A Bigg Intimidation

[wangsuda]

And think of all the money you'll save in NOT buying shampoo, combs, brushes, etc!

[Matthew]

It's decided then.

I'll post the before/after pics tomorrow night.

I can't promise the FULL buzz, but it'll be damn short!

[LoveBucket]

shave it ya wuss. i've been doing it about every three days for years. can't be doing with all that preening and gelling.

[LDMA]

...but back to the Bigg guy...do you all hang out with him after class in the staffroom for coffiee and canom or does he hide in his superstar office surrounded by PAs.

Does he ever come out of class with whiteboard pen stains on his shirt? Have you ever caught him idling the day away on Ajarn Forum?

[re_fuse]

No more head lice infestations
( but you will look like a prick with ears)
Oppps don't mess with the baldies

[wangsuda]

...but back to the Bigg guy...does he hide in his superstar office surrounded by PAs

I'd bet money on this one. He's been here so long he probably considers himself above associating with us commoners!

[aging one]

Matthew sure does think he put the dye in Thai!! :smile:

[Matthew]

...but back to the Bigg guy...does he hide in his superstar office surrounded by PAs

I'd bet money on this one. He's been here so long he probably considers himself above associating with us commoners!

Frankly I can't speak with too much authority because I've only just started there (last Sunday, the class in question in the OP) and met Andrew a few times before that.

But I can say that, in fact, Andrew does not 'hide out' at all. From what I've seen so far he's all over the school, out in the lobby talking with parents, running around directing his staff, and then running out the door to do a TV spot or something.

My first day I arrived a bit late to find the wrong lessons in my folder, and went back to find Andrew chatting in the staffroom with another teacher, having an extremely sensible conversation over some Isaan street food about whether teaching at this school was the right thing for this teacher or not.

I waited a couple minutes and then told Andrew it was my first class and I was a bit confused. He pretty much jumped up to help me out, printing out the correct lessons, helping find the props, all the while fielding my various questions with mindfulness and clarity. This is all 15 minutes before the lesson. Rushing, but cool and collected.

After our next door classes, he took the time to ask me how it went. This is all just to say in my interactions with the man so far, he's a completely normal, down-to-earth guy with a lot more energy than most and a lot more capacity than most.

[Slurpyjoe]

Reading from your post, this Mr. Biggs sounds like a real nice guy. With that kind of attitude, you surely can go a long way. Personally, I think its something to be admired.

[GreatSage]

Went back to Uni and did a full year TESOL course...

Part of the course required that I teach for 6 weeks (twice) in language schools in Sydney.

Before I took the class, I went and observed the 'real' teachers doing their stuff.

I was a bit overwhelmed at first to be honest. Both times the teachers were women with 20 + years experience...and they both had exceptional rapport with their students.

Their lessons were all superb and just flowed incredibly naturally. Both teachers had "real" qualifications / education backgrounds...

Luckily, they were both really cool people and I've become good mates with one. Before my first lesson (being observed) I just kind of sat outside and thought "no point worrying about it...she's done this for 20 years whilst I'm just starting. It's not realistic to think I'll do as well as her...so there's no pressure".

Same thing when I've trained people to do my own "non teaching" jobs over the years. I don't expect the person I am training to do the job as well as I can as they're just starting. Neither do any of us expect a first year footballer to be as good as a guy in his fifth year who has won the last three best player awards.

So, why stress about being as good as someone you're not realistically expected to be as good as?

In my own case, it actually helped. I was not as good as those teachers...but I wasn't completely outclassed also. Being in their company gave me a lot of confidence and a fair gauge as to how I was going.

Not knocking anyone...but looking good up against the 50 something alcoholic who struggles to put a few words together doesn't really give anyone a true idea of how they're doing.

[tazmanian]

Yes, I've worked with superstars....and I've closely observed (and, as a trainer, evaluated) their lessons.

That is why I fully believe the best teachers are born and not made.

Damn if that's not the truth. When the bell rings it's showtime. And if you think Ss can't learn while having fun it's because you're (third person) boring and are unable to accept the fact, IMHO.

Do any of you think one of those scalping degree courses would refuse your money knowing you'll be a less-than-mediocre teacher who is wasting their time in this profession?

There are plenty of countries you can work in where classroom boredom is the norm. Thailand is not one of them.

Since tomcat is out for coffee at the mo may I say:
All of us have abilities in many different areas, I couldn't do algebra to save myself from the canibals. Although I'm an undereducated knob by the standards of many of our members here on ajarn, I was born to teach. That's one thing I can do. Having had a mother and a father who were teachers helps a lot. Being an entertainer-type helps a lot. Never being too old to have fun helps a lot.

I don't disagree with any of that, but unlike some teachers I think there is a line to be drawn between being the entertaining teacher and trying so hard to be the clown that you actually forget to teach. I've seen new teachers so busy rushing around the class dancing in front of the kids that the classes just lose control, the kids think it's play time and it all goes manic. The teacher is so desperate to be 'Mr Popular' he forgets his job.

With my own kids who I've taught since M1 (they are now M3), I like to think they know we have a balance. Today is a little serious, read from the book and answer the questions, tomorrow we will sing a song and I will do my Tata Young dance for you again.

Again don't get me wrong, I agree with your ideas but I think it's important to draw a line, espcially with regular classes.

Maybe some great teachers are born that way, but others can make themselves into good teachers with effort and experience. I guess it's like footballers, some are born naturals like Beckham and Henry, others make it with great effort like Keane and Shearer.

As for Andrew Biggs, fair play to him for his success but let's be honest, if he didn't speak Thai so much would he really be a hit?

JMHO

[Matthew]

Maybe some great teachers are born that way, but others can make themselves into good teachers with effort and experience. I guess it's like footballers, some are born naturals like Beckham and Henry, others make it with great effort like Keane and Shearer.

As for Andrew Biggs, fair play to him for his success but let's be honest, if he didn't speak Thai so much would he really be a hit?

JMHO

Saying something like "great teachers are born, not made" can be taken two ways: 1) that some people are destined to become teachers and do, like our Mr. J Danger. The rest of us should question whether we are of that select few or not, and reconsider our careers 2) that some have more innate capacity for teaching than others, and will find it much easier to develop into a great one than the rest, putting in the same amount of work.

In a way, JD contradicts the first connotation of the phrase when he says "both my parents were teachers". They then made him a teacher-type by instilling in him certain values and modelling certain behavior. If his mother had birthed and then abandoned him, would she have already embedded these qualities into his person?

[tomcat]

^Not unless you follow the old Lamarckian school of thought which states that learned skills can be inherited (the Russians pushed that piece of baloney around the block for years).

The best teachers are engaging, open, friendly, ready with perceptive conversation, non-threatening, quick to learn from students and, ultimately, goal-oriented in their strategies. They are, in short, the kind of folks we generally like to know outside the classroom. They have too much self-respect to be clowns, but not enough to be pompous or condescending founts of knowledge. Much of their success comes from an (inherent) ability to adjust themselves to their audiences. Teachers who can't read their students might as well be on an island shouting at the waves.

[re_fuse]

here here :smile:

[Matthew]

Much of their success comes from an (inherent) ability to adjust themselves to their audiences. Teachers who can't read their students might as well be on an island shouting at the waves.

I'm beginning to think the most important things are 1) adaptive flexibility 2) attentive mindfulness. Once you've developed these things to consistence, the teaching itself becomes a relatively easy thing. That's my theory, anyway.