Revista simpozionului Eficienta si calitate in educatie 2018 Revista simpozionului | Page 39

the average student feels trapped, bored or restless during a class that relies
mainly on lectures, long explanations or interminable written exercises.
Consequently, their motivation and interest in school subjects gradually diminish
and, by the time they get to high-school, their self-esteem, their curiosity, their
playfulness and ready-to-work attitude have vanished. Not to mention the too often
met situation of large classes (the average number of students in my class is 28),
the huge difference in levels of knowledge (an English 9th grade class includes
students from A1 up to B2 or even C1 level). The list may go on and on, and the
solutions to this discouraging and complex class reality are yet to be found.
However, in more than 20 years of teaching I found out that some old tricks and
strategies do work. Here are the best psychological and methodical tricks I have
successfully used so far:
1.
Set the rules…and keep to them
Every new school year brings me a fresh crop of learners, mostly 9th graders,
ready to test their teacher’s knowledge, patience, level of empathy etc. Therefore,
in the very first class, I ask them about their expectations (what do you feel you
need to improve? or what would you like to do in the English class?) and, in return,
I tell them my “golden rules”. Among them, the “only English “ rule seems to be
really frightening to those with poorer knowledge, which gives me the opportunity
to prove myself “flexible” ( and empathetic) and accept a first semester of
combining English with translation and/or explanations in Romanian. And I always
keep my word. On the bright side, the “no re-sitting the first year” rule seems to be
the most appreciated one, but it always comes with the condition of making some
individual, as well as collective, progress. This gives the less self-confident and
less knowledgeable students some extra motivation and courage to get involved in
the class activities.
2.
Create a pleasant, friendly class atmosphere.
The occasional laughing at the classmate’s mistake should be firmly and definitely
forbidden. The mocker, in such cases, is invited, either to prove himself better by
answering a rather difficult question or, more often, to remember his own mistakes
as a beginner and admit that it is ok to make mistakes, as long as we correct them.
Making mistakes is part of the learning process and should be treated as such by
both teachers and students. In the case of a vocabulary mistake things get easier,
as I usually ask them to explain a word in their mother tongue (“metempsihoza” or
“sinestezie” are my favourite in Romanian). Reversely, I admit I may be wrong
sometimes and, if proven, I acknowledge the merit of the student who spotted the
mistake. Which brings me to the problem of rewards and “not ok” signs.
3.
Establish a system of incentives and “not ok” signs
This might seem childish, as it is most commonly met in primary school, but it
really works. Surprisingly, offering teenagers some extra-points in case of very
good work, be it in class activity or as homework, which I mark with a big, smiley
face on their notebook, and, conversely, an even bigger sad face in case of
disappointing work or missing homework is effective. When achieving 3 smileys
the student will be marked with a 10, while 3 sad faces (which they usually call
“ugly face”) will inevitably bring them a very low mark. I must confess, however,
that the latter situation has very seldom occurred, as my students usually refrain
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