Experiences of a teacher of English

Teacher B said to teacher A, “Is the teacher’s single function to make learning possible? Not at all.  Ok, that is essential but don’t me forget to include that the teacher must provide material, he has got to present things, to talk, to talk, to somehow (but firmly) lead the learning process.  The teacher has to tell things to the kids, not just: There you are; you’ve got some material, he sets up a workshop and they must work and learn to learn by themselves only.” / Photo from: edudemic com. teacher talking to the students 

You can see the contents of my blog at the right hand, in the column of labels. Help yourself. Best wishes for everyone! / Photo from: skate-boarding   www outdoor-sport-leisure net

And this is the end of the sequence about committed teachers. Subsequently teaching should aim integral and comprehensive education, the education of all the person of the student, both body and soul or spirit. However remember that education of the kid is a priority of his parents. Concerning spiritual education a chaplain can do a lot, and also lay teachers who wish to do good and try to be good themselves. This latter thing implies the teacher’s spiritual and doctrinal education . / Photo from: artsedge kennedy-center org. art teacher with students  

This continues post # 1118. / Photo from: www uclaextension edu. k12 school teacher   Teaching and just teaching must imply all the person of the teacher. It’s something made also of self-denial by the teacher. No self-denial?: no teaching and no educating. Better said: you would do all the contrary to educate. 

This is the continuation of post # 1117.  Otherwise that would be alienating to me.  I must do my work the best I can do. And improve. And in some way enjoy.  And serve others, live with others . / Photo from: b1terman megustaescribir com

Teacher A said to teacher B, “If you wish your students learn and acquire English, you as a teacher must be committed.  It isn’t good, I would say, you expect the rest and relaxing of weekends and vacations above all. You should invest your time, your life, to teaching, being generous – although you obviously have your own life also out of the school.” / Photo from: blog heritage com. a committed teacher

The following lines appear as I wrote them quickly. They could shed you some light. / Photo from: palomaencorea blogspot com. Paloma in Korea. The teacher should not just go to the work, do the work and come back home. In this way the T would hurt his students. Teaching is not sth you do somewhere but separated from your real life. 

Teacher A said to teacher B, “Often, with the passing time, students obtain a real interest to learn and/or acquire English.  This language opens up a pathway to them.  I have found that students do not like the school subject of English just because it has no significance for them now. It’s their teacher’s duty to help them grasp interest, with naturalistic conducting in that language in the classroom.” / Photo from: www clarin com. students with computers

Teacher B said to teacher A, “When you meet with your student of private classes, first ask him if he has an exam or test soon.  That is the priority: focus on revising for the test. And bear in mind he’s the protagonist.” / Photo from: www brokenairplane com. art class 3   

Teacher A said to teacher B, “I can tell you something about private classes.  When you’re with him, at the end of the private class, ask him if he has something else to do as homework. Another way is helping him carry out his homework during the private class.  And the most important thing is for you to ask him if he has a test on coming days.” / Photo from: www guardian co uk. private lessons or classes

Teacher B said to teacher A, “Behind a high-achiever student his parents can also be very demanding.  We cannot disappoint and frustrate and defraud them. We’ve got to provide the kid with high-leveled activities and challenges, also with high-level texts, taken from online newspapers, BBC learning English texts, Advanced or Proficiency examinations worksheets of Cambridge, TOEFL texts...” / Photo from: www filmoria co uk. Brave animation movie by Pixar. The protagonist girl’s name is Merida. Don’t miss it: you can watch it with your family. It’s cool.   

Teacher A said to teacher B, “We teachers should form ourselves continuously.  Think of studying, participating in forums in the Web, reading contributions of other teachers, sharing experiences, revising things, having an open mind, being flexible, recycling our methods, reading books and journals, learning from others.” / Photo from: education seattlepi com. teacher studying

According to pedagogue Víctor García Hoz  La educación ha de formar al hombre para que sea capaz de aceptar cualquier situación real, cumplir con sus obligaciones y tener iniciativa . (page 94).  I try a translation in English:  Education must form the person to be able to accept any real situation or circumstances, fulfill his duties, and have initiatives . / Photo from: www norland co uk. students in classroom   

Teacher A said to teacher B, “You have got to apply to your life all the things that are included in this blog: optimism, love of benevolence at home, etc.  Otherwise all you say in this blog would be not coherent. So, struggle to be a better person.  Oh, and count on God’s aid, love and grace. I here recall the victims of the tornado of Oklahoma, and pray for them.” / Photo from: www asiaexplorationtreks com. trekking

