Korean Job Discussion Forums

[inspector gadget]

Duely noted about being a hard ass but thats hardly the case in my situatiation. Some of the K teachers are much worse.

[Yu_Bum_suk]

[I_Am_Wrong]

do you have your own classroom that the kids come to?

Do you let the kids sit where they want or do you institute assigned seating?

[UncleAlex]

The seating arrangement plays a vital part in maintaining classroom order.
Separating close friends and mixing the boys with the girls have helped me
at times.

[Yu_Bum_suk]

[TheUrbanMyth]

[stvwrd]

Keeping an intent eye on this thread as I'm in the same situation.

I'm in a boys and girls mixed school, the classes are also mixed English level (with several nearly fluent). I have co-teachers... in theory. Only a few of them speak any English at all, and it seems totally random if they actually show up (the deciding factor in how the kids behave seems to be if the Korean teacher is there or not). Almost 700 students total and I see each class exactly 45 minutes each per week.

Honestly... I think I'm handling it fairly well so far, but the other teachers are warning me that as the semester goes along they get much worse. I concur that the 2nd grade classes are harder than the 1st. Very true so far. I wish I'd had the chance to do some observing before jumping in.

[I_Am_Wrong]

I could see the students trying to treat the class as a "vacation" class when it starts getting closer to mid-terms and finals.

[stvwrd]

Yeah, that's what I'm worried about. I'm fairly laid back with them I suppose, but I have set some pretty strict boundaries. As long as they're within the boundaries, we're cool. Probably won't be long before they start pushing those boundaries more and more, and I'll be desperate for discipline ideas.

After all the **** I pulled with teachers when I was their age, I have a pretty good idea what to watch out for... its amazing that none of my teachers just snapped and just punched me in the face.

[crazylemongirl]

[schwa]

Mr Positive feels need to chime in here.

Its entirely possible to overpower rude inattention in large middle school classes without acting the tyrant.

If you expect your students to sit quiet & docile & follow your every word, youre in a dreamworld (quickly shattered). Kids at that age are naturally rambunctious & fun-loving. Its up to you to either channel that energy or become a victim of it.

The vast majority of students here are good kids at heart & want a pleasant classroom experience with you. Its your job to deliver something they can relate to & enjoy. If your lessons simply arent grabbing them, instead of blaming the students, maybe its introspection time.

Are you engaging as a teacher? Think about your voice -- a creative speaking voice earns attention, a quiet monotone does not. Think about body language -- an active physical presence in the classroom keeps them focussed on you. Consider diction -- are you speaking way over their heads? Simple, clear, & repetitive holds them because they do get a kick out of understanding a native speaker speaking. Do you take a sincere interest in the kids individually? -- sounds hard, but I see 400 kids in a week & they each matter to me, & they know it.

Joke with them, tease them -- everyone loves a humorous teacher. (Didnt you when you were a student?)

Act confident & in control & even if youre new at the game & dont feel that way, fake it. Never appear flustered.

Lessons -- make them games! I announced to all my new classes this week that every class they have with me this year will be fun & games. That sure made me popular. I intend to follow through & 5 years experience using the strategies above tells me the kids will make some amazing progress in their spoken english.

Fun is not counterproductive to learning. The only 2 classes that concerned me this week were too quiet. Shy whisperers do not good english speakers make. But I'll get them noisy.

[Yu_Bum_suk]