With adult classes, don’t be concerned if the 6 that showed up to your class this week don’t come back and you get a different 6 the next week. Also don’t get too worried about random fluctuation in class size. Class size varies depending on the weather, peoples school schedules, and if they are lazy or not that particular week. Also with adults, they come and go and like to try all different classes on for size.
GVOers aren’t “helping to lower the salaries of all English teachers”.
The British Council pays +950/hr, & charges students 500/hr for one 24hr term.
GVO now pays 500/hr, & charges students 2-3K/month, all-they-can-eat buffet lasting a minimum 6 months.
The BC has never given a damn what GVO does with salaries or tuition.
If anything, GVO salaries have gravitated up towards the general mass of other crams, from 350 to 500.
Curious why GVO has lasted so long, I googled student reviews for 地球村評價. Here’s an older one I thought I was encapsulating, and tried to translate (sorry, not my field):
[quote]I bought the 3yr package; ~1K/month. I’ve been to 3 branches, and met all different types of teachers, from good to bad. I didn’t like their materials: outdated, uninteresting & impractical for daily convo. Some FTs didn’t either; they’d often tell us the errors. You have to comparison shop to find a teacher that’s right for you. Teacher turnover is pretty high, probably because their pay isn’t - so it’s common for good teachers to leave. For writing classes, you really have to find conscientious teachers who correct your errors; otherwise, it’s pointless. A lot are just skiving off, but you can tell after a few classes. For convo classes, it’s very helpful to have FTs, but you have to keep going. You’re free to attend any classes around your own schedule, but students & their levels often differ. Nobody pushes you, so unless you’re self-motivated, you’ll stop going & it’ll be a waste of money.[/quote]
Its “gym membership” model is quite fascinating. No other school allows such student autonomy & mobility.
NTLT makes a convincing case for GVO as a transition school, but not a destination school.
Hands-off mgmt = high teacher autonomy (excl compulsory text) = potential independent teacher development.
Some capitalize on that, some don’t. Hence the wide spectrum of teacher quality.
Feedback is near instantaneous, as students can freely abandon your ship or jump aboard anytime. A free market.
Effective or popular teachers can quickly gain a core of regulars, WOM, followings, & leverage to demand higher pay.
Less effective/popular teachers can’t. (So I don’t think it’s good for most newbies as a starter school.)
GVO’s poor mgmt seems to affect students, so I’m sure a few teachers have quit GVO with students in their wake.
Maybe even started their own local villages.
The primary obstacles: GVO’s very low pricing, wide variety of choice, & students’ long-term sunk costs.
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I do not believe anyone would accept a job paying 350 an hour. That is just pathetic.
As do the demands of the students. Last night I had a class where I got the feeling that most of the students had no interest in the magazine article. I could almost feel a few of them trying to pull me away from the magazine with their questioning. However, there was also one student who was literally glued to her magazine. Even during the ten minute break I saw her quietly mumbling as she recited the article. I tried to please both camps, however it was unavoidable that at times I alienated either one or the other.
The difference in students willingness to contribute to the class can also be challenging. Last night I found that my questions to the group were mostly answered with silence. There were two or three students who were willing to speak up, however when I took a different approach and asked direct questions to some of the quieter students they simply replied “I don’t know”. Last night I learned that I really need to improve in this area. Although it appears that some students want to listen to a teacher ramble on for two hours solid, I have no interest in doing that.
[quote]Hands-off mgmt = high teacher autonomy (excl compulsory text) = potential independent teacher development.
Some capitalize on that, some don’t. Hence the wide spectrum of teacher quality.[/quote]
I have also cottoned on to this and have dusted off some of the books and materials from my CELTA course that I brought back with me to Taiwan. I am a little unsure of the road ahead, however I am going to try and navigate it as best I can. I have found that asking the students what they thought of the class after the lesson ends can be a great source of valuable feedback.
The reason that GVO has lasted so long is they simply haven’t had any big corporate competition. However Gjun have finally copped there is money to be made in ESL and have muscled in big time on GVO turf with a similar gym membership model, but Gjun is a much more professional operation. They will kick GVO’s ass and force them to change their model.
Yesterday was my third class at GVO and it went really badly. :raspberry:
After my second class I was criticised by some of the students for not covering all of the material in the magazine article. One student said that there was too much chatting. Lesson learned - make sure that the article and all associated vocabulary words are covered each and every lesson.
However yesterday when I planned my lesson purely around the magazine article it was really boring. I could really feel the lack of energy in the room.
Learning from my experiences I realise that I made two vital mistakes yesterday; 1) considering it was an advanced class, I spoke way too slowly. The students cottoned on to this and after class some students told me that they like it when the teachers can speak at a more natural speed. 2) Not enough general chatting and conversation. Although it is clear that some students don’t want to speak up and participate during this part, they still expect some kind of “entertainment”. Teachers who can tell stories, jokes and talk BS seem to be very popular.
I feel like I am in a strange situation here at GVO. I am currently reading this excellent book on developing EFL teaching skills:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Learning-Teaching-guidebook-language-teachers/dp/1405013990
I am learning about engaging students and working on reducing teacher talking time. However it seems that none of this will be applicable at GVO. Will the students be willing to engage in classroom activities (not sticky ball games!)? Can I reduce my talking time to get the students speaking more English? Or are students so accustumed to being talked at that this is how it has to be? I already have a sore throat after all of this talking 
Here’s a bunch of stuff I’ve posted over the years about teaching adults. It’s all a bit long-winded but I hope you can find something useful.
I think your best bet is always to put yourself in their shoes and behave accordingly. Genuinely liking your students helps a lot too.
[quote=“NonTocareLeTete”]
I almost always start with a ‘history of your English education’ question answer session. Helps if you have it on paper.
“How long have you been learning English?”
“Did you love English or did you hate English in high school?”
“What have you hated about English class in the past?”
“What have you loved about English class in the past?”
“When was the first time you had a foreign English teacher?”
IF these things are written down, they’ll understand them better. You can even scaffold answers on the board.
“I have been learning English for ___ years, since I was ___ years old.”
Easy enough- I pretty much guarantee they’ll answer that.
“I hated English, because…” (give them some possible answers)
“I loved English, because…”
You’ll learn a lot about them, their attitudes toward English, and why they might be staring at you like dead fish. Maybe this is what was expected of them in their past English classes.
