Experiences of a teacher of English

  Some people think kids at schools should have tutors, not only teachers. Tutors with whom the kids could talk, aside the classroom, at individual tutorial sessions.  I used to have this situation when I taught kids, before I began to teach English to adults, some sixteen years ago – I’ve been teaching English since 1993. I think that that thing of having a tutor is something good. Tutors chosen by the kids’ parents, though those ones may propose their opinion about who could their tutor be.  And at these tutorial sessions the kids and their tutors may hold nice and friendly conversations. I’ve seen it, and it works, it does. Usually boys had male teachers as tutors, while also the other way round.  For those sessions there should be confidence and familiarity, and that confidence is only gained by the adult tutor over time. You as a tutor cannot demand that confidence – you conquer it through actual interest and benevolence love. And affection. And when you know ho...

I know a female teacher, another candidate for level C2 of English with me and others,  which is the same or equivalent to Proficiency within Cambridge examinations of English,  I was saying that that girl, a female teacher, accomplished to have tutorials and tutoring sessions and informal meetings with girls of her secondary education school or “instituto”,  after the class or between classes: they just came up toward this teacher and told her about their problems and issues in general, in a natural way, as I said.  She did good to those girls – young men just didn’t come up.  And she was faithful toward them. I guess this is an example to try to fulfill, isn’t it? / Photo from: www memocal com. the teacher on the picture is another one, not the protagonist of this anecdote.

Teacher A said to teacher B, “At tutoring sessions with parents and families (elder siblings for example) you can make them find out things about the kid they did not know.  As well you can learn things about the kid out of the school, things that you did not know.  It’s better if you all can sit at ease in a small lounge of the school. It’s essential for both dad and mom to attend the tutorial, if the case. As I said, you can get helpful information to assist the student.  You might attend the meeting with things thought and even some written notes. However it could be more important to listen to them, and to their worries and concerns. Empathy here is important – between both parts. Even more, with experience you’ll connect with them. It’ll be a natural conversation. You’ll suffer with them and you’ll rejoice with their joys.” / Photo from: besteducationpossible blogspot com

Teacher B said to teacher A, “Education.  Listen. That is what parents expect or ought to expect from schools.  The school helps parents and the family. These latter ones cannot teach math, history, biology, literature, sport… yet the school contributes by helping the family.  The school has to educate too.  So, parents or the parent, have the priority in the education of their kids, and they turn to the school as an aid. There should be a rather close relationship between the family and the school, because the aim is the education of the kids.” / Photo from: guardian co uk. Young girl reading in library.    

One day teacher of English B said to teacher of English A, “If you want explain to all the class about recient misbehaving, you can do it in English, and not in their mother language, albeit you think they’ll understand not much. It’s sound they listen in English massively. They may understand some things, and they see you’re serious too – but never cry out; don’t lose your temper! Tentatively they will improve: the following days you can carry on calmly saying something of what is wrong and by saying the actions that are ok: they need to gain the good habit of respecting you and their classmates, and this takes some time. Like I said, it’s sensible they listen in English massively: it may be part of their process of acquiring the target language. One more thing: the next day after a ‘disaster class’ you will find out that it was not that horrible, that it was this and that students who really did wrong in the class, and in no way ‘all’ the class-group. Disruptiv...

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “Our teens, our adolescents, seem they rather prefer not to depend on us, adults - firstly on parents, also on teachers. They are discovering their ‘ego’, their ‘me’ as an independent person. They trust in their friends more than in their families. Some moms claim: Now my son doesn’t love me any more, what’s going on!?, and they get so down. Teenagers wish to look different than when they were children; they wish to sense so original, so authentic; they look arrogant. These things are because they feel a great insecurity, and they want to say Here I Am! All this is not always that way. No, no. What does our adolescent kid expect from us? He or she expects us to help him or her concerning their capabilities and capacities as singular persons! They expect to be helped as persons, with their personal traits. Don’t get upset when dealing with them: they depend on you, teacher, on you, parents and families. According ...

One day teacher of English B said to teacher of English A, “At tutorials, or in general, if you treat a student better than he is or seems to be, that student surely will better and improve as a person. Don’t attend the tutorial by being too distrustful and too ‘cautious’. Treat your students like they were adults. Better said, treat them and listen to them as persons that really think and have their own vision of things, even now when they’re adolescents. Talk to them in a serious way, as people that really think, although you may think what they say is childish. For them those things are little but important and essential. You might catch yourself doing a lot of good to those students of yours. Not being too distrustful doesn’t mean you have to be naive. Your affection plus experience will teach you how to focus the points they say at the tutorial, and what you observe at other contexts. It’s like if be better to sit and relax when listening to him.” / Photo from: foro...

