Professional Development

Originated by Birmingham MA TEFL/TESL students

Recently I had a student approach me and tell me that she wanted to enter a speech contest for the Iwate Prefecture High School Speech competition. She had two months to prepare.

I asked her what she wanted to talk about, and she replied ‘My dream to become a doctor’.

We started with three sentences. It was very slow going and there was a lot of editing but after 5 weeks she finally had a draft that she was happy with. But there was something missing in her delivery. There was just no passion. My goal as a teacher was to teach her how to deliver in the time we had left.

We worked privately for two, one-hour lessons. We studied every inflection, looked at her entire speech, decided what was important and needed passion, what should be soft, what should be said slowly and deliberately and more importantly I showed her how to use her hands. ‘When you say “I believe” slam your hand into your chest!’, I told her over and over. I emphasized - don’t give a speech - tell them your dream! Tell the audience why you want to become a doctor! Don’t bore them! If this is really your dream - make them believe it!

In these two hours her speech came alive. She had changed her tone and her delivery so dramatically that the passion was oozing as she spoke.

She did one final dry run to a class of 6 students two days before the competition. There was not a dry eye by the end. She had turned her speech into a symphony.

Out of thirty contestants she came in second.

Comment

I feel that the more I help my students achieve their dreams, the more mine becomes realized. Sometimes all we need is for one student to show us that we can make a difference.

A thought or idea in progress

A colleague of mine and I joked recently; ‘We should write a story of our experiences here in Japan.’ There are so many books on methodology, yet there isn’t one on methodology combined with experience and ‘our story’. We now have a google doc in the works with notes in the making.

Comment

If we get out more and share our experiences with others we can help each other understand our process.

Teacher to Teachers

We have the opportunity to make the changes that will help our students grow and help each other develop into professionals. There are all kinds of ways to get involved; ETJ, JALT, JACET, TESOL and the list goes on!

Joining a teacher’s group is only the first step. Getting out there and getting connected with other teachers is when all the fun really begins. For every idea that you share with another teacher, you’ll probably hear 10 things that you can use in your teaching or in your classroom.

Mark would love to talk with you about teaching or your experiences in Japan! mark@hobbes-english.com

Mark is "all ears" listening to Rod Ellis and partying in Tokyo with Chris Kennedy...

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• Alumni Updates (2)
• Learners' Voices (12)
• MASH Names, Faces & Ideas (12)
• Mark's Bookcase

• Do Students Read More Research on Learning than Teachers?
• The Real Voice of Japanese Students
• Kishiko Nashimoto - Practical and Effective - She gets it!
• EFL learners communicating with proficient L2 persons of interest using L1
• Understanding and filling the gaps in HS and university English education
• Returnees' Learning Paths: Challenges and Triumphs
• A Man on a Mission - Significant and Quantifiable
• Goals - like maps - lead us in the right direction
• A witty man, a wise man, a northern man
• When language learning 'clicks': a JTE and lifelong learner

• Understanding and filling the gaps in HS and university English education
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• A Negotiated Syllabus: Company Classes with a Twist
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• A witty man, a wise man, a northern man
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• A MASH colleague going all the way!
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• Lifelong language learners: What keeps them going?
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• Teaching English in context to promote student autonomy
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• KYOTO JALT MASH '09 on Feb. 22nd
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    - Julian Pigott
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• Another Leader in MASH
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