Usually this opens up a discussion about teaching they’ve experienced in the past that focused on grammar. Why does that not work for language acquisition? Why do they hate English? Part of it probably has to do with the fact that though they studied the damned language for 12 years, they still can’t converse in it. That’s when I go into the fact that I focus on conversation in my class. They’ve done grammar already. They’ve done the books to death. It hasn’t gotten them to where they want to be. So we’re going to learn the language as god intended. By speaking and listening.
MAKE IT EASY FOR THEM.
To me it sounds like you’re asking open-ended questions, and even if their English is good enough to answer them, they feel unsure, so therefore don’t want to answer. The loss, if they answer incorrectly, is greater than the reward if they answer correctly (in their minds.) To mitigate their fear, you have to make the first questions extremely easy to answer- tell them the answer. Just let them fill in a couple of words. This communicates that you EXPECT an answer and they know they can’t be ‘wrong.’ After you get them in the flow of actually answering questions, it will become a habit, the whole class will know it’s expected of them and they will feel like they’re weird if they don’t answer. Then it’s smooth sailing.
I’ve introduced a new segment to my classes. I call it small talk. I write a greeting question on the board: “How’s it going?” (Later, try “How was your weekend?” “What are your plans for the weekend?” “What’s up?”)
Then I write possible answers:
I explain that if they feel like talking, they can say something like:
“Pretty good, I just spent the morning ___(cleaning my house, preparing a report for my boss, studying English.) It went pretty well. How’s your day been so far?”
If they don’t feel like talking, they can say something like:
“Not bad, thanks for asking. How about you?”
I write this up on the board. I model it for them. Ask them to ask me the question. Walk them through my answers. When they’re struggling to describe their day, I provide them with vocab and phrases that they actually need.
Anyways, in 3 years, I’ve only had one resistant student who remained resistant. I’ve got high attendance in my classes and my school is always after me to take on more hours. And I love my students. They add a lot to my life.
Make it easy on them, try to like them, and be patient with yourself.[/quote]
[quote=“NonTocareLeTete”]This is a survey/welcome letter that I give to new students who come to my class. How would you answer these questions?
-
Why are you studying English? (Please check all that apply)
o My parents are making me study
o I need to take an English proficiency test. (Please circle: GEPT, TOEFL, TOEIC, OTHER________________.)
o Career advancement
o I want to travel and I know English will help me
o I enjoy learning English
o Other (please specify):__________________________________________________________ -
Please mark the following items from 1 to 4, according to how important it is that you improve them. (Each number can only be used once! You must choose!)
_______Speaking _______Listening _______Writing _______Reading
-
What topics do you wish you could discuss more fluently in English?
(News, politics, sports, telling personal stories, business, travel etc.) -
Which days and times will you probably attend my class? (Please circle)
(I listed my classtimes but the formosa world doesn’t need to see that) -
In your ideal class, what percentage of time would be spent on each of the following activities? (Remember, the numbers must add up to 100
_______Chatting in a group, with the teacher _______Listening Practice
_______Chatting in ENGLISH with your neighbor _______Reading the article
_______Organized activities designed to help you talk _______Writing practice
_______Other _________________________________________________________________________
-
In the past, what have English teachers done in class that you loved, or you found helpful?
-
In the past, what have you hated about English class?
Welcome to my class!
Here are a few tips that I hope will help you as you attend my class.
- Please talk! Most Taiwanese students have spent years sitting passively in a classroom learning grammar and vocabulary so they can pass a test. Enough of that. In my class, my goal is to help you communicate with real people. You must interact in English to learn this skill.
- We will discuss current events, social issues, politics and personal matters in class. If you think of a subject you’d like to be able to discuss fluently in English, please tell me the topic and I will prepare to discuss it in a future class.
- Please remember: YOU NEVER HAVE TO SHARE PERSONAL DETAILS OR OPINIONS IN MY CLASS. The point is to speak English out loud. If you feel uncomfortable sharing about yourself, you can give fake answers it’s fine, as long as you’re speaking English.
- We will focus on natural conversation and pronunciation, with a little bit of culture mixed in. This means the classes will be a little bit informal, because the focus isn’t on a teacher, teaching a lesson. The focus is on the students, interacting in English.
- I will not correct you very often while you are talking- I find that this makes students feel shy. While you are talking, I will listen for repeated mistakes and I will find a time to address these mistakes to the class. This way everyone can learn and you won’t feel embarrassed!
- Sometimes, I come home from class so sick of my own voice that I want to rip my vocal chords out with a fork. Please don’t make me do this. You will benefit from class the most if you contribute. Spend five minutes researching our weekly topic on the internet, and share about it in class!
Come to class prepared to discuss these topics in Feb-March of 2012:
Feb: focus on talking about the past
Feb 1-3: Tell me a story about a childhood injury.
Feb 8-10: Tell me about when you first learned that the adults in your life could make mistakes/were not perfect (if you can’t remember, you can lie!)
Feb15-17: In honor of Valentines Day, tell me about a time you or someone you know fell in love.
Feb 22-24: Tell me about a challenge you’ve faced in the last 5 years.
March: focus on talking about technology
Feb 29-March 2nd: Show us your phone! Be prepared to explain your favorite features on your mobile device, and what features you wish it had.
March7-9: How has the internet changed the world for good and bad?
March 14-16: Tell me crazy stories about facebook. How has it ruined/improved lives? See if you can find some news stories about it. What do you love about it? What would you change?
March 21-23: Do some research about internet regulation. Do you know about SOPA? What about the internet in China? North Korea?
March 28-30th: What is a meme? Find a famous meme on the internet and come to class prepared to discuss and explain it.
Please, if you ever have a comment or concern about the class, or if you have a suggestion for a topic you’d like to discuss, feel free to let me know after class or send an email to XXX@gmail.com. My class is a democracy- you are a paying customer. I need your feedback to help you reach your English goals![/quote]
[quote=“NonTocareLeTete”]
Honestly, sometimes the teachers job is not just to teach English (or whatever they’re teaching) it’s also to take care of the emotional well-being of the students. It’s not in the job description, but it’s part of it. For one reason or another, they are not comfortable talking in your class. You have to do something to make them feel safe and comfortable. What’s worked for me is taking a VERY active interest in them. I remember grandchildren (location, number, worries, concerns), birthdays, vacation plans, jobs, majors, hopes dreams etc. Since they won’t talk, one thing that might work is to have a ‘student information sheet’. Don’t ask anything too private, but do ask about their English learning history, their future plans for English, and ask them who their favorite English teacher was in the past, what activities this teacher did that they loved, what activities they hated, etc.
