Job Discussion Forums

[Margot73]

As part of my training, I observed a level one class. This class covers the alphabet, although most of the students seem to know it. The teacher decided to have the class sing the "ABC" song. You could literally see the students' posture stiffen, some of them looked like they were singing through clenched teeth. To make matters worse, as soon as the song was done, the teacher went off into some sort of free association with "Sesame Street." They were very much NOT into these things. Do you find adults resistant to ALL games or songs, or just childish ones like I mentioned? Many of my students work long hours and come to class sleepy. I'm trying to think of fun ways to change gears or wake them up without condescending or treating them like kids.

[Sonnet]

Cop-out answer:
I find it depends entirely on the group dynamic of the adult class

Longer answer:
Right, speaking of the (Chinese) students I've experienced, I'd make the following observations
- Some classes love games/activities, others loathe them. You can usually tell from their general rapport & demeanour (with both one another & the teacher) whether a particular activity is worth trying
- Lower-level (elementary) classes seem to enjoy 'fun' games & activities more; I've used plenty of my standard kiddy/teenager games in elementary classes & they've gone down a storm
- Higher-level classes seem to be much more interested in roleplays, pron work & error analysis. Games haven't raised many smiles
- I've never *sung* songs with adult classes, but I've used a few for listening exercises, and they've gone down pretty well. They're quite willing to go out for some karaoke after class, however...

You'll probably get a variety of answers from people teaching in different places. I do reckon that it's all about the class dynamic, though; a teacher should be able to recognise pretty easily whether their class is more interested in formal or informal activities in class.

[spiral78]

I wouldn't put 'games' or songs or children's activities into a class for businesspeople. But there are activities with a clear point for language learning/practice that do work well for me. Team or pair tasks with an element of competition, for example.

Yesterday, I had students prepare to argue a point very briefly, in pairs, with the members of the pairs taking the opposite side. I emphasized that expressing their actual opinions isn't the point - it's practicing the structure of an argument and the language elements needed (modals, conditionals, structuring language). Then, each pair gave their arguments before the class, with the class voting on whose argument was more convincing. Some students used humor and enthusiasm to 'argue' points they entirely don't really believe in, everyone was active in prep, argument, listening, and evaluating the effectiveness of the argument. It was a very lively class, with a clear learning focus, and went quite well - as it has with nearly every class.

Though, I have to agree with the previous poster that classes can react very individually...there are still some principles that usually work well.

[coffeedrinker]

Yeah, it depends on the people and maybe how seriously they take themselves.

I wouldn't sing the alphabet song. But I have taught adults in Europe who really enjoyed games or competitions - including some with partially physical components like boardraces. I do make sure there is a clear language focus though.

Certainly sometimes you can just tell they aren't up for it, so in this case it pays to avoid games. But I think it can bring a more lighthearted vibe to the class - and if you can kind of joke about it or clearly be pretending to take it more seriously, this can show them you aren't taking it as sign of their intelligence (or lack of it).

I think the way you treat people and see them in general comes through - and if you respect them and relate to them, you can sometimes throw in a game without offending them.

[ilaria]

I once had a colleague whose adult Chinese students once wrote on the board during the break, 'We don't want to play games'. He took the hint.

Meanwhile, same school, same age group, my class at that time just loved playing silly games and bashing each other on the head with an inflatable hammer.

[ls650]

[JosephP]

[ilaria]

[yaramaz]

My beginner class spontaneously broke into the alphabet song the other day while we were reviewing letters. I had nothing to do with it. They enjoyed it so much they did it twice. And these are all businesspeople and the lesson was in company. I thought that was pretty cool because we are able to maintain a light and fluffy and happy energy while still getting the work done and actually learning something.

[Sheikh Inal Ovar]

Some students, those fighting the urge to get up and walk out, are being awfully polite ...

I'd walk ...

[dmb]

Surely it depends on the song and place Sheikh. If you were to be at Croker park later today and the England fans broke out with "swing low" would you join in or walk?

[Sheikh Inal Ovar]

I'd run like the clappers ...

[dmb]

Actually, English Rugby. I don't blame you

[gaijinalways]

It really does depend on the class. Also, some songs are better suited to various ages; my uni students like singing TLC, adults here in Japan are often crazy for the Beatles (though I have met the odd Deep Purple fan ). That being said, we had one little 10 year old boy that could sing a lot of Motown songs (and I mean, he knew the words and everything ), guess his Mom was a big fan and sings them at home every day.

I love singing myself, but I know there are people who abhor it. I had one student from NEC that you would have sworn Eric Clapton had become Japanese, this guy was that good (and I am pretty good at a few of his songs, but this guy was very good).

[yaramaz]

To be honest, if I were a student in the classroom where we had to sing, I'd be running for the door. I also hate ice breakers, warmers, bouncy-runaround games, and other gimmicks/techniques that we are expected to use in our classes. When I was doing my two week orientation at that university where I used to work, the teacher trainers used lots of the aforementioned games and jumping up and moving around activities and I was miserable. I just wanted to know what was expected of us, what the criteria were for assessing students, how to access resources from the library, etc. I never really got much concrete help but I did cut up lots of bits of paper.

I try to guage how my students feel about such things before inflicting them on them. That whole alphabet song thing was spontaneous on their part. God knows I'd never have done it on my own.