Experiences of a teacher of English

I learned in my former schools to treat my students not just as students and that’s all, but somehow friendlily.  By no means do I intend I’d be my students’ buddy.  The point is respecting them and treating them as human persons, and not merely as clients of my teaching.  As well today’s trends in education is conducting and leading that way.  Therefore I would treat them all with exquisite respect and deference.  Another consequence we could draw is we should listen to them seriously.  You know, they have a great dignity as persons, some biography, some way of being and some personality, some family, some personal context and circumstances… they deserve all my respect, both if boys or girls, both men and women.  Another consequence would be teaching them in the classroom with also exquisite respect and deference. In the classroom, I mean it. They are intelligent persons and merit some teaching that should be improving...

  I’ve been resting for some time with my family. Now I’d like to say something in favor of women. First premise: I learn quite much from my female students. They have some perspicacity men don’t have, or not at the same level. They learn and acquire English in a particular way, from which I can learn a lot. They have their love for specific details and little things a lot of men don’t have, or again not at the same level. If you saw the details I encounter in them, you’d gain a vision which is beautiful. I could say many positive points about them. By the way, all my current students, and also within a few months, are adults. More things can be said in their favor. They also have a shrewdness and perception as well men have at a different level. You have to count on them and on their opinions. Regards young students, teens and children, on the other hand, I prefer to have lessons for boys and lessons for girls. Many teachers I’ve met coincide in the same way and vi...

  Exam and test contents should not be a surprise for our students, something unexpected. Exams and tests should assess and evaluate our students’ knowledge and practical competences. I’m focusing on English as a foreign language, but what I’m saying could be useful for other school subjects. Okay then, our exams and tests should, above all, assess our students’ communicative competences. Grammar and vocab are means, tools, instruments for communication. And their contents (of exams and tests) and their kinds of exercises should be very similar, even equal to the ones we will have done in classes. When teaching kids I used to include vocabulary activities, grammar exercises, writing an essay or composition, all biased to rather showing the communicative competences my students had or should have accomplished. Those tests assessed reading and writing skills, sometimes also listening, while I assessed speaking along the year, both with short answers or topics my student...

  I don’t know where the thing below is from but it might be good posting I guess. I found it among my old Word documents. Do you have any idea where it may come from? I like it. “Professional work [is] a reality distinct from mere intellectual or manual activity, or even of work considered as a force that transforms nature. It is, undoubtedly, a richer concept, one related to professional vocation, which a person has regarding a particular kind of work rooted in his or her aptitudes, tastes, gifts, virtues, etc.” El trabajo profesional es una realidad distinta de la mera actividad intelectual o material, o incluso del trabajo considerado como fuerza que transforma la naturaleza. Es, sin duda, un concepto más rico, relacionado con la vocación profesional, que una persona tiene de acuerdo con un tipo particular de trabajo enraizado en sus aptitudes, gustos, dones, virtudes, etc . / Photo from: Mending-Shirt in 1916 in the IWW www old-picture com. The picture is just a ni...

  Smiling helps students get motivated. Smiling has the power of creating a nice atmosphere. Besides, we teachers must be peace and joy sowers in our classrooms and the whole school, also among our colleagues and parents and families... Even smiling gives seriousness to the lesson, paradoxically... Also we teachers have to notice if the activities are going smooth; otherwise if an activity gets blocked and prevents from rather a quick pace we could skip the exercise with our expertise, our abilities and our skills. The teacher is the main source and resource for the lessons and they have no substitution, for example by a robot (so far, but I guess teachers will always be necessary…). We teachers are encouragers, mediators, actors and actresses, a bit of a clown sometimes, catalysts, family-members-like, advisers, psychologists, culture-spreaders, culture-creators, culture-developers, entertainers, a bit of superman or superwoman, criers, sellers, assistants… phew! /...

  Parents, and other elder siblings, cannot leave their children and their education to the care of the school and that’s it. This latter one is subsidiary to parents’ education and a great help no doubt! Dad for example may not know how to teach German to their children but he will take care of how they learn German and all about this parenting mission in life: Do they like it? How does their teacher of German teach? Etc. Parents, as Larry Ferlazzo and many other authors have recently and always said, should be engaged with their children’s education, even and up to some extent at school. For example parents’ view and vision of their own work educates quite a lot. I mean parents’ general concept of work and precisely their own work. As well family’s notion of homework may educate pretty much, as you can infer from what’s been said so far. Homework is important, paramount I would also say. It’s enhancing, consolidating and reviewing of what has been taught and event...

