Search results matching tags 'communication' and 'your job as a teacher'

931. Just my daily conducting

Anonymous — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 12:23:00 GMT

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “The teacher must know his students, but also he must know himself: how am I doing? Are my students really learning? How am I working lately?

20^th century philosopher and writer Jean Guitton (1901-1999), one of the best minds in that century, used to say that intellectual work, and teaching is, should begin by self-knowledge.

What are my strong points?, for example, can a teacher ask him or herself. What’s my style of teaching like? What can I learn from my colleagues of the faculty or department? How were today’s classes? Am I doing my best? Are my students actually learning and acquiring English? Is really there communication in English in my classes?

Draw your conclusions, be brave, and try to take a single resolution for next classes.” / Photo from: farmer driving tractor. library of congress

861. We all live by daily communication

Anonymous — Thu, 28 Jun 2012 14:10:00 GMT

I’ve copied and pasted the following text by Benedict XVI. The more I read it, the more inspiration I get for my everyday teaching English and helping people communicate with one another. It’s a piece from an encyclical letter by him, Caritas in Veritate, and the piece is from # 53 within the letter.

N.B.: The title in Latin means ‘Charity in truth’, which is taken from the beginning of the letter:

Charity in truth, to which Jesus Christ bore witness by his earthly life and especially by his death and resurrection, is the principal driving force behind the authentic development of every person and of all humanity. Love — caritas — is an extraordinary force which leads people to opt for courageous and generous engagement in the field of justice and peace. It is a force that has its origin in God, Eternal Love and Absolute Truth.

And the text proper I wanted to quote is

As a spiritual being, the human creature is defined through interpersonal relations. The more authentically he or she lives these relations, the more his or her own personal identity matures. It is not by isolation that man establishes his worth, but by placing himself in relation with others and with God. Hence these relations take on fundamental importance.

/ Photo from: springfreetrampoline com. taxi

839. Learning to learn

Anonymous — Wed, 09 May 2012 10:10:00 GMT

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “A teacher of math, literature, English... cannot confine his work to pass on, to teach, information, knowledge, math operations, the theoretical part of English..., but he or she has to teach their students to learn; to learn what? That information, knowledge, linguistic competence for communication...

Obviously it’s true that the teacher for example tells his students about historical deeds, their connection to our present history, etc.

The English teacher’s mission is not just to teach English but also to teach how to learn English, and this latter thing in a practical way: aimed at communication. The point is not to teach information about the language but to teach to use English for communication between, among people.

Within this context, moreover the teacher’s role is to better his students, and he himself too. The first showing or sign of this bettering of the student is the learning itself, the fact of having learned. This latter idea was partially taken from pedagogist Víctor García Hoz. Our students are in our hands: we have the great labor of helping them become free and responsible persons. For granted, like you know, the first educators are their parents and siblings.” / Photo from: abroadblogs newpaltz edu. the person on the picture is Jasmine, one of the travelers that write in this blog, about international student excursions

312. He has made us happier

Anonymous — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:06:00 GMT

One day teacher A said to teacher B,

“Every person leaves some trace in history, either some good or some bad dregs. You influence on history, on humankind. Just with your everyday work. You serve society, with your teaching. You connect people with your teaching a language.

If you fulfill your work nice, you make goodness to people, although your work could seem insignificant for all the people in the world. And moreover, you are teaching your students also to leave some good in history. It’s not necessary to do something Big. But you can do something Great. Attending your post of work one day after another day.

Tell your students that they alike can serve society with the language they are learning.”

Thanks for the picture to images allmoviephoto com. Peter Jackson is the genius director of the movie of The Lord of the Rings. I certainly know that he directed The Fellowship of the Ring, but I don’t know whether the sequels.

310. Embarked in the same ship

Anonymous — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 10:56:00 GMT

One day teacher B said to teacher A, "I've lately been thinking of female teachers, ye know? In Spain there are more women than men dedicated to teach English - better said, to help their students to become more and more autonomous learners.

I have noticed some digg qualities women have. They have something, say, characteristic, peculiar to them. Think of their tenderness, their big generosity and commitment, their fortitude and endurance, their being sensitive to the detail, their intuition. I do see these things especially in my wife, who also teaches English here in Spain. It's not necessary for you to tell you men also may have these qualities." Picture thanks to www aerospace-technology com

299. Helping each other

Anonymous — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 11:19:00 GMT

One day teacher B said to teacher A, “I have clearly realized that the teacher must effectively make every student participate. The teacher should rope all his students in the class-period, asking and addressing each student, both slower students and more advanced (or better-achievers) ones, combining simple questions and prompts with higher-level ones.

And he should look at each student in their faces.

Also he must not forget the advanced and faster students: he can make these latter ones help slower classmates, by for example helping these students who don't understand a question.

To sum up, the teacher will avoid forgetting the advanced students and only concentrating on the ones with problems. He or she should avoid the advanced students get bored. - Just one more thing: remind me of telling you about insulting and real hitting the teacher: a new case in an instituto in Granada. However, we have somewhat dealt with discipline other times.”

Ernest Shackleton and his crew got trapped in Antartica I think in 1916. They suffered serious dire straits. Picture thanks to sciencenotes files wordpress com.

288. She was human and humane

Anonymous — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 11:51:00 GMT

One day teacher A said to teacher B,

"A few days ago teacher C told me that right after the classes, when she was clearing up her stuff, some girls used to come to her desk, just to talk with her, to chat for a small while, just to have a peek at her stuff, and things like thtat. Other times one girl spoke with her, when waiting for the rest of the girls to arrive at the classroom. It's a chance opportunity, she says, to chatter about any thing, to listen to their kids' things, sometimes more affectionate and attentive than even a few of their parents."

Picture from www attendis com

286. Communication between people: our aim as teachers

Anonymous — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 07:21:00 GMT

One day teacher B said to teacher A,

"So, as a summary of what I try to do in my class-periods is aiming toward communication.

Some teachers implement too much translation from English into Spanish, for example, with the text or stories that are in the students' coursebooks. Translating is ok, yet it's only one more activity, not the only one, or plus few more. On the other hand, translating is a good activity, by the way - because this process with texts entails applying diverse techniques and fields (particular expressions in L2, translation more focused on the meaning than a mere translation word by word, and so).

Some days ago we achieved authentic communication in the classroom, with the thing of the interview to the kids, you may remember. As well we do fun games, and I guess the learners see something practical in the subject of English.

Just one other thing: you must help the learners become their own volitive motors; otherwise, nothing achieved. They must become autonomous and they should wish to learn the language, on their own will - with the help of you teacher."

Picture from carpediemdeando blogspot com - Film of La vida es bella, 1997, starring Roberto Benigni, Vita è bella, I guess in the o. v.