The Last Two Weeks
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July 20th – 11:20PM
Location: British International School, Phuket.
International House along with Cambridge University stipulate at the application and interview stages that the 4 week CELTA qualification course is very intensive. I can now certainly agree with this and say that it has exceeded my expectations as to how intensive it would be. This would be why I have neglected to update my blog for the two weeks, simply because I have spent a majority of my evenings planning lessons for hours on end (I will teach 10 lessons by the end of the course) as well as 4 writing assignments over the course period.
First of all, teaching English as a foreign language is not at all similar to any preconceived ideas of standing at the front of the class and passing on your knowledge to the learners. In fact, it is quite the opposite and this is what I have been learning during our afternoon sessions in class and then having to implement this immediately in our lessons. During the mornings, 3 lessons are taught. My class is made up of 6 trainees so we teach one 40 minute lesson on alternative days. I’ve taught intermediate students up to today and from tomorrow I start my elementary teaching. The students are all employed by British International School and the benefit for them to be taught English by unqualified teachers is that the lessons are free.
The trainers, are Carolyn Conway (intermediate lessons) and Barbara Garside (elementary lessons) and they are both seriously talented teachers who have published guidebooks and also examine other CELTA courses for Cambridge University. This is a priceless gift and I believe the words that come out of their mouths are as valuable as gold because they really do know what they are talking about.
I initially thought I would be very nervous in my lessons but it turns out I have a natural talent for focusing completing on the lesson. Most importantly I really enjoy it; it certainly doesn’t feel like work! The hard part is the lesson planning the evening before, but thanks to my organisational skills and meticulousness it has all gone pretty smoothly up to now.
Fortunately, there have been a few evenings that I’ve been able to experience a little of Phuket. My first and so far only venture to a beach as on our first Tuesday evening when I, Matt R, Tracy (a wonderful Aussie) and Amoret (a South African) broke free from our isolated confines and headed to the Patong Markets. From here we went to Karon beach to have a few beers and watch the tide come in, although we did have difficulty buying alcohol because it was a Buddhist bank holiday the following day!
We celebrated our first completed week on Friday by having a few beers at our dorms whilst playing tennis table, a sport I’ve never played before but I gradually got better under the influence of alcohol. Matt R, Tracy and I stayed up until 4.30a.m talking about everything under the sun outside on the grass. A perfect finish to the night.
The weekend brought with it monsoon rains and howling winds that cut our electricity throughout both days so there was no option but to stay in doors. I was outside on one occasion before the rain began to pour and the whole sequence is very eerie, the skies flashed as the lightening bolts tore through the clouds, the air became still and thick, then a few seconds later the sound of the rain drops hitting the tree leaves slowly got louder as it approached me. It was definitely a refreshing experience!
The second week was a lot harder, with another grammar lesson to teach and an assignment to hand in, two of my evenings did not end until 5a.mwhich only allowed me have 4 hours sleep. It is paid off in the end and I managed to make it through.
Again, to celebrate on Friday, a group of us ventured to Phuket Town and walked through the narrow streets lined by Portuguese themed architecture of Old Town Phuket. Everyone is Thailand are so friendly, they say hello and no one stares, they’re all just having a nice evening out with no drama – quite unlike Leicester City Centre. Our best find was Krim Krum Bar that played chill out beats with heavy bass lines; we ate some extremely spicy Thai food in the surrounds of vintage furniture and walls lined with all sorts of bizarre memorabilia.
Thankfully, I can say that my hard work and sleepless nights have been worth it because I had my tutorial today and I was surprised to find out I scored ‘Above Standard’ for what would usually be expected from someone studying a CELTA course. My tutor was also impressed with my performance on account of the fact that I have had no teaching experience prior to this which is very pleasing. To maintain this, I must continue the way I have in my elementary lesson teaching and not let the change of level throw me off.
9 more working days left.
4 more lessons to teach.
2 more assignments to complete.
Fingers crossed!
P.S. I was walking across the grass today when I felt a stinging in my foot which I thought was a thorn. To my horror it was a big red ant helping itself to my flesh and blood. I tried to flick the disgusting thing off me but failed because its fangs were clamped into my skin and it was only until I pinched the ant and pulled it off that I managed to pry myself away from its death grip. Utterly gross… and I’m still collecting mosquito bites. L
Location: British International School, Phuket.
