I make a point of showing them that I’m turning off the phone at the beginning of the class, so they know I’m going to give them my full attention.
To me it seems odd that you should have to point these things out to the students. OK everybody. I’M TURNING MY CELL-PHONE OFF NOW!
actually its more like, “I’ve turned mine off as you can see, and I hope you’ll do the same”.
Put it in flight mode … easy!
This is one of those small, but very important, elements to adding value to yourself as a teacher. I know that it sounds really naff for a teacher to make a show of turning a cellphone off at the start of class, but it is one of those little soft skills that students notice. They all add up over time.
People can be cynical about this sort of thing, but IMO it makes students more relaxed and adds to their respect towards the teacher. I often hear from teachers who claim that Taiwanese students won’t talk in class and I can never quite work out why this is the case when I have no problems. I think that a lot of it is down to a number of seemingly insignificant things the teacher does or doesn’t do.
Respective of being a teacher or not, what sort of wankers actually carry cell phones around with them that aren’t in “business”? Really. I leave home for work at 6AM. Get home around 6-7PM. Never take my phone with me. My friends know better than to call me during those times. What do you Hello Kitty twinkies REALLY need those fashion accessories for?
Because a lot of us are in “business”, jimi. If you’re not on a full time, salaried contract then you’re basically self-employed. Carrying a cellphone is, therefore, a necessity.
Because a lot of us are in “business”, jimi. If you’re not on a full time, salaried contract then you’re basically self-employed. Carrying a cellphone is, therefore, a necessity.[/quote]
Never been salaried in my life. If potential employers want to contact me, they are advised to do so after 7PM. Really, Tom. How many of those Important Calls are from future financiers and how many are from yer mates?
Never been salaried in 11 years in Taiwan. Never taken a phone to work. What’s the point if you’re GOING TO SWITCH IT OFF WHILE YOU’RE TEACHING? Or IGNORE IT WHILST AT WORK? Ridiculous.
Because a lot of us are in “business”, jimi. If you’re not on a full time, salaried contract then you’re basically self-employed. Carrying a cellphone is, therefore, a necessity.[/quote]
Never been salaried in my life. If potential employers want to contact me, they are advised to do so after 7PM. Really, Tom. How many of those Important Calls are from future financiers and how many are from yer mates?
Never been salaried in 11 years in Taiwan. Never taken a phone to work. What’s the point if you’re GOING TO SWITCH IT OFF WHILE YOU’RE TEACHING? Or IGNORE IT WHILST AT WORK? Ridiculous.[/quote]
I know what you are saying Mr… but I work between a few branches and I may get calls in the daytime from one of the other branches asking if I can sub
[quote=“jimipresley”]Never been salaried in my life. If potential employers want to contact me, they are advised to do so after 7PM. Really, Tom. How many of those Important Calls are from future financiers and how many are from yer mates?
Never been salaried in 11 years in Taiwan. Never taken a phone to work. What’s the point if you’re GOING TO SWITCH IT OFF WHILE YOU’RE TEACHING? Or IGNORE IT WHILST AT WORK? Ridiculous.[/quote]
Of course most of the calls I receive are social calls. However, I often get calls requesting short notice cover teaching. I also get calls about rescheduling classes. My cellphone is switched off while I am in class, but I pick up the missed call and call back immediately afterwards. It’s very important for me to carry my cellphone for work reasons. Also, the wife often calls about shit. Answering those calls is important for my physical well-being.
Because a lot of us are in “business”, jimi. If you’re not on a full time, salaried contract then you’re basically self-employed. Carrying a cellphone is, therefore, a necessity.[/quote]
Never been salaried in my life. If potential employers want to contact me, they are advised to do so after 7PM. Really, Tom. How many of those Important Calls are from future financiers and how many are from yer mates?
Never been salaried in 11 years in Taiwan. Never taken a phone to work. What’s the point if you’re GOING TO SWITCH IT OFF WHILE YOU’RE TEACHING? Or IGNORE IT WHILST AT WORK? Ridiculous.[/quote]
You made some good points Jimi. But many places of work shut down after 5pm. What place of business is going to call you after 7pm?
I tell people when my classe are and tell them not to call me during those times :no-no: . But obviously some people still don’t know.
Aye. There’s the rub. 
Cell phones ringing in the classroom are annoying as hell.I never take my phone into the classroom. In fact, I feel bad if I’m in the classroom and I can hear my phone ringing from the teachers area because it drives me mad when another teacher’s phones constantly ring when I’m preping up for a lesson. Another pet hate I have is when students bring their electronic dictionaries into the classroom, or even worse, their lap tops. It pisses me off when I’m trying to explain a word and a student is looking up the word, and then blurts it out in Chinese. Yes, I know it saves time, but it’s my job to facilitate their language learning. I have a computer in the classroom to aid their learning, (youtube,on-line dictionary, google images, ted) … I think that’s enough technology for the time being.
They bring laptops into the classroom? That is one I’ve never heard of before.
[quote=“Whole Lotta Lotta”]
They bring laptops into the classroom? That is one I’ve never heard of before.[/quote]
At least half of my university students bring laptops into the classroom. They’re not allowed to use them, though, for fear of a severe face-losing tongue-lashing.
I do allow one of them to access a translate page if the content and vocabulary is becoming too overwhelming, however. The student with the best English.
One of the people who was teaching me Chinese had the phone ring in our class and she answered it :fume: . Why are the rules different for the locals than they are for us?
I have sympathy with students who use the dictionaries on their phones to look up difficult words in class. However, that is an excuse when junior highers are playing games!
They aren’t; mention it to him/her, or management if there is any, and it likely won’t happen again.
I’ll usually have my cell on my table when I’m teaching/training. Use it to manage time sonce I try to cram so much into my lessons, as a stopwatch for drilling, and even bail out students who don’t know all the strokes to characters in translation exercises I have them do.
But the ringer is never on. :no-no:
If someone is complaining about it, they probably think you are using it in a way to waste time. If you are not, you shouldn’t have anything to worry about.
They aren’t; mention it to him/her, or management if there is any, and it likely won’t happen again.
I’ll usually have my cell on my table when I’m teaching/training. Use it to manage time sonce I try to cram so much into my lessons, as a stopwatch for drilling, and even bail out students who don’t know all the strokes to characters in translation exercises I have them do.
But the ringer is never on. :no-no:
If someone is complaining about it, they probably think you are using it in a way to waste time. If you are not, you shouldn’t have anything to worry about. [/quote]
I guess I just don’t like complaining about people to management and possibly gettin them into trouble. I should consider mentioning it to her directly, but being direct is very much against the culture here 
.
Your ‘skool’ doesn’t have a clock in every classroom?
What a cheap f***.[/quote]
I actually don’t like having a clock in the classroom. Otherwise students are constantly looking at it. Or they start packing up their bookbags with one minute left and you want to finish something.
Cellphone barely audible. But I also use it as a clock and a stopwatch.
Your ‘skool’ doesn’t have a clock in every classroom?
What a cheap f***.[/quote]
I actually don’t like having a clock in the classroom. Otherwise students are constantly looking at it. Or they start packing up their bookbags with one minute left and you want to finish something.
Cellphone barely audible. But I also use it as a clock and a stopwatch.[/quote]
Not to criticize, but why are they always looking at their watches? They shouldn’t be chomping at the bit to go home.