Job Discussion Forums

[Capergirl]

Hi Kent

I agree with you that humour is an important characteristic for an ESL teacher (or any teacher) to possess. However, in my opinion it is not the most important one. I honestly don't think I'd be as effective in the ESL classroom if I didn't have empathy. I have been a second language learner (French) and I have also lived in another country, as my current students are doing. I think I am able to help them more because I have "been there and done that". Being able to put myself in my students' proverbial shoes has been a major factor in my job, as far as I'm concerned. This may not be true for everyone, but it's true for me.

By the way, Scot47, that was kinda funny.

[Stephen Jones]

Dear Kent,
The pomposity index on this thread goes off the graph. What makes all the posters thnk that they are good teachers? The fact that they've managed to make an inadequate living on it for more than fiive years? Or that they can compete with each other to see who can use polysyllabic words in the most inappropriate manner.

If you don't want somebody to go around pricking the balloon don't fill yourself with hot air.

[johnslat]

Dear Stephen Jones,
" If you don't want somebody to go around pricking the balloon don't fill yourself with hot air."
Having a bad day?
" What makes all the posters thnk that they are good teachers? "
Probably the same thing that makes you think you're good at your job. In some cases, admittedly, such confidence in their own abilities is likely misplaced, but I'd still rather work with someone who at least thought he/she was doing a good job than with one who just didn't care. And why in heaven's name are you picking on Kent ( at least that's how I read your post; very sorry if I'm mistaken )? I mean, not only is he a gentle,
funny guy ( who, I'd guess, is probably a very good teacher, to boot ), but my goodness, if you need to get down on someone, Lord knows there are a few others on these boards one heck of a lot more deserving of such " prickings ".
Regards,
John

[Lynn]

I'd say this is one of the biggest challenges I face as an ESL teacher. Am I a good teacher? How can I become a better one? And, are the students really learning anything? After a 10 week course, meeting 4 nights a week for 3 hours, a student replied "My is from Ecuador". We had practiced "Where are you from?" I am from Ecuador (or wherever)" every day for 10 weeks. When I saw this on his final exam, my heart sunk, I had truly failed as a teacher. Out of the 25 students he was the only one that got that incorrect, but why couldn't I reach him as well?

Furthermore, I have to worry about being Ms. Sunshine, Ms. Popularity or whatever. At my previous school a co-worker was fired because the students complained she was "too boring". And just this week I found out another teacher got fired because the students didn't like her. In ESL in the U.S. it's all about numbers. Which teacher can fill a classroom and keep it full? I even get a five dollar bonus everytime a student reregisters with me.

On my birthday, both my classes made a card for me and bought me flowers and made speeches and they told me how important I was to them. And on my last day they were so sad and some even cried and they made farewell cards and we all went out to dinner. In those times, I felt so proud and so loved. But was I really a good teacher or did they just get attached to me?

[johnslat]

Dear Lynn,
You don't have to worry; you were and are a good teacher. And you'll just keep getting even better. You have all the fatal traits: caring, diligent, emphathetic, down on yourself for not being even better. I hereby sentence you to a life of poor financial compensation, but inestimable emotional rewards.
Regards,
John

[Glenski]

[Mike_2003]

These days I live largely off private lessons. I've talked to other teachers about private lessons and some often complain that students only stay for a few months and their turnover is quite high. Many of my students stay for more than a year. As they are paying from their own pockets to take lessons from me (and private lessons don't come cheap) I would dare to assume I am reasonably good at what I do. I also get many new students through recommendations. Again, I wouldn't expect this is if I didn't come across as compentant and helpful.

Recently my longest attending student sat his university English exam. When he started with me two years ago he couldn't speak English but he not only passed his exam but got the highest mark in his year. To see the pride in his face when he came to his next lesson and passed this on to me really instilled in me a sense that it was all worthwhile.

I know I'm not the best teacher, but because I genuinely care about what I do and enjoy it, because I accept that there is always going to be something more I can do to learn and improve my skills, because I am honestly interested in my students' development and because I go out of my way to meet my students' particular needs, I think I can say I am a good teacher.

[Kent F. Kruhoeffer]

Good Day:

My sincere 'thanks' to Capergirl, johnslat, Lynn, Glenski and Mike_2003 for sharing your thoughts.

I agree with you 100%, Capergirl: empathy is a very suitable trait in the classroom. It may be #2 on my list, and goes hand-in-hand with good humour, I think.

Lynn has some doubts. As johnslat said, that's a good thing. I sometimes have doubts about what I'm doing too. We all do.

