Student dissatisfaction with other students

We hear often about students being dissatisfied with teachers or about teachers with students, but this morning I had the occasion to hear a student tell other students about how dissatisfied he was with their behavior. This morning I had a first-period class, for which one student in particular has been attending regularly, and for which several others have not. Monday, first period, you get the picture.

Since this is near the end of term, students are worried about the numbers of absences that they have; will they have enough attendance to pass? Unfortunately some will not, and it was my duty to inform two of the students today that they did not have enough attendance to pass the class, regardless of what they got on their exams. They were disappointed, and expressed that, and one of their classmates became red in the face and scolded them for such childishness. "I've been coming every Monday, early, and having an enjoyable class with Mr. Kirk, while you have been making excuses and staying in bed. Why should you get the same credit I get"? He went on, but it was generally to the effect this kind of behavior will not be tolerated in the rest of society, why should it be tolerated at university?

It was surprising, but refreshing, to see a student take such a stand openly in class.

Karaoke Taikai

We did a karaoke contest at the ESL yesterday. It worked really well. About ten students competed, and did a great job. We gave away a book ticket to each participant, and gave two to the person who got the most points. Some people were really serious, and some people were just having fun. I was surprised about how enthusiastic students were.

It also encouraged me to think about how I can incorporate music into my classes it worked so well.

Goals and goal making

Until recently I had an idea about goals that I tell my students, and it was a story about setting goals using a SMARTER system. I won't go into great detail here, but I do not think it is how I or others make their goals. Maybe some people have, but it is not how my students make their goals. I have tried and even over the course of a semseter, they don't get the hang of it.

In the first semester this year I asked each of the students to make goals using the SMARTER system. The name is an acronym for specific, measurable, appropriate, relevant, timed, entertaining, and rewards. The students were to create their own goal, which they would write about in their action logs. Only about twenty percent of them were able to make credible goals using the system, but there was a bigger problem in the logic of the exercise.

There was an inconsistency between what I said, "Focus on now, " and "If you believe it, it is true." Students would write in their action logs, "I want to be good at English." My reply was to suggest that they say instead, "I am good at English," focusing their attention not on the wanting to be but on being. They liked that idea, and adopted it. They needed to be reminded now and again, but for the most part, they said it, and over the course of our class, they came to believe it. They can speak English. Unfortunately I also suggested that they make goals that force them to ignore their belief that they can, and realign themselves with their previous belief that being able to speak English will be something that happens in the future, always in the future, never now.

I had to think of another way to encourage them to build goals. I don't use the SMARTER system in my life. It is too time consuming. Also, and more fundamentally, the SMART system was hard to figure out. A large percentage of the students never understood the system, other than remembering the acronym.

In a recent class I took the opportunity to think about what they want kinds of English skills they want and act in the present :
1. as if they already posses the skills,
2. to improve their already considerable abilities.

In this way they will be keeping the end in mind, even if the end is not crystal clear at the moment.