I Prefer Glazed Doughnuts...

I only had one class today because all the other classes are reviewing for the test next week. I decided to continue working on Superheroes instead of starting a new topic. The only class I had today was 1-3 (The quietest first grade class). What I can't understand about this class is that they're not interested in anything: Nothing; Nada; Zilch. I hear all the other teachers talking about this class as well. It is a torturous class, because not only are they quiet, but they're eyes are glazed over...
They did pay attention when I showed them short video clips of superheroes, but their eyes went quickly back the the glazed state when I asked them if they liked superheroes. No one raised their hands no matter how many times I repeated or slowed down my speech and even when the question was written on the board (So much for dual-coding...). But later when I walked up to the groups and asked them who their favorite superheroes were, one managed to call out in every group, barely in an audible voice. The told me they liked Superman and Ironman. When I asked them why, they said because they were handsome.
I tried to get more out of them by talking about their costumes and weapons. For example, "Who uses a lasso?" "What is a lasso used for?" "Which superhero used the lasso?" In my other classes usually, this would have made them call out all kinds of answers, but not this class...
They did give me short answers to the questions- For that I'm grateful...
I asked the class captain (Jae Young) what she thought of He-Man. She said she didn't like him because he was ugly.
When they were asked to create their own superheroes in groups, they did generate more speech (albeit only on paper). Ji Won asked me how to say "invisible" in English. Surprisingly, almost everyone created a superhero. Two groups got to present today and they got lollipops: That was more than I had hoped for.

Today was off to a bad start: I woke up feeling groggy from a cold or a flu and spilt water all over my drawer trying to take some medicine; The class I recorded was a complete disaster: Because of my low spirits or whatever misfortune, the class wasn't focused except for two students and I have it all on video. Yikes! I hope no one but I get to see this...
I'm cheating a bit because I just had lunch instead of writing my journal right after the class. If I am late for lunch then the other teachers always finish the good food, so I have to eat first.Teaching the lower level is always hard. Most of the students are not interested in English; and because they're not interested in English, they're not good at it. Students showed lukewarm attitudes while reviewing last week's lesson. They were barely engaged while playing jeopardy. I totally lost one group... Group 5 seems to be a problem in every class. It's the bad students' clubhouse. I rotate the first graders' seats, but I can't with the third graders because it's a mixed class. I think the main reason for the lack of interest was my condition. I probably look like a zombie so I can't lead or manage them well. I really can't think right now on what went wrong and how to improve on it. I have open class next. Yikes! This is really not the right time to be getting sick. I am just going to go home and rest...

My Superhero!

was my lesson on "superheroes." I didn't think girls would like this topic, so I just brought it in for my extra 2 classes with 1-2 and 1-7, but they loved it! Everyone was so attentive. There was no need to urge or coax anyone to answer the questions. However, I was so keen on keeping the momentum going that I didn't ask the students to answer in complete sentences. But although I was getting mostly one word answers or phrases, I was able to expand on my F move. I asked them whether they like superheroes or not (closed-ended question) and when they told me "yes," I asked them why they like him or if they answered "no," I asked them why not. They gave me answers such as "because strong," or "child-like (childish)." Which is better than just taking their yes/no answers. Also, when the students answered "lasso" when pointed to a lasso, I asked them who uses it and what it was used for. I got answers like "cowboy" and "catch cow." I am pretty content, because I feel that I'm taking more steps to make the class more dialogic (although I haven't quite reached it yet). I was also able to expand on the F move in my morning After school classes (I keep pointing out that it's oxymoronic to have "After School" classes on the first period in the morning, but that's what they keep calling it!! I think they mean extraculrricular classes). My I-move was to ask them what their favorite month was. When thy answered with a particular month, I asked them why and when they said because they like getting presents, I asked them what presents they received and would like to receive in the future. Normally, I would stop at te "why" question, but was able to take it a step further. But, of course, my students in the extracurricular classes have to attitudes, are eager, and is proficient in Engnlish. It may not always work out like this in my regular classes, but it's worth a try.
As the final activity, I asked them to create their superheroes in groups of three or four and they all became eager beavers to present their characters. I think this really supports the fact that once the students have had peer support, they are more willing to speak in front of the whole class. They weren't shy at all when presenting and the only limitation to their presentations were the time constraints. But I'm still not sure if their motivation to participate was to get lollipops or in the genuine act of presenting itself. Maybe I shouldn't offer lollipops next time...