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  

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   

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

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   

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

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

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    

Teacher B said to teacher A, “Something unfortunately many young people do not know how to do is to summarize.  You, teacher of English, can teach your students to do that.  Have them read a rather long text. Have them read it carefully, rather many times.  Then ask them and elicit what the key points are (from the text).  Now tell them that they should write a brief text by writing about those important points.” / Photo from: librociudadperdida blogspot com. escribir una carta es una manera de resumir, porque cuentas unas cuantas cosas que te han pasado y son relevantes (por ejemplo)    

Teacher A said to teacher B, “The teacher of English or whatever school subject can write down notes of interesting things he or she encounters.  For example, the teacher should keep on learning about his or her area of knowledge, about teaching methodologies, articles from journals, articles which appear in the Internet.  He must ‘recycle’ his knowledge and his skills. Only that way will he be able to be updated, which is so important. Other times and while doing something else, he can have a happy idea or solution to some problem.  In other words: the teacher’s priority must be himself, and working for his students.” / Photo from: tuvozentuvida com. trabajar desde casa te hace mas productiva    

Teacher A said to teacher B, “There’re things we can control and others we can’t.  I mean: you can plan a class, but you cannot control the results of the class.  Every day is different. You can control the process or conducting of the class but you cannot control its efficiency.  In any case keep on trying to do your best.” / Photo from: designbuildsource com au. office people working together     

Teacher B said to teacher A, “Concerning the work of the department of English it’s essential you would learn to listen to your colleagues.  It’s very sound that we have things to say, but you might combine this with attentively listening to the others’ opinions and proposals. Remember you all have the same goal as working as a team!” / Photo from: superintendenciarchivos blogspot com. gente trabajando en equipo

Teacher A said to teacher B, “Often teachers are worried about their students’ not improving, also in behavior.  Teachers get anxious and stressed out. But I would tell them: Stay calm. I don't mean I know more than my colleagues. It’s the students’ business, not yours, coming to the head.  They’re responsible and free. You try to do your best. They’re also in God’s hands, and He is more interested in them than you yourself.” / Photo from: www 20minutos es. alumnos en clase

Teacher B said to teacher A, “The following things are important for the learner of English: serenity, peace, studying and practicing peacefully (if possible).  The point here is to be able to dream and think of the project of reaching far in the learning of English and holding communication with people all the world around. For those things the learner has to make some planning, adjusting and improving the way to study, learn, and take the most from classes.” / Photo from: signosvitales20 com. remando   

Teacher A said to teacher B, “I know a teacher of English that makes good use of all the chances he has to speak in English.  He lives in a city of the south of Spain. If someone on the street, like tourists for example, asks him something in some Spanish, he asks them if they speak English. Usually they do. So, he turns into English so as to practice.  He has few opportunities to speak in English with native people. This teacher says that it’s good practice to make good use of all chances he finds to speak in English: every teacher of English ought to do so, perhaps.” / Photo from: worldsportchicago org. tennis   

Teacher B said to teacher A, “In the worst of cases a student that is doing bad in his studies and has a lot of flaws, the teacher must keep being serene, positive, encouraging, and helping.  The same can be said about his parents.  That student needs somebody close to him that smiles and doesn’t make big and fatal tragedies.  Both the parents and the teacher have to re-build up the house though upon ruins.  This joy and serenity come from the natural strength of the teacher but also from some help by God, who loves us big and helps us. ” / Photo from: mipagina 1001consejos com. 10 estupendos consejos para aprender a estudiar     

Teacher A said to teacher B, “I know a student that invests a lot of hours studying, but his grades [marks] are low, fail.  I guess he doesn’t know how to study, he doesn’t know how to develop his job now, which is being a student.  He has the school subject of science in English. A basic method to study is: first, a general reading of the texts, so as to make out the main points and understand the texts.  Second: make a summary or an outline with the main points and information. Then, he should learn and memorize those points, and thirdly, a general last reading so as to revise all.  This way of studying works for many people, but each kid is different and unique and has to learn his job now: to be a student.” / Photo from: minivagos com. chico estudiando

