacher further informed us that there is little we can do about the absenteeism because the students are paying for the classes and it is their call. He does not tolerate it....but we foreigners have to put up with it. All of this is ufortunate for us.

[FGT]

Burcu (a student) says: We respect foreign teachers more than Turkish teachers because we can learn the difference between Turkish thinking and foreign thinking. And it helps us to learn about a different culture and it's more fun. For that reason, we don't want to miss more than a couple of lessons in a six month course. Also, our teacher, doesn't let us come into the class if we are late. This shows that he (a foreigner) can use discipline. "if you have no authority in class, it's your fault."

First part was semi-dictated to me. The part in quotes is verbatim. FGT

[scot47]

One wonders how long a certain poster with spooky appearance will last in Turkey. His days are numbered one would think.

After all one does not have to stay in a place one finds uncongenial.