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ESL forum >
Message board > Motivation
Motivation
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H�gata
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Motivation
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Hi guys, first let me say that this site is amazing!!! Thanks everbody, all the worksheets are great, beautiful, useful, etc... And I found great people like Zailda (thanks again!!!) That gave me and I hope will give me more advices and ideas.
I was on vacation and I was rethinking(does it exist?) my work and I realized that I was doing my job, that I really love, in a way that �s not what I want... My students are not in love with English you know? But I was and I tried to teach this love to them, after a while I was so stressed that I (without noticing) started teaching only grammar and texts, not the passion I wanted them to feel. This site helped me to get in love with the language again, but how will I do it with my students? How will I continue motivated when they tell me "Ah teacher I don �t like English" ?How do you do it?
Let me say thanks again for your support and great job!!!!
See ya!
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28 Jul 2010
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Flora1
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Well, you know that here in Brazil is so difficult to have acess to study English. In these courses most of the students are there because the parents want, I am a student and teacher at the same time and I see some fathers arguing with the children because of grades so students feel it as aN obligation but on the other hand if use your love and show how beautiful this language is , how important and of course bringing to class things that they like, things which are linked with their life, so they can step by step start to like it. If you teach teens you can find a lot of materials here and also in videos, songs, television that they usualy love. However, I understand you, imagine my situation who teaches adults in a public school and they and most of them come from slums but I will survive and I really wish you luck and is natural to think like that specially here in Brazil.
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28 Jul 2010
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SaraMariam
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I totally agree with Flora. I usually don �t have a problem to get my students motivated, but then again as a private teacher you have all the freedom to do what you want and teach the way you want to teach, that is not really the case when you teach at state schools or schools that tell you how to teach and what books to use. Personally I don �t even teach with books. I go a lot with the interests of the students and plan my lessons accordingly, I also use a lot of games - even kiddy games with adults - you would never imagine how much they love it. Or sometimes I do the lessons outside (eg i took a group of learners to the market to buy fruits on the market, or to a caf� to order some ice cream (going to the store beforehand, asking them if it �s possible to talk English with them) or just doing a "sight seeing tour around the city, speaking English all the time about what they see). Students love such things, but like I said unfortunately it �s not always possible in schools. try to keep close to the students � interests, even if you have to follow a book always try to connect it. Use games, make them move, not always sit in their chairs. The more movement, the more the concentration will come back (even if you just change seats of the students after a while) |
28 Jul 2010
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Vivilui
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I totally agree with Flora and Sara. Teaching in Argentina may be similar to what happens in Brazil. Students do not feel the real need to communicate in English but you can engage them with activities that cover their interests and necessities. What really worked in my case in a situation that was similar to what you are describing was doing without the book, taking my students to the computer room, surfing the net (generally sites that were in Spanish) and meaking project works in English based on that. Songs, ads, videos, youtube, ... So many things that little by little will stir your imagination and, in the end, will help you transmit that passion to your students. |
28 Jul 2010
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cacucacu
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Dear Hagata Please don �t feel disappointed or tired. Remember children always notice our mood and believe it or not is our energy and passion that engage them into liking English. The raport we establish with our students is also important. When they can see that we are "people" too and can relate to us, they will open themselves and will want to communicate with us. Of course that it is essential that we try to offer them topics that deal with things they like, but it is also true that we (teachers) can give power to anything. Last year it happened to me that I had to teach "directions" (go straight ahead, tuen left, etc) I don �t like this topic because it �s really hard for me to distinguish quickly between left and right, so I didn �t give much importance to this topic. I devoted a week to this topic. I did a couple of old games and that was it. By the end of the year I realized that many of my students had difficulties distinguishing between left and right. What I �m trying to say is that passion is contagious. If you put passion in your everyday teaching and talk about yourself a bit so that you can establish a good raport with your students the need to communicate then comes naturally. Love from argentina Natalia |
28 Jul 2010
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franknbea
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Hi Hagata,
You could try playing along with their game.
When they say "I don �t like English" say "Ok" and leave it for a few minutes. Talk about anything you want but not that subject.
After a while ask them to write on the board (or tell you if you don �t have a board) a small list of things they like.
Then go through the list and find anything even remotely related to English (like a musical band or a movie or a sports star, anything) and cross it off.
You can then "discuss" how do they "like" English on your own terms. Remember to be creative when analysing the lists. If they say they like Carmen Miranda for instance, we know she was (Is??? Sorry, don �t know if she �s still alive) Brazilian but you can always say that she was a movie star because she spoke or sang in English (something like that) I �m sure your teaching talents will tell how to handle that.
Good luck to you. I hope it turns out ok!
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28 Jul 2010
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