I taught a woman how to read today. She has been in the beginning English class all summer, and I just started working with her this week. I realized immediately that she could not read, but for a few days we just worked through the class material verbally. She copied from the board without understanding what she was writing, and she repeated sentences after me not knowing what she was saying.
But today, we started at square one. I showed her how to hold a pencil. Then I wrote a capital A and made her write it correctly (I’m really into writing properly after having to write Chinese characters in proper stroke order; it really does matter!).
Then, I did a major throwback to when I was about three years old and would sit on my mom’s lap and do Hooked on Phonics every evening (Thank you, Mom!). Over and over, I had my student repeat “A, ah, apple; B, buh, ball; C, ck, cat, etc.” We went through the whole alphabet, learning to write, learning the names of the letters, learning the sounds each letter makes, and learning new words, too.
Next, I used a random worksheet the student had from class. It happened to be a lesson about health. I circled a word. First she said each letter: S-I-C-K. Then she slowly made the sound of each letter. Next, she put it all together.
She learned to read!
I had her read several words, and after each one she squeezed my hand and thanked me. After class, she gave me a big hug and kissed me on the cheek. Teaching her took a lot of patience. But she was so attentive and persistent. I’ve never seen anyone so happy before. I was pretty happy, too.
Showing posts with label TESOL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TESOL. Show all posts
06 August 2009
04 August 2009
Scandal in English Class
Last week in English class (see TESOL), we were discussing how to introduce oneself in English.
The main teacher began asking some of the students to introduce themselves to the class. A married couple from Africa introduced themselves together, and it was discovered that they were married when the wife was 14 and the husband was 26.
Scandal? That’s what the main teacher (from Russia) thought. This teacher stopped class and interrogated the 30 or so African students about their countries’ and cultures’ practices.
“You mean small girls – children of 14 - they marry grown men? They have babies? But they don’t know - they can’t think - they don’t understand what they’re doing!”
These African students can barely introduce themselves in English, but they gave a pretty fabulous rebuttal: “In America, 14 year old girls have babies and they’re not married. In Africa, the girls are married. In Africa, it’s better.”
It was also clarified that prearranged marriages and girls getting married in their early teens is not common any more. The aforementioned couple has been (happily) married for 25 years, and their situation would not likely occur today.
During this 15-minute discussion, I wasn’t really sure what to do. At first, I wanted to stop the teacher; rebuke her, really, for being insensitive to different cultures. Then, I wanted to try to help the African students defend themselves. I decided against both, and just watched, listened, and learned. After it was all over, there were no hard feelings. Class continued with a discussion of grammar, rather than have more students give introductions.
The main teacher began asking some of the students to introduce themselves to the class. A married couple from Africa introduced themselves together, and it was discovered that they were married when the wife was 14 and the husband was 26.
Scandal? That’s what the main teacher (from Russia) thought. This teacher stopped class and interrogated the 30 or so African students about their countries’ and cultures’ practices.
“You mean small girls – children of 14 - they marry grown men? They have babies? But they don’t know - they can’t think - they don’t understand what they’re doing!”
These African students can barely introduce themselves in English, but they gave a pretty fabulous rebuttal: “In America, 14 year old girls have babies and they’re not married. In Africa, the girls are married. In Africa, it’s better.”
It was also clarified that prearranged marriages and girls getting married in their early teens is not common any more. The aforementioned couple has been (happily) married for 25 years, and their situation would not likely occur today.
During this 15-minute discussion, I wasn’t really sure what to do. At first, I wanted to stop the teacher; rebuke her, really, for being insensitive to different cultures. Then, I wanted to try to help the African students defend themselves. I decided against both, and just watched, listened, and learned. After it was all over, there were no hard feelings. Class continued with a discussion of grammar, rather than have more students give introductions.
29 July 2009
TESOL
(Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages)
This summer, I’ve been volunteering teaching English in Columbus. The free classes are offered four days a week at a community center. They are sponsored through a federal grant, and any adult who wants to learn English as a second language can attend.
Most of the students are from various countries in Africa: Sudan, Senegal, Guinea, Mauritania, and Ghana. (I had to study a map after my first day of class!) The students generally can speak their African languages and French – and I’ve become pretty decent at BS-ing my way through French.
Each class is two hours and is taught by a teacher employed by the community center. My job is to work one-on-one with the students who need extra help in the class.
Teaching is hard work. Not only do the students have no English skills, some of these adults are illiterate in their native languages. All of the students work hard; the class is free, and they wouldn’t be there if they didn’t want to come. But how do you explain English sentence structure to someone who doesn’t know what a verb is? How do you describe the difference between “we” and “they” if their language doesn’t distinguish between them the same way English does? How do you make them copy off the blackboard when they don’t know the alphabet? These are things I am learning how to teach. (It’s not impossible!)
Every day is a new challenge. But I’m learning a comprehensive method for teaching English. When I go back to China in September, I plan on offering free, elementary English courses. I taught English last time I was there, but I had no method… and I think I failed. But this time, I’m determined to succeed.
This summer, I’ve been volunteering teaching English in Columbus. The free classes are offered four days a week at a community center. They are sponsored through a federal grant, and any adult who wants to learn English as a second language can attend.
Most of the students are from various countries in Africa: Sudan, Senegal, Guinea, Mauritania, and Ghana. (I had to study a map after my first day of class!) The students generally can speak their African languages and French – and I’ve become pretty decent at BS-ing my way through French.
Each class is two hours and is taught by a teacher employed by the community center. My job is to work one-on-one with the students who need extra help in the class.
Teaching is hard work. Not only do the students have no English skills, some of these adults are illiterate in their native languages. All of the students work hard; the class is free, and they wouldn’t be there if they didn’t want to come. But how do you explain English sentence structure to someone who doesn’t know what a verb is? How do you describe the difference between “we” and “they” if their language doesn’t distinguish between them the same way English does? How do you make them copy off the blackboard when they don’t know the alphabet? These are things I am learning how to teach. (It’s not impossible!)
Every day is a new challenge. But I’m learning a comprehensive method for teaching English. When I go back to China in September, I plan on offering free, elementary English courses. I taught English last time I was there, but I had no method… and I think I failed. But this time, I’m determined to succeed.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)