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Qinella
Joined: 25 Feb 2005
Location: the crib
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 Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2005 9:03 pm Post subject: |
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| drgoo wrote: |
| Videotape everything. |
My school has video cameras all over the place, except for the bathroom, which is where this happened. I don't speak much Korean, but I was listening to my principal and vice p. talk, and I'm pretty sure they were discussing the incident and trying to get video of it. Strangely, the principal has not said a word to me about it, even after he, the vp, and the KTs all stood there discussing it. |
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Ken8589
Joined: 10 Mar 2003
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| Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2005 9:22 pm Post subject: |
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Did the student slip as a result of you pushing on the door? What exactly happened while you were pushing the door with the students on the other side. Did you manage to push the door open?
It sucks you got into this situation but you are the adult here and the parents will expect you to take the responsibility probably. The best thing you can probably do is apologize that something like this happened even though you didn't directly cause the accident.
I hope all goes well and your student is okay too. |
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pet lover
Joined: 02 Jan 2004
Location: not in Seoul
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| Posted: Thu Apr 14, 2005 3:32 am Post subject: |
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Qinella,
Well, first off, you might want to try being totally prepared so that you don't HAVE to leave the classroom to get something. That's easy if you have your own classroom and stay in it all day. If you have to move from room to room, I'd suggest getting one of those little carts with wheels that you see people using to haul groceries and other stuff home. Then you could keep everything you could possibly need in there. At my previous job, I spent one month changing classrooms every 50 minutes. Drove me nuts, but at least I had my cart. Organization is the key. If you have to leave the room to make a copy for a kid who didn't bring her book--don't go. Write a note that says what pages need to be copied and send THAT student to the office to get copies made. If it is the same student ending up in the office every day to get a copy, either a Korean teacher or the boss will end up straightening the student out. If you are leaving to get something that is generally shared by all the teachers, buy it yourself if at all possible. It's worth the peace of mind. My last job had one pencil sharpener. One. There were three foreign teachers and three Korean teachers all teaching at the same time. One pencil sharpener. I bought my own and still have it. No more pencil sharpening hassles.
| Quote: |
pet lover wrote:
2. Are you holding the door closed because someone is kissing someone in there? (expect shrieks and the door to be flung open to prove that no such cootie related behavior is happening)
Do you say that to them in Korean? If so, how do you say it? |
Nope, I say it to them in English. Depending on the level of the students on the other side of the door, I might simplify it. "Who's KISSING?!!?!" "STOP KISSING!!!!" "(insert a Korean teacher's name), students are KISSING!"
On another note, I also accuse students of inappropriately expressing their love for each other during class. If a boy hits a girl, (or vice versa), I say, "Look I know you love him/her, but you have to show your love OUTSIDE of my classroom! No love talk, no love touching, and NO LOVE LETTERS!" Kids hate that. I've had troublemakers find new seats just to get away from the person they were accused of loving.
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3. FIVE! 4, 3, 2, 1 (I've actually never gotten past 3.) Works well with the really little ones.
.............
But my worry is, what if I get to 1 and they are still giggling and pushing on the door? I fear that I'd lose all semblance of authority after a failed countdown. Any advice in that aspect? |
Yeah, this is one where you have to have some kind of classroom management already in place. I'd first introduce it in another setting. Like, class is supposed to be starting but many kids are not in their seats. I would then start counting down in a loud voice that gets deeper and more monster-ish the closer you get to zero. At zero, write the names of all the students still out of their seats on the board. Stand there quietly staring at them. Wait a few seconds and put a check next to the name of anyone still standing. Continue doing this until everyone is sitting. When they ask you what it means, the names on the board, say nothing. At the end of class, give a piece of candy to everyone who doesn't have his/her name on the board. They'll catch on fast. Eventually, you can start counting down faster and start incorporating it into other things.
Another thing I do with unruly classes that they HATE but works, is spend a class making them line up, and then sit down. Again and again and again. For instance, someone is doing something they shouldn't. Everyone has to stop and line up. Write the number one on the board and tell them that they must stand there for that many minutes. They must stand perfectly still and quiet in line. If someone talks, change the 1 to a 2. So on. You might "waste" an entire class or two or three doing this, but it works. They are kids. They don't WANT to stand up for minutes on end. If your boss gives you trouble over this, try to explain that creating a classroom atmosphere of communication, learning, trust, and respect is important for learning and that once they are under control, they will make much faster progress. Emphasize the faster progress. It's not a lie; it's the truth and it is something a boss tends to like to hear because if the kids look good, the school looks good. You could even put it in a time frame: tell the boss that you want to try it for two weeks and if it doesn't work, you'll try something else. Always, always, always emphasize that you are trying to do your best for the kids because you want them to succeed and the school's reputation to increase. And, that should be the truth, too, because who wants kids to fail? Who wants his/her school to fail?
Another thing: in each class, put the kids in teams. Let them choose their team name. Every class, write the team names on the board. If someone on a team speaks in Korean, doesn't pay attention, didn't do homework, etc. etc., make a mark under the team name. At the end of the class, give a reward to the team that has the fewest marks. Team members will start policing each other and everyone will get competitive and work harder just to get that reward at the end of class. HOWEVER, don't stop there because it can be very discouraging to a team to get lots of marks just because ONE member keeps slipping up and using Korean, or whatever. So, if you notice someone doing something wonderful, ERASE one of the marks under that person's team's name. I erase marks for:
1. Remembering and using new English vocabulary words or phrases.
2. Saying something sincerely nice to another classmate.
3. Helping a classmate.
4. Tidying up the area.
5. Getting a right answer to a tough question.
etc.
And, I also ALWAYS let the team with the fewest marks line up first. You know how kids often anxious to be on their way? They WANT to be first. The team with the fewest marks gets to be first and the team with the most marks has to line up last. I also like "rewarding" kids on a team with few marks by letting them go and get a drink of water if they want, but telling a student on a team with lots of marks, "Sorry, but your team has too many marks, so you can't."
Good luck! |
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