Author Topic: do your students use only english in the classroom? (Read 623 times)

misssunshine · « **on:** April 12, 2012, 01:44:45 pm »

hi

do your students speak only in English, and if they do, how did you get them to do it? I made it a rule to speak only English in the classroom, but i am having trouble enforcing it, as students talk constantly in korean during class.

Yu_Bumsuk · « **Reply #1 on:** April 12, 2012, 03:41:13 pm »

I've never seen it.

jamasian · « **Reply #2 on:** April 12, 2012, 05:22:45 pm »

I work in public school. I set the rule and the co-teach has been helping me enforce it. It can be done but you must be consistent in punishment for using Korean when unnecessary. We don't let them use "jinja" really, "ne ga" I or any of the question words in Korean and so forth. Basically, if they've repeatedly learned and used the words we force them to use English.

JahRhythm · « **Reply #3 on:** April 12, 2012, 05:34:52 pm »

Unless their English is advanced or they're very young, it ain't gonna happen.
I wouldn't even bother trying to enforce it.
Focus on behavior that you can influence.

deanitsin · « **Reply #4 on:** April 12, 2012, 08:30:18 pm »

If my students could only ever use English in class, my classes would be stone silent. They need to be able to communicate with each other to help each other use and understand English. That's just how it is. What I will do is, with the lower level classes I'll give them the last five to ten minutes (depending on the activity) of only English, and for high level it's ten to twenty. I push them hard during this time to only speak English, but they know that if they ask a friend how to say or do something using Korean, they're not going to get shouted at. Why? Because they are trying, and with kids at their levels, that's what matters. By giving them a small, manageable goal that they feel they have a chance of accomplishing, I've gotten much better results.

flasyb · « **Reply #5 on:** April 12, 2012, 08:52:25 pm »

Like with the other posters, the notion that my high school students could use only English in regular classes is wishful thinking. Despite having taught it to all of them, many still have to ask their friend (with slightly better English) how to say bathroom. Then it's, "Teacher, bassroom?" Some just mime and make noises like, "uh mm uh," gesture and point.

I'd estimate the STT (Student Talk Time) in my CTs' classes to be around 5-10% and that's just repeating words or phrases or shouting out a translation to a Korean word. The rest is a lecture. So to move from that to enforce an "all English environment" would be impossible to achieve in my once weekly class.

In fact, in a recent development, my school has hired 2 new English teachers (despite already having sufficient to teach all classes without anyone working more than me) who are part-time for this semester and will move to full-time next semester. One of them teaches the lowest ability students in the school in small classes of 6 (in the English office actually because there are nice chairs there so I get to observe her lessons) and she is currently teaching them to read again - assuming that they ever fully learned. Class sizes have shrunk dramatically and the first graders have all been level tested and sorted into A, B, C, D and E classes. A re-scheduling nightmare but still, exciting times at my school!

The only possibility of having an "English only" situation would be during camp with the SKY classes. They could manage it if they had the inclination. Yup, definitely. A review of every day classroom language on the first day (and a little on the next few days) and they'd be flying. We did it on a brief drama camp for 2 hours actually. There was still some Korean from students struggling to think of a word for the plays that they were writing so they asked their friends but I didn't catch any full Korean conversations. Doable but only with highest ability students all together in a single class.

yfb · « **Reply #6 on:** April 14, 2012, 01:08:09 pm »

In my 6th grade classroom, we use English only.

I have placards on the board labeled "Korean Speakers" and "Bad Behavior". I remind the students at the start of every class exactly when English speaking time starts. From that point on until I dismiss the students, they cannot speak even one word of Korean without permission. We taught them to raise their hand and say, "Teacher may I speak Korean?" if they have a question for the K co-teacher. If they speak even one word of Korean, they must stand up, write their name under "Korean Speakers" and stay after class sweeping the floor. (Initially we created a seating chart and it was I who wrote their name, but I trust that the kids will write their own name. If they try any funny business with writing their name, I make them stand there and do it again). We do likewise with Bad Behavior. No one is exempt from the rules, but if I feel particularly lenient (not often) I will say "I forgive you" and then they can erase their name.

To counter constant disruptive calls of "TEECHA HE SPOKE KOREAN" I have a corollary to the rule: If I cannot hear the Korean, then they are safe. However, I constantly patrol around the tables during my PPTs (thanks to my portable clicker - BUY ONE IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY) so the kids know that any Korean is a gamble.

It's worked wonders. The classroom is dead silent during worksheet time and TTT. Disrespectful behavior is mostly gone. During STT, the students really are speaking in English.

I realize that low-level students may be put off by the rule and may stay silent. However, I would much rather they stay silent and learn English rather than constantly disrupting the classroom with Korean and not learning English. Such is the price to pay for an orderly classroom I suppose.