International House along with Cambridge University stipulate at the application and interview stages that the 4 week CELTA qualification course is very intensive. I can now certainly agree with this and say that it has exceeded my expectations as to how intensive it would be. This would be why I have neglected to update my blog for the two weeks, simply because I have spent a majority of my evenings planning lessons for hours on end (I will teach 10 lessons by the end of the course) as well as 4 writing assignments over the course period.
First of all, teaching English as a foreign language is not at all similar to any preconceived ideas of standing at the front of the class and passing on your knowledge to the learners. In fact, it is quite the opposite and this is what I have been learning during our afternoon sessions in class and then having to implement this immediately in our lessons. During the mornings, 3 lessons are taught. My class is made up of 6 trainees so we teach one 40 minute lesson on alternative days. I’ve taught intermediate students up to today and from tomorrow I start my elementary teaching. The students are all employed by British International School and the benefit for them to be taught English by unqualified teachers is that the lessons are free.
The trainers, are Carolyn Conway (intermediate lessons) and Barbara Garside (elementary lessons) and they are both seriously talented teachers who have published guidebooks and also examine other CELTA courses for Cambridge University. This is a priceless gift and I believe the words that come out of their mouths are as valuable as gold because they really do know what they are talking about.
I initially thought I would be very nervous in my lessons but it turns out I have a natural talent for focusing completing on the lesson. Most importantly I really enjoy it; it certainly doesn’t feel like work! The hard part is the lesson planning the evening before, but thanks to my organisational skills and meticulousness it has all gone pretty smoothly up to now.
Fortunately, there have been a few evenings that I’ve been able to experience a little of Phuket. My first and so far only venture to a beach as on our first Tuesday evening when I, Matt R, Tracy (a wonderful Aussie) and Amoret (a South African) broke free from our isolated confines and headed to the Patong Markets. From here we went to Karon beach to have a few beers and watch the tide come in, although we did have difficulty buying alcohol because it was a Buddhist bank holiday the following day!
We celebrated our first completed week on Friday by having a few beers at our dorms whilst playing tennis table, a sport I’ve never played before but I gradually got better under the influence of alcohol. Matt R, Tracy and I stayed up until 4.30a.m talking about everything under the sun outside on the grass. A perfect finish to the night.
The weekend brought with it monsoon rains and howling winds that cut our electricity throughout both days so there was no option but to stay in doors. I was outside on one occasion before the rain began to pour and the whole sequence is very eerie, the skies flashed as the lightening bolts tore through the clouds, the air became still and thick, then a few seconds later the sound of the rain drops hitting the tree leaves slowly got louder as it approached me. It was definitely a refreshing experience!
The second week was a lot harder, with another grammar lesson to teach and an assignment to hand in, two of my evenings did not end until 5a.mwhich only allowed me have 4 hours sleep. It is paid off in the end and I managed to make it through.
Again, to celebrate on Friday, a group of us ventured to Phuket Town and walked through the narrow streets lined by Portuguese themed architecture of Old Town Phuket. Everyone is Thailand are so friendly, they say hello and no one stares, they’re all just having a nice evening out with no drama – quite unlike Leicester City Centre. Our best find was Krim Krum Bar that played chill out beats with heavy bass lines; we ate some extremely spicy Thai food in the surrounds of vintage furniture and walls lined with all sorts of bizarre memorabilia.
Thankfully, I can say that my hard work and sleepless nights have been worth it because I had my tutorial today and I was surprised to find out I scored ‘Above Standard’ for what would usually be expected from someone studying a CELTA course. My tutor was also impressed with my performance on account of the fact that I have had no teaching experience prior to this which is very pleasing. To maintain this, I must continue the way I have in my elementary lesson teaching and not let the change of level throw me off.
9 more working days left.
4 more lessons to teach.
2 more assignments to complete.
Fingers crossed!
P.S. I was walking across the grass today when I felt a stinging in my foot which I thought was a thorn. To my horror it was a big red ant helping itself to my flesh and blood. I tried to flick the disgusting thing off me but failed because its fangs were clamped into my skin and it was only until I pinched the ant and pulled it off that I managed to pry myself away from its death grip. Utterly gross… and I’m still collecting mosquito bites. L
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