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How I've been feeling (photo by Kalexanderson - CC through Flickr)
…feel discouraged, as a teacher? I’m going to take a risk here and say you have.
As a teacher I sometimes feel like I am not doing my job. Like the students aren’t really learning, no matter how hard I work.
I have a couple of challenges this semester. For the past 6 or 7 years, I have mostly taught teens – or young adults at proficiency level. And we all know how fast most of them pick up language, especially because of the amount of exposure to English they get these days (with movies, music, games,internet, etc). But this semester I have been given (relatively) elementary groups of adults. Wow! That shook me up. Don’t get me wrong – I have taught as far as level 1 – real beginners – in my teaching career. But I guess I got too used to what I had been given lately.
I had forgotten how much more support adults at beginner levels need. How much more support, cheering up and and teaching they require. How much slower they move. I had forgotten how much they struggle at being exposed to authentic language – such as me speaking normally, without measuring my words. Their anxiety and issues had slipped off my mind.
One of the groups (that I am teaching and fit such description) I currently has has been struggling (still) with the simple present tense. I have spent the first 2 weeks of class reviewing it (2h30m a week), but I am not sure I see much improvement. I changed approaches, tried different activities… and I am not sure I have been effective.
I have created a site for the class, with extra resources and news so the ones that have to miss class (lots of them travel for work) can keep up with what we are doing. I have prepared activities. And still, I am not sure they are “getting”it. I feel somewhat frustrated.
More than anything, I feel bad, because I have been feeding them a lot of “grammar McNuggets” – grammar exercises, drills and so on. After the third class of teaching the Simple Present (which they should have learned/seen in their first year) I feel bad because that’s not how I think learning should take place, but it seems it’s the way they prefer, that they feel they are learning – even if I don’t really agree.
If my goal as a teacher (and the career I have chosen, my passion) is to help my students learn, what to do when you don’t feel learning is really taking place – or at least not at the rate you would expect? How do you know they are learning, if your classes and hard work are being effective?
Heeeelllppp!
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
