Every month our teachers come together for a roundtable to discuss a different topic and share ideas and information. May's roundtable topic was "Revitalizing Student Lessons". Here are the highlights!
Some examples:
One teacher shared about a student who is usually bubbly/talkative but uses a lot of L1 (Spanish) during class because she is too nervous to use the target language (English). Also, the student lives in Miami, Florida, where it’s very common to hear Spanish spoken in the streets – no one talks to her in English on a day-to-day basis. As a temporary solution, the teacher found a funny “Uncle Sam” hat. When she puts it on, that indicates to the student that it’s “no Spanish” allowed time! At first that was fun, but now, the student doesn’t like it, and she’s not afraid to say it!
Fellow teachers offered a few solutions, like providing the student with simple fill-in-the-blank sentences. One teacher mentioned the book series New Cutting Edge for teaching English, which provides useful language phrases. In her classes, this teacher tells students they “have to” use these phrases, and she awards points every time they do. If the student earns enough points, they can then earn a reward.
Another teacher shared a similar situation that occurred when she was teaching Mandarin. The student’s parents complained when they could hear “too much” English being used. When the teacher tried to “force” the student to speak Mandarin, the student didn’t have enough vocabulary to form sentences and got frustrated. The teacher worked with the student to get comfortable at least using the words they did know in Mandarin to try to “squeeze more Chinese words in the sentence.” One teacher talked about “target language only” days in a classroom setting, where students would rely on searching visuals on Google Images to make up for the vocabulary they did not know in order to express responses to questions for which they did not have the words. It became a fun game and a great way to learn new vocabulary driven by the student’s interests.
We touched on a few topics that often come up – for instance, setting realistic expectations. One teacher mentioned that if a student only meets once per week, then class time really gets devoted to reviewing the previous session, rather than expanding on something new. Students need to have realistic expectations that this will require more work outside of class in order to grow/improve.
Another teacher shared a story about a student who she taught English to for 1.5 years. She noticed that the deadline was approaching, but the student wasn’t really becoming fluent, despite even speaking English at home during dinner. So, the teacher asked the student a simple question: “What does your dad do? What is your dad’s job?” The student didn’t know how to respond, so the teacher gave her a homework assignment, knowing that the student’s dad was fluent in the target language: the student was asked to interview her Dad about what he did for a living in English. The teacher gave Dad a heads-up about the assignment, and dad wrote to the teacher in English about his job. Then, the student had to tell the teacher what her dad did for a job, and the teacher already had the “answer key” to check the student’s work.
This led us to a new question: Have we, as teachers, created an environment where the student feels comfortable making a mistake?
Several teachers expressed some light exasperation regarding the use of the dreaded Google Translate by students during class. They mentioned that many students are so nervous that they’ll make a mistake that they turn to Google Translate in order to provide responses to their teacher’s questions. These responses are overly translated/complicated and use outdated or inaccurate vocabulary. One TSC, who is an English learner herself, shared about the importance of learning “simple words” to really sound like a native. Another teacher mentioned that Google Translate is especially easy to spot in her classes because she teaches Swiss German, and Google Translate usually produces answers in German German. Sometimes, this teacher will retranslate student responses back to their native language so students can see the issues that arise when using an online translator. Another teacher explained that she tells her students, especially those who are afraid of making mistakes, that even when we speak our native languages, we make plenty of mistakes. As an exercise, she encouraged her students to record themselves in their home languages, just so they could hear that they make mistakes all the time and that speaking a language isn’t about perfection, it’s about communication.
On days when it’s apparent that the student is low energy, disengaged, or maybe just doesn’t connect with the material, many teachers simply switch gears and hold a conversational class – in the target language. Sometimes this could be a check-in with the student - what’s bothering them, why are they stressed? Other times, students are given a choice for a few options to redirect the class for the day like revisiting a grammar/vocabulary lesson from a previous class or even discussing an upcoming event. One teacher shared that her student was stressing out because she had a doctor's appointment coming up, and didn’t know how to approach an important conversation. Another teacher added that stressed-out days can actually be great practice for students, because eventually, there will likely come a time when the student is stressed out, tired, sick, etc., and they’ll need to communicate in their target language.
If students aren’t ready to take in new information, one teacher suggested doing something they’re already familiar with, like revising a lesson. This teacher always has vocabulary games on Quizlet.com to fall back on. With younger students, she might play “hide and seek” to sneak some new vocabulary into a game. When the teacher “finds” the student, they need to have a word in mind that they have just learned. Sometimes, re-engaging students with a reward like letting them watch a 5-minute episode of a show in the target language (one teacher suggested Peppa Pig for young learners… and adults with a sense of whimsy!)
One teacher suggested relying on the student’s interests to drive the class. If you haven’t already, have the student complete an assignment on their likes and dislikes. If you have already done an assignment like this, revisit it to expand on one of the things the student has already shared that interests them – it creates a “tailor-made” class! This also works as a supplement to simple memorization of vocabulary – by putting words/ideas into a context, the student is much more likely to remember the word later in life.
Another teacher shared that sometimes she gets bored too! When she has been working with a student in a particular level/workbook for a while, she feels the drag as well. To change things up, she’s started working with the student on some translation projects she’s doing from the student’s native language into the student’s target language. They find common terminology together, translating in “every direction” – and the discussions they have are rich and varied.
Through our discussions, we determined that adaptability is necessary. Our first brave teacher, who shared her Uncle Sam hat story, mentioned that teachers end up with a million personalities and that sharing content with your student that feeds both of your interests is a great way to connect as well. She mentioned a student with a “dark sense of humor” – recently, they’ve been finding articles on “Bizarre News” stories that keep them entertained and engaged in conversation about topics they both find interesting.
To conclude a final teacher noted that – his courses must have a base structure of trust and confidence. Sometimes he tells his students that he is having a bad day, and that allows them to connect even more deeply. In fact, that’s where some of his best content has been generated, and it allows them to revisit that information on a better day.
The importance of human connection was a common theme in our last roundtable, and it was a pleasure hearing from our network of teachers on how to gauge needs, approach learners with empathy, and pivot quickly to boost engagement.
Our next roundtable topic will be "Conversational Lessons: How They Contribute to a Student's Learning Journey". Stay tuned for the highlights!