Job Discussion Forums

[Czaerana]

I've been teaching ESL (first time teaching) for 3 weeks at a state-run college in Sichuan Province. I'm teaching from Interchange Level 2. I'm frustrated by a general lack of motivation and apathy by a lot of my students. I'm constantly having to tell students to quit talking, pay attention, and quit texting. Some even work on other classes' work. A majority of my students (four class units of approx. 40 students each -- officially) would more properly, IMO, be in a mid-level beginner's English class. I get blank looks when I give instructions. As an experiment in one class, I got everyone's attention and said, "Raise your hand if you can understand what I'm saying." Blank looks, a few hands raised. Once I tried making a contest of listing the most "count and non-count nouns." Generally no enthusiasm. Knowing that the NBA is popular here, I tried using that topic in a question forming exercise. Nothing. There are some kids who are really good, at the level they should be for the class. There are some who struggle but are interested. As for the others... I'm not sure what to do. I think the Interchange book is pretty bland by itself, but the International office here doesn't have a lot of additional resources. Also getting copies made is a chore.

Frankly, I thought students here taking English would be more self-motivated. I love it here in China, but this is frustrating. Has this been anyone else's experience? Any suggestions?

[daCabbie]

"Has this been anyone else's experience?"

Yes,this has been almost everyone's experience here.

My advice: Be patient. The students will come around or you will go mad and they will find you running around the Sichuan province naked and talking to yourself.

Be patient. The students will start to give you feedback and warm up to you.

[johntpartee]

Welcome to China.

[nickpellatt]

Agree. Its a standard China story...and although it may change a little, it probably wont change a lot. Middle school kids will alway sleep in classes, will often use mobile phones, and you will never get all the kids to even understand the simplest instructions. You can try and break the learning habits of the entire nation, and keep waking kids up and taking away phones...or you can just roll with it and concentrate on the kids who want to be there, and edutain the rest from time to time.

I wouldnt ever teach in middle school again. Adult classes are the way ahead for me.

I would suggest that you carefully model every single task. Expecting students to take part in discussion lessons is a recipe for failure IMO. Model everything, give them lots of brainstorm activities, and drill lots of sentence structures etc. I found it had to be very teacher led, and with careful modelling of pretty much everything they will respond...allow the better students to expand on your language models...the rest, well ... the best they can probably do is just copy you.

[waxwing]

[Munroe]

"Raise your hand if you can understand what I'm saying."


This is basically the same as asking "Do you understand?", in which case you're unlikely to get an honest answer.

Avoid yes/no questions. Instead, ask them to explain the directions to you.

[Czaerana]

These are college kids I'm teaching! That's why I wonder why a lot of them are even taking the class. I am going to crack down on cell phones, newspapers, etc. Thank God there are some interested kids.

[themanymoonsofjupiter]

[roadwalker]

[Silent Shadow]

[mrwslee003]

Hi Cza,
Welcome to the generation of "young EMPERORS"!

When you have only ONE child in a CHILDREN CRAVING CULTURE, this
is the by-product. However, not all is bad, but you have to understand
these kids are mostly spoiled brats at home. They are the "sock it to me"
generation. They probably had to do nothing in terms of responsible activites at home. So their social skills are lower than expected compare
to NA standards.

While they maybe SLOTHS, they do have the advantage of a better developed brain, compared to earlier generations who rote learn everything. These kids can probably out think their grand parents.

Since they still behave like kids, don't hold back if your frustration urges
you to give them a good tongue lashing, scream like you are disappointed
at your own kids that they are not living up to your expectations. Demand
that all cell phones be left at your desk until the class is over.

Repeat offenders get to stay outside the class room. Phone the parents,
use the Chinese helper, if you have one to do that and demand that
their kids weaned from cell phones before entering your class.

Do whatever would make you feel comfortable in your classroom, be more assertive with your expectations. Its good for you and for your
students. Good luck!

[killian]

i dunno. how much longer will china need to tolerate teachers who can't speak the local language?

any teacher who has been here three months should have enough of a grasp of putonghua to convey simple wishes.

my current middle school WAS absolutely wild: cell phones, MP3s,fisticuffs in class, comic books, sleeping, knives, gum chewing in class, drawing all over uniforms, non-students roaming the halls...not just in my classes but all classes. i told the kids (in chinese) such wasn't good. i took their stuff and gave it to their "real" teachers. other teachers told me i was gonna get killed. had two knifes pulled on me...i escorted non-authorized visitors to the school gate...it was a never ending battle. now this is my third year in and it is an entirely different learning atmosphere. the good kids aren't scared anymore.

some environments are more messed up. be the exemplar. see a kid littering the halls? pick up his rubbish in front of him and dispose of it. he'll get his "precious" face re-sized and learn that not every horizontal surface is his personal rubbish bin.

you are the teacher, set the standard.

oh yeah, you also gotta teach great classes that the kids enjoy. but seems given their low level of english, you need to find a way to connect on even the most basic level with them. do you eat with them? little things mean everything. when they know you care...

[Czaerana]

I've been here 3 weeks not months. Try reading.

[mrwslee003]

It takes time, so take your time and have patience.

Show that you know what you are doing and care about what you do
and how the students learn. You will be rewarded. The students will
come to see your point of view and side with you. There are enough good ones who will win with you as their leader.

Chinese culture has a long history of valuing learning and that they must
if they and China are to progress beyong the subsistence level.

[gene]