NYC March 19 Extensive CELTA Course

Comment

Comment by Barry De Saw on May 21, 2011 at 9:46pm

Thanks to Luca for inviting all of us out to dine and drink and get to know one another better! We all had a smashing time!

Comment by My Teaching House on May 2, 2011 at 3:59pm

Follow @TeachingHouse on Twitter for more job openings and teaching ideas!

Comment by Elke Stappert on March 23, 2011 at 4:45pm

Hi everyone,

Here are some of my notes about our students. I'd appreciate it if you could post some, too, especially about the students I didn't get a chance to talk to.
Thanks!
elke

Chloe, age 26, from Korea, studies nursing at Lehmann college, arrived in the US in Dec 2010, likes "movie music," lives in the Bronx

Chrystal, age "almost 40", Chloe's roommate, also studies nursing, likes traveling (China, safari) and fast music

Yulia (or Yuliet?) age 27, from Belarus, works in a restaurant, arrived two years ago. She wants to learn English in order to find a better job and to be able to communicate better. She likes drawing and rollerblading.

Alejandra, age 35, from Ecuador. She's a secretary in a travel agency, in the US since 2008, and would like to become a teacher herself. She likes basketball, mountain climbing, Michael Jackson and Christina Aguilera.

Timur, age 39, from Kazakhstan, arrived in the US in Jan 2010, and spent the first two months in Texas. He will stay in NY for another four months.

Andrea from Brazil...

Eliana...

And one more student, I didn't get his name

and...

Thanks,
see you tomorrow (or Saturday)!
elke

Comment by Barry De Saw on March 18, 2011 at 3:15pm

From Barry:
See what I mean about mistakes? I missed the "y" at the end of the word "generally" in my last entry. Oh well. There are probably other mistakes. It reminds me that I need to weigh the worthiness of pointing out errors with the fact that it can discourage the student. And I always want to be encouraging, of course.


- Barry De Saw, 18 March

Comment by Barry De Saw on March 18, 2011 at 3:10pm

This is from Barry De Saw:

Answers to the numbered questions:
2) I would like to work for the American Language Communication Center in New York City. This is my first choice because I would like to work for an established and respected school, I'd like to work in this area without having to move, and the school is located in midtown, which is highly convenient.
I would also try to apply at schools in Barcelona Spain, because I already know some rudimentary Spanish and would like to improve that, and also, I have great respect for the European Union nations, which collectively lead the world in human rights, something I am very passionate about.

3) I had never used the phrase "illustrating meaning" before, but have done this countless times as an ESL teacher and English language tutor. It is great to put an agreed label on it.

4) My recommendation is a useful one, in a practical sense, but it comes face to face with the fact of human pride and egoism. I myself am very glad to receive help and correction when I make an error in pronunciation or grammar, etc. The CELTA school in New York is comprised of adult professionals who are surely competent, but nonetheless flawed (like all human beings). It would be a great plus for CELTA to welcome constructive points of improvement when a teacher accidentally misspeaks or when something appearing in materials or e-mails contains a typo, grammatical error or some other error. I want to teach students that we are all constantly students - teachers are also students, at least the best ones, anyway. If we can humble ourselves to accept our flawedness and constructively address the fact, we can improve in the direction of (ever-elusive) excellence in our paideutic endeavors.
5) My goal is to improve my understanding, especially of grammatical rules, which I have never been very good at. Secondarily, I hope to use the CELTA credential to help me land a teaching job in New York or in Spain.
6) I think it is appropriate to recognize Christen's positiveness and encouragement. Her communication here and on the phone is such that the student maintains a positive attitude about the course and a general confidence that he or she can and will complete all assignments and generall succeed. This professionalism is often taken for granted, but it perhaps ought to be recognized and lauded sometimes.
I hope this entry satisfies the online requirement here.
I very much look forward to meeting my fellow students on Saturday morning and look forward to the ten weeks of instruction. I know that everyone is well-intentioned regarding education. It is a pleasure and an honor to be in such decent and respectable company.

- Barry De Saw, 18 March 2011