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I'm no Picasso
Joined: 28 Oct 2008
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 Posted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 5:35 am Post subject: |
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I just feel the need to pipe up. I already knew my students are some of the best in the world, obviously, but this thread just about confirms it. Playing our very first game this week, in small groups. As I'm walking around from table to table, making sure they're using the English and not finding a way around it, if a lower level student ended up as the one who had to speak English, even though it meant that student would pull ahead of his table mates in the game if he got the answers right, EVERY student piped up to give the student in question the answers he needed to gain points. No group in any class so far has let their table mate flounder in front of the teacher, even if it means they themselves end up losing.
My students are also Korean, by the way.
Maybe it's just your students.  |
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oldfatfarang
Joined: 19 May 2005
Location: On the road to somewhere.
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| Posted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 3:17 pm Post subject: |
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| I'm no Picasso wrote: |
I just feel the need to pipe up. I already knew my students are some of the best in the world, obviously, but this thread just about confirms it. Playing our very first game this week, in small groups. As I'm walking around from table to table, making sure they're using the English and not finding a way around it, if a lower level student ended up as the one who had to speak English, even though it meant that student would pull ahead of his table mates in the game if he got the answers right, EVERY student piped up to give the student in question the answers he needed to gain points. No group in any class so far has let their table mate flounder in front of the teacher, even if it means they themselves end up losing.
My students are also Korean, by the way.
Maybe it's just your students. |
I'm sure your students are absolute little darlings - as are mine.
Please read my above post - and then report back to us after you've played a few more games.
Good luck. |
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I'm no Picasso
Joined: 28 Oct 2008
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| Posted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 6:34 pm Post subject: |
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| oldfatfarang wrote: |
| I'm no Picasso wrote: |
I just feel the need to pipe up. I already knew my students are some of the best in the world, obviously, but this thread just about confirms it. Playing our very first game this week, in small groups. As I'm walking around from table to table, making sure they're using the English and not finding a way around it, if a lower level student ended up as the one who had to speak English, even though it meant that student would pull ahead of his table mates in the game if he got the answers right, EVERY student piped up to give the student in question the answers he needed to gain points. No group in any class so far has let their table mate flounder in front of the teacher, even if it means they themselves end up losing.
My students are also Korean, by the way.
Maybe it's just your students. |
I'm sure your students are absolute little darlings - as are mine.
Please read my above post - and then report back to us after you've played a few more games.
Good luck. |
Why would I play more games? You mean the next time it's the week before finals and they're exhausted and need a break? Because that's the only time I plan on playing games. Maybe because I suspect things would start to go awry fairly quickly if I made games a part of our daily routine, and turned my class time into nothing but competition between the students, who I am trying desperately to make more comfortable with speaking English, despite the fact that they may be on a lower level than their classmates and may sometimes make mistakes, which I don't believe they should be penalized for, whether in practice or simply metaphorically with points written on the board, when they are at least being brave enough to try.
Yeah I'll get back to you about the problems I have if I decide to go against all of my better judgment and, as you say, play a few more games. |
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Tobias
Joined: 02 Jun 2008
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| Posted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 11:22 pm Post subject: |
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| I'm no Picasso wrote: |
I already knew my students are some of the best in the world, obviously, but this thread just about confirms it.
.... |
I hope these rascals end up working in the bus stations, tax and pension offices, hotels, restaurants, et al. Maybe I'll be able to finally get my business done that I need to get done with no problems and no interpreters. |
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The Gipkik
Joined: 30 Mar 2009
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| Posted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 2:11 am Post subject: |
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| I'm no Picasso wrote: |
I already knew my students are some of the best in the world, obviously,
EVERY student piped up to give the student in question the answers he needed to gain points. No group in any class so far has let their table mate flounder in front of the teacher, even if it means they themselves end up losing.
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I'm not sure what you mean by your students being some of the best in the world, obviously. That's irrelevant and churlish.
That every student piped in to help the weak student is great, but basing this amazing example of team work on only one game is, again, not meaningful. And if you feel that playing games, and I assume you mean games as discrete units outside of the "serious" class work, is not necessary, I do hope you are giving your students many communicative moments to express themselves spontaneously. The national curriculum doesn't encourage that. |
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ekul
Joined: 04 Mar 2009
Location: [Mod Edit]
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| Posted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 3:01 am Post subject: |
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| I don't know why but in my classes there is always that really competitive little fat kid who is great at English. When his team mates start fucking up for him he goes mental and sometimes even cries. I can think of quite a few of these at my school. |
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Tobias
Joined: 02 Jun 2008
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| Posted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 5:16 am Post subject: |
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| ekul wrote: |
| I don't know why but in my classes there is always that really competitive little fat kid who is great at English. When his team mates start fucking up for him he goes mental and sometimes even cries. I can think of quite a few of these at my school. |
Take away his sweets for the rest of the school year. This will help him *gasp* move up the face ladder.
He's one of the kids you can really reach. Push him hard to improve and watch him improve. He'll be making fun of his foolish, lazy classmates in about 8 years. That is, if he doesn't give in to peer pressure from those wishing to keep him down and in his 'proper' face place. |
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I'm no Picasso
Joined: 28 Oct 2008
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| Posted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 5:40 pm Post subject: |
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| The Gipkik wrote: |
| I'm no Picasso wrote: |
I already knew my students are some of the best in the world, obviously,
EVERY student piped up to give the student in question the answers he needed to gain points. No group in any class so far has let their table mate flounder in front of the teacher, even if it means they themselves end up losing.
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I'm not sure what you mean by your students being some of the best in the world, obviously. That's irrelevant and churlish.