This has only been tested with 5th grade and 6th grade. I haven't implemented it for 3rd and 4th grade because of their level. I have never taught a middle or high school class and I don't know how it would work.

kiwigirl · « **Reply #7 on:** April 14, 2012, 03:47:52 pm »

I work in a hagwon and our classes are 'English Only' and it works. It's a school wide policy and I am constantly surprised by how much even the very young stundents can communicate in English. I know it's a bit different in public schools and other situations but I just wanted to advise that in my experience - 'yes' it can be done.

You get the odd slip up sometimes - you just need to know when to punish and when to gently remind them 'English only'. Most of the time the other kids will be the ones to tell on their fellow students - "Teacher, ___ spoke Korean'. If you don't like to 'punish' another good way is to 'reward' the ones who do speak English only. Sometimes they do need to speak Korean to explain something to a student who really does not understand. They ask 'May I speak Korean' and the teacher will let them if they feel it is necessary.

I think it is just perseverance, it's going to take a long time for them to get comfortable. We also have lots of signs up around the classroom with everyday sentences to help them remember. If they are not sure, I can point to the sign to remind them. Things like 'May I go to the bathroom', 'May I get a drink of water', 'I'm sorry, I forgot to do my homework'. Anything you think they will use on a regular basis.

jamasian · « **Reply #8 on:** April 17, 2012, 04:21:47 pm »

Don't be discouraged. An English only classroom is completely doable in public schools. I work at 3. From Elementary to middle school. You have to be strict because they know a lot of vocabulary and your class is where they should be using it. I let Korean in when a majority doesn't understand, but even then it's only from 2-3/25+ to explain whatever it is that got misunderstood.

squirrelandgman · « **Reply #9 on:** April 18, 2012, 01:54:18 pm »

I have a speak English rule but not a 'no Korea' rule. Copy and paste from an essay here but: As Anton and DiCamilla found Use of L1 seems to be necessary, at least with low L2 proficiency learners, to construct a social space that will facilitate the completion of the task by enabling learners to achieve intersubjectivity, that is, a shared perspective on the task. There was indication in my research of the value of L1 in scaffolding the learning of English.

I think encouraging English where possible but understanding the need for Korean at times is a method that works with all the different ability levels in the one classroom.

flasyb · « **Reply #10 on:** April 18, 2012, 02:21:28 pm »

Quote from: jamasian on April 17, 2012, 04:21:47 pm

Don't be discouraged. An English only classroom is completely doable in public schools. I work at 3. From Elementary to middle school. You have to be strict because they know a lot of vocabulary and your class is where they should be using it. I let Korean in when a majority doesn't understand, but even then it's only from 2-3/25+ to explain whatever it is that got misunderstood.

It's perfectly doable in your public school in after school classes. Come to my rural high school and try implementing your rule. You'll see things turn out differently. Please bear in mind that my class is the only one in which the students actually use English so they don't get much practice.

jamasian · « **Reply #11 on:** April 20, 2012, 03:47:51 pm »

Ok, well not everyone can do everything. In my, also rural, area they are quite eager to try hard to use only English. Most of my students in all 3 schools are active. I only made middle school a no Korean zone after discovering their abilities. They can only form sentences if you push them to practice. You can coax or force. Either way, you have to know your students. There are times when they will speak English and use Korean particles or 2 words in the middle and I don't punish for that. I help them fix it. The most punishment as I stated before is given when they say things like "I don't know." "This?" "Where?" "I don't understand." etc in Korean. I make them get dictionaries and so far so good. Rural doesn't mean stupid or lacking all the time.

flasyb · « **Reply #12 on:** April 20, 2012, 04:29:58 pm »

^^
I would NEVER say rural means stupid!

I know my students could do these things if they had paid attention for the last few years and if they used English in their other English classes but they don't. Most of my students never speak English in their other English classes. This is not conjecture. I've seen and heard other English classes. The students get lectured to for 50 minutes and occasionally repeat a word or a phrase from a KET. It's 98% lecture and 2% repeat with an occasional Korean-English translation question with a one-word answer.

I do my level best to get them to use English and create their own sentences. More importantly than that, I do my best to improve their confidence - certainly more coaxing than forcing. However, there's only so much I can do in my academically irrelevant once weekly class.

The problem is the lack of practice (which has lead to a lack of confidence), not the lack of intelligence. In my rural high school, the teachers are keen for me to encourage the students to use English in my class (which they are too embarrassed to attend for the most part) but they are not keen, or don't know how, to encourage that themselves in their own classes. I hope that changes.

