Session 4: Summary of reflections

TEACHING IN GENERAL

-          …asked us to speak French to …., I fully understand why some students are so unwilling to take part in …

-          Need to try different and more effective methods …

-          Need to help them build up the confidence first.

-          All teaching methods have their goods and bads … finding the one that can really help the students is one of our goals in teaching.

-          … French … made me realize how hard it is for some of my students to learn English

-          Video teaching can attract the students’ attention

-          More activities in class to motivate students

-          Teachers should not only use one methodology in teaching; … should change based on students’ levels and interests.

-          Interest is the best motivation to learn a new language

-          Students can be encouraged by a good language teacher.

-          Use various teaching methods … students’ learning styles

-          Ss need opportunities to use English to communicate

-          Task-based learning and collaborative learning both good methods to …

-          After …French …found … learning a second language is really difficult to students

-          Decisions should be based on research and recent literature … rather than instinct

-          No standard routes to acquisition; no standard ways of teaching

-          According to different groups of students, we can use appropriate methods to motivate them.

-          Teachers’ praise or appreciation towards students can change their lives.

ON PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

-          Impressed by group members’ sharing: teach from the heart

-          Reflecting on our learning, as well as teaching experience, helps to develop our professional competence

-          Want to know more different interesting and effective ESL games … motivate my students .. and myself in teaching;

-          The topic on ‘how to teach’ is not enough to me

-          (after the 4 sessions), I seem to have different feelings and opinions on teaching

-          … look forward to Saturdays … brings me surprise … will be inspired

-          Important to enhance our teaching professional development by taking …training courses;

-          Teaching is also lifelong learning …need to improve … so we can teach better;

-          Constructive feedback (important) so they know what to be aware of

-          My beliefs about ELT have changed tremendously after I did my MA in TESOL in the UK

-          Teachers need to join more courses .. increase their curiosity … keep up their enthusiasm or ‘fire’.

-          Need to learn more and faster than our students; cannot lag behind

LIFE OF TEACHERS

-          Too busy and overstressed that they can’t apply all the desirable methodologies in real life teaching;

-          Time to rest .. very important. Without rest, we can’t simply come up with anything exciting … let alone teaching well

-          Teaching is not just a job, but great work to nurture the next generation