First week of classes

The first week of the literacy program has been phenomenal; I did not expect the students to be as enthusiastic as they were to learn English. I feel that our first week of class went really well, we were able to establish a good baseline of the English levels of the learners. From the first class we were able to tell that the learners were not basic, in fact, most of the learners were at an intermediate level of English. When we first arrived at the class, I made sure to set a tone where the learners didn’t feel like that it was going to be a strict class. I felt that it would have been easier to teach if the learners were comfortable with the environment, and the teachers. Right in the beginning of class I told the class that for them written English should not be a priority, instead I felt that having a focus on conversational English would have been appropriate; 30 minutes into the class I realized that the learners were at a level of English where we were able to work on written English as well.

                A thing that I learned from teaching is that every learner will be at a different level of fluency in English, and that the best way to get a point across is to use the stronger learners as an example. Since the stronger learners were able to speak English quite well, it was a way to loosen up not only the strong students but also the class because they were able to see one of their own friends as an example. Another thing that I learned through teaching is that the class clown can be quite useful because we were able to joke with them and have everyone laugh. As a teacher, I try to use comedy as a tool for teaching, because I find that it is an easy way to get everyone laughing, and used to each other. Knowing that this is one of the few forms of entertainment for the learners, I feel like if I can make them enjoy the class and learn something new, then my job as a teacher has been accomplished.

                As we went around the class, and everyone introduced themselves, it made me feel quite horrible to complain about my life after hearing their stories. Many learners were not able to complete their education, and wished that they were able to do so. This made me appreciate the value of the education that I am receiving here at CMU because not only am I receiving a university education, but I’m at one of the best universities in the world. I also learned how valuable education is from the students, we asked all of them about their lives, and most responded that if they could change one thing; it would be that they would have completed their education. I also learned how important family is for the learners. Most of our class was married and had children and the migrant workers were here to earn money to provide them with a better future. What I was able to understand from the learners was that most of them wanted to provide their children with an education so that they would be able to better their lives.

                I never realized how fast the time would go by when teaching. When the class first began I was a little nervous about what to go over with the class, and how the class was going to go. But as the class progressed I was able to see the direction that the learners wanted to take the class. It was interesting how much improvisation goes into teaching. Since the class was intermediate, and nowhere near basic, the learners were able to speed through the material leaving us with very little material left to teach. It was at that point in the lesson that we start to improvise with a game of hangman before we were able to think of some more difficult material for the class to through. The enthusiasm that the class demonstrated in hangman was incredible. One of the stronger students came back from the break a little late, and without even knowing how to play hangman he volunteered to lead the class through a couple of games. Unfortunately we were running out of time so we were not able to play hangman for no more than 10 minutes. The class really enjoyed our impromptu game of hangman because it was a chance for them to lead the class through an activity, and they enjoyed guessing at words and having their actions show a consequence which in this case was adding a limb to the hanging man.

                I feel that even though we went into the class prepared with what we thought would have taken up the entire two hours, none of the preparation lasted more than 30 minutes because the class was really advanced compared to the level we thought they were at. In general, the experience I had teaching the first week of classes was very nice, and I look forward to teaching these guys who I now consider my friends.