EDUCATION IS LIGHTING A FLAME NOT FILLING A CONTAINER

 

         INTRODUCTION 

        

     My name is Alexander Carvajal Urrego. I´m 40 years old. I´m from Barranquilla city and  I´m a student of Bachelor Degree in English as a foreign language, and this a resume of my pedagogical experience.

       In the first class session, I tried to communicate the program of the class entirely in Enlish language, but it was not possible, the students had a very low level, they expressed  feeling scared and pressured, every time that I made a question. Obviously, they didn´t have neither the developed skills nor the tools to understand a class entirely in English. So I said, "don´t feel pressured, this is a chance, you have all the freedom in the whole world to commit mistakes, don´t try to be perfect, just try to listen, and just dare to speak, don´t be silent, if you don´t commit mistakes it´s because you don´t even try". 

      During this process, I could notice  many worrisome aspects that affected the learning of the
students, some of them showed discouragement, frustation, and apathy caused by economical, familiar and social problems , even some of them expressed the idea to quit.

     How to maintain or arouse the interest for the learning of a new language , when they came from a failed experience of learning or a truncated process?

      This is a compilation of all events that occurred during the exercise of the pedagogical practice, an amazing teaching- learning experience : Many students, many ways of learning , many ways to watch the life. This is an overview with ths stories, testimonials, and graphic evidence of the process.

    Who am I as a Teacher?

    My teacher Philosophy:

     

       One of the students, told me about a failed exam, according with the testimonial, the teacher in charge of the exam expressed about her "You are a brute person and your level of English is useless", I thought "that´s not correct, if this event actually happened". I worked a long time ago, as a mechanic, I couldn´t imagine to speak to my boss, "Boss, this equipment is useless, it doesn´t work", I had to do all my work in the best way, I had to deliver the equipment , in perfect working order, without excuses. If this happens with a machine, why can´t this happen with a human being?, If the estudent fails, it is my fault?

    So, I understand, I must wake up the interest, I have to open the mind of the students, they have to understand, that it is important for them, it´s not an obligation or a heavy load, otherwise is a real chance, to learn it may change their lives, how my life once changed.

   My beliefs about teaching...

    In the army , there is a motto, "nobody is left behind", the same must happen at the school, everybody has the right to learn, I know that a personalized education is utopic, and the new religions proclaims the ruthless competition to be the best. But, I believe that education musn´t work in that way, students with a enormous potential are being ignored or underrated, in favor of a few. Every student has their voice and deserve to be listened.

What I learned about teaching speaking skills

   I learned to be patient and maintain the calm, I wonder I will  ever have to face a student with a bad attitude but with a best level than I am. My english level is not basic, but I still have problems with the construction of some questions, I have a pronounced latin accent, and I used to "eat" the pronunciation of the last consonants. I feel that I am in the middle of the road, I have the sense of control with the students with a low level, they are very eager to learn but  they can´t notice my speaking mistakes.

What I learned about teaching in online environments 

   I learned that technology in many parts of our country, are in diapers. Some students don´t have a computer, they are conncected by ther phones, they don´t have internet connection, they have to recharge internet, many times is not enough for an entire class. In other places, the quality of the network is very bad. Even though, I had a lot of problems of connection caused by rain, blackouts and problems of the net, of the internet service. Anyway, is a complicated panorama. Virtual environments in our country is too far to be the most suitable.

My principles about teaching speaking online (at least 5) 

   1. Students must have the virtualo tools, or the institution in a way must provide them, if a student can´t listen the class caused by a bad connection or a bad equipment, it´s very difficult to teaching him. I need the completely the attention of the student.

  2. The students must be in the same level, a student that just can babble some words can´t be in the same class with a student with a medium or a high level. The student with a low level will be frustrated and the student with a high level will get bored.

  3. Maintain the calm, when a student can´t catch the idea. It´s my duty and my obligation that him or her, understand.

 4. To improve my speaking skills, to acquire everytime a high and a better level in my speaking skills, and could face more advanced students.

 5. To get focus on the discouraged students, understand their reasons, and try by all the means they don´t quit.

My learners

CHARACTERIZATION OF THE STUDENTS

Group A

Brian Andrés Solis.

City: Buenaventura, Valle.

Occupation: Operation team manager.

He has a medium speaking level, he can speak with some fluency, he understand what I´m saying and He can follow instructions. In the group , He has the best level of listeniong and speaking.

Luz Dary Jimenez Saldaña

City: Bogota.

Age: 42

Occupation: Pensionary.

Her level of speaking is too low, but she is very active in class, and participates a lot, she knows many rules of grammar, but all this knowledge are disperdsed inside of her head.

Jenny Johanna Mejia Sadaña

City: Barrancabermeja.

Age: 24

Occupation: Machinery Operator.

Her speaking level is not good. She tends to be silent. Buty when she is required to participate, she does, and with a good performance.

