ShareIn his talk here in Bangkok, Thailand last September 20, 2008, Dr. Stephen Krashen (www.sdkrashen.com) talked about the homerun book for every reader, and how crucial it is to jumpstart ALL other reading interests in the future. He says for every lifelong reader, there is that one book or one reading experience that started it [...]
ShareLet us begin this conversation by looking back at times in your life when you read books or any printed medium, for that matter, simply because you wanted to. It was not because of some reward, nor was it because you wanted to avoid some kind of negative consequence by not reading. What was it [...]
ShareFrom experience, collegial sharing and attendance at professional development opportunities in search of what “effective assessment” looks like, here is a combination of principles, experiential anecdotes and actual classroom practice I use to assess students effectively for learning. I refer heavily to materials and discussions from Ken O’ Connor’s workshop on “Classroom Assessment FOR Student [...]
I have been teaching teenagers for almost 5 years now, and I find this group of students both challenging and rewarding to work with. The kids are challenging because they are at the beginning of that stage in life dreaded by most parents and teachers alike. You guessed it right – PUBERTY!
ShareI believe that children will live up to whatever standards you set for them as a teacher, as a mentor, as an adviser, but most especially, as an older ‘friend’ who truly cares about their success, not just in school, but most especially in the outside world. This, I believe is the true essence of [...]
ShareIt was quite difficult to think about what I was going to share with you this evening. But I finally settled on the idea of talking about one of the things I consider to be a big part of My life, both as a professional, and as an individual.This is one area some of you [...]
This study could not proceed without an attempt to explore the many and varied definitions of writing. Writing seems to have taken on different definitions for different groups of people in order to suit their different needs and purposes for writing.
ShareWhy this study? Krashen’s idea is founded on the notion that exposing children to pleasure reading and shifting focus from form to meaning in extensive reading helps learners acquire writing ability in any language. It is my hope that at the end of this study, I will be able to come up with concrete evidences [...]
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Why Build Character? (and who’s to blame for today’s kids’ behavior?)
“A child’s life is like a piece of paper on which each passerby leaves a mark” (a Chinese proverb). In my years as a teacher, this is one tidbit of wisdom I always keep with me, to guide me on my daily choices, on what to teach, how to teach, and why I should teach [...]
I’ve struggled with this question the past few years that I have been teaching Values to High School kids in an international school in Bangkok. I’ve pored over many books on character education, searched and attended as many professional development events I could find in this part of the world – all in the hopes [...]
How Do I Improve My Character?
As a teacher for many years now, I am no longer focused on questions regarding what topics would I need to teach under the curriculum I have been assigned, or what tools should I be using to deliver the best approach so I can ensure effective teaching strategies. I am not even concerned anymore about [...]
In the course of my career as a teacher, I have often relied on films/movies that deliver a strong message to emphasize points I try to teach students in my class. Recently, I have a unit on Debate, and decided to use the movie I would call a classic for this topic – The Great [...]
Why teachers of English ought to learn a language, too!
It’s past midnight this very cold day in Kao Hsiung, Taiwan. I’m sitting here in this nice hotel room, with socks on, trying to be profound about teaching English! Maybe I should just stop trying to be deep with my thoughts and just get down to business and answer the darn question I posted up [...]