Then have them (after filling the sheet out) answer some of the more basic questions aloud to the whole class. Go around in a circle, starting with yourself (explain your own foreign language learning experiences, to give them an example) and then going to the most gregarious person in the class, then around in a circle from there.
write the beginning of the sentences on the board so they simply have to finish them.
“I was ___ years old when I first started learning English, and I (liked it, hated it, etc.)”
This activity has gotten my students talking WITHOUT fail every time I’ve done it. If they say they hated English, laugh out loud, if they say they loved it, ask them why. Tell them how difficult studying Chinese is for you. Speak some terrible Chinese to make them laugh. Try to get a good blush going and tell them how shy it makes you, how you feel stupid when people don’t understand you, etc. Tell them you wish you were taking a class so you had a safe place to make mistakes- because it’s better to make mistakes in a class then it is ‘out there’ where people laugh at you.
(meanwhile, if students laugh at a student who is making mistakes, shut that shit down. give them the dirtiest look you can)
Also, asking for help never fails to get a response from my students.
“I need to go to the doctor. Who here knows of a good doctor?” “I really want some Italian food. Do you guys like Italian food? Is there a good place around here?”
Then draw a rough map of your city on the board and have them give you directions. Explain how giving and recieving directions is one of the most useful skills you can learn in a second language. Praise them mercilessly when they help you find something you need/want.
Ask them about cultural issues you’re facing. My students hear about every altercation I have with my landlord. They give me advice. I share how I’d handle things in America and they explain why it wouldn’t work in Taiwan.
Good luck. I know it’s rough, but seriously, if you put the extra work in, it’s SO worth it. Try hard to learn their names.[/quote]
[quote=“NonTocareLeTete”]
In a class that’s struggling with conversation, I ask a question, give a sample answer, have the students get into pairs, discuss question together (this is where they can work out vocabulary issues and help each other so they won’t be shy when we talk as a class) then go around one by one having them give their answers. Sometimes I have them answer for their neighbor so they can work on he/she, him/her etc. If they’re at a low level I ‘scaffold’ on the board. This method, though a bit clunky, is fool-proof at getting everyone to talk. In a bigger group I just choose people to answer at random and maybe won’t get to everyone in the class.
Another way to get people to talk is role play activities. One that my adult students have loved (from college age to retired people) is one in which I hand out an even number of pink and blue cards, one card to each student. I then have people fill in several items, for example:
- A number from 20-40
- A number between 0 and 10
- A job title (for the college kids I’ll tell them to do a funny job title. I get a lot of ‘prostitutes’ and ‘betel nutt girls’
- Three positive personality traits
- Three negative personality traits
- Another number between 1-10
I then tell them that this card contains the ‘stats’ of their child.
- Age
- Number of children desired
3-5 are self explanatory - is attractiveness level
Pink cards are daughters, blue cards are sons.
I tell them that they’re worried about their kid because the kid is unmarried, so their job is to play matchmaker and marry the kid off. They then go around and chat with people until they find a good match for their kid. Then I ask them to compose a ‘how they met’ story for the happy couple, which they will then tell to the class. The class is then encouraged to ask questions.
It’s a ridiculous activity, but sometimes it’s the only way to get my students talking, and even the students that have a bad attitude in the beginning usually end up having fun.
Maxxam, would you like an activity like the one above?
I could be wrong, but I suspect not. I have a feeling Maxxam’s problems stem more from his attitude than from the teacher. But I could be wrong.
BTW someone asked if they could use my survey/welcome letter combo in their class. Have at it! I just ask that you put copyright Dresden 2011 in the bottom corner [/quote]
I can back this up. I’ll add to it:
- Teach them to respond to the way people actually talk, rather than just textbook speak.
- Try to help them out of their fossilized errors, pay attention to what they say, take note of what sounds weird, and try to help them sound more natural.
- Take into consideration their actual learning goals- they’re taking a test soon? Teach to that. They’ll be travelling in the future? Teach to that. They will be using English at work? Teach to that. They work in the service industry? Teach to that. They’re retired, bored, looking for a warm and inviting environment to make friends and pass the time? Play the hospitable host, make em smile, ask for their advice, enjoy their company.
I’ll maintain that a HUGE part of being a good teacher is taking care of the emotional needs of the students while they’re in your classroom. If someone is uncomfortable, scared or angry at you, they won’t learn anything until they get over it.
Try to sincerely care about them, try to improve their lives, and enjoy their company - if you’re doing those three things, it’ll make up for a whole slew of mistakes.
As far as kids… :s I couldn’t figure out how to teach in a way that I felt was improving their lives. Felt the time would be better spent with Mom and Dad, doing something they enjoy, developing their talents- basically doing anything BUT sitting in a buxiban classroom after having been at school all day. So I got out of the kid teaching business here.[/quote]
[quote=“Milkybar_Kid”]Yesterday was my third class at GVO and it went really badly. :raspberry:
After my second class I was criticised by some of the students for not covering all of the material in the magazine article. One student said that there was too much chatting. Lesson learned - make sure that the article and all associated vocabulary words are covered each and every lesson.
However yesterday when I planned my lesson purely around the magazine article it was really boring. I could really feel the lack of energy in the room.
Learning from my experiences I realise that I made two vital mistakes yesterday; 1) considering it was an advanced class, I spoke way too slowly. The students cottoned on to this and after class some students told me that they like it when the teachers can speak at a more natural speed. 2) Not enough general chatting and conversation. Although it is clear that some students don’t want to speak up and participate during this part, they still expect some kind of “entertainment”. Teachers who can tell stories, jokes and talk BS seem to be very popular.
I feel like I am in a strange situation here at GVO. I am currently reading this excellent book on developing EFL teaching skills:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Learning-Teaching-guidebook-language-teachers/dp/1405013990
I am learning about engaging students and working on reducing teacher talking time. However it seems that none of this will be applicable at GVO. Will the students be willing to engage in classroom activities (not sticky ball games!)? Can I reduce my talking time to get the students speaking more English? Or are students so accustumed to being talked at that this is how it has to be? I already have a sore throat after all of this talking [/quote]
The advanced students want you to speak very quickly. They can’t understand any of it, they just want everyone else to think they can. Speaking clearly is what they need, but they find it insulting. They know other people will be impressed if they ask you to speak faster to match their clearly amazing listening skills. Give these advanced students some example sentences without putting it on the board and see if they manage to write it down correctly. If the hotshots that asked you to speak faster can do it without any mistakes, I’ll be truly amazed. Simple sentences. Nothing fancy. They’ll get the key words, but the “little words” will be garbled to hell and back, along with possibly the entire sentence structure.