 

Gina Marlen Mojica Martinez

City: Meta, Villavicencio

Occupation : Aqueduct manager.

She is very attentive, but she is not very participative. But she is who always  turns on her camera, even though she argues audio problems often.

Eliana Lisvani Nuspan Quetama

City: San Juan De Pasto.

Age: 24 

Occupation: Student.

After Brayan she mis who is most interested in the contains of the class, her speaking level is basic, but she understand the grammar topics. She is very participative and attentive.

GROUP B.

Guillermo Antonio Castiblanco.

City: Bogota

Age: 40

Occupation: Dance coreographer 

He is the best of the group, He has big gaps of grammar and fails in the construction of structure sentences, but he is not afraid to express his ideas, He tries to be understood, his level of speaking is low but he is very eager to learn and speak. He dares and that is important.

Dennys Xiomara Obando Diaz

City: VillaGarzon, Putumayo

Age: 27.

Occupation: Team leader in Billing and accounts (EPS, Medical unity of assistance)

She has a better level than Guillermo, but she is not very participative, she prefers to be silent and wait. She knows many grammar rules , she has deficiences in listening skills, but she is very good in writing exercises and answeriing the topic questions.

Cristian Camilo Naranjo Arevalo.

City: Ibague, Tolima.

Age: 24.

Occupation: Security guard.

He has a very basic level, he has a problem : he can´t help to think in Spanish, all the time,and is very hesitant. But the more the classes are passing by, he shows interest and his participation is constant.

Testimonials:

Luz Dary Jimenez

 

Eliani Nuspan Quetama

Descargar documento.

A lesson plan that I liked...

 

    I love this lesson plan, because is a common topic, to know the price of the things and how to express the quantities. So,in this topic, I clarified many doubt what I had, with this respect ( the money), and the uncontable nouns and the countable nouns, when I was a school students I was very confused, and I  never fully understand at all. The class was very participative, and the students were very interested, because I have to say it again, the current topics, the daily situations that we face, are more attractive for learn, because they are useful, and we want to know how to use it

A lesson plan that I disliked..

 

When the class is going down...

It happened, when in the middle of the class, onne student said :"Teacher, I can´t with this, I don´t understand, I´m lost ", It´s to say, everything what I have prepared simply, doesn´t work, the material , and the exercises couldn´t be used. In that conditions, it was useless to continue. The topic was about the " unreal present", in this topic, it was necessary a previous knowledge, using the auxiliary did, and the past tense form, it was a complicated topic, if they didn´t have a solid baqckground, so I had to rebuilt the class in the middle of the class, to make a review of previous knowledge to be able to continue. It i¿was a situation out of the plan, the idea it´s to follow the lesson plan, but when the next step doesn´t appear in the route, in the lesson plan. What should I do?.

Fortunately, I could to resume the course of the class in the stipulated time. It was a unexpected situation.

A sample of material designed by me:

 

Videos of the classes that were meaningful for me:

Video 1:

https://unadvirtualedu.sharepoint.com/sites/ENGLISH3GRUPOA/Shared%20Documents/General/Recordings/November%204th-20211104_200421-Grabaci%C3%B3n%20de%20la%20reuni%C3%B3n.mp4

       The importance of this video for me, is to show the great effort of the students, to maintain the rythm and fluency telling simple a story, despite that they are very known and simple stories, it was very difficult for them, to rrate the events of the facts of the fairy tales, to learn to distinguish  the multiple verbal tenses, the coherency, the use of the correct pronouns, it supposed a big challenge for them, despite the story didn´t take more than five minutes. At the end of the exercise, they argued to be mentally tired, but happy with the experience, it was a glimpse of the power of the communicative skills, a great moment for them.

Video 2:

https://unadvirtualedu.sharepoint.com/sites/ENGLISH3GRUPOA/Shared%20Documents/General/Recordings/November%2016th-20211116_200633-Grabaci%C3%B3n%20de%20la%20reuni%C3%B3n.mp4

      In this case, this was the last class, it was the final exam, they were very anxious and worried, I remembered when I was on their feet, when I was a student, there was a great expectative, for the exam, indeed.

A t the end of the class, the students were more relaxed, and they spoke about themselves, about their jobs, and about the course experience,it was a very different panorama, that the beginning one. They showed more self-confident and they expressed freely.

CONCLUSION

The virtual education is a very complicated scenario, because many resources have to be in count, not just the human part, but the technology itself, there is a low level of provision of the technological resources, pandemic times demonstrate the flaws of this system, that does not mean that it is a failed system, rather is a educational system that requires more attention and care. It system points to the future, allows a more development and autonomic learning, but if is not applied in a good way, it could become a scattered system, where not all the students can participate.

As  a teacher, I have to two steps ahead from the new technologies, I have to be aware of the new tools and the new possibilities of the new education, the risk to be out of phase is clear and present if I don´t catch upon about of all this things for coming for the new horizons of the decuation.

Past is prologue.

               - William Shakespeare.