Learning to share a classroom

As I continue my work at UMAC, sometimes I try to gain some sort of perspective from my classrooms. I feel that I learn so much for my students. Probably more than I actually am teaching them. The style of teaching for these classes is a bit more relaxed and less structured than I am used to. At first I thought it was style of the courses here, but I realized it just Zoe's teaching style. She purposely makes the class less structured so the students are not babied as much. I feel that this style is definitely great to help improve their own independence and personal motivation, but I do think its a bit much for the students to handle on their own as freshman. Especially in China, the school system is very structured and students are held to high expectations. Whereas, in our English classes I'm not sure what the expectations are. I feel that it is difficult to teach a class if as a teacher you are not even clear what kinds of skills and information you should be disseminating to the students. Luckily, Zoe's style is very 'go with the flow' so she doesn't feel the stress of the situation.

I do sometimes feel that this kind of class structure is a bit disorganized and students are sometimes scrambling to understand what is expected of them in the classroom. I think it may be hard for students that are less motivated to find purpose in this class because the expectations for them are not very clear and straightforward. Of course, those students who are already overachievers will succeed in any classroom environment.

I believe this is one of the cons of team teaching a class. You don't have the power to structure the class exactly the way you would like to and in turn you are subject to follow the lead teacher's structure. I do think that the ideas for the classes are clearly aligned in Zoe's mind but I don't know if that information is actually given to the students. She often gets frustrated with the students when they are unable to follow her directions for tests and assignments, but I don't think its the students fault. I never blame the students. Even though they should ask more questions to clarify something, their past teachers probably discouraged any kind of questions, so I'm not surprised if they are struggling to gain the courage to speak. I think its still a very scary thing to raise your hand and ask a question. I think its the teacher's first job to make sure the assignment or test questions are as clear as possible. I don't think you are babying the students when you are clearly explaining a major project through a handout. If you want something done a specific way, you need to explain that way to the students. They just won't magically be able to read your mind and produce a piece of work exactly the way you want it without you ever telling them.

As I finished grading papers this week, I was comparing their current work to their first diagnostic test and I've not really seen any improvement. I see the same verb errors and punctuation errors. My biggest fear is these students leave this class with no new skills and they still write the same way. I don't think the class really focuses on writing so its difficult for them to improve if they don't know how. Zoe doesn't like to focus on writing because it is a lot of grading and is boring to teach. Though it is not the most exciting topic, it is so vital for these students to know how to write. Every single assessment in their whole life will be written. They have to know how to express their thoughts in writing.

I've gained much from the students as well. They have taught me how to be flexible. You often plan out an elaborate lesson plan but you may only get to the first quarter of it because the students don't necessarily respond to how you want them to the material. Learning to change your plans instantly is part of being a teacher. I've learned how to excite a class and get them willing to discuss various topics in class. I think the reticence the students is probably one of the toughest battles in the classroom, but slowly but surely they are breaking out of their shell.