Rude Awakening.

Watching the video of myself teaching was definitely a rude awakening! An eye opener ! I keep saying "okay" like a nervous tic. I usually start and end a sentence with "okay." Plus, my wait-time is just way too short. In fact, I don't give them any wait-time at all! Had I been teaching like this for the past two years? Oh bless my pour soul...

Here is an excerpt from the transcription.



19. T: Okay, so what is this advertisement about?
20. L: Outback
21. T: Outback, ok? And what is Outback? Outback
22. LL: /steakhouse/ restaurant/
23. T: is a restaurant. Very good. Okay?=
24. T: So today’s lesson has to do with restaurants. Okay?=
25. T: Um… What do you do in a restaurant?
26. L: Order
27. T: Order FOOD.=
28. T: Yes, very good. Okay? So today’s lesson is about ordering food, okay everyone?=
29. T: ORDERING FOOD.
30. LL: Ordering food.
31. T: ORDERING FOOD
32. LL: Ordering food.

I'll use a third person's voice because I want to be objective... I can't bear to think that this piece was an excerpt from one of MY classes...
The interaction between the T and Ss is monologic. The teacher is clearly going by her own predetermined script.The teacher uses mostly closed-ended or display questions where a specific answer is expected from the students. When it comes to turn-taking, the teacher first uses invitations to bid. She raises her hand to show that she wants the students to raise their hands. When there is no response, the teacher then resorts to individual nomination and calls on a student. The teacher allows almost no wait-time for the students and expects an immediate answer. When there is no immediate answer, the teacher supplies the answer for the students. There is almost too much backchanneling. The teacher seems to be saying, "okay" more out of habit. In terms of feedback, the teacher reformulates the students' answers (26,27) or just repeats the students' reply for confirmation (20-21)

Here is an example of where the teacher uses comments (line 91):

82. T: Hamburger. Yes. You like hamburger. What are some other um… American foods that you like?
83. L: Pizza.
84. T: Pizza, hamburger..
85. L: (unintelligible)
86. T: Spaghetti.
87. …
88. L: Steak.
89. T: Steak
90. LL: /steak/ pizza/
91. T: Yes, yes, all the fattening foods are from America, right? Okay, um…(shows ppt)

I've just noticed that it's not exactly a positive comment. Anyway, for these reasons and more,I've joined the STI...

I just had my first class with the lesson on "Going to the Dr." I had some time management problems. Going over the vocabulary and solving the crossword puzzle worked out okay. I did get a lot of reponse from students although they were mostly answers to closed-ended questions. It's difficult to engage in dialogic interaction with the students when they're calling out one-word answers. I wish the article would cite some examples to illustrate how this could be achieved.
I spent so much time grouping the students and explaining the terms that I didn't give them enough time to play the card game to actually use the new terms. I should have explained the rules more clearly since almost none of them understood how to play at the beginning and much time was lost on just explaining the rules over and over again. I think it's better to show them how it is played. Moreover, I only allotted 10 minutes, which was not merely enough time for them to play the card game anyway.
I have to improve on my questioning techniques and time management next period.

I've finally managed to modify the art lesson to make it more effective. I noticed that the students groaned (the loudest) when I asked them to read the passages explaining about the paintings. So here's what I did instead. I had the students read the shorter passages, but skipped the longer ones. Instead of reading the passage before discussing, I just briefly explained about the paintings and asked them more questions about the paintings themselves. They were more much more engaged and took more interest in the paintings. I had several students write good stories about, "The Mother's Helper." Indeed it was my fault for not having read the students' minds. My first few classes always end up being the guinea pigs. I feel sorry for them, but the latter classes benefit at their expense.

Today's been a tough day... My first graders don't seem very interested in my "Art" lesson. I thought going over the different types of lines and shapes and talking about how they are used in famous paintings would be of interest to them, but they keep telling me it's "no fun, teacher." "No fun?" Am I supposed to keep them entertained? Sometimes, I don't know if I am a teacher or a clown. I feel so much pressure these days: trying to create useful and engaging lessons, teaching English, working things out with my co-teachers, managing the classroom, planning for the after-school and parents' classes, all while tring to keep up with my assignments at STI. I can only do so much. The only silver lining I have is that I will be working with third graders rest of the week. It's a totally different atmostphere with the seniors. The advnaced students are so attentive... And Jang Yoon Jung teacher does a good job of mananging the lower classes. Hopefully, I will end the week on a good note ^.^