These people care more about showing off to everyone else than about actually learning anything useful. They LOVE useless vocabulary that nobody else will understand and they’ll never see again in their life. There are people who memorize every synonym for vocab words despite 75% of it being useless crap in almost all situations. I mean, would you memorize thesaurus entries for every word you know? These same people couldn’t string a proper sentence together using these “high-level” words to save their life, but everyone thinks they’re great. A lot of these people in your class are “real” English teachers and the class respects what they say FAR more than what you say, despite the obvious fact that these “real” teachers clearly need your help. They won’t listen to your help, they just think by being in the room they’ll improve through… magic I guess.
They DO want you to speak for 2 hours.
They DON’T want to deal with your activities that aren’t 100% focused on the article.
They DON’T want to talk about the article. (which makes the above line all the more annoying)
They sometimes do want to make their own point about the article, but it’s not up for discussion. If you give them your opinion it will simply be ignored in favor of theirs. They just wait for you to stop talking so they can repeat what they already said.
They don’t want to practice writing or answering your questions that you’ve written on the board, and they don’t like group work. You might be catching on by now… they’re there to watch you suffer, not to participate or you know, try.
They HATE grammar. It’s hard and boring.
They LOVE you if you blather on about grammar the whole class because to them, that’s learning English. The most boring teachers tend to be the most popular. Explain grammar in Chinese and they’ll love you even more because now they don’t even have to listen in English, and that’s so convenient.
They REALLY love it if they think you made a mistake so they can quickly point it out to the whole class and make jokes about reducing your salary. They might be wrong about their perceived correct way but they found it when they translated a Chinese word in their electronic dictionary, so they’re clearly right.
You tried to talk with them. That’s just wasted time in their minds. I dislike their minds, but that’s how it is. Try telling your class that you’re teaching a conversation class and they’re expected to discuss the article. You’ll blow half their minds and they’ll ask each other in Chinese if it’s true that this is a conversation class. The management never told them that. They just said “GO TO THE FOREIGNER’S CLASS AND YOUR ENGLISH WILL BE GREAT IN NO TIME ^^ Oh and can you please extend your subscription for three more years? The price is more than last time and we didn’t give your teacher a raise so we’re just keeping your extra money ^___^”. Most of those with blown minds have gone there for months if not years. They seriously never considered that they should be speaking up in class.
Be able to give them example sentences and some idioms, finish the boring article, and chat as much as you can get away with and take interest in whatever miniscule amount of personal information you can pry out of them. Some of them will like you. Focus on them, and try to shun/ignore the annoying people as much as you can. Leave the silent people alone. You’ll give half of them a heart attack by even saying hello to them. These people might get brave and come alive down the road sometime. Don’t count on it though, and god help you if you get a class of nothing but silent people.
They’re too set in their ways to change much. You’ll change some, and they’ll love you for it, but it’s a hard fought battle that isn’t worth it most of the time. I have students that LOVE me and almost treat me like members of their family in a few cases, but these people don’t listen to a damned thing I tell them about improving their English.
Don’t get mad at them when they ignore everything you try to do for them. They’ll just lecture you about how much Taiwanese people respect teachers. They pretty much just showed you clearly that they don’t, but that’s the kind of logic you’re dealing with here.
I honestly don’t know why most of them go to class, but try to keep at least some of them happy, make friends with them, and you’ll be alright. If you try to TEACH, you’ll be driven to madness in no time.
If you want to try, read the above post. It’s great advice I think, but it hasn’t worked out so well for me. Find your own style in this extremely limiting situation. The good classes will be great fun, just like hanging out with a group of old friends… try to focus on those and don’t work too hard on the boring classes, because in most cases nobody will appreciate your hard work. They’ll just get pissed off that they have to DO something, or you aren’t giving them time to be obnoxious in front of everyone to show off about how amazing they are.
[quote=“TaiwanVisitor12321”][quote=“Milkybar_Kid”]Yesterday was my third class at GVO and it went really badly. :raspberry:
After my second class I was criticised by some of the students for not covering all of the material in the magazine article. One student said that there was too much chatting. Lesson learned - make sure that the article and all associated vocabulary words are covered each and every lesson.
However yesterday when I planned my lesson purely around the magazine article it was really boring. I could really feel the lack of energy in the room.
Learning from my experiences I realise that I made two vital mistakes yesterday; 1) considering it was an advanced class, I spoke way too slowly. The students cottoned on to this and after class some students told me that they like it when the teachers can speak at a more natural speed. 2) Not enough general chatting and conversation. Although it is clear that some students don’t want to speak up and participate during this part, they still expect some kind of “entertainment”. Teachers who can tell stories, jokes and talk BS seem to be very popular.
I feel like I am in a strange situation here at GVO. I am currently reading this excellent book on developing EFL teaching skills:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Learning-Teaching-guidebook-language-teachers/dp/1405013990
I am learning about engaging students and working on reducing teacher talking time. However it seems that none of this will be applicable at GVO. Will the students be willing to engage in classroom activities (not sticky ball games!)? Can I reduce my talking time to get the students speaking more English? Or are students so accustumed to being talked at that this is how it has to be? I already have a sore throat after all of this talking [/quote]
The advanced students want you to speak very quickly. They can’t understand any of it, they just want everyone else to think they can. Speaking clearly is what they need, but they find it insulting. They know other people will be impressed if they ask you to speak faster to match their clearly amazing listening skills. Give these advanced students some example sentences without putting it on the board and see if they manage to write it down correctly. If the hotshots that asked you to speak faster can do it without any mistakes, I’ll be truly amazed. Simple sentences. Nothing fancy. They’ll get the key words, but the “little words” will be garbled to hell and back, along with possibly the entire sentence structure.
These people care more about showing off to everyone else than about actually learning anything useful. They LOVE useless vocabulary that nobody else will understand and they’ll never see again in their life. There are people who memorize every synonym for vocab words despite 75% of it being useless crap in almost all situations. I mean, would you memorize thesaurus entries for every word you know? These same people couldn’t string a proper sentence together using these “high-level” words to save their life, but everyone thinks they’re great. A lot of these people in your class are “real” English teachers and the class respects what they say FAR more than what you say, despite the obvious fact that these “real” teachers clearly need your help. They won’t listen to your help, they just think by being in the room they’ll improve through… magic I guess.
