too many kids that don't listen

i'm open to any suggestions and ideas you may have, thanks. :D

but i don't recall saying that my experiences here in china are typical of the whole country. i do know many other teachers in many different parts of china that have experienced the same problems as i have. i have taught at university here and also some friends of mine are currently teaching at universities and they've had some terrible problems with their students. basically if they don't want to learn then they make it damn difficult for the teacher and distract the other students from learning.

i am progressing slowly with my class which is good and they are paying more attention than before. i hope it continues

The student is rewarded for paying attention, and the teacher is rewarded for being patient.

8)

Maybe activities that divide the class into smaller groups would make things more manageable, rather than running head-on into 60 students, which is an enormous and daunting number. ;-)

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Originally Posted by tdol

Maybe activities that divide the class into smaller groups would make things more manageable, rather than running head-on into 60 students, which is an enormous and daunting number. ;-)

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Quite right tdol and i've used a couple of group activities that went well but i'm having trouble devising activities (that don't require a lot of photocopying and cutting up pieces of paper) that would utilise smaller groups. and also monitioring them so as to make sure they're using the language and not just fooling around is difficult.

vocab games, memory games, taboo and games like that go well.

Info gap?

Jamie, don't you have a Chinese teacher in your classes?? I know exactly how it is (My biggest class here was 76 middle school kids once), I have found that instead of acting as a teacher's assistant, the local teacher is quite happy to sit at the back of the class, head down, doing some marking or something.

You really should try to make the school give you a Chinese teacher to help you in class. It's the system here, and they know it. They are just trying to get out of it (a common problem).

Anytime I had a problem class like yours, I told the principal I'm not going in the class without a Chinese teacher. That seemed to work. :D

hth

76!!!!

I'd need police protection. ;-(

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Originally Posted by tdol

76!!!!

I'd need police protection. ;-(

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:D 8)

And valium. ;-)

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Originally Posted by tdol

And valium. ;-)

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What does 'valium ' mean please, Tdol?

:) And I guess the school Shane is working at must be a famous and important middle school in the local place, which is obviously to attract more students who are crammed into one limited classroom ;)