Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Goku]

[Fishead soup]

Steve Shertzer- I like him too. He's not liked on this board by the dancing monkeys.

[ESL Milk "Everyday]

^^^I think the reason people don't like him is because he's been publicly railing against Koreans and foreign teachers, and he touts himself as some sort of teaching god. To me, he sounds like a bad leader-- demanding respect, offending others, and humiliating himself all at the same time.

[Yu_Bum_suk]

[GreenlightmeansGO]

[Mainah]

Mr. Pink

Au Contraire!! Certainly intrinsic reward is the goal but external reward is an excellent stepping stone. The ultimate goal here is for the kids to learn. Classroom management is the means to the end, not the end itself.

Research over the past 40 years has proven that reinforcement for a particular behavior increases the likelihood that the frequency of that behavior will increase; the act of learning is behavior. Would you work without the external reward of getting paid? I don't think so. Kids in school are no different. This isn't bribery, this is the way we are. Why deprive the kids of something that brings results?

Research also shows that when kids enjoy the learning environment (have fun), they learn faster and retain longer. If they want to participate because its fun, the learning will take place as a consequence of that participation. Research also shows that, as the rate of participation increase, so does the rate of learning increase.

Eventually, (and not too long at that) the intrinsic reward of accomplishment will prompt the kids to continue to participate willingly; this is self-reinforcing. As rate and level of self-reinforcement increases, the need for external reinforcement decreases. The process becomes self-sustaining and only an occasional "booster shot" of external reinforcement is efficacious.

I'm not making this stuff up, honestly. This is Behavior 101. Mr. Tristan has come up with a set of protocols that works. Kids are learning and that's the object of the whole exercise, isn't it?

[sugarkane59]

Different behaviour management techniques work for some but not for others. I think theorising is largely a waste of time - just get in there and have a go... see what works for you

[hobakmorinam]

These are decent techniques for the beginner. Since there is NO training on classroom management tecs, this is (alot) better than the alternative. As you use then, you can develop the parts that work for you and drop the ones you don't like.

[Straphanger]

[gregoriomills]

[DWAEJIMORIGUKBAP]

[Tristan]

[Tristan]

[quote="Mr. Pink"][quote="Tristan"]www.viewtifultristan.com


You should never have to raise you voice. If you do, it means you've lost control of the class and a new approach should be constructed.
You should never, EVER hit a student. Sadly I'm aware of many Korean and Native teachers who resort to some violence either on a small or harsher level to push students into submission.
So let me get this straight, a whole week of experience makes you an authority? I will disprove this by commenting on your statements below.

I said I haven't worked with elementary school students for over a year...which presupposes that I have had experience working with children. 7 years in fact - so, yes, I consider myself a pretty good authority on it and I don't think your comments disprove anything. They are merely subject to opinion.

This approach tells me you don't know any other way to keep the boys and girls from talking. Strong classroom management skills would look at how you can have the students sitting in mixed arrangements and still have them being attentive.

Once again, I think you're trying to make too many conclusions from my post. I simply said this was a good technique for keeping students attentive. There are numerous other methods to have them in mixed arrangements as well. The title of this post however was 10 ways to exercise control over your classroom...so I'm focusing on some simple steps.

You are teaching elementary kids, why should you have trouble keeping them awake? These are kids who should have high energy and more likely be bouncing off the walls. If you do the same thing everyday, the kids will learn routine, however, they will get bored. Why do you have to make a game out of it? There are a lot of arguments against extrinsic rewards. Again, this falls to classroom management. Is the only way to get them to participate by "bribing" them into good behavior?

This sounds like the whole glass is half full/empty argument. Whereas you consider this bribing children into submission, I like reward participation and good behavior. Kids do learn from example.

This idea isn't bad. Some type of signal should be used to get the kids back on task. If this works for you, excellent. Transitions between activities is also another good classroom management strategy. Always plan to have smooth transitions.

I noted the need for smooth transitions.

I disagree with this one. You are punishing a student and their team for having to do something that is natural. Why not make a sign in/sign out sheet for your students and only allow one at a time. Take note of those students who go more than usual. Take the students aside and tell them they are taking advantage of the bathroom break privilege. (Also check and make sure they don't have bladder or other medical reasons for needing to go to the bathroom every class.)

Students will take advantage of the system. If this method works well for you and you like dealing with the extra 2-3 minutes you would have to put aside to address issues like this every day...that's just fine. I find it distracting though and so yes, I like students to learn that if they need to go to the bathroom they should do it before arriving. If they really need to go, then it's completely understandable and no one really cares if the team loses a star. But really, you'd be naive to imagine that if you let students go at any time they won't take advantage of it. This is a simple method for making it a complete non-issue.

Since you are working a system of currency and extrinsic rewards, this seems workable. However, why not model how students should be and remind the whole class the rules. You do have class rules right? My rules are both the teacher and students need to be on class on time and adequately prepared.

I've established a rewards system which is based strictly on known rules. Or any rules I want to add as the day goes on. I don't like reminding the students everyday because it's time consuming and uses valuable time I wouldn't otherwise have to use. My method presupposes you want to use the least amount of effort possible to maintain good behavior.

I used to be of the belief that speaking L1 in an L2 class was wrong. However, after further study, experts have written countless articles about the benefits of using L1 to learn L2. How about some advice: Have certain times or spaces within the class that students can speak Korean. They will not learn as much as you think by only using English. A lot of focus is on that in Korea, but then again look at how well most Koreans speak English after studying the language for 9+ years. I would make a corner of the room available where kids can use Korean for genuine learning (asking a quick question of what something means etc) or have a time, like 1 minute out of every 10. Having them totally cut off from their first language isn't beneficial at all to their learning experience.

That's fine. I agree with you here. I didn't mention I have a Korean co-teacher and students are allowed to raise their hand and ask permission before they speak in Korean.

If you had properly planned lessons, would your class be monotonous? Giving out currency for reasons such as this seems to me to devalue the currency. Why not plan for 5-10minute activities within your lessons, transition them smoothly and the kids shouldn't get bored.

Not every lesson is monotonous. Do you write your own books or something? I'm sure everyone here has been forced to teach from a monotonous lesson plan. This is simply a way to spice up any material you have. Nothing more...nothing less.

Does this promote learning? What about the students that don't learn that way? What about the students who are left out as they are not good at "games" - how will you meet their needs?

There are a variety of games we play that ensures no one is left out. Also, tactfulness helps on the teachers part. Pair up students who are at about the same level for fun challenges. And yes, it does promote learning.

Rule #1 they teach in education programs is never humiliate a child. Again, this falls to bad classroom management techniques. Why not take that boy aside and talk to him? By humiliating him in front of the class, you take away his self-esteem and his desire to learn. Other things you can do is talk to other staff(co-teacher) if it is a problem student. Again, making classroom rules and having the kids buy into the rules would help make situations like this become less common and easier to deal with.

What education programs are you talking about? Sitting in a corner is really not very different. You obviously believe that Western style classroom management is the be all/end all in education. But I definitely disagree. If a child wants attention by acting up...simply give him all the attention he craves in heavy doses. It always works - and the kids are so young that I highly doubt the whole self-esteem thing is really a big issue. They know the rules. They know the punishment. And when they break them (which happens once in a blue moon) they learn a valuable lesson.

This one I agree with. I will just add, don't do it too much or the praise loses its value.

I already noted not to overdo praise.

[Tristan]

[Tristan]