hey all,
So I've had my first taste of the leash today. Previously, the vice principal at one of my schools had told me that one of my activities wasn't appropriate: the activity was drawing a face with an expression on it (happy, hungry, fine, sleepy), and then writing "I'm _________" below it. The face was fine, but this whole writing thing was apparently too hard for my 5th grade students. The students themselves didn't seem to mind, and the homeroom teachers' were mostly pleased about it.
Well, today, while she was talking to my coordinator about a different topic, it seems she brought this up. So, I was talked to by my coordinator about it as well.
I have no problem with making a fun lesson: most of my teachers and students come away from them smiling, so clearly I'm doing something right. But I refuse to do a lesson that is all fluff and no content: learning English can be fun, but learning the alphabet is part of English. There are only 26 letters, and I have plenty of songs, games, and coloring activities to go along with them. Japanese people learn kanji for 9 years (about 222 characters per year).
Besides which, they didn't have to know the alphabet to do this activity. I wrote "I'm ____________" on the board, and told the students to copy it, and write one of the feelings in the blank. The feelings are also written on the flashcards, so the students can just copy them. The students have already made name tags with their own names written in the alphabet, so what is the big deal here?
I have to agree with one of the people I interviewed with several weeks ago: the Japanese Education system doesn't want, and is not prepared to handle students who are good at English. Thus, my present situation.
Cheers,
