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Korean Job Discussion Forums
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Seoulman69
Joined: 14 Dec 2009
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 Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2012 8:09 pm Post subject: |
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| Sounds great. I'd love to hear more about your methods and the books you were teaching, if you have the time to explain, either here or by PM. |
I can't tell you everything but I'll give you a couple of ideas that i use.
Be yourself - my personality is enthusiastic and I am a perfectionist. I encourage my students not to settle for being average at English. Shoot for the stars.
Have faith in your students - My expectations of my students are very high. I expect them to be the best they possibly can. If they do something wrong, tell them. Not in a rude way, but be honest. I think the fact that so many people get compliments for being mediocre dilutes the achievements of those who are truly brilliant.
Don't reinforce mediocrity by constantly complimenting students who don't deserve it. That doesn't mean be nasty to your students though. Instead encourage them to do better next time. Through this they should start experiencing a feeling of accomplishment when they do something well. That should reinforce their desire to keep studying and to perform as well as they possibly can.
Most of all be genuine. I love it when a students perform well. I think it's a distinct possibility that my students could make a major difference to Korea and the world in the future. Encourage them to think big, beyond Korea, beyond what the schools tell them is possible. I am grateful to be able to work with people who have so much potential. |
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Flashcard_Queen
Joined: 17 Apr 2012
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| Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2012 3:20 am Post subject: |
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I think our approaches to teaching are very similar.
| Seoulman69 wrote: |
| Be yourself - my personality is enthusiastic and I am a perfectionist. I encourage my students not to settle for being average at English. |
I'm also enthusiastic and a perfectionist, particularly when it comes to planning and carrying out my lessons, the way I present myself (e.g. dressing well), the way my classroom looks, etc., but if I have a plan in mind for the day, things I want to accomplish - during my prep time or during a class - and it doesn't go the way I'd hoped, I'm able to move beyond it and go with the flow, too.
| Seoulman69 wrote: |
| My expectations of my students are very high. I expect them to be the best they possibly can. If they do something wrong, tell them. Not in a rude way, but be honest. I think the fact that so many people get compliments for being mediocre dilutes the achievements of those who are truly brilliant. Don't reinforce mediocrity by constantly complimenting students who don't deserve it. That doesn't mean be nasty to your students though. Instead encourage them to do better next time. Through this they should start experiencing a feeling of accomplishment when they do something well. That should reinforce their desire to keep studying and to perform as well as they possibly can. |
I have high expectations of my students, as well, and they're very aware of it. I definitely give lots of praise when it's deserved, and when I'm not happy with a student's performance, I make sure to let them know in a constructive, non-deprecating way.
For instance, last week, a student I've been teaching since I started, who's now in 4th grade, volunteered to read a passage aloud. She was stumped when she came to the words December, January and February.
I couldn't believe it because we've studied months many times in the past - the whole unit we were studying at the time was about months - and there were plenty of context clues in the story. Plus, I'd just finished making a wall display with pictures of all the students under their birthday months. It was hard not to show my frustration, but I didn't. Instead, I took her aside after class and told her she needs to work harder to commit things to memory.
This week, I can see that she's really trying to learn new vocabulary words; of course, she's writing out the sounds in Hangul, but I'll take what I can get for now. It's at least a step in the right direciton.
| Seoulman69 wrote: |
| Most of all be genuine. I love it when a students perform well. I think it's a distinct possibility that my students could make a major difference to Korea and the world in the future. Encourage them to think big, beyond Korea, beyond what the schools tell them is possible. I am grateful to be able to work with people who have so much potential. |
Agreed. Sometimes, for me, being genuine means being sympathetic (empathetic, even), especially when my students are tired and unenthusiastic during class. I tell them that I know they're busy - like most students in Korea, mine attend multiple academies and after school programs. But I also tell them that they need to focus and that I expect them to do their best.
Obviously, I don't like divulging a lot of personal details about my life, but when I feel it will help to encourage/motivate them, then I'm game.
I've told all of my students, at one time or another, that my father was my principal from 1st grade to 6th grade, so I was expected to work hard at school and at home, and that, while I didn't grow up going to academies and after school programs, I had other things on my plate; I was part of a girls choir for several years, I had a paper route from 4th grade to 7th grade, I babysat (sometimes 3-4 nights/week) during middle school, then I had a part-time job throughout high school and university (full-time during breaks). My experiences were different from theirs, but I was still busy, like them.
On top of that, I've told them that as much I enjoy teaching, I have bigger goals for myself. I mentioned earlier in this thread that I'm an aspiring writer, and it's true. My students know that when I'm finished teaching, I go home most evenings and write (when I'm not messing around on Dave's). It's something I enjoy doing, but it also requires work and a dream for something bigger for my future; the kind of dream that only hard work can make a reality. |
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Seoulman69
Joined: 14 Dec 2009
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| Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2012 8:57 pm Post subject: |
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| Sounds like we are similar in our teaching personality FCQ. I too had a job when I was in elementary school and have never stopped working. I was always told that genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. If the students work hard then there is no limit to what they can achieve. |
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