Seven years at S.G.O.

So, the last day of the school year is upon me - the end of my 7th year has come. I think this point was highlighted for me yesterday when I met a student who did maturita this year for a coffee, and then later on another student from my very first year came unexpectedly to the cafe too! And so, the wheel of my teaching years had turned full circle, so to speak ;-)

Perhaps a time to reflect... I was so rough & ready & raw when I began back in September 2006. I'd only recently got my TEFL, and it was a big shock to be teaching classes of up to 22 young people. I pretty much learnt as I was going along. There were some hits & misses. I experimented, had a lot of fun - and that first year was a surprising success for me. the feedback from many students was enthusiastic & encouraging. I cut my teaching teeth on those first classes...but they lived to tell the tale ;-) 

Seven years on, and where am I on my teaching journey? A word used yesterday by the recent graduate was 'inspirational'. This is high praise indeed. It is a word that I cherish. An encouragement to keep going. The older student commented that my Czech had greatly improved! I'm not sure about that, but I know it helps me to understand why Czechs have problems with the mysteries of English. It helps to walk in the other person's shoes (or slippers ;-) ) sometimes. 

From my point of view? I love this job so much! Even as I come to the end of this year, I still retain an enthusiasm to continue, to develop my skills, and to be even more creative & spontaneous than perhaps I've been before. English can be fun. My goal, when I got my TEFL, was to be the best teacher of English that I could be. I'm not there yet...but I'm on the way...even if it takes me the rest of my teaching career. It certainly helps to have students who are (on the whole) as enthusiastic about learning & speaking English as I am! The English Club alone would keep me going - but of course, I aim to get the most out of ALL of my lessons. Even 'suplovani' lessons don't get a rest with me :-) 

I have also learnt that it's not enough to teach English - over these years I have come to the conclusion that teaching about life is just as important. It seems to be a big gap in the school curriculum. Life values, morals, how to make good decisions, getting along with people etc etc. This has also become part of my work. 

However, this is only one side of the story... The other concerns the place where I work, and the staff I work with. Of course, this is not the place to write about such things...well, maybe it is...but I guess this is not the time ;-) There is much that I'm not satisfied with, and perhaps much that I'm not able to change (though I pray for it!). The new building is coming to it's conclusion; but I inclined to go along with Jesus's words, and I would slightly paraphrase them for my purposes...the new wineskin needs some new wine. Lest anyone be kidded, all is not 'hunky dory' at SGO. Even in the last few months, some things have been highlighted. I find it deeply sad that some young people find it so difficult to find anyone to talk to about their deepest problems, that they see so little point in living this wonderful gift of life, that they end up taking their own lives. SGO has also been in the news this year with the situation about Miss Schaffnerova losing her job. The reaction from the students is enough to show that something is not right. Teachers have been very guarded with their comments, and rightly so. All I will say is this - I understand the reaction. As a prestigious school, I believe we need to be as open and transparent as some of those big windows that are in the new building :-)

Change is always a difficult thing - and it needs to happen regularly. Perhaps the best thing I can do is hang on in there & try to influence some of this change for good. I have hope. Hope is a good thing. 

I have also noticed that in finishing this 7th year, I have equalled my record for the longest time I have ever spent in a job. I have been a bit of a journeyman when it comes to work. After all these years, it finally looks like I have found a job that I would happily do until I decide to retire, and perhaps become a writer or bird-watcher, or something... The best is still to come - and that is a good thought to end this year on.

The Big Amazing Cake!

One of the great joys for me this year has been the development of the English Club, how it has grown, changed shape, and become something interactive, student-led...original and fun!
The culmination of this year was surely the Big Amazing Cake. The seed for this idea was sown earlier in the year by Radka Tylichová of 2B - all she had was an idea for a 'big amazing cake'...and that was all. Like all seeds, it died, and one day grew into something truly BIG, AMAZING, and BEAUTIFUL! About a couple of weeks before the end of the last English Club of 2013, we talked it over...students decided what was to be done, and how, and also when. The decision was taken to do it in the big break (9:40-10:00) and to invite teachers & students etc to come, have a look at it, and scoff it! All for free! :-)
Radka came the week before & showed us her design, and also fitted together a cardboard template of a map of Great Britain & Northern Ireland (the Republic of Eire was left out because we don't cover it as a Maturita topic ;-) ). Each one of us (9) took a piece of the cardboard & the idea was to make a cake, of any flavour, with a topping (marzipan or coloured icing) according to Radka's design...
I confess a slight trepidation as to how it was going to work out. We each had a piece of the jigsaw, but only a vague hope of how it would fit, what it would look like etc...

