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BigWally
Joined: 07 Jun 2006
Posts: 765
Location: Ottawa, CAN (prev. Kaohsiung "the Dirty South")
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 Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 5:38 pm Post subject: |
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at the risk of sounding repetitive....this really is a great thread! 
from my point of view, listening to many of you is quite intimidating...listening to your excellent teaching techniques, and ideas for classroom management, make me feel unprepared for whats coming...having not been the head of a classroom before it seems like i've got quite a bit of work ahead of me....
maybe you Hess or KoJen folks can enlighten me (as i'm also heading into a "chain" school)....
how much preperation did you do before arriving at your school? how long do you find that it usually takes "new arrivals" to find their teaching niche (especially if you dont have classroom experience)? what can i do to ensure a smooth transition into the teaching role?
dont get me wrong, i'm not getting 2nd thoughts about going, but i already am feeling at a slight disadvantage having not taught in a classroom before (even my gf already has her B.Ed)
cheers 
edit: woohoo! top of page 3! |
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Henry_Cowell
Joined: 27 May 2005
Posts: 3352
Location: Berkeley
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| Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 6:43 pm Post subject: |
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| sbettinson wrote: |
| ... I am glad I took on the position because it is giving me some good experience working in that kind of environment and will definitely help me to find a better job later down the line. To say you have worked as a manager in a large company in a multicultural environment would be very advantageous in an interview. I don't know, maybe I am wrong, if anyone would care to correct me. |
Shaun, you are absolutely correct on this point. I look at resumes during the interview and hiring process. Your type of managerial experience is most valuable in a corporation that is increasingly multicultural and global. If and when you "go home again," you'll find that your Taiwan experience will help you immensely. |
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kuberkat
Joined: 03 Jun 2005
Posts: 358
Location: Oman
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| Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 7:14 pm Post subject: |
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BW, we meet again. The fact that you are preparing yourself so thoroughly bodes very well for your teaching. It will serve you smashingly!
Rest assured that any chain school is bound to give you some training. Even this has moments that are quite scary, though- like teaching demos! Once you meet your students, you are bound to feel more condfident. This is one place where Confucian values really pay off: students do really respect you just because you're a teacher, even if you don't feel like one at first. The trick is to assume authority, which is a very new thing for many of us. In the immortal words of Depeche Mode, "Domination's the name of the game." You don't need to be authoritarian, but you do need to be in control- if not, your students will feel unsafe and get out of hand.
Good planning is essential while you get to know your new environment. The fact that speaking English comes to you naturally is NOT an asset when you are explaining a grammar rule. You just might find yourself, marker in hand, wondering how to put together a sentence. So do be sure to know your material inside out. It may seem overwhelming at first, but you will be on top of it sooner than you think.
You don't have to be a clown, but students in Taiwan spend up to twelve hours in school and cram schools a day, and they do need some entertainment to keep their attention. Also, communicative activities will help to reinforce their learning. Since kids are really, really busy and may not have time to study, a good goal to aim for is that they will understand and recall the entire day's lesson by the time they leave. Sound tough? If you set up, explain clearly, give examples and active practice, (not to mention review next time) the students will amaze you. (It took me until I left Taiwan to realize just how bright the average Taiwanese kid is!)
Despite the moments when I wonder why I am doing this (even after the intensive "professional development" I've been lucky enough to have), it is still true that even an English teacher, even a cram school teacher, can have an astonishing impact on a student' life every now and again. It's certainly not all Dead Poet's Society, but every now and again a hidden bud springs into bloom by the end of a semester. It's not all the teacher's doing, but to play a part in the waking up of a young mind is intoxicatingly inspiring.
And it does happen.
You will have plenty to carry you through. And your learning curve just might surprise you. |
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kuberkat
Joined: 03 Jun 2005
Posts: 358
Location: Oman
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| Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 7:24 pm Post subject: Taiwanese Education |
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Sanchong and TaoYuanSteve
I absolutely take your point that Taiwanese literacy is extremely high, and as I mentioned in my former post, the average intelligence, especially recall-wise, of Taiwanese students is stupendous. By no means would I say my own country or "The West" is better. What I meant was that writing out (the source of so many eye problems in Taiwan) and thoughtless recitation contradict Confucius' philosophy of personal involvement in the material learned and are counter-educational- indeed, they are a notable source of the lack of creativity mentioned by TYS. Any comments welcome, especially if I am misreading the old master on this one. |
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atiff
Joined: 14 Jun 2006
Posts: 66
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| Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2006 5:21 am Post subject: |
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| Pop Fly wrote: |
Great. Thanks for playing.
SNIP
Language can't be learned by rote. Until some major corporation changes it's tune and tries to teach language with a balance of rote and experiential (trial and error) learning, Taiwanese will continue to shell out good money after bad while never achieving any tangible results.
If I was a Hessian teacher, or better yet, in upper-to-middle management, I would be looking for ways to augment the traditional methods with a lot more student centered activities. Chastise the face-stealing, belittling behaviour of laughing at each other when mistakes are made. Fool the parents by giving every kid an A. Keerist on a hockey stick, these kids have enough pressure on them. Let English be a fun time, a time they can look forward to, with no pressure of having to compete with Sally Chou.
