Grade 7 Problems and Solutions

Problems

Student attention

Discipline/classroom management

Student interaction

Lack of local teacher involvement

Lack of information about students

Know selling propositions: what makes our program different?

What can we teach that a Chinese English teacher cannot teach?

Lack of focus of learning objectives for each class

Lack of focus for the teaching method

Too much focus on PPT

About discipline

About learning objectives for each class

Point system

Inform teachers ahead of time about learning objectives.

Students should demonstrate that they have mastered something. Do no give points for simple, easy answers

Too many classes in one day

Spread out the classes throughout the week.

Lack of understanding of western teaching methods

Desk formation

Communication with teachers ahead of time about classroom formation

Make a video or guidebook explaining procedures for satellite classes

Film specific situations

Explain how to correct naughty students

How should a class start before foreign teacher begins talking

Students should have notebooks before you enter class

How to answer questions

how to raise your hand

Don't stand up when you answer a question

School and teachers need to be on board with what we are doing

Students should line up according to team before entering clasroom

Teacher should give out or subtract points as necessary

Students should not as they enter the classroom

Rotate desk positions to keep things fresh

Lack of efficiency in classes

Lack of content in clases

Let students use English in a communicative way (i.e. video postcards)

Shallow thinking on part of students

Broaden student horizons by giving them practical ways and goals to learn English; contextualize English learning for them

Give penpals to students

Perhaps could be a whole program

Vlogs

Could do a final project that Chinese and American students would send to eachother.

Final project could be videos. Students would use vlogs as part of the information for making the final project.

No review from week to week

No learning assessment

Final project

Set goals and objectives for students (perhaps connected to a final project)

Reverse engineer from a final project.

Have different teachers teach classes within one school

Connect units together so that students review material implicitly

Make class more project, textbook, and student-oriented

Survey students somehow to know students better

Use a story and use the story to teach skills and vocabulary

Skype calls

Give students something tangible where they can apply English to daily life

Video postcard

Make workbook for students to do exercises and actvities

Inform teachers about how to manage and discipline students

For whole semester

For each individual class period

Give seating chart ahead of time

Inform teachers about different kinds of seating arrangements

Curriculum standards

Assessment Pearson Article

Principles of assessment Principles of Assessment

Practicality

Authenticity

Validity

Reliability

Washback

Types of assessment Types of Assessments 3 Types of Assessments 2 Explanation

formative assessment

summative assessment

Assessment of learning

Assessment for learning

assessment as learning

interim assessment

Common Core State Standards

World Readiness Standards for Learning Languages (ACTFL) List of Standards

Communication

Cultures

Connections

Comparisons

Communities

Grade 7 Speaking and Listening (http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/SL/7/)

Methods of assessment List of Strategies

Classroom Management

Teacher should get to class on time and have first slide on screen when students come in

First slide would have requirements and an assignment

On the first day of class, we set the expectations in class

Theme

Do not waste time at the beginning of class. Students should work on something as soon class starts.

Teacher on other side could take roll as their instructs

Have specific rules

Communicate consequences

Communicate consequences

Communicate responsibility

Communicate positive feedback when student obeys instructions

Be predictable and consistent

Indicate what students should do when the complete the assisgnment

Method

Explain

Rehearse

Reinforce

Instruct teachers to rehearse behavior with students ahead of time

Organize the class so that the class could run itself without the teacher present

culture, function and theme need to connected

choose 4 topics and make units based around different functions

Function - how to use the language in a situation

The function is the skill that we would teach

The skills determine the activities in the textbook.

Use standards (i.e. Common Core) to determine what kinds of skills to teach.

Standards inside book entitled "Language and Children"

The function would make the information more interesting for students

Options that students from Jiahui #2 are interested in

War

History

school life

family life

American food

Situation of Covid-19 in America

American presidents

Technical objectives used as a means to accomplish a practical function

3-4 units per theme (one unit per class period)

One function per unit (class period)

functions and standards are connected because they are almost the same thing

skills are outcomes

Make a textbook oriented around songs for Grade 7 Yanan students

Jazz Chant

Folk songs

Comprehensive English: Learning Language Through Culture

School Uniforms

Situations

Getting in trouble with the principal for not wearing the uniform

Getting called the wrong name because you look like someone else

The school uniform is dirty, so you cannot wear it.

