A Manic Month

Well itś been a manic month at the PMP centre here in Qingdao with a new job as Academic Manager, new set of teaching staff and 62 students in four classes of 16. There has also been an academic audit from the NCUK and glad to say that we have a clean bill of health and everyone is pleased with the running of the centre.
A major problem for the students has been the adjustment to the styles and methods used on the PMP. I think the students have found it difficult to adapt from passive acceptance to active involvement on the course and although you should always recognise that the students have their own techniques for learning, some are woefully unprepared for what they will face in the uk. So we have to insist that post-it notes are maybe not the best way to take notes during a lecture and that coursework folders with the dividers to separate the 7 modules must be used. Along with A4 paper, margins and all class and lecture notes clearly signed and dated and .. and....and the list goes on. The students are either 3 year Diploma or 4 year graduates and their study/ organisational skills are poor..not all...but most. So folder checks each week and self study timetables,class Rep elections and meetings, course outlines for the next 10 weeks and on top of that a FULL teaching load with 6 preps to negotiate with the other teachers and on top of that they want me to be course coordinator for all the Kapan PMP centres in China.....but havent decided yet.
But all the work is beginning to show fruit with the first assignments ¨Investigation into the Different Styles and Roles at Campbellś Soup and Quaker Oats¨ with almost no plagiarism and good referencing, clear structures and a good grasp of the theories of management. Of course the grammar and vocabulary need work but very good signs of peer correction and collaboration and tons of enthusiasm......which of course is what makes it all worthwhile for any teacher...we have a good team too both academic and admin staff, all very experienced and dedicated. One drawback is the lack of resources, funds available they say......... but where and when will they used?
My MA TESOL course has had to take a little bit of a back seat but I hope to get right back into the swing of things ASAP.
Qingdao is lovely at the moment, high blue skies, crisp mornings and around 18-20C during the day.Trees are turning brown and leaves are falling.....lovely just lovely.

WEBct Problems

I am having some problems logging into Webct which is frustrating as I would like to get up and running.We have a weeks holiday and I want to use this week to get ahead while I can and introduce myself to other students.I am sure it will be sorted out soon.In the meantime I am reading Tricia Hedge specifically the section on vocabulary because many of my students will be confronted with a considerable amount of new lexis. I have asked the students to keep a vocabulary book and designed a vocabulary worksheet. My strategy is to ask the students to record the most common or useful words they come across and to find out the different forms of the word;verb,noun ,adjective etc including antonyms and synonyms.
The students then put the words into sentences.I have asked the students allow some self study time to work on this. I will also be doing some work on chunking as I am rather taken with the idea that we naturally acquire language in bundles or packets and that learning isolated vocabulary without contextualisation may be a waste of time.
I must say that i find Hedge very good at explaining often quite complex ideas and presenting very practical suggestions that are really useful in the classroom. This I think is what many teachers of English need. Some SLA theories are often just that so it is good to see research translated into practice wherever possible.

MA TESOL Oxford Brookes

Another academic year has begun and as usual we are very busy on the Pre Masterś Programme. Fortunately this week is the mid autumn festival and we have a weeks holiday so I intend to get cracking with the course. I still have problems accessing the webct as Lynnś module always comes up as 2007.
Anyway I look forward to working with the other students on the course.The principle aim of this blog is to record my reflections on Second Language Acquisition and the extensive readings and assignments we have to do.
I will try not to bore mysel or any readers...a task that may prove difficult.
Best wishes Michael.