[Essay 9] First class layout
*Disclaimer : I wrote this about 2 months ago when I was really new as an instructor.
My schedule is getting hectic, pusing myself to hussle by making some projects as a freelancer and teaching at an English institution, where I’ve never worked before. As I'm getting busier, I spend so much time to prepare both projects and classes. My task got as much as I wished before, but at the same time, I should follow up a bunch of guides that each institution set up for a new teacher, such as how to use intranet and what to keep in mind to teach.
The basic outline that is being planned for my first lecture is to figure out a client’s needs like what topic they want to learn, which content or textbook they use. After figuring things out, I will create a curriculum that can fulfill each individual needs, since their weakness is different variously.
During a lecture, what I introduce at the beginning is to how to study English, and then I will show them how I read and speak. Also, as I used to stay in the states as an alien resident for the last 7 years, giving some advices to clients could be part of lecture, talking about American culture or travelling around the states. It’s to take advantage of my particular experiences. Whenever they seem confused or feel difficult to understand, I would point out what they exactly don’t know about and teach them until they understand perfectly. The main goal in the lecture is to grow a client’s sense of English that is very practical for conversation in reality and writing.
Let's talk reading. English beginners need to know first how to chunk subject, verb, object etc. Also, they should get used to English grammar so that they can get a translating process in brain smoother and faster. Any articles or journals would be great to study but I would recommend to use a relaible source, such as NYT, WSJ, Time etc, because writers in the major company are the most professional in terms of writing. They know what word should be put in the sentence appropriately and what phrase could be the best to give a message precisely. That's what learners have to memorize and practice constantly.
Whenever a class is finished, I have to check how my client feels about the lecture, in order to get feedback of my instruction. If a bad feedback comes out, I would need to fix it and avoid to make the same mistake again.
