Experiences of a teacher of English

We teachers of a second or foreign language have to foster communication in the classroom. Also for the students to be able to have communication outside the classroom.  So we shouldn’t confine our teaching to language facts, but we’ll foster that communication.  Lessons should be in that language, at a bit higher level than the student average one. And as well that big exposure to the language will make the students learn and also acquire that tongue.  But remember: they should be exposed to the language massively. Also adults are capable of acquiring the language, not only infants.  And let’s remember that we’re making something big: fostering communication among people, which is something also big: we’re making something very human.  Since the students’ levels may be varied, we could try several levels in the classroom, or otherwise try to make different groups, at least two: one that is more basic and one that is more advanced. ...

I'll be posting soon again. My students are giving me chances to post further. Plus I have some ideas that could be nice to share with you. See you soon! I even have a nice corpus of issues that might hopefully be useful for you all. We keep in touch with one another. This morning I encountered my students again and they were rather eager to participate. Nice people them! / Photo from: fearofflying

Lessons or classes in a classroom should be student-centered. The students are the protagonists in the classroom, but also the teacher.  If we want to have student-centered lessons or classes we also need teacher-centered lessons or classes.  The teacher helps and makes the students learn. The students need a lot of input and intake from their teacher.  For example in second or foreign language classes the students need a lot of input and intake from their teacher. The teacher often is the model. And he will have his students participate a lot. He will have his students speak a lot of time, both by small contributions and with long ones as well.  If we want the students would say many things in English – the target language –, firstly they need a lot of speaking by the teacher. When listening to their teacher they’re learning and also acquiring the tongue. They need a lot of English heard and listened to, before they produce English. But anyway d...

Something elegant from the teacher could be giving his students what took a big effort to seek and learn.  I knew a teacher that used to teach his students what he had sought for long and he did so in an easy way, for them to learn it clearly and easily.  That was nice and elegant solidarity and service toward his students.  I said some posts ago that both the teacher and the students should be attentive to seek and find truth. Truth concerning little things about the school subject and more profoundly to seek truth concerning human persons, which is something even philosophic. Happiness is at stake...  As well some more elegant attitude by the teacher is clarifying and rectifying when he realizes he was wrong about some point he had taught. He and his students seek truth, as I said.  So giving the students what he learned with great effort and clarifying in the classroom if he taught something wrong. Better anyway if the teacher does no...

Second or foreign language teaching is one of the school subjects where we teachers can find most varied levels within a classroom.  Coming to the root of the point every student has his or her own different level of English or the taught language.  Although we may try to place each student at his or her specific and precise level and class, in any class we teach we will likely find varied and various levels.  And the high-performing students ought not to get bored. And the low-performing students ought not to be left behind. And every student has his or her own experience at learning and acquiring the language. What to do?  The answer is not simple. Something I do is trying to combine different leveled activities in the classroom but the solution is not accurate and definitive sometimes. Well, we can try that, trying also to get feedback from the students: Are they understanding me their teacher?  As well something else we can do is get...

Today I taught my second lesson to one of my classes of adults. It was okay. And they worked hard and pleasantly too. I teach English.  And today I got to have some nice discussion about some point like global warming. Today they said more things along the discussion. Because last week I got little speaking from them.  Now they feel more comfortable.  All these things could also help you with your classes with kids as well.  I prompted them by showing them pictures of ice stars from a magazine. There were quite some pictures of those ice and snow stars, taken with microscopes.  Today they said more things. My new students also are getting my teaching way, thus they participated something more. I guess I could have nice lessons with those people.  At the beginning of this post I said that I had taught English lessons. More properly I don’t teach English lessons. It’s not like giving a talk or a speech: precisely they are speaking...