They DO want you to speak for 2 hours.
They DON’T want to deal with your activities that aren’t 100% focused on the article.
They DON’T want to talk about the article. (which makes the above line all the more annoying)
They sometimes do want to make their own point about the article, but it’s not up for discussion. If you give them your opinion it will simply be ignored in favor of theirs. They just wait for you to stop talking so they can repeat what they already said.
They don’t want to practice writing or answering your questions that you’ve written on the board, and they don’t like group work. You might be catching on by now… they’re there to watch you suffer, not to participate or you know, try.
They HATE grammar. It’s hard and boring.
They LOVE you if you blather on about grammar the whole class because to them, that’s learning English. The most boring teachers tend to be the most popular. Explain grammar in Chinese and they’ll love you even more because now they don’t even have to listen in English, and that’s so convenient.
They REALLY love it if they think you made a mistake so they can quickly point it out to the whole class and make jokes about reducing your salary. They might be wrong about their perceived correct way but they found it when they translated a Chinese word in their electronic dictionary, so they’re clearly right.
You tried to talk with them. That’s just wasted time in their minds. I dislike their minds, but that’s how it is. Try telling your class that you’re teaching a conversation class and they’re expected to discuss the article. You’ll blow half their minds and they’ll ask each other in Chinese if it’s true that this is a conversation class. The management never told them that. They just said “GO TO THE FOREIGNER’S CLASS AND YOUR ENGLISH WILL BE GREAT IN NO TIME ^^ Oh and can you please extend your subscription for three more years? The price is more than last time and we didn’t give your teacher a raise so we’re just keeping your extra money ^___^”. Most of those with blown minds have gone there for months if not years. They seriously never considered that they should be speaking up in class.
Be able to give them example sentences and some idioms, finish the boring article, and chat as much as you can get away with and take interest in whatever miniscule amount of personal information you can pry out of them. Some of them will like you. Focus on them, and try to shun/ignore the annoying people as much as you can. Leave the silent people alone. You’ll give half of them a heart attack by even saying hello to them. These people might get brave and come alive down the road sometime. Don’t count on it though, and god help you if you get a class of nothing but silent people.
They’re too set in their ways to change much. You’ll change some, and they’ll love you for it, but it’s a hard fought battle that isn’t worth it most of the time. I have students that LOVE me and almost treat me like members of their family in a few cases, but these people don’t listen to a damned thing I tell them about improving their English.
Don’t get mad at them when they ignore everything you try to do for them. They’ll just lecture you about how much Taiwanese people respect teachers. They pretty much just showed you clearly that they don’t, but that’s the kind of logic you’re dealing with here.
I honestly don’t know why most of them go to class, but try to keep at least some of them happy, make friends with them, and you’ll be alright. If you try to TEACH, you’ll be driven to madness in no time.
If you want to try, read the above post. It’s great advice I think, but it hasn’t worked out so well for me. Find your own style in this extremely limiting situation. The good classes will be great fun, just like hanging out with a group of old friends… try to focus on those and don’t work too hard on the boring classes, because in most cases nobody will appreciate your hard work. They’ll just get pissed off that they have to DO something, or you aren’t giving them time to be obnoxious in front of everyone to show off about how amazing they are.[/quote]
Thank you for taking the time to write such a personal account. Although your post may seem pretty negative, I did find it helpful and learn a few things from it. The GVO management seems very hands off, so in the long run I would have probably learned all of this anyway.
[quote=“NonTocareLeTete”]Here’s a bunch of stuff I’ve posted over the years about teaching adults. It’s all a bit long-winded but I hope you can find something useful.
I think your best bet is always to put yourself in their shoes and behave accordingly. Genuinely liking your students helps a lot too.
[quote=“NonTocareLeTete”]
I almost always start with a ‘history of your English education’ question answer session. Helps if you have it on paper.
“How long have you been learning English?”
“Did you love English or did you hate English in high school?”
“What have you hated about English class in the past?”
“What have you loved about English class in the past?”
“When was the first time you had a foreign English teacher?”
IF these things are written down, they’ll understand them better. You can even scaffold answers on the board.
“I have been learning English for ___ years, since I was ___ years old.”
Easy enough- I pretty much guarantee they’ll answer that.
“I hated English, because…” (give them some possible answers)
“I loved English, because…”
You’ll learn a lot about them, their attitudes toward English, and why they might be staring at you like dead fish. Maybe this is what was expected of them in their past English classes.
Usually this opens up a discussion about teaching they’ve experienced in the past that focused on grammar. Why does that not work for language acquisition? Why do they hate English? Part of it probably has to do with the fact that though they studied the damned language for 12 years, they still can’t converse in it. That’s when I go into the fact that I focus on conversation in my class. They’ve done grammar already. They’ve done the books to death. It hasn’t gotten them to where they want to be. So we’re going to learn the language as god intended. By speaking and listening.
MAKE IT EASY FOR THEM.
To me it sounds like you’re asking open-ended questions, and even if their English is good enough to answer them, they feel unsure, so therefore don’t want to answer. The loss, if they answer incorrectly, is greater than the reward if they answer correctly (in their minds.) To mitigate their fear, you have to make the first questions extremely easy to answer- tell them the answer. Just let them fill in a couple of words. This communicates that you EXPECT an answer and they know they can’t be ‘wrong.’ After you get them in the flow of actually answering questions, it will become a habit, the whole class will know it’s expected of them and they will feel like they’re weird if they don’t answer. Then it’s smooth sailing.
I’ve introduced a new segment to my classes. I call it small talk. I write a greeting question on the board: “How’s it going?” (Later, try “How was your weekend?” “What are your plans for the weekend?” “What’s up?”)
Then I write possible answers:
I explain that if they feel like talking, they can say something like:
“Pretty good, I just spent the morning ___(cleaning my house, preparing a report for my boss, studying English.) It went pretty well. How’s your day been so far?”
If they don’t feel like talking, they can say something like:
“Not bad, thanks for asking. How about you?”
I write this up on the board. I model it for them. Ask them to ask me the question. Walk them through my answers. When they’re struggling to describe their day, I provide them with vocab and phrases that they actually need.