  Women are important at school, because they’re important at home, for education, and also they’re important at society, at any level. In case women are rotten, society is rotten. They’re so important. And at boys schools they’re important, at least as cooks and lady cleaners, and as admins alike. Because they provide a role which is indispensable. And it is something indispensable because they’re indispensable at education, together with dads. I’m referring to their special features and qualities as women: femininity is indispensable at education, at home, at schools, at society. At any social association – I’m aware of the redundancy – they also are indispensable. And their absence is something to be noticed. Something we cannot stand. On the other way round, if they’re present, all is easier – because of that also they’re indispensable at kindergarten, while at upper grades men can teach children and teens – think of single-sex education for example. But men can t...

  I prefer the option of single-sex education, in puberty and adolescence, from a didactic point of view. We advocate for a personalized education, right? I guess that girls and boys, at those ages, should be educated in different schools. Because we prefer an individual education. And thus we can educate femininity and masculinity, which is of a paramount importance. at those ages. This is also my teaching experience, within personalizing education. And I don’t mean they both would fall victims of their instinct or kind of that, but we might favorably educate women and men. / Photo from: cantabria www casaazaga com. the picture is a mere illustration for the post. My great-grandfather was from this northern area in Spain

The teacher should be a person prone to listen, to listen to the other: students, parents, families, colleagues.  Today people are in need to be listened to, maybe to give vents to their inward conflicts, and also positive things, and it’s the teacher the person who can learn how to listen.  Prone to listen and rather a bit less talkative, or at least he’ll be at people’s entire disposal.  Thus the teacher will likely be loyal and faithful. And how to help others, and help them change their flaws and defects? First the teacher will strive and struggle to improve and better himself. He knows how to say things to the others because he knows how to say things to himself. / Photo from: phone-1 englishlessons-houston com

Female teachers can provide some characteristics that are particular to them and which ones enhance school life.  They are up to little details, to specific points, have a special tenderness, a strong fortitude to say things clear, to take care of both people and material school stuff, have a lot of generosity, have a strong heart, have the sense of accuracy, have a special aptitude to both listen and speak, have intuition, have a special perseverance, have a deep piety, have a great respect to people (to each person), have a sense of balance and equality, phew!  I’ve seen all this, I would add. I’m also referring here to school lady cleaners. Our schools, and girl schools, would not be the same without all of them. / Photo from: nena_profesora www guiametabolica org

In the Bible (Old Testament) woman is described and treated as the Beloved one.  Man loves Woman, because He expresses God, who loves Her (his people).  In the Old Testament the Beloved one is treated about, by the male Spouse.  Thus she has received love and has to answer and respond to love with love. Because of that she has special features, and beauty is more shown in her than in man.  She is the Wife in the Holy Scriptures.  She is the most loved one.  Let’s think of woman’s features and way of being. She is (and has to be) tender, nice and friendly, attractive (not only physically but spiritually and from a psychological point of view), patient, pious, intuitive. Women provide an indispensable point to everyday living and working at school.  These ideas have been taken from and inspired by Spanish Carlos Cardona. / Photo from: female teacher www usnews com

Unfortunately in our western world there’re many split up or divorced marriages, and their children can suffer dire straits in their lives. What to do?  First premise: divorce is something awful, both for parents and for their children, above all if the kids are young children, what else can I tell you that you don’t know?  Children need, as you know too, both dad and mom: for their education, for a psychological balance, for when growing up, for learning donation to each other within marriage.  Boys need a male model at home. What to do? I’m afraid that there’s no clear or easy answer, but moms with children have to carry on as they’re doing, as you’re doing: to act as a father and as a mother, kinda that. / Photo from: sciencenordic com

