Emma Claydon - TEFL course diary

It’s been a while since I updated my blog but it’s a good opportunity to review 2007.

So, back in February I started a full time office job.  Working 40 hours a week and commuting for 20 hours meant I had submitted my assignments for Module two by the end of March.  I was pleased with the A minus I was awarded and it spurred me on.  I plodded through my final module, taking 9 more months to finish.

Well  time has a way of flying by, plus we had the final arrangements for our wedding that took place on 11th August near Maastricht.  Before I realised it was September and I had missed the deadline I had made for myself to complete the course and start applying for my fist teaching position.

In October I booked my flight back to the UK for a week at Christmas and started making open applications to language centers in the area.  With no advertised vacancies on the net or in newspapers I was beginning to think that I wouldn’t get a teaching position in the Netherlands.

I wrote to various language centers as my Dutch isn’t good enough to work with young children and I met with two institutes.  One was teaching business English to adults and the other was working with university students to improve their academic English.

Having the interviews meant that I was more motivated to finish the course by the end of the year and determined to break into teaching.  I had also found the ACTDEC Teaching Practice Portfolio Scheme (www.ACTEDEC.org.uk) which helps you obtain an Certificate in Teaching Practice Development at the end of the two month practicum within a supporting school.

By the end of November I didn’t have a concrete offer and was awaiting the outcome of the two interviews.  I took a leap of faith and resigned (I recommend the template letters on www.i-resign.com/uk/letters/).  I focused on the final module and starting a new job in the New Year.  The third module consisted of lesson planning, teaching vocabulary, practical languages activities, and testing in the classroom.  The assignments took me a while to complete but I gladly submitted them on 16th December and I’m eagerly awaiting the results.

A few days after handing in my notice I got an offer to work with university students and I start on Monday 7th January.  First I will meet with the language coordinator and discuss hours, tasks and the contract.  After the meeting I start observing students that have been on the preparatory English course for 6 months.  New students will be starting in February and I will have three students who I will coach on a one-to-one basis, in addition to assisting with the group lessons.  I am really excited about this new challenge and at the same time not quite sure what I am letting myself in for!  I’m sure it will all work out in the end.  It usually does.

Wishing you all the very best for 2008!  May it be filled with peace, joy and serenity.

Gotta keep it short as I must really get to bed. The new job is going well but it’s tiring. I had hoped to have completed the course before finding full time work, but things never go exactly to plan.

On Saturday I continued working on my assignments for module 2. I made some progress but felt I hit a bit of a wall. The section on phonetics went surprisingly well but I’m stumbling over the section on marking.

Recently I’ve been feeling a little anxious about my course as I only get to spend 3 or 4 hours a week focusing on it. Before, I was really enjoying spending 14 hours a week studying. I felt that I was making real progress and now I feel a bit frustrated. Each time it takes a while to get back into it.

Tonight I was pleasantly surprised as my tutor had emailed me his feedback from my first set of assignments. With 9 pages of feedback, I’ve printed them out to read on my way to work tomorrow, but I’m really chuffed with my A-! Yay!

A week into my new job means that my self study course is taking a bit of a back seat. From 14 hours to 2 or 3 a week means the final module will take longer then expected. So first things first, I drew up a new timetable.

Well I’m pleased to almost have the 2nd module in the bag – only the last section on marking to go. I’ve already started working on the assignments so will need to go back over the phonetics section.

Keep on truckin’! x

These two units have made me reflect on my own situation as I’m learning Dutch. Usually speaking is seen as the final barrier to becoming fluent in a language. It can be frustrating not being able to find the words but you try and get by. Either you guess the word, try to describe it, mine, say an English word in a Dutch way, or try a French word as it may be right.

I find it’s quite difficult at social events to follow conversations. There can be too much noise interference, whether it’s music blaring or other conversations going on at once, so the message can be totally destroyed.

When trying to listen carefully to every word, it’s so hard to predict where people may be going, so that you can’t interrupt and participate in lively discussions. This of course can make social events seem long and drawn out. I can usually figure out the topic area and who agrees or disagrees with who, but it’s hard to get the conclusions and find out peoples real opinions.

I guess I spend a lot more time reading body language and facial expressions. I’m sure over time things will improve and hopefully this experience will make me more compassionate towards language learners.

With Module 1 complete and my assignments handed in, (hurrah!) it’s time to get stuck into the next unit.

Dealing with each of the language skills in turn it kicks off with Speaking.

Studying the sounds of English means I must get acquainted with the International Phonetic Alphabet. Only having ever glanced at the phonetics in the dictionary I’ve never really figured it out before and did not envisage teaching it to students, but I’ll try and keep an open mind.

To be honest it’s not as intimidating at it first seems so I might use it in the classroom. We’ll see. Although even if I’m not going to teach the phonetic alphabet in full, apparently I should be prepared to use the schwa symbol.

This upside down ‘e’ is the most common sound in English and is closely connected to word stress. Represented by any of the vowels, the unstressed syllable in a word becomes schwa in speech.

This useful section gives practical advice on presenting new pieces of language in the classroom.

From what to present and how, this section really makes you think about how you can start developing a lesson plan, so that you can introduce new grammar items effectively.