Here you have a text from a blog about educating. I think the text is sound and might help you in your daily teaching. I translated the text into English. The original version is in Spanish. The author, José Luis Font Nogués, gave me permission to utilize some of his material. He was a teacher, and an educator in the most profound sense. He has made many tutorials with the boys he taught and with their parents and families. The blog is http://albayalde.wordpress.com   I tried to make the translation as good as possible; and I changed minor unimportant things. Hope it might help you: it’s a good insight and in-depth view of persons, in my opinion. / Photo from: teach-english-mexico com. map of Mexico Deep understanding other people begins with a view full of love from me toward the other person I have in front of me [think of your students and their families, your girlfriend, your spouse, a friend of yours, anyone else...] . This is love of benevolence, of wishing...

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “You feel bad, done, distressed, because of that big failure in your work as a teacher. You tell me the thing is that most of your students have failed their last exam of English, and their families are mad [very angry], right? You say the school principal may fire you, moreover. And you think you’re still rookie. So what? I would tell you to carry on trying to do your best at teaching English, at your job, at treating both students and families, to think of a remedial training and a new test. Well, I really see this is what you are after: improve your work as a teacher and educator, learn new methods and techniques, plan your classes, think of every student’s needs and expectations, ask your veteran colleagues for advice, study about your profession... Go on that way, and your striving to do things good will pull you out of the hole. Don’t look at me by making that face: all your trouble can still be mended. Think...

One day teacher of English B said to teacher of English A, “You have the first tutorial with those parents today? So, I guess they two don’t know you and you don’t know them. All right. I’d tell you the main thing for today’s tutorial should be they would feel nice with you, and you with them. Smile. You told me you teach the son of theirs that shows serious problems at studying and learning in the class. You know, try to enjoy the tutorial. Break the ice. Be honest, sincere, direct with them though in a polite and delicate way. Be yourself, in any case. Don’t attend the meeting though you feel scared and anxious. All in all don’t worry if you actually are so at that moment – so what? A moment will arrive during the conversation when you will connect with each other. Talk with true affection about the kid despite you’ve got to say negative things. Be positive. Suggest positive things for the kid to improve. Oh, and listen, listen to them. Parents wish the teacher should listen, with tr...

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “One of my students of secondary got 5 in a test of English - 5 is pass. He came up to me to talk about the test. I asked him what he thought about that grade. I wanted to make him draw his own conclusions, not merely me telling what he should do to improve his grades. He looked not very much satisfied with his actual carrying out the test. I asked him what questions he did well and which ones wrong, this is, his strong points and the weak ones. Also what he could do to actually improve writing a significant composition. One point about improving his compositions? I can say some but then we agreed in writing a sentence that would continue adding information to the previous sentence; the goal should be a development of ideas, so as to build a meaningful text – we talked about some linkers: however, nonetheless, all the same, summing up, besides …” / Photo from: galaxywire net. Soyuz. International Space Station. Docking

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “Our students can gain a new and fresh view of their homework, just at the tutorial between you and each student. This is crucial for their learning English. Students settle what they worked on at the classroom that very day. They, maybe now, understand the texts and the instructions of the exercises. And they’re able to make up a composition. The habit of dedicating time to deepen, think and review the texts, grammar patterns, graphs, and so on and so forth is simply crucial. Classes and homework are conplementary. - I don't mean students cannot achieve all this in the classes. I'm talking here about the importance of homework, which is complementary, like I said. Students do need some quiet period to ‘process’ all the information from the classes, also for their personal growth and for making up a solid tank of knowledge to face up life. I ain’t magnifying, I think. I intently repeat, classes and homework as compleme...

One day teacher of English B said to teacher of English A, “Last night, when my kids and wife were all in bed, and I was super busy, planning classes, I suddenly remembered what happened to a student of my class, few years ago. Then he was 10, I think, or 9. The classes I taught were extra-curricular. The first day that young boy didn’t bring his books of English. I had agreed with his parents to help him with his homework/study plus speaking in English through games. The second day he did not bring his books. I made him think about how he could remember to take his books from the classroom bookcase to my class of English. He didn’t bring his books the third day, the fourth... He always forgot to take the books... umm! His eldest sister those days answered to my comment about this point. Oh, she told me, the same happens with his math book sometimes, he forgets his book: just he doesn’t want to work much. Soon I dated an appointment with their parents. I ought to talk about this point ...