Needing to buy the school uniform -- right color; right size; price

Mix up your uniform with somebody else's

  1. Academics

Situations

Cell phones in schools

Situations

Using a cellphone during lunch time/break time

Needing to call parents in an emergency

Call parents to bring school uniform

Call parents to come pick you up after school

School lost a student's cellphone because school confiscated cellphone

Phone is stolen at school by another student

Phone breaks during PE class

School breaks cellphone as they try to confiscate cellphone

A funny ringtone/notification sound goes off during class or test

Student tries to a wear mascot costume as a uniform to school

Expelling Students

Situations

  1. Student expelled for a bogus rule

Conversation between child and parent for being expelled for a bogus rule

Conversation between child and parent for being expelled for doing something humorous

  1. Potential employer asks expelled student why/how he was expelled from school
  1. Conversation between expelled student and former principal who expelled the student 20 years ago
  1. Texting conversation about a homework assignment that nobody wants to do.

Detention

Situations

Conversation between two students during detention during a humorous punishment

  1. Overdependence

Situations

Parents trying to kick out adult child from home

Adult child asking parents for money

Student trying to find a job or apply to school but has no idea what he is doing because his parents decide and do everything for him so that he can focus on homework

Conversation between adult child and parents about doing chores around the house (i.e. laundry, cooking). But child does not know how to do chores.

Conversation between parent and adult child about playing video games all day

Conversation with potential employer

Conversation with college staff

College Education Necessary for Financial Independence

Situations

Conversation between parent and student about a bad Zhongkao/Gaokao score

Conversation between child and parent about wanting to get some kind of humorous/random job after graduation

Conversation between child and parent about what to major in during college/what school to go to

Getting a low-paying job after a whole college education

A person going into debt for college

A person who goes into debt from overspending with a lot of money

Miscellaneous from Creating a Compelling Conversations

choosing a restaurant

Should you buy it?

Writing an app review

ordering takeout

commenting on something that someone else bought

Talking about my hometown

buying stuff on Jingdong or Taobao

How do you spend your time?

Enjoying a great game

video games

board games

Loving Pets

Celebrating birthdays

Getting dressed in the morning and complaining to mom

Learning about a famous person you admire

Reviewing movies

Chatting in person and online

  1. Social Status

Situations

A rich, famous person who goes into debt from overspending

Conversation between parents and child about the kind of job to get after graduation. Enjoying job vs. making money?

Should a person do something that he does not enjoy or have skills for in order to make money?

Pressure of improving social status

Parents set expectations for child.

Asking for a gift that you think would make you happy

  1. A day in the life of an American student -- free time, extracurricular activities

A Straight A Student

  1. People who commit suicide because they do not feel perfect.

Conversation with teacher about a bad grade on the final exam.

Conversation with parents about getting a bad grade on the Zhongkao/Gaokao, and all of your friends got perfect scores.

Conversation with parents about why you need to practice an instrument so much

  1. Getting caught for cheating on a test with a cellphone
  1. Bullying

Situations

Conversation between roommates at college when student does not know how to do basic tasks such as chores.

Conversation about food because student does not know how to cook.

Monologue project???

Filial piety

Parent made a big sacrifice of sorts in order to buy a new phone that ends up being a knock-off of the real thing. Student throws away the item after realizing that it is a knock-off. After throwing item away, student realizes the sacrifice that parents made.

  1. Buying a house
  1. Choose a suitable partner
  1. Having children

Conversation about whether or not buying a house would buy you happiness.

  1. Pressure to get a socially acceptable major and job

Student shows up at the bottom of the ranking list and only one major is available to him.

Student bullied/mocked for not being able to run in PE class because he is too fat.

Mom criticizes child for "imperfect" body figure.

Student tries to lose weight but does not know how to lose weight, so student stops eating.

Has to go to hospital because he stopped eating.

Looking at a cellphone while teacher is lecturing

Reasons for being bullied

Body shaming

Stuttering

Physical or mental disability

Bad hygiene

Bad eating habits

Being poor financially

Too pretty/handsome from a poor family

Health problems/allergies

How parents abuse children in China

comparing children to others

verbally disowning children

beating children up with a belt

Different accent

Hometown discrimination

Gender discrimination

Bad grades

Socially awkward

Not able to read a room or have conversation

Odd interests

Being albino

migrant worker

From Irene -- Get a good major at a good school and get a good job

to be respected

to improve face of parents

to become a head of a public institution

to have connections/relationships

to improve family status

to be resourceful

to have privileges so that you can get things done in the workplace and for other people

to be stable

Conversation about whether or not you need to have a boyfriend or girlfriend

  1. Student does not like major because parents decided major for him.
  1. Student has conflict with roommates because he does not know how to take care of a room/house.
  1. Parents push student to work for a company for social status
  1. Parents die, and students go through life crisis.

Workaholism in Japan

Overemphasis on academic performance South Korea

Work-life balance

Independent children in Japan who walk to school on their own.