Quite many years ago, one day while talking with a school subdirector he told me something like it was my students’ business to keep silent and attentive in the classroom.  I was surprised because I thought it was my business to get them quiet and listening. And he was right. It was my students the ones that had to wish to learn.  We have to educate our students in freedom and at the same time in responsibility. They are human beings and consequently free and responsible.  The teacher has to be loyal, sincere and honest with his students, and these latter ones loyal, sincere and honest toward their teacher.  Something practical and pragmatic? Both at tutoring sessions and in the classroom the teacher can try and make his students responsible by transmitting and passing on to them the like for a well outfitted work.  He can explain how to work on some activities nice. He will be direct at explaining to them about freedom and responsibilit...

If possible – and often it may be possible – we teachers should enjoy teaching. It depends also on the teacher’s interior richness, on the values he has cultivated.  He should value and weigh up each moment of the lesson, in terms of didactics.  For example he will say to his students that right then they’re achieving such or such teaching goal. In my case sometimes I tell my students that right then we’re communicating in English in the classroom! We may have been speaking in English for how long, for instance a quarter of an hour. And we can proceed in English. In that way they get motivated and also then they may enjoy the lesson. We transmit and pass on the like for teaching/ learning to our students.  As well in that way we connect with our students, and we show the teacher also is human. Thus the teacher can get the best from him or herself, and alike from each student. The point is letting our students know that things are turning out well....

We are not supermen nor superwomen, I told you some posts ago. I can encounter and find problems along the way, on a regular teaching day. What is more, we will find that trouble, as you also well know.  We should focus mainly on present, which is the only thing we have at hand. And about the future and the past: I should be concerned about them in a peaceful way.  Future is in God’s hands. And if I try to be a responsible teacher now, I’m already paving my future teaching road.  And about the past: it also is in God’s hands and what I can do now is to compensate and repair what I did wrong, but in a peaceful mood, please. Present is the only thing I can focus on – really. That does not mean I will be an irresponsible teacher in the future. As well I have to plan and program that future, but each day has its own concerns.  I will try my best. And I’ll also try to educate my students, whichever their age is, at carrying out good work and not s...

It seems sound we teachers should have affection to our students. Some prudent affection. Also because we teachers seek educating them as thorough persons, capable to change the world into something better.  We also seek truth. And we teach our students to seek truth. We teach truth, and we must do so. And when our students are studying, they are seeking truth.  It is true that Mercury is the closest planet to our dear sun. And we teach so. Or that 2+2 make 4. Also we seek deeper and more profound truths upon our human nature: for example all men and women are equal. We are human beings. We are children of God.  We help families educate their children.  As well we love our students with benevolence love, as said on other posts. In that way we may teach, we may also here seek what is good for them as human persons.  And we teachers may like to treat our students live in the classroom. And not only there, also at every place in the school:...

On last post I told you about helping high-achiever students. Okay then, now I’m saying something about helping low-achievers. I’ve found them. For example kids that had somehow serious problems at studying, learning, paying attention… plus their self-esteem might be low, so low.  Well, all the teacher team tried to help those few students. Also through tutoring sessions plus interviewing their parents. With frequency, more or less.  Well, something I used to do was to set for them goals that tentatively they could reach. These kids needed attention and affection.  As well their future could be manual jobs, not intellectual ones. Not for that reason are those professions negative or low level ones. Those jobs also are necessary in our society: aluminum carpenters or joiners for example.  The ideal thing would have been they could do the same activities as their classmates, but, you know, in no way could they reach those goals, like the ones their...

Remember that I teach English as a foreign language.  In our classrooms we may find some few high-achiever students, some low-achievers and the rest could be medium-achievers or average students. On this post I’m writing about high-achievers.  These students have some common characteristics, by means of which we may know that they are that kind of learners. They’re marvelous people but also medium- and low-achievers deserve all our attention and respect.  High-achievers are in some way conscious they’re good students and they see themselves as such. They’re creative learners and can reflect about their learning ways.  They usually are positive, optimistic and joyful students, this latter case being: the older the more they can be joyful I’d say, from my experience.  These students, if treated in a correct way, can help his classmates. As well we must be careful with them: they might get bored in the classroom, so we could think of delive...