Anyways, in 3 years, I’ve only had one resistant student who remained resistant. I’ve got high attendance in my classes and my school is always after me to take on more hours. And I love my students. They add a lot to my life.
Make it easy on them, try to like them, and be patient with yourself.[/quote]
[quote=“NonTocareLeTete”]This is a survey/welcome letter that I give to new students who come to my class. How would you answer these questions?
-
Why are you studying English? (Please check all that apply)
o My parents are making me study
o I need to take an English proficiency test. (Please circle: GEPT, TOEFL, TOEIC, OTHER________________.)
o Career advancement
o I want to travel and I know English will help me
o I enjoy learning English
o Other (please specify):__________________________________________________________ -
Please mark the following items from 1 to 4, according to how important it is that you improve them. (Each number can only be used once! You must choose!)
_______Speaking _______Listening _______Writing _______Reading
-
What topics do you wish you could discuss more fluently in English?
(News, politics, sports, telling personal stories, business, travel etc.) -
Which days and times will you probably attend my class? (Please circle)
(I listed my classtimes but the formosa world doesn’t need to see that) -
In your ideal class, what percentage of time would be spent on each of the following activities? (Remember, the numbers must add up to 100
_______Chatting in a group, with the teacher _______Listening Practice
_______Chatting in ENGLISH with your neighbor _______Reading the article
_______Organized activities designed to help you talk _______Writing practice
_______Other _________________________________________________________________________
-
In the past, what have English teachers done in class that you loved, or you found helpful?
-
In the past, what have you hated about English class?
Welcome to my class!
Here are a few tips that I hope will help you as you attend my class.
- Please talk! Most Taiwanese students have spent years sitting passively in a classroom learning grammar and vocabulary so they can pass a test. Enough of that. In my class, my goal is to help you communicate with real people. You must interact in English to learn this skill.
- We will discuss current events, social issues, politics and personal matters in class. If you think of a subject you’d like to be able to discuss fluently in English, please tell me the topic and I will prepare to discuss it in a future class.
- Please remember: YOU NEVER HAVE TO SHARE PERSONAL DETAILS OR OPINIONS IN MY CLASS. The point is to speak English out loud. If you feel uncomfortable sharing about yourself, you can give fake answers it’s fine, as long as you’re speaking English.
- We will focus on natural conversation and pronunciation, with a little bit of culture mixed in. This means the classes will be a little bit informal, because the focus isn’t on a teacher, teaching a lesson. The focus is on the students, interacting in English.
- I will not correct you very often while you are talking- I find that this makes students feel shy. While you are talking, I will listen for repeated mistakes and I will find a time to address these mistakes to the class. This way everyone can learn and you won’t feel embarrassed!
- Sometimes, I come home from class so sick of my own voice that I want to rip my vocal chords out with a fork. Please don’t make me do this. You will benefit from class the most if you contribute. Spend five minutes researching our weekly topic on the internet, and share about it in class!
Come to class prepared to discuss these topics in Feb-March of 2012:
Feb: focus on talking about the past
Feb 1-3: Tell me a story about a childhood injury.
Feb 8-10: Tell me about when you first learned that the adults in your life could make mistakes/were not perfect (if you can’t remember, you can lie!)
Feb15-17: In honor of Valentines Day, tell me about a time you or someone you know fell in love.
Feb 22-24: Tell me about a challenge you’ve faced in the last 5 years.
March: focus on talking about technology
Feb 29-March 2nd: Show us your phone! Be prepared to explain your favorite features on your mobile device, and what features you wish it had.
March7-9: How has the internet changed the world for good and bad?
March 14-16: Tell me crazy stories about facebook. How has it ruined/improved lives? See if you can find some news stories about it. What do you love about it? What would you change?
March 21-23: Do some research about internet regulation. Do you know about SOPA? What about the internet in China? North Korea?
March 28-30th: What is a meme? Find a famous meme on the internet and come to class prepared to discuss and explain it.
Please, if you ever have a comment or concern about the class, or if you have a suggestion for a topic you’d like to discuss, feel free to let me know after class or send an email to XXX@gmail.com. My class is a democracy- you are a paying customer. I need your feedback to help you reach your English goals![/quote]
[quote=“NonTocareLeTete”]
Honestly, sometimes the teachers job is not just to teach English (or whatever they’re teaching) it’s also to take care of the emotional well-being of the students. It’s not in the job description, but it’s part of it. For one reason or another, they are not comfortable talking in your class. You have to do something to make them feel safe and comfortable. What’s worked for me is taking a VERY active interest in them. I remember grandchildren (location, number, worries, concerns), birthdays, vacation plans, jobs, majors, hopes dreams etc. Since they won’t talk, one thing that might work is to have a ‘student information sheet’. Don’t ask anything too private, but do ask about their English learning history, their future plans for English, and ask them who their favorite English teacher was in the past, what activities this teacher did that they loved, what activities they hated, etc.
Then have them (after filling the sheet out) answer some of the more basic questions aloud to the whole class. Go around in a circle, starting with yourself (explain your own foreign language learning experiences, to give them an example) and then going to the most gregarious person in the class, then around in a circle from there.
write the beginning of the sentences on the board so they simply have to finish them.
“I was ___ years old when I first started learning English, and I (liked it, hated it, etc.)”
This activity has gotten my students talking WITHOUT fail every time I’ve done it. If they say they hated English, laugh out loud, if they say they loved it, ask them why. Tell them how difficult studying Chinese is for you. Speak some terrible Chinese to make them laugh. Try to get a good blush going and tell them how shy it makes you, how you feel stupid when people don’t understand you, etc. Tell them you wish you were taking a class so you had a safe place to make mistakes- because it’s better to make mistakes in a class then it is ‘out there’ where people laugh at you.
(meanwhile, if students laugh at a student who is making mistakes, shut that shit down. give them the dirtiest look you can)
Also, asking for help never fails to get a response from my students.
“I need to go to the doctor. Who here knows of a good doctor?” “I really want some Italian food. Do you guys like Italian food? Is there a good place around here?”
Then draw a rough map of your city on the board and have them give you directions. Explain how giving and recieving directions is one of the most useful skills you can learn in a second language. Praise them mercilessly when they help you find something you need/want.
Ask them about cultural issues you’re facing. My students hear about every altercation I have with my landlord. They give me advice. I share how I’d handle things in America and they explain why it wouldn’t work in Taiwan.