Stephen Jones made a comment about the 'pomposity index' of this thread. Fair enough. What I don't understand is this: Why is it that every time someone shows some pride in their profession, someone else comes along and immediately equates that with being pompous or arrogant?

I guess I just don't see the correlation between taking pride in one's job ... and arrogance. In fact, starting threads like this one shows an eagerness and a willingness to improve ourselves; to learn from what others have to say; to become better at what we do. I'd hardly call that an arrogant or pompous attitude. I'd call it pretty darned humble.

Anyway, to each his own.

Have a Nice Weekend, Everybody,
kEnt

[johnslat]

Dear keNT,
By Jove, you're not pompous, keNt. You're a humble guy. Be PROUD of your humility. But for heaven's sake, stop using all that sesquipedalian vocabulary; it's inordinately obscurant. I mean, that's William Buckley's
bailiwick. Write simple, like me.
Regards,
John

[Fred Bilbo]

The following are some of the important traits of a successful teacher
1. A positive attitude.
2. Be prepared, know what you are doing.
3. Praise your students, encourage progress.
4. Be friendly, firm and fair.
5. Always keep your promises. (Or don't make them)

Things to avoid.
Any form of negetivism is the kiss of death on a teaching career. (IMHO)
Tardiness.
Breaking promises.
Procrastination.

[Kent F. Kruhoeffer]

Thanks Fred, for your excellent input. I agree wholeheartedly with all 5 items on your list, as well as the 'don'ts' you mentioned. Good, common sense stuff that we sometimes forget about.

As for YOU, johnslat: I hear what you're saying. My unrelenting and seemingly misunderstood propensity to invigorate the otherwise quotidian verbiage on this forum seems to have exacerbated an already precarious conundrum.

Hey! Only 4 edits to get the spelling and syntax right!

Peace
kEnt

[guest of Japan]

Traits of truly great teachers:

-A healthy dose of sarcasm
-Weapons, for defense purposes only
-A private torture chamber-to provide extrinsic motivation
-A "holier than thou" attitude-nothing motivates students more than a teacher who believes he or she is wasting their time.
-Mafia connections-valuable for motivation
-The ability to perform first aid on yourself, just in case one of your positive teacher traits has negative consequences.

[Glenski]

If I might add to the list, in the world of teaching ESL or EFL, I would say a prime trait of any teacher is the ability to educate as well as teach. Anyone can provide grammar lessons, but really good teachers also give more than that. If that means culture lessons, cool.

Other examples of what I mean include...

providing slang or idioms that students can actually use properly.

showing interesting differences between how L1 and L2 work (without boring the students).

showing that memorizing textbook dialogs is often useless.

giving pronunciation lessons in the middle of a grammar lesson just to get some troublesome barrier out of the way.

demonstrating that you, the teacher, may have had just as much difficulty learning a foreign language as your students (and therefore know where they are coming from with their own difficulties), and showing how you overcame them.

[guest of Japan]

Although I don't make students memorize dialogs, I find it quite helpful in my Japanese studies. It boost my fluency, teaches me to appropriately use new vocabulary, and provides a clear reference point for the use of grammar. I don't make my students do it because it takes a long long time to effectively memorize a dialog.

[Roger]

Dear KeNt,
this thread is not pompous, far from it! We all need to take the temperature from time to time, and your invitation to do it was just as good as any.
As teachers in a foreign environment we double as ambassadors of the West. We promote our own culture in a foreign culture, which means we have to tread more carefully than our local colleagues, yet we must also maintain our own integrity, and add "value" to the teaching of English, lest it become a subject-matter for mere drilling and passing exams with no future relevance. This is not an easy job - sometimes.
Thus if you succeed in making your students interested in English you have succeeded in at least two ways; as a teacher-specialist of English, and as a human being of foreign nationality.
Successes don't necessarily come fast and thick. I think I had one of those rare successes at a college teaching English Literature. Although the majority of my students were disinterested (maybe 55% of them!), I still had some following among the class, although I was not too keenly aware of it.
It came to my attention when I told my students I was leaving. I knew some rejoyced at this, and that was exactly why I was leaving. There simply were too many students in that class that did not belong there in the first place; some girls organised a farewell party.
To my great, great surprise one of the girls burst out in tears in front of me and her fellow-students because she had begun to like an otherwise difficult subject. This was extremely moving for me, and also a late bonus for all the vain efforts i had put into teaching this class.
I met that girl several years later when she was working in an elite school. She was happy teaching English there, and I claim a little bit of the honour of having raised her curiosity for the English language, which she now was passing on to her own charges.