1108. Do you know how you teach?

Teacher B said to teacher A, “We teachers of modern languages need to have some feedback from our students. 

There are various ways to obtain the necessary feedback. For instance, you present one grammar point. After doing so, ask your students questions to be answered by means of that grammar point. 

However, the main feedback can be obtained from tests, both oral and written. You’ll be able to consider if your students understood the grammar point you presented. 

Besides, you have a feedback of all the students of a class-group. And in this way you can change and improve your own way to present a grammar point. 

And remember that grammar points are something practical: ways to express an idea, grammar points to tell about the students’ experiences.” / Photo from: www studentledteachingawards org uk. inspiring teaching slide  

1107. Studying with commitment

Teacher A said to teacher B, “We’ve got to be careful. 

I mean, if a student behaves bad or gets low grades, and we accuse him always about those points, he could become the same bad student, and we could be doing him harm. 

Therefore, we’ve got to tell him the things he does ok, concerning contributions in classes or good actions of comradeship he has had. 

Otherwise, if we all the time tell him the things he does bad, he could ‘fossilize’ his behavior as a bad student always. 

In few words: we’ve got to recognize the things he does well.” / Photo from: es 123rf com. educación jóvenes. alumno estudiando en clase   

1106. How to become a good tutor: a tip

Teacher A said to teacher B, “I know a teacher that trusts his students. 

Look. 

He wanted to talk with a student’s parents. So, he could have called them by phone. 

However, he preferred to give a small sheet of paper to the student with that announcement. He preferred to trust his student; he preferred to communicate with the student’s parents by means of that student. 

It was to show that he trusted the student, which is very educative for the kid. 

Otherwise, that student could perhaps feel disappointed if he learned that the teacher preferred to call his parents. 

Anyway, I don’t mean it is bad to phone some parents to come to school to talk with a teacher.” / Photo from: lynwoodeducation com. a center to learn how to become a good tutor

1105. Some of doing up in class

Teacher B said to teacher A, “Once I had to replace in one class whose teacher was sick. 

I was told at the school hall I had to replace him, in a class that would start in a short time. The kids were about 10 years. 

I had no plan, obviously, for that class. Ok, anyway, let’s go, I thought. I would have to do up and improvise something, but what? 

I decided to tell them a story I would make up as I would be speaking to that class of about 30 students. And the thing is that I invented a story, I told it to them, and with some acting out. 

I dunno why and how but I caught their attention. This happened some fifteen years ago. The story was in their L1, that is, Spanish.” / Photo from: eltallerdelaeam com. improvisar   

1104. Planning courses sounds smart

Teacher A said to teacher B, “A lot of things could be said about planning a course, a program, or an academic year, but I’m going to say that for my course with retired people I just thought of implementing the thread: get to say words, then phrases, then sentences, then presentations or descriptions of pictures. 

And now I don´t remember I had thought of other objectives. 

However, what I've done was to compose worksheets for those grateful students. They’ve been some of my best students ever. For other courses I usually plan more stuff.” / Photo from: pscbs gov rw. meeting with HIDA staff

1103. Thank you very much!

Thank you, Miriam, Helene, Vicent for your support. - Oh, I forgot Dominique: thank you too.

1102. Learning practical things

Teacher A said to teacher B, “A few years ago a student of mine went to Dublin to spend the Holy Week there, with his large family. 

It was a nice chance to practice English and what he had learned in our center. 

In other words: it was a chance as a booster of his English and like a materialization of having learned that language. Remember always that the school subject of English (or any other modern language) is something practical; something to study and work out and practice.” / Photo from: monicateresponde blogspot com. working in an office