That every student piped in to help the weak student is great, but basing this amazing example of team work on only one game is, again, not meaningful. And if you feel that playing games, and I assume you mean games as discrete units outside of the "serious" class work, is not necessary, I do hope you are giving your students many communicative moments to express themselves spontaneously. The national curriculum doesn't encourage that. |
Irrelevant and churlish, or a pretty obvious joke. One of the two.
I don't know what about my post seemed to tickle your condescension bone. So which is it, anyway? Just so we can be clear on your expert advice, here. I should play more games, which you seem to indicate would assuredly lead to something other than one "amazing" example of teamwork out of my decidedly ordinary students, or I have to find some other needle in the haystack that would allow them to speak English and have "communicative moments".
Which, by the way, thanks for reminding me is what I should be doing for the students, as an EFL teacher. I often tend to forget.
P.S. -- What are these games you're playing that encourage spontaneous self-expression? Jeopardy? |
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The Gipkik
Joined: 30 Mar 2009
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| Posted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 10:45 pm Post subject: |
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| I'm no Picasso wrote: |
Irrelevant and churlish, or a pretty obvious joke. One of the two.
Which, by the way, thanks for reminding me is what I should be doing for the students, as an EFL teacher. I often tend to forget.
P.S. -- What are these games you're playing that encourage spontaneous self-expression? Jeopardy? |
Sorry, Picasso, had no idea you were joking. I don't know you from Adam, and the number of absolutely self-righteous posters on these forums blows my mind. Your joke is based on people knowing you, or at least your persona, and having read your stuff. It's too damn easy to jump to judgmental conclusions. Cheers.
That said, my idea of games doesn't usually mean little games like jeopardy to entice the kids to listen, it's an entire way of approaching a class and a lesson. Rather than regurgitate what I've written on this forum many, many times, take a read of David Paul's book, Teaching English to Children in Asia. Great read, even if I disagree with some of his ideas.
Incidentally, games like jeopardy are pretty weak compared to some other stuff I do that blows the kids away. Something as simple as Slowly Reveal totally captivates the kids at any age, and can be adapted to any kind of vocabulary and target language. It kicks ass. Another one is partial picture drawing: draw a small part of a picture you've reviewed earlier. Ask a target language question, they answer with a complete sentence. If they get it based on the tiny part of the picture you drew, they get 100 points for the team. If no one gets it, draw another piece. Points continue to go down by 10 each time you draw an additional part of the picture. Kicks ass. These activities are integral to the unit's target language and vocabulary. You can even slip in words they don't know. The reason these activities work is that the activities cognitively engage the kids. They're thinking. When you think rather than memorize it is yours.
And it becomes spontaneous when the kids start shouting the wrong answers all over the place. They might be wrong, but they're speaking English using the TL and the vocabulary. It sticks. |
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gangpae
Joined: 03 Sep 2007
Location: Busan
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| Posted: Sat Jun 27, 2009 7:29 pm Post subject: |
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| Weird thread. Good idea having games with students who don't a __________. |
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Freddypops
Joined: 11 Jun 2009
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| Posted: Sun Jun 28, 2009 5:40 pm Post subject: |
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| Straphanger wrote: |
The trick is to make them compete against themselves, not each other. |
Wha? |
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Freddypops
Joined: 11 Jun 2009
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| Posted: Sun Jun 28, 2009 5:43 pm Post subject: |
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| ekul wrote: |
| I don't know why but in my classes there is always that really competitive little fat kid who is great at English. When his team mates start fucking up for him he goes mental and sometimes even cries. I can think of quite a few of these at my school. |
It's funny 'cos it's true. I've got a few of these as well - my favourite is the one who wants to be UN General Secretary. His English is slightly worse than mine. |
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Fishead soup
Joined: 24 Jun 2007
Location: Korea
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| Posted: Sun Jun 28, 2009 6:21 pm Post subject: |
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| Ramen wrote: |
I've seen students fighting (literally punching), crying, and cursing (Korean & English) over stupid classroom games.
You may say Koreans are higly competitive people. However, I think Koreans in general are just sore losers. |
More reasons to not play games. |
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asylum seeker
Joined: 22 Jul 2007
Location: On your computer screen.
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| Posted: Mon Jun 29, 2009 12:33 am Post subject: Re: Sore Losers |
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| Julius wrote: |
| Koveras wrote: |
| Sometimes my competitive games fail because the losing team just gives up, or worse, gets frustrated and acts out. Especially in the younger grades (I'm at an elementrary school), but even with the oldest. It's a shame because in these cases I usually wind up cancelling the game and making them take a note as punishment: and what started as fun becomes a cycle of punishment and anger. What better ways are there to deal with this? |
its a national mentality.Koreans are generally quitters- they give up at the first sign of adversity and they want everything their way or they're not playing...
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What sort of rubbish is this? |
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oldfatfarang
Joined: 19 May 2005
Location: On the road to somewhere.
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| Posted: Mon Jun 29, 2009 3:47 pm Post subject: Re: Sore Losers |
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| Julius wrote: |
its a national mentality.Koreans are generally quitters- they give up at the first sign of adversity and they want everything their way or they're not playing.. |
I can't agree with this. If anything, it's the opposite. Koreans are a very determined people. They know excactly what they want (money, status, good life) and they're prepared to do anything to achieve this (including giving up their personal freedoms, quality of life, and happiness).
Koreans can be extremely pragmatic, i.e., if they're not winning - they stop playing the game (or they cheat to win).
I don't see Koreans as quitters. I teach at a girls' school and I hiked 42 km with some of my students. This was an extreme hike, 13 hours in the dark, up and down very steep mountains - and while there was lots of grumbling, many of them didn't quit. I had to give first aid to girls with bleeding feet - and /or had huge patches of skin rubbed off - but those girls kept walking. They didn't quit. |
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