
Motivation = CAN = Competence + Autonomy + Network
I tutor students and most of my sessions are one on one. How do I make a student feel that he belongs to a network?
I tutor students and most of my sessions are one on one. How do I make a student feel that he belongs to a network?
The standard textbook approach has always reminded me of Johnny Cash’s song, One Piece at a Time, and gives similar results. The students, the few who persevere, have a lot of bits and pieces but they don’t necessarily fit together very well. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uErKI0zWgjg
This poster can be downloaded and used to make your expectations visible in the classroom.
“It’s time to stop thinking of translation as something shameful that we do only when no one is looking.”
“One way to build trust is by employing the 2×10 strategy: spend 2 minutes talking with a student about anything other than school for 10 consecutive days.” Better than Carrots or Sticks, by Smith, Fisher and Frey
“Children who are habitually criticized, humilated, or shamed internalize negative feelings about themselves that hinder their healthy development. By contrast, children accustomed to loving support and guidance are much more likely to become healthy and productive citizens.”
An Englishman in a French restaurant: Serveur! Il y a un mouche dans la soupe!
Waiter: C’est une mouche, monsieur.
Englishman: Blimey! You’ve got good eyes.
I then realized that the “difficult words” that the Americans struggled with were the very words that made the text easy for my students because they were cognates for French speakers.
I have an adult student who is a beginner in English. She is highly motivated but has tried to learn English before and has never succeeded. She likes working with me and getting comprehensible input…
Every summer for the last ten years something magic has happened in Agen, France. Teachers from around the world have gathered in a friendly little town in southwest France and particpated in what many of them have called a life-changing experience. They come together because they have heard of a different way of teaching languages, a way of creating stories with their students and building a different kind of classroom. They come with open hearts and open minds and they leave with smiles and warm memories and many new friends. That is the magic of Agen.