Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Yu_Bum_suk]

My vocational high school students can be a chore sometimes, especially my grade 2s and 3s who get me first thing during 'zero' block, which would usually just be study time (i.e. loiter around and do nothing time), unless I show up with an English lesson (or more commonly these days, a DVD). However I had one tell she really wanted to work on her reading and pronunciation. I was a bit surprised and still can't seem to figure out why, as she's probably never going to use English in life, she obviously fell way behind sometime in middle school, and is, quite frankly, not very bright. I got her a simple story book and lately she's been coming to my desk every day at lunch to spend 15-20 minutes practicing reading and pronunciation. I don't even have any academic students who come to me for help so often. Today she asked me if I could also teach her some French. After just a few minutes I had her saying 'Je suis Haen. Comment allez vous? Je suis tres bien / bien / assez bien / comme-ci comme-ca / etc.'

And then she gave me a note that said:

Hello.
I am Haen.
thank you teaching English me.
I'm talked not English and I'm sorry
But I like English.
So I will hard worked English.
Have a good today!


So to those of you who have really low-level students, don't give up and be sure to let them know that you're always free to give them extra help if they really want to learn. There's always, always at least one who will surprise you!

[ilovebdt]

I agree with you.

I had a lower level class last week and we were talking about the things you can find in Morocco.

One of the boys says to me. Teacher, the animal with two mountains on its back.

[Woland]

Eight years ago I had a Korean from Japan in my freshman class at the university I was working in. She was homesick and miserable, and my class was worst of all for her because her English was much less than any of the other students and many of them didn't want to have her as a partner in pair or group work. One strong student, a truly good guy, agreed to become her permanent partner and helped her in class. But one day she came to me after class and said in very broken English that she knew she wasn't doing well in the class because it was too hard, but that she really did want to learn English. So, I found a copy of the book two levels down in the series we were using for her and spent my lunch hour two days a week working through it with her. She worked hard at it, doing extra assignments, and actually picked up enough that she managed, barely, to pass the final in my class on her own effort. At the end of the term, I was moving to a new job in Turkey; she came to my office on the last day of the term with a handmande card covered with sticker pictures of herself saying thank you. It's the best thank you I've ever gotten.

[ttompatz]

[SPINOZA]

One of my students astounded me with a really lovely letter on Teachers' Day. Here we go....

SPIN teacher,

I have never wrote a letter on Teachers' Day before. First of all I want to say thank you, because I got interested in English because of you. I thought English was just a hard language so I didn't feel like learning it much. But I don't now. Teacher very thank you.

Not bad for first grade middle school. She obviously had ability in English prior to meeting me and is exaggerating a tad, bless.

[Yu_Bum_suk]

[two roads]

One of my first year middle school students gave me a letter recently. It read:

Dear English teacher,

Thank you very much for teaching us very well. At first, I didn't like mathematics. But now, I am interested in the subject. Thank you again for your effort.


So...
Either my class has inspired him to love math,
or he copied the letter from somewhere else and has no clue what it says.
I'm inclined to believe the latter, and think that it was sweet of him to make the effort.

[ddeubel]

Yeah, I agree. It is all about the little things. Teaching is a human art and is mostly about people and less the subject at hand.............

I've been teaching for quite awhile and still always echo what a teacher I respected told me when I first started my teaching career. He said, "A good teacher teaches for the ones disinterested, left behind, given up on." I agree and if there has been any worth in what I do -- it has been in going that extra mile to find the key that might make someone who "can't" turn into someone who "can"......

The other ones will find their way themselves....

DD

[Sody]

Oh wow, look, a positive thread!

I had a student draw me a really nice picture that said "English is fun!" When she gave it to me she said "I like study English." It was a great day to say the least.

Sody