9/23/2021; Week 02: Response to "Is the Great American Teacher Dead?"

I would like two highlights the things I got from the 

"Is the Great American Teacher Dead?"

article 

 by Aranza Garza

Making things meaningful. 

One of the first questions I had after reading this part of the article was: How can I make an English class about grammar meaningful? At the moment, this looked like an impossible task, but after thinking for a while, I realized that the material doesn't have to change lives, but the delivery and the way we perform it must mean something. 

When I was in high school, I had two teachers, and both made me want to become an educator, one was a math teacher, and the other one was a music teacher.  

My math teacher was one of the best teachers I ever had. He had a way of making mathematics fun and entertaining, and watching him explain a theory was like hearing a chef talk about their favorite dish. Unlike my music teacher, that had so little enthusiasm and love that he made the whole class sleep with his lectures. 

While reading Ivers words, I realized the difference between these two teachers, the math teacher was in love with his subject, and because of it, the way he delivered made me want to listen all day, he was passionate, and he wanted us to learn. But my music teacher's case was the total opposite, he was teaching a subject full of passion and emotion, but he made it sound like he was just doing it because he had to. 

Reflecting on this two teachers answered my previous question, and If I found English grammar the most exciting thing, and I teach as such, even though my students won't agree with me, they will at least learn how wonderful it can be 

 

Agnes Zenta, 27 MARCH 2020, 

The Product Owner’s Guide to Friday Releases: Data-driven, hands-off experimentation.

https://blog.vamp.io/the-product-owners-guide-to-friday-releases-data-driven-hands-off-experimentation/ 

Self-examination. 

Sometimes as teachers, we think we are doing an amazing job when in reality, no one understands what we are talking about. A part of the article mentions a study, where psychologist Nalini Ambady directed the students to rate the teachers' effectiveness by just watching two seconds of three silent tapes, after reading that, another question popped in my head: What would my futures students say if they rated me with two seconds of silent tapes?, and after having a mental crisis of how to be an amazing teacher, so my students would rate me well, I came to the conclusion that the way I could become that amazing teacher is by focusing on one simple thing "my students' needs." As teachers, they are our priority, so if they are not learning, there is something we are doing wrong. 

Ten pieces of advice to be a better teacher. 

Ivers and his colleagues gave us ten pieces of advice for "assumes adequate lesson planning and instructor

competence in the subject matter." Ivers said. 

1. Positive teacher-student relationship

2. A good “delivery”

3. Edifies rather than damages a student’s self-concept

4. Clarity (through the use of many examples and

stories)

5. Encourages deep and critical thinking

6. Variety instead of monotony (do not forget the Ten-

Minute Rule)

7. Grading and workload is generally perceived to be

fair

8. Enthusiasm and zest for the topic

9. Meaningful to real world problems

10. Potentially transforms one’s world view from one of

uncritical acceptance of cultural dictates to one of

deep, reflective, and compassionate thinking

As TESOL teachers, we will find challenge after challenge, it is not an easy task to teach someone a whole new way of communication, but we must find the best ways to do it, and most importantly we must have passion. Previously I mentioned how my two teachers made me want to become an educator, and this was because with them I realized how much impact a teacher can have in a student's life. 

I would like two know your thoughts on the two questions I made myself during this assignment:

• How can I make my English classes meaningful?
• What can I do, so that I can be judge well in my effectiveness with only in two seconds?

References:

• Ivers, J. J. (2012). Is the Great American Teacher Dead? Principles to Resurrect Meaningful, Effective, and Consciousness Raising Instruction. Journal of Invitational Theory and Practice, 18, 49-56.