Good luck. I know it’s rough, but seriously, if you put the extra work in, it’s SO worth it. Try hard to learn their names.[/quote]
[quote=“NonTocareLeTete”]
In a class that’s struggling with conversation, I ask a question, give a sample answer, have the students get into pairs, discuss question together (this is where they can work out vocabulary issues and help each other so they won’t be shy when we talk as a class) then go around one by one having them give their answers. Sometimes I have them answer for their neighbor so they can work on he/she, him/her etc. If they’re at a low level I ‘scaffold’ on the board. This method, though a bit clunky, is fool-proof at getting everyone to talk. In a bigger group I just choose people to answer at random and maybe won’t get to everyone in the class.
Another way to get people to talk is role play activities. One that my adult students have loved (from college age to retired people) is one in which I hand out an even number of pink and blue cards, one card to each student. I then have people fill in several items, for example:
- A number from 20-40
- A number between 0 and 10
- A job title (for the college kids I’ll tell them to do a funny job title. I get a lot of ‘prostitutes’ and ‘betel nutt girls’
- Three positive personality traits
- Three negative personality traits
- Another number between 1-10
I then tell them that this card contains the ‘stats’ of their child.
- Age
- Number of children desired
3-5 are self explanatory - is attractiveness level
Pink cards are daughters, blue cards are sons.
I tell them that they’re worried about their kid because the kid is unmarried, so their job is to play matchmaker and marry the kid off. They then go around and chat with people until they find a good match for their kid. Then I ask them to compose a ‘how they met’ story for the happy couple, which they will then tell to the class. The class is then encouraged to ask questions.
It’s a ridiculous activity, but sometimes it’s the only way to get my students talking, and even the students that have a bad attitude in the beginning usually end up having fun.
Maxxam, would you like an activity like the one above?
I could be wrong, but I suspect not. I have a feeling Maxxam’s problems stem more from his attitude than from the teacher. But I could be wrong.
BTW someone asked if they could use my survey/welcome letter combo in their class. Have at it! I just ask that you put copyright Dresden 2011 in the bottom corner [/quote]
I can back this up. I’ll add to it:
- Teach them to respond to the way people actually talk, rather than just textbook speak.
- Try to help them out of their fossilized errors, pay attention to what they say, take note of what sounds weird, and try to help them sound more natural.
- Take into consideration their actual learning goals- they’re taking a test soon? Teach to that. They’ll be travelling in the future? Teach to that. They will be using English at work? Teach to that. They work in the service industry? Teach to that. They’re retired, bored, looking for a warm and inviting environment to make friends and pass the time? Play the hospitable host, make em smile, ask for their advice, enjoy their company.
I’ll maintain that a HUGE part of being a good teacher is taking care of the emotional needs of the students while they’re in your classroom. If someone is uncomfortable, scared or angry at you, they won’t learn anything until they get over it.
Try to sincerely care about them, try to improve their lives, and enjoy their company - if you’re doing those three things, it’ll make up for a whole slew of mistakes.
As far as kids… :s I couldn’t figure out how to teach in a way that I felt was improving their lives. Felt the time would be better spent with Mom and Dad, doing something they enjoy, developing their talents- basically doing anything BUT sitting in a buxiban classroom after having been at school all day. So I got out of the kid teaching business here.[/quote][/quote]
Thank you, that is a great resource. I have read through it twice and also taken down some notes.
Wishing you all the best in your GVO endeavors.
[quote=“TaiwanVisitor12321”]
The advanced students want you to speak very quickly. They can’t understand any of it, they just want everyone else to think they can. … They’ll just get pissed off that they have to DO something, or you aren’t giving them time to be obnoxious in front of everyone to show off about how amazing they are.[/quote]
Glad to hear things are going better for you at GvO TaiwanVisitor 
Nah to be serious though, you definitely had me nodding my head in recognition and laughing.
I’ve run into all those kinds of students you described. I’ve got lectures I launch into any time someone questions what we’re doing in class. I can spout off these lectures without even thinking now. And by the end of my lecture, I’ve got them.
All of the lectures are different depending on which style of resistance I’m up against, but most of them start with a simple inquiry into which aspect of English they’re least satisfied with- as in, where do they think they’re most lacking. It’s invariably listening comprehension (they can’t understand English news or youtube videos or whatever) or inability to converse with an actual foreigner. So I take that as a jumping off point, explain with plenty of anecdotes and examples how the Taiwanese way of teaching English (which is the system they’re urging me toward) failed them, and how what we’re doing in class might actually help them. I make jokes and talk about language acquisition research I’ve read and tell them stories about my Taiwanese friends and communication mishaps we’ve had. One lecture can take up half a class period but I’ve got them laughing and nodding and by the end they’re sold and the next time I ask them to do something, they do it.
I’ve had two students I couldn’t win over and finally I was just so annoyed with their poor attitude inside my classroom that I purposely made them uncomfortable so they never came back. Don’t fucking sit in my classroom and glare at me and bring everyone else down.
Anyways to be honest I’m SO burned out on teaching right now. It hit earlier this week and it just keeps getting worse. I’m practically going cross-eyed in class because I’m just over it right now. I don’t know if it’s temporary or if this is the final descent into hating my job. I’ve had dips before but it always got better and after a few months I started loving my job again. But honestly, I think this one might be urging me to do something else. I don’t like staying in jobs when I’m bored, and I’ve got a couple of business ideas rattling around in my head so it might be time to get out.
Sorry to hear that thing’s aren’t going so well for you right now. Even if you do decide to get out of the teaching game, your advice and guidance will live on in these threads.
Maybe a short break would lift your spirits? A month away in another country perhaps?
[quote=“cloud13”]GVOers aren’t “helping to lower the salaries of all English teachers”.
[/quote]
Yes you are. You are working for less than we used to make, hence legitimizing the practice of paying English teachers less.
[quote=“NonTocareLeTete”]
I’ve had two students I couldn’t win over and finally I was just so annoyed with their poor attitude inside my classroom that I purposely made them uncomfortable so they never came back. Don’t fucking sit in my classroom and glare at me and bring everyone else down.