Teacher B said to teacher A, “One key point to learn/acquire a foreign language, like English, is just to invest effort, to study, to practice, to fight, to strive, to struggle, to rise if I fell.  For example, the list of irregular verbs. Every generation has had to study it by heart. Practice and use help a lot here. If you use an irregular verb, more likely you’ll be able to remember it.  Otherwise if a student doesn’t study, obviously he’ll learn nothing.  If a student works hard, he’s helping his classmates; otherwise, if a student does not work hard, he’s harming himself and his classmates. Is that clear?” / Photo from: emprendedoresnews com. secretos para un buen trabajo en equipo    

Teacher A said to teacher B, “At the tutoring sessions with our students we can make a huge good.  But first, you, teacher, have to educate yourself: you cannot give what you don’t have.  Now let’s think of a student that is getting negative grades [marks] and his self-esteem is very low. At those tutoring sessions or at a hall of the school, we could ask him: What good things have you done today? And let him think.  I guess this is a way of raising low self-esteems.” / Photo from: workforce com. hr finance cooperate    

Teacher B said to teacher A, “Now about management of the class and discipline: I’ve found out that if you treat your students with politeness and good manners and serenity, and you don’t shout at them, more likely the students will respect you – they treat you as you treat them, it’s something like that, according to my experience.” / Photo from: imagenestop com. trabajo en equipo   

Teacher A said to teacher B, “About memory and learning new vocabulary by students I can assure you that memory can be trained.  It’s in some way like chewing gum: it can expand itself. I can tell you that my memory has expanded: I see a new word once and I can remember it for long.  This is due to studying and memorizing for long.” / Photo from: yohagomusica blogspot com. trabajo en equipo    

Teacher B said to teacher A, “Probably you’ve noticed that students usually ANSWER questions, but they don’t ASK questions.  What could we do to solve this problem? All comments of readers will be welcome.  First you can present the grammar of verbs: I'm referring to affirmative, negative and interrogative.  Or you can use those patterns and make the students infer a conclusion.  I would (maybe) present the grammar, after having used the three types of sentences (affirmative, negative, interrogative) in the classroom, in a practical and naturalistic way. For example, I would ask a student with the grammar pattern we’re learning, like for instance: What did you do yesterday? And I would expect an answer.  I’d repeat the thing many times: I ask and a kid answers.  After that, I would say to student A to ask student B. This is some way. Maybe I would implement something different, depending on the students’ response to this sys...

Teacher A said to teacher B, “It’s ok to approach a communicative way of the class of English but if you wanna reinforce grammar or use it for clarification, you should know that kids of ‘6º Primaria’ (k6?) are the ones – if they’re smart enough – to start to understand and comprehend abstract concepts like subject or the agent of the action, predicate, or verb, or adjective as something that provides some extra information, which is complementary, to the noun (noun!, yes, also this).  Their age is 11 or 12 years.” / Photo from: chip-travel blogspot com. hong-kong skyline   

Teacher B said to teacher A, “I knew a teacher who used to look up and learn some of the words that came up in some text he had just read, like ‘eviction’. In this way he pulled off a big plan of enriching vocabulary.” / Photo from: litstack com. colorful pile of books   

Thank you, Anonymous, for your sound comment to post # 1084. Also thank you to the rest of the people that comment on my posts. All comments are welcome, tentatively. All of us together can give a push to the education of our kids, the people of future. / Photo from: cronicasweb com. e-aprender-ingles   

Teacher B said to teacher A, “I insist on this point: we teachers of English have to try to open up the view of the importance of mastering English to our students today.  Sometimes we have to talk with their parents, at an appointed tutoring session.  It’s of a paramount importance what they tell you about their son, and what you tell them about him.  And then you may catch yourself thinking that you must be clear about this point or that one, which are important for the parents to learn. Both positive and negative points. Also, as I’m saying, positive things, which can be many, and which ones are encouraging!  His parents need to hear this positive point from you.  All this within the context of the love of benevolence and affection you have for these people, the parents and kid. This conversation with their parents is an important aid to them, because they’re the first and the protagonists of his sons’ and daughters’ education.” / ...

Teacher A said to teacher B, “A powerful activity or game that you can implement in classes are Debates. With this activity students practice and acquire competencies they could need in their future, like  presentations,  argumentation,  selecting points that support their views,  turn-taking,  listening carefully and critically,  group-working,  irony,  sense of humor,  summarizing,  being cunning,  practicing vocabulary, naturalistic speaking, capability of getting enthused,  enhancing a particular view,  writing notes,  thinking in English,  politeness,  helping a member of the team,  elegancy, etc.” / Photo from: redstate com