One day teacher of English B said to teacher of English A, “In most of the centers I’ve worked, we teachers used to have tutorials with each boy. Maybe at the first tutorial, at the beginning of the academic year, the student was afraid and trying to make out what his new tutor would be like. The first meeting might be cold, like a kind, say, of a mere report-filling-in. With passing months the three-fold relationship among parents, teacher and student could become cooperative, efficient and warm. Something I came up with was ‘I’m asking the student to bring his stuff of English and we’ll discuss about his work, his mood in the class, etc.’, if he wants to. I found out a lot about the boy, and with running days was him who asked me for help and advice. It was a good chance to put in his shoes to learn how he felt in the class, also his feelings relating his classmates, a clear insight of the group, and so on. It meant a new world I as a teacher discovered. / Photo from: junglekey com. ...

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “A few days ago I attended an interesting lecture by a psychiatrist. Look, you and I have to learn and accept that we can have students with Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder in the class, and we must know this distress may be affecting them in a serious way! Well, you’ve noticed some students are active in an abnormal way and they can’t focus on us, for example, however we do. It’s not something to ignore and obliterate – some students may need specific attention by a specialist. Now I’m just telling you some practical things we can do with the students in the classroom: have that kid sit next to a calm one; positive motivation helps him or her more than your scolding – they’re very receptive to positive motivation; they better respond to a sequence of steps than if you assign to study four pages as homework; assign dates for rather frequent tutorials with his or her parents; also have tutorials with the...

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “When the academic year, like now, is beginning, few parents phone me or come to school to call on me. One teacher used to say that the best grades can be gotten in September, now. Not in June, when the year is game-over. Well, also in June anyway. Usually it’s mothers who call me or pop in my school, after Christmas, or more often after the Holy Week vacations, in spring. ‘My son is smart, you know, but is lazy’, said one mom. ‘I’m done – I don’t know what to do with my son. I’ve told him a zillion times he has to study, he has to study, he has to study. I have no idea in what way to tell him again’, said another mother whose son is 6 feet tall, already has an incipient beard, baggy pants at fashion, a skateboard with a long biography in its wheels, a colorful cap at an angle, huge sunglasses, hair hiding his face. I’m depicting can-be regular situations at our job as teachers but my goal is not to criticize or be cy...

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “Family meetings to talk about their children’s issues are important, so as to hold the necessary communication between the school and the families, and the other way round. Now, about what you told me a few days ago, and which gets you worried. You told me that you’re scared of speaking to a group of parents. They’re critical of what you’re saying; they’re more demanding about the success at learning English than their kids. You said you have stage fright. So what? Plan your brief report. Answer their questions, as better as you can. ‘Yes,’ you could tell me, ‘but they’ll notice I’m trembling or my voice is close to faltering’. So what? The key thing here is that your report or speech should be as clear as possible, and realistic. Present how things are going on. The parents are on your side, tentatively: they want their kids should learn, and make good use of the invested registration money. As well it’s so ...

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “On post # 655 I told you about the values you can help your students gain, all right. I mean virtues too: repetition of good actions that enable to achieve a good habit. Both value and virtue are complementary, or even the same thing perhaps. One example of values and virtues? Well, now I’m thinking of the roles the small ‘council’ of students of your class can carry out. There can be three student-members of that council or whatever you may call it, plus you, teacher. I learned about this when I taught in a school of a city south of Spain. Their function is to help out and assist their classmates. They meet with you every fortnight (two weeks), briefly. They’re a bridge – one more bridge of assistance – between the students and you, and between you and the students. For example the students of your class-group tell their representatives that they think your grading (marking) the tests is not fair, and the first mentioned ones...

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “One veteran teacher told me I could do a big good to the boys who I have personal tutorials with. One point was to learn how to listen to each student, whatever he wants or doesn’t want to say. You tutor, listen patiently, despite you might think what he’s telling you is trifle or childish stuff. Students appreciate the adult person who listens to them with a thorough and authentic interest! If you also nod in the conversation, and paraphrase what he’s telling, and keep all that information in your mind, much better. These techniques aren’t acting out like in a drama play. You’re really concerned about his things, his joys, his vents. Always you should respect his parents’ (or parent’s) idea of education – you can keep silent at the tutorial and when you date a tutorial with his parents, quite often you all will find yourselves to coincide in many points. Respect as well the students’ freedom – just show what it’s right but yo...

One day teacher of English B said to teacher of English A, “Yesterday we were talking about personal tutorials with your students. Now I want to point out something for you to bear in mind, to keep into account always. Your students are free. You try to assist them at the tutorials but always respect their freedom. I know you do so. They’re free and consequently responsible of their singular actions. Just one more thing. Look, the important thing is for your students to be happy. You can remind you of this at the tutorials. They have to be happy here in their lives, and forever in everlasting life.” / Photo from: girton cam ac uk. Girton College, Cambridge University, UK.