En Andalucía (España) por lo menos se habla de sexo en la clase; y yo creo, y viendo los manuales de la materia, que se trata de un tema clave, y para hablarlo el padre con los hijos varones y lo mismo con respecto a las mujeres de la casa.  Y además debe hacerse cuanto antes, adaptando la conversación a la edad, y sin quedarse en lo corporal-biológico, e incluyéndolo en el contexto de: la persona en su totalidad, y dentro del amor, del amor de benevolencia por lo menos.  Si no, también pueden enterarse del tema del sexo humano por amigotes desvergonzados, y ver a sus padres con asco.  Se puede aprovechar la curiosidad del niño, o viendo la tele en casa, cuando sale tal o cual escena de sexo, más o menos. / Foto de: www caninministries us

Self-esteem. Teens tend to not value their bodies much. They don’t like themselves, rather often.  So their interior world cannot be brilliant or beautiful.  They do not accept their bodies, in many cases – it’s a teen phenomenon. Because of that young men attend gyms, well, and also girls. It’s a current phenomenon.  Nonetheless beauty ought not to be exterior only. I do know girls with a rich interiority, and that flows out. Beautiful interiors make a beautiful appearance.  If you want to have a nice look, cultivate your interior world too.  As I was saying, those girls try to carry out a clean life, they make prayer, they read books, and try to educate themselves in that way, etc.  And believe me: they’re quite pretty. Also they look after their appearance: they’re attractive, but in no way provocative. / Photo from: international-students www oxley vic edu au. The school students above have been found randomly - I don't kn...

At a school where there’re both boys and girls, the role female teachers carry out is indispensable. Woman has a series of features that are necessary and unique for the school.  And more if we refer to young children.  They have a special intuition, delicate tenderness, capability of being specially focused on small details, a special genius, etc.  All this isn’t opposite to the idea of single-sex education, which option I personally prefer. Mostly I have taught in single-sex schools and I prefer this latter option. But as I say, it’s one more option. / Photo from: edustyster com. female teacher

Most kindergarten years and first ones of primary education are entrusted to women. In other words, women tend to take the reins of the first years of education.  And it is ok, in my opinion.  They have a quality which makes them more appropriate for young students: their femininity.  Women at twenty-something or early thirty-something are more adequate to take care of babies and young children. At that age many of them get married and have the first babies.  And nature, this is, the providence of God in other words, make them more prone to look after those young students.  Classes of English or all the time inside the school should be immersion-like, 100% in English. / Photo from: kindergarten teacher wednesdaywakeup com

Fortunately female teachers have some traits that are peculiar to women.  The way they view problems, challenges, hardships, is different from male teachers.  The first ones have more intuition about the consequences of resolutions taken, they view little things that are important in education, like a classroom ornamentation, and other so positive things.  They are capable of taking care of little things, like tidiness in classrooms (also most of men); capable of giving a feminine touch to things, materially and more “abstract” things, like for example finding out students’ mood.  The solutions they give to a problem that arises in the education of kids or in an ample view of things and settings are something to take into account.  Anyway, I cannot write well in a woman’s shoes – I write from a man’s vision.  By no means do I try to say they’re better than men; just they’re different and complementary. As well us men can have ...

Most of female teachers of English carry out their labor fine, as far as I know.  Women have special features to teach, like intuition. Also women have a special intuition to learn English or another different language.  They appreciate and observe details.  When we refer to young kids they have also special traits.  I am so grateful to my teachers of English.  I’m not sure, but they have that kind of intuition, they can find out small details from their students. Concerning young kids they know how to teach them fine.  And their classrooms are decorated in a fine way too, with visual aids that help students learn better. They’re good educators for teaching English to babies as well, because they have a special tenderness. / Photo from: Teacher_with_class_in_background. www aboutourkids org

Female teachers have some features that make them become specially good for teaching.  Think of sensitivity, tenderness, intuition, looking after others.  They can also be specially good for important posts of decision. / Photo from: teacher www thewaygookeffect com

Femininity. I guess that there are more female teachers than male ones, above all in primary education. I can figure out that also from the people that publish in TeacherLingo web site.  In English and in Spain it is so, definitely: there are more female teachers in the first years of education.  In my class (1992) there could be three senior girls for each senior male student.  Those female teachers can provide a thorough education of children and older kids. They observe little and minor details, which is preferable in primary education. They can focus on specific actions for education sake. Also for teaching English sake.  I can remember that my English-language teachers were girls and ladies till college. I can also remember that they were demanding on little things, which is sound for learning and acquiring English. / Photo from: teacher and students therookieteacher ca