Personally, I think it would be a great idea to send all KETs (at my school at least) on a month long TEFL or CELTA course during a vacation so that they could learn to teach without the crutch of constant translation. Even when they ask questions, they immediately translate them into Korean which leaves me wondering why they bother to even ask them in English at all. You know most students will take the easy way out when presented and just wait for the translation that will follow immediately.

Conversely, the elementary NETs in my town see their students 3+ times a week (smaller schools), their CTs try to speak as much English as possible, and having been asked to judge the elementary speaking competition I can say that the standards are very high (at least among those selected for the comp - higher ability probably). That's the kind of working environment where you know you make a difference because the pressure is on you to make sure the students improve and pass exams. My classes are simply extra-curricular and everybody knows it.

deanitsin · « **Reply #13 on:** April 20, 2012, 06:14:17 pm »

I'm teaching classes of 35+ at a time, and some (not a tiny fraction, either) of my students can't even read English. When new students first come in, before they've gotten used to me, it's not uncommon for me to say, "How are you?" and get a, "네?" in response.

I push them as hard as I can to speak in English, even if it's only one word, but if I didn't allow them to help each other out during classes by allowing them to ask each other how to say different words in English, roughly 3/4 of most classes would end up just sitting there until I could help them all individually. For me, it's a good enough day when they are all trying. And by helping each other out, they're forced to recall all kinds of things and they end up reviewing and learning a lot just by working together.

In some situations, I don't think it's the most productive course of action. To me, it's more important for them to eventually be able to answer me in the target language than it is for them to sit there not speaking Korean and still have no clue what's going on by the end of the class period.

That having been said, I see no need for translation from the teacher. Our classes should be taught in English, even if the students sometimes struggle. It's the only time my kids really have the motivation to try to understand something in spoken English, so it's important.

jamasian · « **Reply #14 on:** April 23, 2012, 07:54:50 am »

Ok flasyb. I had to make sure I wasn't talking to another negative person. I've heard a lot of the "stupid" reasons and such so I wasn't sure if you thought the same way. I am familiar with all of the circumstances you mentioned. It wasn't easy to get each grade to speak English, but I wasn't trying to pull an overnight project anyway. Anywho, thanks for all the info contributed, because the next person will see 2 sides of this issue and know how to better proceed in their own classes.

kyndo · « **Reply #15 on:** April 23, 2012, 08:32:19 am »

I work at a middle school, and while I try hard to get my students to speak as much English as possible, it's almost impossible to have a class of 35 students not speak a word of Korean. As a previous poster mentioned, L1 is needed to provide a framework to understand and use L2, and students using Korean to help another with their English is part of the learning process.
That said, my students try very hard to communicate with me, and since I fake complete ignorance of the Korean language (ok, so maybe the ignorance it isn't completely faked) they go to great lengths composing sentences to greet me with. I think I've heard at least 20 variations of "Give me candy!", and at least 100 explaining why and how their friend is a ****.

Regarding coteachers, I've sat in on many of their classes, and English is never used more than 25% of the time. What really irks me is that the 3 most fluent teachers (almost native speaking level) have been assigned the lowest level classes where the students don't benefit at all from their teacher's great English, while the high level classes are taught by the older teachers who have a much, much lower level, and barely ever use it in class. Stupid seniority system...

in6207 · « **Reply #16 on:** April 23, 2012, 10:22:39 am »

It is not easy for my stunents to understand even more difficult to say only english.

Jumpman Jr. · « **Reply #17 on:** April 23, 2012, 01:18:25 pm »

I wish they would, but in my school, it is impossible.
Of course, in some schools I'm sure it is possible, but that heavily depends on the students you have.
My students are great, but they speak Korean to each other essentially the whole time (whenever they're allowed to be speaking, of course... I run a pretty disciplined class). I may have started with an "only English" rule, but it just becomes impossible to enforce, especially when I have classes with upwards of 45 students... some of which can't speak a word of English.

In a perfect world, only English would be great. It wouldn't make a difference for me, but for the students it would for sure.

chocolatepeony · « **Reply #18 on:** April 24, 2012, 09:52:03 am »

I have the same problem with my students speaking A LOT of Korean in my class. I've tried to implement the "English only" rule, but I'm constantly undermined by one of my Korean coteachers who talks to them in Korean (and he does a lot of the talking), even though his English is really good and it's the conversation class. Any suggestions for dealing with the coteacher?

dandred · « **Reply #19 on:** April 24, 2012, 02:35:22 pm »

Ask him not to use English in your classes.....

I've been at my school for just over three weeks and I enforced a strict no Korean policy, the other Korean teachers have said they can already feel the difference, when the kids want some help or need something they actually try to ask in English.

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Author Topic: do your students use only english in the classroom? (Read 623 times)