Job Discussion Forums

[Roger]

[quote="Petulia Pet"]

[Brian Caulfield]

This is a good point Roger . I think we all could be a little more morose in our pedagogy. We must prepare the little bugders for the real world out there . More grammar drilling is what they need . Spare the rod and spoil the child is still a good modal for the new teacher .

[vikdk]

The way the students respond to a class is not just a reflection of a teacher as a professional but of course can also be seen as the measure of a person � the teacher as a personality.

Personality - the concept of the individual self - is of course the sum of an individuals past, present and future aspiration - and since we use our personalities as the conveyor of knowledge within the classroom it could be viewed as something that teachers unavoidably must trade with our students - after all isn't the classroom a place of personality interaction.

If we are to learn anything from some of our more experienced FT's who write in this forum, then it could be the following -
The personality (with regard to an individual�s past, present and future) - if viewed as a flame - can be diminished by the torments these classroom personality exchanges produce- so that the sparks that are left seem to burn cold in a bitter windy environment.

So let this be a lesson to you newbies - experience here can seemingly dampen your flame. And when I talk about the health implications of this job � I can add a little to my earlier comments regarding health in the classroom � because when you read here about so much negative energy after so many years of teaching - then surely if you do want to stay fit (and everybody around you), thinking about number 1 is your first job. No point in whipping your students to a result (for the good of the school) in an environment where you feel hated � or you to might go loopy

[Petulia Pet]

Roger said:

Quote:
If you have studied it, tell me: did you love to study a compulsory subject? I tell you: most kids hate going to school, no mater what they are saying and how much they are smiling in telling you about it!


I'm very green for sure but I think this is not quite wright. We loved going to school and just because a subject was compoulsory didnt' stop us from liking it. Arithmathics was compulsory at school but I was a whizz and loved it and in high school, everyone had to learn things like Japanese and just because we had to do it didn't stop me from likeing it. I dont' think compoulsism has much todo with it. Even when I did my hairdressing training we had a subject called Cuts and Colours. Everyone had to do it but I liked it because I knew if I mastered the colours especially I'd have those old girls lining up at Salon Doreen and Beauty Boutique (I later changed it to Curl up and Dye for the gimmikry) and I'd make a pretty penny. I think whats true for hairdressing is also true for teaching but I havent had any experieance yet but thats to come.

Anyways my mainpoint is that I think just because a things compoulsory doesnt mean that kids can't enjoy it, look at my examples.

I think it's all got to do with the teacher. Gord, there were some dried up old fartes who didnt have a clue and all they did was winge winge about how crook the kids were but it wasn't the kids!!!!!!!!!! There was a young thing (we later did her hair actually) who was full of life and we loved her classes and learnt a lot. She taught English and we had to do it but we loved it and her and she said we were one of the best classes she'd ever taught.

But I could be wrong and I dont' like to argue with people with lots of experieance who are probably better experieanced and qualified than me.

[Gregor]

Edutainment. Teachers as entertainers.
I understand the complaints...kind of. We learn pedagogy. We learn different types of lessons in our TEFL courses. These are meant to make the subject interesting to the students. But we - a lot of us, anyway - become teachers to help people learn and are shocked at the fact that, in China, we're meant to entertain the little buggers more than just teach them! AARRGH!

Well, that's not me. I remember when I was in school. I remember when I was in uni, and I remember my TEFL course and diploma course. And the one thing that stands out to me, as a student, is that I retained a holy hell of a lot more from the teachers I liked; who moved me and kept me interested. Yes, the ones I found the most entertaining.

I don't have any problem at all with student evaluations. My students like me. They get tough tests, and I have the opportunity to defend my low marks, when I give them. I wouldn't work anywhere as a teacher where I couldn't do so.

A lot, if not most, of my students get good marks. Plenty of them do not. But I do my best. And when enough students give me good reviews, it's hard for the school to criticize me for the poor performance of the lazy ones who don't want to do what they need to do.
The thing is, we NEED to accept that we're in the entertainment industry. On the fringe of it, yes, but still, we have to keep these people entertained. If we just get through the curriculum in an uninspired way, there's no way they're going to retain anything we're trying to teach them. These people have jobs, or other classes, and we need to get their attention. Never mind school policies. Those are moot, if you are doing a good job with the classes.
What I mean is, in other countries, maybe there aren't so many entertainment-type policies. You teach the book, and there you go. Maybe. I haven't encountered that anywhere, myself, but maybe that's the case when teaching in the US or Britain. But even if entertainment isn't required of the teachers, by the school, it's still necessary to be an effective teacher.
I really believe this.
I'll never forget my three favorite teachers in high school. One of them was my algebra teacher, Mr. Oursland. Then there was Mr. Macy, for history. And Mr. Raymond, for relevant writing.
MAN OH MAN. Tough classes, the lot of them. Algebra kicked my butt three years straight (one in junior high and twice in high school, before I had Oursland). History always bored me to tears, and relevant writing...This was a term for advanced English usage, grammar, and composition. Jesus Christ. NOT easy. I loved the class, though, and learned almost everything I know about the English language from it. I worked my flippin' ARSE off in that class, because I really wanted the teacher to like me.
I still walked away with a D. But I learned HEAPS, and couldn't criticize the teacher (except for being unreasonably harsh, but who cares? I learned, and FELT like it).
Mr. Macy brought history alive for me. He talked about historic figures like he used to hang out with them or something. REALLY fascinating.
And how do you bring algebra alive?? Well, maybe by showing us how it relates to every day life. We learned to gamble, even count cards, we predicted world events' outcomes mathematically (wrong as often as right, but still interesting), and so on. Proofs were abstract, in the book, but ol' Mr. Oursland rephrased them using people and places and events we KNEW.
I got a C in that class. I suck at maths. But the thing is, it was the only time I flippin' PASSED the course, and I'd bet the farm that I could pass a test to audit an algebra course to this day, 22 years after high school. I may not do WELL - but then, maybe I'd do even better, now that I've had 22 years to put what I learned to practice.
The point is, these guys brought their subjects to LIFE for me.

And this is what we are supposed to do as English teachers. I truly believe that if you are a good teacher, in general, and you feel passionately about your subject, you have no reason to worry about student, or any other, evaluations.

[Petulia Pet]

Strike me pink Gregor you sound as if you are as crook as a student as i was. Anyways I think I was probably better than you because I got better tahn a D in English and a C in arithmatic. And you say you liked the teachers so i wonder what your marks would have been if you DIDN'T LIKE THEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But thats good anyways because now your a teacher and I can sympathize with you because no one much expected much from the girl from Salon Doreen but here I am now with all sorts of pieces of paper to prove how good I am. Soon I'm gong to South America to a Susan Hillyyard meeting on MONOLONGUES (give it a go everyone) and then my boyfriend (sugar daddy really) has promised me a job at an Australian university.

[Roger]

Well, Pet,
you claim you liked going to school but I say it's wrong to conclude that since you liked it everyone else does.

[vikdk]

well done R you've actually worked out the concept of generalisation