Shhhh...
...let him speak.
While some were off bitching about the heat I was ..I was planting seeds.
SEED #1 Summer Beach BBQ
While some were moaning about teaching words that you think have no value I was fielding questions about it because THEY wanted to know..It was more than a page in a textbook or the words rolling out of an uninspired ALT's lips. I was planting more seeds.
SEED #2 Halloween
Lights,Santa and a party with a full Christmas dinner and presents? Those will yield the finest fruits..the fruits of my labor...I planted many seeds in December
SEED #3 Christmas
I don't wake up in the morning and think....
"folks respect me and want to pay me money because I have a school". Every School would be a smashing success if it were that easy...it isn't.....so they aren't.
No...oh no no no it goes more like this:
"I wanna go to that School that had the big BBQ party...my classmate goes there and she's the best in our class at reading,writing and speaking English!"
OR
"I wanna go to that School that had the smoking demon on the roof and the Haunted house....my classmate goes there and he's the best in our class at reading,writing and speaking English!"
OR
"I wanna go to the place that had all the beautiful animated Christmas balloons and lights....my classmate goes there and she is the best in our class at reading,writing and speaking English!"
Listen, if being awesome were easy it wouldn't be awesome...it would be average. I hate average. It scares me. I am terribly frightened of waking up someday and thinking..."I'm just gonna get this day over with so I can ______."I watch others mail it in...I will not ever mail it in. I get paid to do a job and it will be done in a way that far exceeds expectation.
The other teachers in this area get the students I don't accept. THAT is the cold hard truth. Follow me now.....listen ....please tell me of a school in this country that does what I do. I'm not joking. I'm asking an honest and very serious question. Who and where does this better than me? The business is English and the product is measurable skills in English communication and grammar. If the product wasn't high in quality this whole thing would be going very differently than it is. My curriculum was built by me from the ground up and it has produced outstanding results. I try to teach and they need to try and learn so I'm just 50% of this equation. I can control my 50% but couldn't always control the other 50%.
Some students just don't match to my style or they would rather be doing something else....as if I don't get that...shit...I don't speak Japanese. I didn't wanna be in a language class as a child. I get it..I live it...That is me.
However, beyond that, when a child wants to learn it can be a problem of character...or more specifically the inability of a pair of characters getting along and excelling. This is on me as I am extremely demanding and don't accept less than 100%
How do you make a Top Ten student list more effective? You put "trending" arrows next to each name to show how they are doing compared with themselveswithin a group comparison.
This hangs in the entrance and if ANY parent feels uncomfortable with critical evaluation they can quickly see they are in the wrong place.
I watch as EVERY mother whose child is on or has been on this list comes in to take a peak at the beginning of every month. It is a very big deal and kids have sometimes been berated by over bearing mothers because they are trending down or off the list all together. Only Shogakosei can be on the list which is only about 60 of my students so they have a 1 in 6 chance of being on it but it feels more like 1 in a hundred based on the smiles or grimaces on the mothers faces.
I measure my students above the 6th grade by tests in school combined with in class performance which dictates which class they can join and within that is the seating position which is #1 thru #5. Furthest to my left which is closest to me and the position which gets the first volley of whatever I am firing is the #1 spot in the class. I often stop classes and ask students to change the seating order because they can't handle it..or they are having a bad day...or whatever? Everyone knows what is going on and being "demoted" sucks and being "promoted" doesn't suck...they have to hide their smiles...if they are young they whoop it up..lol....enjoy being #1 cuz if you slip once your taking the "shift of shame". If they ever lose seat #1 ..and get it back...they NEVER let it go a second time...it has NEVER happened.
Oh..and about the 50% I can't control...them...oh, it turns out I CAN.
They sign a contract of performance when they join and failure to meet the obligations is grounds for contract termination. 7.....that is how many didn't live up to their end of our deal. 4 have accepted the reality and 3 (all children of teachers) are in the denial/negotiation stages. The GOD video now makes sense...no?
I can indeed control that which is near me. I could just keep taking their money...it's as good as anyone else's but they are walking talking adverts and bad ad's cannot be allowed. I teach hard, they gotta study hard...that was the deal...it was signed.
Welcome to my world. Get through it and you will be very well prepared for the real one....the English and using it with confidence part of it anyway.