N E P t u n e: Teaching

Teaching = Drinking a little of water every few minutes

Sun, 04 Mar 2007 12:03:08 GMT

I began a new class right after Tet holiday. That always sounds terrible (actually, not that terrible) to anyone while enjoying Tet and having fun. It's like you are in the middle of the most wonderful part of a dream and you nearly meet your pretty princess after passing tons of danger and then someone come to wake you up. I'm just joking. Actually, teaching is good - TG.

I began making my new 26 students' acquaintance at the very first period of my class. Not many of them so I got to know and listen to each of them giving a brief introduction as well as telling me how well they could know about computer. Well, almost 90% are bad on using computer, some said they have never really touched a computer and luckily, 4 of them said they could use computer okay. That sounds strange but that's true. I began feeling the difficulties that I would have during the 45 periods teaching this class.

Class really started at the second period. I was talking, talking and talking and they was concentrating on my lecture in complete silence. I was trying to explain very detailed and every little bit thing. "Do you understand?" I asked. They said nothing, just some people nodding their heads. Then, I experienced there still were some students did not really get what I said and I kept explaining more and more. Me and them, we were being engrossing in our class until we recognized classes around us were already over.

I was driving home and feeling hurt a bit in my throat. Perhaps it was so dry because of being deprived of water. I drunk lot of water and it might be getting better a bit.

I came back my class last Friday with a bottle of water. I felt much better with my new stuff and it seems like my students could follow my lecture much better than they did last week. I gave them some questions in the middle of class and they discussed together very ebulliently and I found out I got a chance to take a very quick rest and improve my throat with a mouthful of water then. I experienced a tip: whenever you think you need a quick break and some water, just give your students a question to discuss . But don't misuse this tip too much or you will burn your lesson plan.

I'm happy with questions I have gotten from the students. I could see they are making progress and my class is getting better (at least, the second class is much better than the first one). It’s also good to know that water should go together with teaching and for sure, a bottle of water will be always stuck on briefcase whenever I have class. And then, it's true to say TG.

Class on the boat

Tue, 14 Nov 2006 13:20:36 GMT

Took the students out for a field trip today, we had class on a dragon boat on the Perfume river. The students learned how to measure the water quality of the river as well as how to get the water sample to bring back the laboratory for analysis. But with them, mainly, they enjoyed an outside class with a very nice landscape of Hue in a sunny and warm day.

We started at the dragon boat station and began our class by showing them about the theory how to measure the parameters of water quality and explaining to them what factors or elements could influence on choosing the locations to perform the measure.

And then, time for them to practice...

Seems like everyone got hungry very soon and we enjoyed lunch when it was just around 10.30. We had box lunch with rice and grilled flank meat and spinach. Other group of students had sandwhich with pa^te' and vegetable. Viet food and Western food, you know .

And below is a shot on Thien Mu pagoda on the way back Hue...

In-service training - Everyone knows but no one says

Sat, 09 Sep 2006 03:58:17 GMT

*** The first exam, in the day I just came Danang, I did the thing I have always done in Hue with my classes, do NOT allow the students have any material around their seats - NO cheating. But in fact, I was much easier that I just took the materials of any students who were too excessive. They complained a lot and looked at me strangely like I’m a man from the moon.

You may be wondering what my partner (the second invigilator) was doing then? He was playing with his cell phone and MP3 player. He was listening to music. I wish I was too.

*** The second day, I heard from one of my colleague at my University (she came here for her class too) that my partner (the music guy in the first day) asked her to tell me “Be easier a bit!!!” I also received a phone call from the vice-director of the Centre. He asked me the same thing. I smiled myself then and was wondering “did I do a wrong thing?”

And two exams in that evening, I did a “BETTER” job I think. An exam takes 2 hours. The first 30 minutes and the last 30 minutes were the hard time for them, the students but those minutes were the right time for me - NO cheating (but I did NOT say NO to discussing). And in the middle 60 minutes, I was trying to “SLEEP” - they were CHEATING.

But in the end of the tests, they still complained.

