Job Discussion Forums

[TK4Lakers]

Hello,

First off, I've tried searching this forum for this subject, and all I get is thousands of meaningless (yet interesting) threads that have not answered my question yet.

I teach an adult English class every Saturday. Class size is about 10 students, range from 30-77 years old. Mix of both men and women, and their levels are from beginner to intermediate-advanced. The class seems to know each other well and gets along.

I was wondering if anyone had any success in specific conversation topics. At first, I was thinking:
-Japan vs. North Korea
-Japanese education system
-Arraigned marriage in Japan

But then I came to my senses, and realized those topics are not only dry and boring, but can be termed as sensitive.

I'm now thinking that my students would probably most like to discuss topics of America (where I'm from) and its culture. Afterall, on the first day, a lot of them had some interest of the Castro District in San Francisco.

So, any successful discussion topics anyone can recommend? Thanks.

[furiousmilksheikali]

I'm glad you came to you senses as I have found these kinds of topics to be very tempting to bring to the classroom but are much better left for the izakaya or pub. I think the trick is to find subjects that are basically uncontroversial as you don't want to find out later that one of your students listening to tirades against North Korea carried a gaijin card that stated "Chosen" as their nationality or after hearing about "love marriages" being superior to arranged marriages one of your students told you that they had had an omiai kekkon. I think that a lot of EFL teachers in Japan go beyond their brief in the classroom and tend to dominate proceedings with their own ideas, their students lacking the linguistic ability to argue their own point but not lacking the intelligence to realize they've been insulted.

I made a few errors of judgment regarding this when I first came to Japan.

But I also think that you need to pick a topic that the students will have plenty to say about. If you choose the topic on San Francisco, as you mentioned, how sure are you that the students will have something to contribute? If this happens to be something that only you know about it could end up as a kind of Q&A session in the most teacher-centered way.

Some of the more obvious topics are on food, travel, work etc... If you start off broadly you can then bring in examples from the States which the students may then want to talk about.

I often try to introduce some type of target language to these topics also. If you were to talk about food in different cultures then obviously you would need to introduce a lot of vocabulary explaining tastes, ways in which food is prepared etc... You could also include some kind of grammar target, for example using comparatives and superlatives for describing food in different cultures.

Other topics that have proved interesting are urban myths, crime, stress etc...

Sorry if you were looking for something specific.

[Perpetual Traveller]

Don't forget it's a discussion class and not a lecture. If you choose American themed topics your students may not have a whole lot to contribute. You are better off discussing things that effect them. I am too tired to come up with much now but perhaps the Role of the Japanese Royal Family or current events. For my discussion class I photocopy an article from the newspaper or a magazine to give out the week before so that they can check vocabulary and such.

PT

[Perpetual Traveller]

Ack, furious, great minds obviously do think alike!

PT

[SeasonedVet]

What your students are interested in might vary. It might be a good idea (if you can) to find out what they are interested in (if you have time before)
When I worked with groups of middle aged - elderly students they were sometimes interested in the differences in Culture between japan and other countries.
Another group I worked with was also interested in the discussion but they liked it interspersed throughout the lesson.
It really depends on what your group wants.
As for the controversial topics, I have in all my time here met a few students who were interested in discussing topics like that. They usually had advanced English speaking abilities and liked to practice debating etc.
other people seemed wanted to "enjoy" the time and not get boggged down with controversy and others wanted Both to "enjoy" discussion and still learn a lesson point. ( I think Furiousmilksheikali gave some helpful hints and topics)
(edit)
Oh and There was one group that told me they are 'really interested in finding out how japanese people society and culture are viewed by western people (and other foreigners")

[furiousmilksheikali]

[Jon Taylor]

Here is some good subject material. I have used all of these in my adult classes:

Education
Medical care
Blood Sports
Military Service
Capital Punishment
Drugs
Marraige
Censorship
Trade Unions
Euthenasia
Wealth - Nobility/Royalty
Crime
Youth
War
Discrimination
Social Inequality


Subject material is simple. Try to use argumantative material as it prompts immediate responses out of the student.

You have to play devils advocate sometimes.....

[furiousmilksheikali]

[earthmonkey]

I have a class of similar size and age range. Each time one of the students prepares a discussion topic. It usually works pretty well. At least one person is interested each time and if the topic is controversial, it's not your fault. My preparation for this class consists of remembering to set my alarm clock the night before and sometimes it is quite interesting.

Why not ask them if they'd like to take turns preparing conversation topics?

[kdynamic]

Lately I have been giving my one adult class homework. They write a 300 or so word long speech on a topic I give them, such as they pick a country and introduce it, or talk about their favorite music or movie or book. Give them some prompts like suggest they talk about food, language, location and culture of the country, and the author/musician/director/actor in their chosen book/film/whatever. Then they have to stand up and give their speech to the class.

That or we play party games like telephone, "I am going on a trip", "never have I ever", 20-questions, pictionary, charades, etc. And the game where each person writes one sentence of a story.

I also ask each one of them every time to talk about something they did since last class. It can be big like a vacation or small like going to the movies or trying to bake a cake. Everyone has to talk.

Another idea is to have them each bring in a photograph and present it to the class, and then three people have to ask them questions or something.

[zignut]

[TK4Lakers]

[Glenski]

[alexrocks]

My two cents:

When I have a discussion on something controversial, I think the best thing is to just ask the students what they know about it and, if they like, to give their opinions. Then you can tell whether stating your own opinion will upset them or not. Also, depending on the situation, bringing up a controversial topic can be a good way to set up a debate to practice expressing opinions, asking for clarification and explaining one's standpoint. I've done this many times regarding all kinds of potentially explosive topics over the years, but I've never once had a student say that he or she was uncomfortable with the situation. So long as you keep calm and respectful of their opinions, the atmosphere of the class should be fine and I think you can talk about pretty much anything.