Korean Job Discussion Forums

dulouz · Joined: 04 Feb 2003 Location: Uranus

Cheativity down!!!

Korean students don't cheat, they engage in the collective. I put a virus in the hive. We had word-search-puzzle-day and I gave them all different puzzles! The machine sputtered, yawed, screech and halted!
The sour looks were priceless.

ajuma · Joined: 18 Feb 2003 Location: Anywere but Seoul!!

I use "collectivism" to work for my advantage. I tell them that they are ALL teachers!! I WANT them to help each other!

Student A knows W and X. Student B knows Y and Z. Together, they know W, X, Y AND Z!!

If the smart students teach the not-so-smart students, doesn't everyone win????

Thunndarr · Joined: 30 Sep 2003

jmbran11 · Joined: 19 Jan 2006 Location: U.S.

I_Am_Wrong · Joined: 14 Sep 2004 Location: whatever

EFLtrainer · Joined: 04 May 2005

How can we have teachers that don't even know the basics of pair/group teaching? Everything rests on how you set it up. You don't "just" let them "help."

Good for you, ajumma. The rest of you, go do some research...

Criminy...

Boodleheimer · Posted: Tue Sep 19, 2006 9:06 pm Post subject:

Yu_Bum_suk · Joined: 25 Dec 2004

Panic · Joined: 03 Aug 2006 Location: Busan

If I have a small course book, I get a class of students to make their own word find's and we do 1 at the begnning of each lesson to fired up. I give them a few minutes head start then proceed to finish their puzzles in less than minute. This really annoys them and I use this energy to encourage them and teach them how to make more and more difficult puzzles. If you play your class right, it's great when a student has forgotten to write a word into the puzzle. Then it becomes mission impossible and you can quietly not say anything in order to torture the fastest students.

I easily remained undefeated until one of my clever students decided to make a puzzle using Japanese words written in English. I took the defeat with suitable melodramatic bad grace te he he he.

Panic

ajuma · Joined: 18 Feb 2003 Location: Anywere but Seoul!!

One of the many reasons that it's good for the "smart" kids to help the not-so-smart is that it's very different KNOWING that an answer is correct and explaining the reason to someone else. I do a lot of pair and small group (3-4 students) work. The students have to write a dialogue based on the whatever we're working on. For example, when doing introductions, I put the basic structure on the board:
A, this is my ______ B. B, this is my _________A.

Or

A, THESE ARE my ____________s B and C.
B and C, THIS IS my __________ A.

I have them come up with as many ideas as possible for the __________ such as friend, teacher, mother, boyfriend, roommate....

Then, as a group of 3 or 4, they ALL have to write the dialogue and perform it together. Even the lowest-level students have to participate, even if the only thing they say is "nice to meet you".

Even their exams are done as a group. I give individual AND group grades so the lower-level/lazy student doesn't pull down the grade of the more adept.

I want my students to learn English AND gain confidence. What's the point of humiliating a student?