SNIP
Back to y'all...... |
Generally, I agree with you. We do try to encourage this approach at all times at Hess. Training at Hess specifically focuses on certain things at certain stages, and student-centred learning is the bulk of our 3-month training (taken by all teachers). The curriculum is also designed to emphasise practice - the lesson plan provided by the teacher's guide suggest that most new points are introduced in 5-10 minutes, then practiced for 10-15 minutes, with homework as the review and reinforcement built into future lessons. We have also compiled games books, available in every branch, with over 140 games of many types, most student-centred, for using in the classroom. The resources are certainly there. |
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atiff
Joined: 14 Jun 2006
Posts: 66
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| Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2006 5:41 am Post subject: |
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Oh, by the way, this is the way I deal with homework (learned from another trainer, and we promote this idea even though the grading aspect runs counter to some ideas that exist in some of the branches)
Preview the homework (all of it) orally at the end of class (no pencils, etc) - this acts as review of the lesson points as well. Kids take it home to do it (I tell them not to do it as soon as class ends, because it's better for them to space out their learning and practice a bit).
When collected in next lesson, I grade it outside of class time.
The standard method used is to start at 100 and deduct points for errors, less than 80 being a "redo" of the whole HW for the student. Most teachers also write in the correct answer and have the students copy the corrections once for reinforcement.
What I do now is CIRCLE the errors (but don't tell them what they are - i.e., don't write in the correction) and subtract 2 points from 100 for each Q&A with an error (so four errors in one answer is still only -2). Thus the kids basically can't get lower than 80, so their grades look OK (but still in proportion to their other classmates). Also, because I'm only circling the mistakes and not writing answers, and everything is -2 (not -0.5, -1, -2, -3, etc) it makes grading and totaling grades a breeze - I can do 20 books in about 10-15 minutes easy.
Next lesson after that, hand back the homework books. Then it is the students' responsibility to fix the mistakes, rewrite it correctly (one or two times) and show me after class before they can go home. If they don't know what the mistake is, they can ask me during break (I just stay in class with them) and I can review the point of grammar or whatever.
This way, they more actively learn what they did wrong, and for each Q&A or similar the last thing they do with it is write it correctly. I believe it works well because it teaches responsibility and encourages the kids to take good care with their homework (or else it costs them time at the end of class). It does use up some of my own time after class, but I think the value is worth the effort.
Hope some find it useful. |
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Pop Fly
Joined: 15 Feb 2003
Posts: 429
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| Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2006 6:00 am Post subject: |
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| atiff wrote: |
| Pop Fly wrote: |
Great. Thanks for playing.
SNIP
Language can't be learned by rote. Until some major corporation changes it's tune and tries to teach language with a balance of rote and experiential (trial and error) learning, Taiwanese will continue to shell out good money after bad while never achieving any tangible results.
If I was a Hessian teacher, or better yet, in upper-to-middle management, I would be looking for ways to augment the traditional methods with a lot more student centered activities. Chastise the face-stealing, belittling behaviour of laughing at each other when mistakes are made. Fool the parents by giving every kid an A. Keerist on a hockey stick, these kids have enough pressure on them. Let English be a fun time, a time they can look forward to, with no pressure of having to compete with Sally Chou.
SNIP
Back to y'all...... |
Generally, I agree with you. We do try to encourage this approach at all times at Hess. Training at Hess specifically focuses on certain things at certain stages, and student-centred learning is the bulk of our 3-month training (taken by all teachers). The curriculum is also designed to emphasise practice - the lesson plan provided by the teacher's guide suggest that most new points are introduced in 5-10 minutes, then practiced for 10-15 minutes, with homework as the review and reinforcement built into future lessons. We have also compiled games books, available in every branch, with over 140 games of many types, most student-centred, for using in the classroom. The resources are certainly there. |
There ya go Hess teachers. I just managed to get all that extra time you put in included in your "paid" time. You'll still have to do the lesson planning on your own, but, trust me on this, after 3 months, lesson plans take less than 5 minutes.
After 5 years, I am now challenging myself to walk into a class prepared with only one idea, a launching point and allowing the class direction to develop of its own volition. As an example, last night I walked in with this idea and this idea only: Describe a pillow. After getting them comfy with thinking in English, I saw an opportunity to develop a game along the lines of The Pyramid. I sat half the class with their backs to the boards and the other half would have to get their partners to say whatever I wrote on the board. I would write down something like ice or stinky tofu and they'd have to describe it without using any elements of the answer.
Before we knew it, half of the class time was over.
Now, I want to make something else very clear. I, in no way, reprove Confucian or Asian learning styles. I consider Taiwan to be the most educated country in the world. Per capita, Taiwan puts more people thru all levels of post-secondary education than any other country. <<(Unproven, statisticless hypothesis)
My qualms lie in the ability of this system to teach something as fluid as language. It cannot work and the proof is all around. The Mo Da Wei students are drilled to be as precise as The Blue Angels, but they couldn't for the life of them, last a three minute conversation outside of their memorized responses...according to a former teacher of that very school that I spoke with just yesterday.
I know my students at KoJen were terrified to leave the area of the memorized for even a second. And this after some had been studying for 7/8 years. What a scam.
No, my animosity towards this "system" lies not in it's stubborness and militaristic approach to learning....when I have kids, I will be glad that they have such discipline. Lord knows I didn't have one iota of it. No, my acrimony lies in these guys like Ken Ho who abuse the system and bilk thousands of families out of years of wasted time and money under the guise of drilling english into the minds of the prodigies (every parent has one and will spare no expense to accomodate). Using Confucianism for financial game. It smacks of blaspheming piety and I'll none of it.
I may have overstated myself. Such is language.  |
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