*** The third day, I still heard people talking about a hard Tuan from Hue. Huh, I was wondering again “am I still wrong?” I decided to try to do “BETTER”, the “BETTER” way they think, not really means better for me.

I talked to class, “You all want to cheat. Okay, I will not say anything but I just ask you for one thing, only one simple thing: no discussing. I want you to do your exam by yourself even though your job now is just finding the answers in your books and copying them into your papers”

And I began to use the new rule, a CRAZY rule for my class, “discussing, throwing papers to other ones, that means losing all of materials or moving to the top table (the nearest one from mine)”.

The exams were over, they did not complain anymore but the way they were looking at me, I could guess what they were saying in their mind: “What a hard one he is!”

In fact, there were few people who don’t know exactly where to copy the answers into their papers even lot of books and documents were with them. That is NOT BAD. Actually, that is … VERY BAD. The reason is easy to understand too; they had NEVER gone to class and all the books they had are very new for them.

*** Since the fourth day, I did not wear my “invigilator” sign anymore because I felt I did not do that job. Since then, my job had been: come - give them papers and the exam questions - try to NOT care about what they do - take their exam papers back when the time is over - and leave.

I ask myself: “do I really have to come here?” I feel discontented, I feel sad for the education system of the nation. Should we still keep wasting time and money on that kind of education? Is there any better idea? Why don’t we make a list, who need the degree, just come, write down their name, pay money and take what they want; and the degree will have a note: “supplied on demand”. no no, I’m just kidding. But at least, that way describes the true of in-service training much better than what people are tricking each others.

Thank you for reading this. If you do have a blog, please share this small thing with friends and people. I wish someone from the Ministry of Education and Training of Vietnam will spend a little bit time on this story, even just for relaxing.

Danang, from the 4^th to the 8^th, September 2006

Teaching inquiry result

Sat, 18 Mar 2006 15:32:08 GMT

In fact, I received back 85 questionnaires from 100 ones that I sent my Department's students. And the results are as following:

Choice 1: Teacher talks about what he/she has in the standard course and students listen to him/her and take note.

Choice 2: Teacher and students discuss together about the topics of the standard course.

Choice 3: Teacher gives his/her students the course to study at home and discuss about the extended and related topics on class.

I have already had my own thinking about the right teaching method at the University for Environmental Science students. It will not be perfect but an acceptable one. How about you? Any comment?

What's better?

Tue, 14 Mar 2006 15:15:42 GMT

According to you, what is the best teaching method that the lecturers should apply? I am sure that most of you would say "Teacher ...shoots and students take note" is the old method that must be rejected nowadays. But I found some students even teachers still want to work with that method because they don't have to brainstorm when they are studying. How about discussing together (I mean teacher and students) about the subjects related to the case-study that's given by the teacher? This one is more modern and effective than the previous one. But not everyone wants to work with this better one. You have to spend a lot of time at home to make sure you understand the main points about the topic that you're going to discuss on class and do some more research on it to get the information for discussing. That would be harder but helps you study much better even to the teachers.

In fact, not the better one is perfect. The perfect one is the method that is accepted by most of students in your class and applied well by the teacher. That's why I am doing an inquiry into teaching method on students of my Department to server my preparation for teaching next academic year. The result I get will help me a lot to pick the best method that is appropriate to both me and my prospective students.

The students that I chose for my inquiry are first, second and third year students. They are asked three questions that are:

1. What study method do you enjoy most?

- Teacher talks about what he/she has in the standard course and students listen to him/her and take note.

- Teacher and students discuss together about the topics of the standard course.

- Teacher gives his/her students the course to study at home and discuss about the extended and related topics on class.

2. If the teacher asks you to participate in discussing in class, how will you express?

1 2 3 4 5

Don't participate >-----------------------------------> Participate very enthusiastically

3. Do you often use the foreign language documents for your study?

1 2 3 4 5

Never >------------------------------------------------------------> Use regularly

4. Other comments

...................................................................................................................................

The result will be totaled up in some days and it would be helpful. I will show you later.