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Post by Bonobo on Dec 22, 2019 21:21:03 GMT 1
I like using good books in class. New technologies are fine with me but only as a way to illustrate an issue discussed in the book. Yes, call me traditional but after all, I have been teaching for 28 years now.  During that time I have used a few dozen titles at school and private courses/tutoring. E.g., these ones for high school students preparing to their final exam in English. Once I used them in several classes at a time, today only in one due to PiS "deform." Check out their first units: Basic egis.com.pl/files/4733b46b/rm2015_basic.pdf Advanced egis.com.pl/files/27094ed3/rm2015_ext.pdf |
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Post by naukowiec on Dec 23, 2019 8:35:56 GMT 1
I have been teaching for 28 years now That's an achievement, you must really enjoy it! Check out their first units Both basic and advanced seem to be very good resources, and I've seen a couple of bad ones that Polish people were studying from. One was an online resource, and one was a book called ' Cutting Edge ' by Pearson which is used in UK colleges, and was particularly bad! That was a book for those people learning basic English too, not at Maturas level, which is more or less the equivalent of UK A levels. |
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Post by Bonobo on Dec 23, 2019 15:02:44 GMT 1
That's an achievement, you must really enjoy it! Both basic and advanced seem to be very good resources, No, it is not such an achievement, especially when one is addicted. A good book can greatly contribute to an educational success, a bad one will cause needless frustration and eventually failure - that is my motto. My fav books of all time is the series of 3 textbooks called Welcome by Express Publishing for primary school kids starting from the 4th grade. They are the best books I know, with likeable characters, funny comic stories, attractive graphics, clear grammar explanations, catchy songs, rhymed tongue twisters, etc etc.. I have been using them for 15 years now at home and private tutoring and still have had not enough. Check two first units egis.com.pl/files/f318d4bb/welcome_1_ss.pdfegis.com.pl/files/46d38a03/welcome_2_ss.pdfegis.com.pl/files/02c021dc/welcome_3_ss.pdf            |
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Post by Bonobo on Dec 23, 2019 16:08:22 GMT 1
It is interesting to see how they imagine a typical Polish person - a blond rural girl with a cabin and mountains in the background. See exercise 4  |
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Post by naukowiec on Dec 28, 2019 9:38:04 GMT 1
I cannot fault them. Very good resources indeed! imagine a typical Polish person - a blond rural girl with a cabin and mountains in the background. That is quite strange I must admit. If I had to guess, that picture reminds me more of Switzerland, Heidi, for example, than Poland. Certainly not stereotypical, as with the French guy wearing the beret, and the Mexican with the sombrero. |
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Post by Bonobo on Dec 28, 2019 14:59:25 GMT 1
I cannot fault them. Very good resources indeed! That is why I cannot give them up though they have become obsolete a bit - videos, old phones and computers, no Facebook. But that`s what I like, too. That is quite strange I must admit. If I had to guess, that picture reminds me more of Switzerland, Heidi, for example, than Poland. Certainly not stereotypical, Hmm, why not? She must be from Tatra Highlands, wearing a fur vest from the region. Urban girls also wear them.  |
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Post by naukowiec on Dec 29, 2019 20:32:40 GMT 1
though they have become obsolete a bit - videos, old phones and computers, If your students are learning effectively, then it's not that important. It's the content that matters. I know there's been a bit of a shake-up in Polish education in the last few years, and education in the UK has changed so much it's almost become a standing joke. It was better 20 years ago than now! The schemes of work and the materials/resources were far better back then. Stick with what works for as long as you can! wearing a fur vest from the region. A fur vest? They are known over here as gilets, probably French for vest!  |
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Post by Bonobo on Dec 30, 2019 0:03:33 GMT 1
I know there's been a bit of a shake-up in Polish education in the last few years, and education in the UK has changed so much it's almost become a standing joke. It was better 20 years ago than now! A fur vest? They are known over here as gilets, probably French for vest! YEs, that`s what is going to happen in Poland after all PiS deforms and neglect of education by previous governments. A few years ago my dream was that my kids would also become teachers of English and I was doing my best to prepare them to it. Now I see it isn`t worth it coz teaching conditions are getting worse each year. Wow, that gilet is indeed a better name, but a funny one coz it reminds me of gillete - in Polish żyletka - safety razor. |
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Post by naukowiec on Dec 31, 2019 8:12:42 GMT 1
