For some reason, my blog entry for 5 March has strangely disappeared. And being anal like I am, I cannot seem to live with such imperfectionism on my blog. That, and the fact that some pictures are not appearing too makes me cringe again. Arghh!!!
Oh well, the mind has other things to think about. I have begun teaching a little. My first lesson was with a class of Sec 4 Normal Academic class - highly boisterous and disinterested in learning. When I entered the class, the tables weren't even in place! They continued strolling in and out of the class. It didn't help that it was my first time seeing them, without my cooperating teacher (CT). They asked question after question, and finally settled down only when I asked them if they were ready for their lesson.
The lesson didn't progress on too well. The VCD I was to show made the laptop hang. The rain outside drowned the sound. It was obvious the students were not engaged by the video at all. They started chatting amongst themselves right under my nose, oblivious to my presence. But I had my wild card. I paused the video clip. They still didn't notice. I stopped the video. Closed the programme. Did a shut down. The more steps I took with the laptop, the quieter the class became. Finally, I slammed the laptop shut. I didn't say a word. I switched on the lights and asked the AV rep to switch off the LCD projector. Silence. In my heart, I was laughing. My silent treatment worked again.
So, I said. Looks like you don't need to video cos you know all these stuff. Now, tell me - What are the factors you need to consider before marriage? An onslaught of answers came forth. I was glad. I got them interested! The next 40 minutes or so saw me discussing with them issues of what they need to consider before marriage, pre-marital sex, sex, more sex, sex yet again. Yes - I guess that's what all 16-year old boys think about.. Or should I just say all men? :P
I ended off the CME lesson thanking God I wasn't observed for that class. For a small class of 23 students only, that one hour drained me. I lost control of the class once in a while, had to get them back, and lost them again. The last 5 minutes saw them restless and moving about on their own as they realised the discussion ended. Phew! 8 more weeks of them? I'm praying really hard.
The other challenging class that I've been assigned is a Sec 3 Normal Tech class. My P and VP go "Wah - challenging class" when they realised I was teaching them. "But I managed to silence them," I said. They looked surprised. "Good for you!" my VP said. He asked me what I did. I told him about my "silent treatment" wild card. Amazing.. he said. My P said the rest of the teachers should learn from me. I think not... my fellow NIE mates said it's my face. They said I look fierce when I don't smile.. Oh well, nature gave that to me!
Tomorrow will be my first time teaching an English class. Sec 3 Express. My CT have already identified a few problem kids. I hope I can win them over. I'm planning an oral comm class for the next 7 lessons for the rest of the week. It will see them doing sketching, role-playing, doing limericks, and all things to do with talking! I've yet to do up the materials for the lesson!!! Which is why I'm back home now, hopefully being able to do everything by tonight.
The one positive thing I noticed today - to see the smile on a student's face when my CT praised her for a good oral presentation. It got me reflecting - How often do we pick to say what is good, than what is bad? What we say and do impacts our students for the rest of their lives. What then, do we want to say to them?
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