There are lots of useful free resources to download. Check these out for ideas and inspiration:

http://www.cambridge.org/elt/resources/ http://www.longman.com/adult/teachers/resources.html http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/

Just when I thought I had the grammar section all wrapped up, I stumbled upon the 108 page grammar guide that was included on the CD. Grrrrr. I know I must print and annotate it, but perhaps I’ll wait unit I complete this module. No doubt I’ll need it to complete some of the assignments.

There are 3 modules, each containing 4 units. At the end of each module there are assignments I need to complete and send to my tutor.

I need to write an essay. It’s been a while. Six years in fact but it’s like riding a bicycle, right? Hmmmm. I can ride a bike, but I’m a little wobbly and I certainly can’t to the little scootery thing people do here to get on their bikes.

Last time I rode a bike regularly I was about 8 years old. Plus I could sit on the seat and put my feet on the floor. Not these ones though, you have to keep dismounting at traffic lights. So, to get moving again you put your left foot on the left pedal and then you have to push the ground away with your right foot until you have enough momentum to start peddling again and then you can sit back on your seat. I think I need a kid’s bike.

Where was I? Yes, essays! So I’m sure I can write an essay I’ll just need patience and perseverance. It’s about Teaching Methods covered in the first unit and my experiences as a language learner, so I’m sure I’ll have plenty to write about!

I knew it was coming. Grammar.

When I think grammar, I think about GCSE French (again!). Not really knowing what was meant by a past participle or a possessive pronoun, just made a difficult subject even harder.

When I say that we never did English grammar at school, I’m sure I have teachers and friends who would refute that statement.

OK, yes there was that one time we defined a few terms (noun, verb, adjective) and the rest was just either good or bad English so was correctly accordingly.

When you used good English it just sounded right, though you couldn’t actually give any rules or explanations. Well I certainly couldn’t.

Half way though this unit Christmas conveniently popped up so I left the section ‘Structure of the English Sentences’ and have had the pleasure revisiting it today.

Much to my surprise the notes I had taken were pretty good and I’m finally getting to grips with the word classes of my mother tongue. About bloomin’ time. Also it’s going to make future language learning easier which is a bit of luck as I have my Dutch lesson tonight.

Starting off with ‘what is a good teacher’, this unit contains more of the nuts and bolts about what you should do in the classroom - from seating plans and organizing a class library to using the board and giving instructions.

The final module of the course will go into more detail covering lesson plans, teaching vocabulary, activities and testing. So on with the theory!

My aim is to complete the course in three months so it works out roughly 14 hours a week. I started the course on 24th November, but have taken a couple of weeks off over Christmas as I went to the UK and a good friend came to visit for the New Year.

This is of course all subject to change, as we know what they say about the best laid plans eh? But you’ve gotta have a goal, right?

‘Language Teaching, Language Learning’ kicks off the first module and the material is an easy read. Outlining the teaching methods and approaches that have developed over time, I get the occasional flash back to GCSE French and Spanish:

• the verb tables;
• having to memorize those long lists of vocabulary;
• weekly spelling tests;
• and learning essays by heart.

There was definitely an element of fear involved, especially with French. At that time of course, I arrogantly thought that I would never really need French, excect on holidays perhaps (Où est la banque? Not that I would undertsand the reply).

I never considered myself to be particularly strong at languages and stupidly did not see the importance of them. I thought Spanish would be useful so I had decided to follow that up at some point. It’s still on my ever expanding to-do list, as is my trip to South America.

Well of course, things never really work out how you think they will, because after graduation I lived in France for two years. My hazy GCSE level was revived by evening classes that were entirely in French. Even in those five years I’m pleased to see that language teaching has moved on. Thank God.

Having been the language learner on more than one occasion, I have a good idea of the motivations, challenges, and rewards facing students. All I gotta figure out now is how actually teach - ahhhhhh!

Before I started the distance learning course I needed to get back into studying. It been some time since I had to make notes or write an essay so I dipped into my trusty copy of The Good Study Guide from the Open University. It was just what I needed. I wish I’d read it before doing my Bachelors though.

Doing this self study course means I have to be disciplined and manage my time.

First of all I wrote up a weekly timetable and tried to schedule everything in, especially free time and exercise. Plus things usually take longer then you think they will.

While I was studying at university I first considered a TEFL course, but after three years of study, having absolutely no money plus a huge loan, I was eager to get a job. So I ended up in corporate advertising in Paris.

I loved the place and some of the people were great but I soon realised I was a closet greeny and I had to get into the not-for-profit sector so that meant volunteering.

After a year and a half at the adv agency and building on my wobbly GCSE French (oooh la vache!), I packed it all in to go live in the rainforest in New Zealand where I would help with admin and the website in addition to organic gardening, earth building and a vegetarian diet for three months.

It was wikid! I loved it so much I was a Remote Volunteer when I returned to the UK and got a new job in a large youth charity. After a year I was asked back as Volunteer Coordinator so I could work on marketing and recruitment full time.

Skip to the end…..that’s where I met a lovely Dutch guy and here I am learning Dutch and becoming a qualified English Teacher. I hope to teach English here in the Netherlands, but also have more plans to travel so it will always be useful.