Anyways to be honest I’m SO burned out on teaching right now. It hit earlier this week and it just keeps getting worse. I’m practically going cross-eyed in class because I’m just over it right now. I don’t know if it’s temporary or if this is the final descent into hating my job. I’ve had dips before but it always got better and after a few months I started loving my job again. But honestly, I think this one might be urging me to do something else. I don’t like staying in jobs when I’m bored, and I’ve got a couple of business ideas rattling around in my head so it might be time to get out.[/quote]
I’ve had the “starers” in my class a few years past and one time I actually said in general to everyone, if you are going to come here to learn and then sit and stare at the book or your phone and not speak, it’s best you maybe take a grammar class or self study" and they didn’t come back. This made the class all the more fun for everyone else because buzzkills take all the energy out of the room.
I get the burned out feeling too at times. Hope you feel better! 
Sorry to hear that thing’s aren’t going so well for you right now. Even if you do decide to get out of the teaching game, your advice and guidance will live on in these threads.
Maybe a short break would lift your spirits? A month away in another country perhaps?[/quote]
Thanks.
You know the truth is, I’m an introvert and I really can’t take much more than 2 hours of teaching per day. I loaded on some (higher paying, non-GVO) hours over the winter because I wanted to save money. But it’s really too much for me. I have to split my time among social jobs (teaching) and non-social jobs (editing and writing) and if I take on too much teaching (more than 15 hours a week- 10 would be optimal) I just start to drag.
Anyways, I’ve got my APRC, I saved enough money to take 6 months off and I’ve got some really cool crazy plans for the next year. Might just have to take my exit a bit earlier than I’d planned.
Anybody know how much tickets to Bali would be right about now?
I’m introverted, too, and find class teaching draining, but 1:1s far less so. Seems common for “I” types. All the best with your future plans! If they require skills related to teaching, your chances seem good. Thanks for sharing; it’s fascinating to see how others approach teaching.
My problem wasn’t student silence, but frustration with slower student improvement. I taught adults for 6yrs (not GVO, a competitor), but not in the last 7, so I’d rather not derail the thread & say much here. I prefer old threads.
For me, much of teaching is problem solving. Student silence on day 1 is common, so develop a coordinated strategy to execute on day 1 that “recalibrates student mindsets” and sets the tone & environment: humor, class rules & expectations, story, lecture, sales pitch, a “teaching”… all reinforcing & leading up to a speaking activity. Maybe in that order. Aim for results on day 1: most students leaving class smiling & talking. Anything less, keep tweaking until you’ve got your own ‘routine’.
Pedagogy isn’t yet a natural science, so be open-minded & experiment. One’s gospel, may be another’s heresy.
It’s dangerous to dismiss anything… including CELTA heresies like stories, jokes, or teacher talk.
On day 1, they can: break ice, lighten moods/stress, personalize the teacher, engage students, & bond a class.
A well-placed one liner can do that faster than a magazine article or activity.
Useful in limited, targeted doses. Some individual teachers could employ them more; others, less.
Hard to train humor, though. Or several other useful qualities for teaching.
If you model self-deprecating humor (throwing away your own face), say, speaking broken Chinese,
Students may speak more, & care less about making mistakes & saving their own face.
Risk looking foolish (humorous) & never give up to get them to speak & try to improve… maybe they’ll do the same.
Be careful of your own mindset & “training”; many elements may be blocking development.
How do those celta folk train teachers, do they take into account for massive cultural differences worldwide?
That’s exactly what I did as soon as I got my APRC—I felt so burnt out on teaching. Now, 6 months later, my frame of mind has improved greatly (partly because I moved to the east coast) and I’m starting to work again, little by little with a couple of private students. I’m enjoying it again. So I think your idea may be just what you need.
I’m an introvert, too. I wasn’t crazy about teaching at first, but I’ve grown to really enjoy it. I like the challenge of acting extroverted, when that’s not my true nature.
I want to recommend a book on introversion, called Quiet by Susan Cain. It’s an extremely well-written book on the subject. I especially enjoyed Chapter 9 (WHEN SHOULD YOU ACT MORE INTROVERTED THAN YOU REALLY ARE?) which contains a wonderful summary of Dr. Brian Little’s free trait theory.
An extra thought - maybe we should start a new thread, Introverts in English Teaching…
[quote=“BigJohn”][quote=“cloud13”]GVOers aren’t “helping to lower the salaries of all English teachers”.
[/quote]
Yes you are. You are working for less than we used to make, hence legitimizing the practice of paying English teachers less.[/quote]
I had some serious qualms about this when I started. They offered me 450, I said no way, they came back with 500, I said no way, they said they’d raise me to 550 after a month, and I took it. I’ve since strong-armed a few more raises - it isn’t easy and probably helps that I live in an area where they fear they won’t readily find replacement teachers (although that’s changing). I can’t say the exact amount I make per hour because I’ve been sworn to secrecy. One manager told me I’m among the highest paid at GVO- but she may have been trying to shut me up about getting another raise 
This was the bottom line for me. I’m not a big fan of what the education system in TAiwan is doing to children, and I don’t want to be a part of it. GVO was one of the only places in my area where one could get regular work teaching adults.
Then there’s the outside work. GVO has no outside work, unless I feel like preparing something because I care about my students.
I have friends who say, “Oh, my job doesn’t have outside work either.”
Show me a teacher of children who doesn’t prepare outside of class, and I’ll show you a piss-poor teacher. Usually. Maybe not so if they’ve got years of experience.
Communication books, performances, telephone teaching, unpaid meetings every week, planning art projects, activities, games, buying prizes, coming up with reward systems, correcting homework---- some schools pay for office hours but I’ll be honest, I didn’t want to be required to sit in an office, either.
Plus you can usually get away with taking a 10 min break every hour at GVO, so that helps the “hourly” pay too.
Anyways, add it all up and I think I’ve made more “per hour” during my tenure at GVO than most teachers do in Taiwan (unless they’ve got a real sweet gig). I’m offered a lot of side gigs but generally won’t take them unless they pay double what I’m making at GVO because they’ll invariably require more of my time in preparation, communication with management, transportation, etc.
Bottom line: I care more about free time and low stress than I do about money.
Oh and it’s worth mentioning again that management just leaves me alone. Management never bothers you- heck, we’re not even invited to the end of the year wei ah (pardon my pinyin) which was fine by me- I did one wei ah when I first got here, where we were required to stomp, clap and shout our way through a chant in a crowded restaurant. I believe the refrain was, “We are good, we are best, we are the super number 1, Hap-py New Year! Hurrah!!! (Huzzah?)” One experience with that was one time too many, if you ask me.
Anyways I tendered my letter of resignation today. I’ve given them 2 months notice, should be ample in case I want to return!