Korean Job Discussion Forums

[rapier]

Just wondering if any of you guys lose it with your kids occasionally.
Today, I discovered that i can't really get angry at them anymore. When I first started teaching here over a year back I used to go nuts with the worst kids.
Now, i find that i can't lose my temper if I try...I mean I've learned such extraordinary self control now that nothing fazes me, its like I've seen it all before. Normally i like to take discipline into my own hands, but now i just can't be bothered- and just report the kids to the supervisor. it becomes her job to expend all that energy threatening and shouting at them.
All the same, its lousy when you have to bother a korean teacher to help discipline your kids. It works well, but I'd rather be "self- sufficient". I guess i've just gotten lazy...can't be bothered fighting them anymore...

[crazylemongirl]

I've found that losing it with the kids only does one thing - It makes me feel better. But it makes everything else worse, the kids and my relationship with them.

I've had a breakthrough from my class from hell. They do their work (up until now it takes over 30 min to get books out of bags) and I let them play in the playroom for the last 10min of class and are now being little angels. They will probably learn more in a shortened lesson than otherwise would be possible.

CLG

[waterbaby]

Rapier, what's going on in the rest of your life? I find that a happy in life person = a happy in teaching person. Were you a miserable sod before like me and now you're happy and firing on life?

A few months ago, I was getting really frustrated and often losing my temper - yell at the kids... at the time, I was feeling pretty miserable all round - not happy with the boss, with the job, bored, Korea sucked... generally one long grumpy mood.

In the past few months, I've not lost my temper once and I've been in a much better & happier mood with my life, my job, my boss etc and I've experienced enormous breakthroughs with some of the kids and my teaching in general. Yay!!!

[Eazy_E]

I think that losing one's temper can be a sign of inexperience, at least it was in my case. I'm starting to learn how to control the very young kids, and not losing your temper is rule #1. When you're outwardly annoyed they can sense that you're losing control of the situation and they feed off of it.

It's best to devise a subtle system of bribery and/or peer pressure in order to keep them in line. Stickers work well for the younger children, as does writing their names on the board with stars next to them, adding and subtracting stars as their behaviour allows.

You can yell until you're blue in the face, but they won't pay attention until you can manipulate them in some way. Making a bargain is one way, as in: "let's do the boring stuff for 15 minutes, then I'll give you a sticker if you've been good, and we can play games after that".

Of course, some classes just cannot be controlled 100%, but that's the nature of teaching very young children. When they're confused or bored by the learning material that certainly adds to the misbehaviour. Coming to class well-prepared and armed with lots of activities can be the best favour you ever did for yourself.

[some waygug-in]

I'm much better than I was, but I still get annoyed sometimes. There are a couple of classes that usually degenerate into complete chaos unless I lose it on them. I don't really get mad like I used to though, it's more of an act now. I give them the "evil eye" for a while, they usually get the message.

I don't agree that losing it makes me feel better, it usually makes me feel worse about everything. It makes me feel like I've failed as a teacher and even though I may feel like the student was "asking for it", it just makes me feel guilty and embarassed afterwards. I may get a momentary relief of stress, but that is quickly overshadowed by my realization that I may have no chance of reaching that student again.


Tickling and mimicing the students seem to be my best defenses now. If someone wants to ddong chim me, I make sure that they get a good tickling for it. If someone is incessantly whining "teechaw" in my ear when I'm trying to help someone else, I start immitating their whining. The kids usually get a good laugh from that, and it helps me to not get too bothered by it.

[Saxiif]

[hadeshorn]

I dont give two shits if I yell at my kids. I spose my kids are well behaved. I usually lapse into silence before yelling and scaring the shit out of them. They think that I am not noticing them all talking.. I just look at them, and the kids not talking gets a heads up to cover there ears before I erupt.

But I just dont take shit in my classroom. If your a spoilt brat.. Then you get your ass kicked out the door if you give me crap. If im marking someone elses book and you dump yours on top.. Then it goes flying across the room.

If you are gonna tap your pencil incessantly and not learn. Then im taking your pencil and throwing it out that window. (We are on the 5th floor)

Its all good.

[eamo]