Now I see it isn`t worth it coz teaching conditions are getting worse each year. That has been happening here for a long time. Teachers are leaving the profession in droves as the conditions have worsened considerably. Teaching has become a bureaucratic nightmare, curriculums and schemes of work are constantly changed, and students are as confused as the teachers. The only way teachers for science and maths can be recruited is to offer them a considerable cash incentive, a 'golden hello' of £30,000 to train. Often when teaching jobs are advertised, no-one even bothers applying. a funny one coz it reminds me of gillete - in Polish żyletka - safety razor. Yes, we have Gillette razors over here:  |
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Post by Bonobo on Dec 31, 2019 16:26:09 GMT 1
That has been happening here for a long time. Teachers are leaving the profession in droves as the conditions have worsened considerably. Teaching has become a bureaucratic nightmare, curriculums and schemes of work are constantly changed, and students are as confused as the teachers. The only way teachers for science and maths can be recruited is to offer them a considerable cash incentive, a 'golden hello' of £30,000 to train. Often when teaching jobs are advertised, no-one even bothers applying. Yes, I know some schools can be really lousy in the UK, a few years ago I ran form tutor classes where we discussed emigration, I collected stories of Poles who had emigrated to the UK and described their experiences. I read them to my students. Some Polish emigrants, used to high quality Polish school, were really shocked by what they saw in the UK, e.g., guys who should have never become teachers. Of course they also liked many things, e.g., the help that British kids get at school when they run into problems with learning etc. However, I undertsand in the UK there is the lack of pressure on students to work hard in most schools which aren`t considered elite- if you don`t want to get good education, let it be so, it`s your problem, not mine. The problem is we are heading in the same direction - pressure is officially lighter every year and teachers decide they don`t care like they used to in the past. |
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Post by naukowiec on Jan 2, 2020 12:18:56 GMT 1
I undertsand in the UK there is the lack of pressure on students to work hard in most schools which aren`t considered elite- For some schools maybe, especially if it's in a bad area where basically teachers have become more like social workers, and each day is like firefighting! Normally though, I wouldn't completely agree with that. Each school gets government funding and receieves so much money per pupil. Good schools are usually oversubscribed and there are waiting lists, whilst those that are not performing so well have places to fill, which means they are receiving less money. That's just a starter. Schools are regularly inspected by OFSTED, a regulatory body responsible for inspecting a range of educational establishments. The reports on a school are available to the public. A good report means parents want to send their kids there, while a bad one has the opposite effect. OFSTED can look at everything from health and saftey, to the performance of any teacher, so it's a nail-biting time when they visit. Teacher's pay since 2014 is also performance related. To cut what is getting to be a long story short, schools and teachers do their best to help the children get the results they need, because otherwise if the annual GCSE results are poor, it will reflect badly on them and parents will also think twice about sending their kids to a school with bad results. As you will know yourself, you can do your best, but you can't make the students study, that resposibility is on them. Schools commonly run after school revision classes for each subject, but quite often not many people turn up. The biggest problems today, at least in the UK, are behaviour ( students now have more rights than teachers, and they know it ), and apathy, along with a sense of entitlement. The system here has become far too politically correct, you really do have to think twice before saying anything. I won't even start on schools becoming part of an academy trust because then it gets more complicated. Probably when you refer to elite schools, you are thinking of public schools. These are actually fee-paying private schools, and the results will always be better, smaller classes etc. Obviously there are bad schools, but usually these are in poorer areas, usually where there is a lot of social housing, or inner cities for example. used to high quality Polish school, were really shocked by what they saw in the UK, e.g., guys who should have never become teachers. That is really unfortunate and a shame  pressure is officially lighter every year It is the opposite over here, increased pressure on teachers from above, extra duties, emails outside work hours, cancellation of free periods/breaks and sometimes their lunch breaks. It's no surprise teachers are leaving the profession. |
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Post by Bonobo on Jan 2, 2020 22:23:19 GMT 1
That's an achievement, you must really enjoy it! Before I answer your latest long post, a short reply first:  |
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Post by Bonobo on Jan 3, 2020 21:57:23 GMT 1
For some schools maybe, especially if it's in a bad area where basically teachers have become more like social workers, and each day is like firefighting! Fortunately I don`t work in such a school. Good schools are usually oversubscribed and there are waiting lists, The same here and we call such schools elite - most of them are state schools. Schools are regularly inspected by OFSTED, Same here but not regularly - every 2,3 years and the inspection is a joke so I stopped caring about them. The reports on a school are available to the public. Here not, only when sth really bad happens and the media blow it. Teacher's pay since 2014 is also performance related. Not here, but I have nothing against, on condition everything is fairly evaluated. Now there is too much mess with exams and my high school final exam isn`t fully compatible with junior high school or primary school exams. The results of these exams can`t be compared and drawing plausible conclusions about teacher`s performance is impossible. If they improve the system, I am all for. As you will know yourself, you can do your best, but you can't make the students study, that resposibility is on them. Yes, that`s the problem in high schools. Poor students join classes which finish with final exams in major subjects like Polish, Maths, FL and a chosen subject and they are grossly surprised when teachers demand hell of work - they had no idea what would be expected from them. In many cases some strict teachers simply refuse to let weak students take exams in fear of their failing it and lowering the school`s ranking with their lousy results. Why are weak students allowed to attend such schools at all? That`s the outcome of demographic disaster. If they weren`t, teachers would have less work and in result, less money. Therefore in most non-elite schools every willing student is accepted no matter of their primary/junior high school exam results. Schools commonly run after school revision classes for each subject, It is not so popular here due to lack of funds and zero interest. After futile strikes most teachers refuse to run extra classes. The biggest problems today, at least in the UK, are behaviour ( students now have more rights than teachers, and they know it ), and apathy, along with a sense of entitlement. That is becoming a problem here, too. PiS, instead of introducing stricter rules as they love to do in other spheres of life, completely don`t care about education. Once I could set a lot of homework and expect students to bring it for the next lesson and nobody complained coz it was normal. Today I have to limit myself or the students will say I am too demadning. ALso, I mustn`t punish a student without homework, I must ask him or her to do it on the lesson - if they are able to do it, it is OK. Can you imagine how much time I waste dealing with such lazy students? It is a plague which is crazy. But I have to set homework coz otherwise I wouldn`t be able to cover all things only in class - there is too much to do and some students know nothing about basic things, as if they haven`t had English at all in previous schools. It is the opposite over here, increased pressure on teachers from above, extra duties, Nope, I meant pressure on students, not teachers. |
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Post by naukowiec on Jan 5, 2020 11:29:35 GMT 1
we call such schools elite - most of them are state schools. Arghh! My entire post just disappeared for no reason so I'm having to start this all over again! Elite schools here are the fee-paying private ones, but obviously some state schools are better than others, in nicer areas etc every 2,3 years and the inspection is a joke so I stopped caring about them. Our inspections are the same, but depending on how a school gets graded, OFSTED can turn up unannounced whenever they feel like it. Advanced notice is given of the impending visit and everyone runs around like headless chickens making the school look presentable, removing unruly students that otherwise would be allowed to freely roam instead of being in their lessons etc on condition everything is fairly evaluated. Problems arise when goalposts are continually shifted. some strict teachers simply refuse to let weak students take exams in fear of their failing it and lowering the school`s ranking with their lousy results. Every student here has to sit their exams, unless they fail to turn up for them or there is a medical reason for why they can't sit them, so teachers are under pressure for all their students to do well. Unfortunately In some cases it is like flogging a dead horse. It is not so popular here due to lack of funds and zero interest. Teachers are salaried here. If the school wants revision clubs, the teachers have to comply whether they like it or not. PiS, instead of introducing stricter rules as they love to do in other spheres of life, completely don`t care about education. Obviously not as they would give the teachers some respect and pay them properly. I think PiS worry that if teachers get the wage rise they want, who is next in line. Doctors , nurses etc What both our governments have in common is chaotic reforms in education. Over here we've had about 15 years of it and the education system is falling apart like the NHS. The problem is that when new changes come into effect, they are changed within a couple of years, so no-one has a chance to see if they were effective in the first place. Exam grading system changes, exam boards, curriculums. Both teachers and students are confused. PiS, if I remember correctly, installed a two-tier education system instead of the 3 tier one, getting rid of middle schools. I remember only because middle schools were abolished over here but a long time ago now. We have a two-tier system. |
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