On the morning of 13th June, we arrived at room 110. I was first at about 9.10am, and then the others came (even some kind volunteers from 2B!). It was a fascinating process as we watched the construction of the cake unfold! I had no covering for our part (London etc, with the Union Jack) & Anna Havranková kindly did some last.minute.com marzipan work, which as you can see, was awesome! 
We began with Scotland, and worked our way down piece by piece. It felt like I was witnessing an operation in surgery...Dr House meets Kluci v Akci :-) As you can see from the photos on Facebook, it was very much precision work...and amazingly (for it was an amazing cake!) it all fitted together perfectly! 
I have had some special times at SGO - and I don't like to rate them - each is precious to me for its own merit...but this was one of those 'goosebumps' moments :-) The feeling of witnessing something truly special, original...beautiful.
The time passed so quickly, and before we knew it 9:40 was upon us! We brought in everyone in the corridor who was passing, and grabbed teachers from their 'kabinets'...even the deputies from their office along with Mrs Pavlickova! One added bonus was having the student teachers from Durham there at that time...! A couple of speeches were made, and then the cake was cut & passed around.
One of the wonderful things about this idea was the assortment of flavours with each piece of cake - each was a delicious surprise :-) Excellent quality, and no problems with quantity!
And one of the other special things for me was the atmosphere...this was done at a time when the 'Schaffnerová' situation was brewing...after a young girl from 2B had recently committed suicide...The heaviness of those days seemed, at least for a short time, to lift....and we enjoyed not only a great piece of cake, but also a taste of hope for better days...a taste of the potential of what might be... And you know? It tasted great!

Finally, I want to take this opportunity to thank EVERYONE for their involvement with the Big Amazing Cake - mainly Radka for her inspirational idea...but for all who contributed in any way, shape, or form. This was truly teamwork...and, it has to be said...this is the fruit of I.S.L.I :-)
Thank you!!
Mr E

Time

Though I have posted this on Facebook, I like to use this Blog to collect things that I have done from time to time. The idea for this video came from the English Club - we had some lessons on 'Motivation', and the idea came to me of doing a motivational talk. As I get older, I realise how precious 'time' is - it is a gift (for me, from God). 
One of the most common complaints I hear, and indeed, I have uttered it myself, is that 'I don't have enough time'. I think the wisest thing I can say is that this is a lie ;-) We ALL have the same amount of time - 60 seconds a minute, 60 minutes an hour, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week...We only have to choose what we do with the time that is given to us (as Gandalf would say ;-) ). 
I have been amazed, flattered, and deeply touched by some of the responses that I had to this talk. When I did it in the classroom, I was inspired to speak each sentence to a different student as I went around the room. Such was the positive response that I had from this motivational talk, that I also decided to do it with some of the Maturita seminars in the closing lesson. It moved people...it moves me too. 
So, I post this as a reminder - not just to you, to make the most of your time - but also to myself. 

There is also a short video on this theme which I sometimes use in my classes:

And here is one of my all-time favourite songs on the theme of time - 'Who Knows Where The Time Goes' by Sandy Denny:

Be inspired - and make the most of your time :-)

Happy holidays to all of my students (current & ex) and to all my friends too :-)

Variations on a theme of Shakespeare...

During the Maturita exams, it was often amusing how some students would try & get their pet theme into a topic - for example, sport. One student made a valiant attempt to include it in the Commonwealth question, but his teacher limited him & refused a couple of repeated efforts.

With the student who failed with GB & NI, it seemed as if all they knew was Shakespeare - and so Shakespeare HAD to be included...it made me wonder afterwards whether it was really possible to include Shakespeare 'genuinely' in every topic...so, here goes my attempt!

1. Learning English and other foreign languages

"Learning English is very difficult, especially if it is Shakespearian English. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

2. My life, plans for the future.

"The thing I like most about my life is literature, and I really like Shakespeare. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

3. Family life, house and home.

"If I could have a dream home, it would be in Stratford-Upon-Avon, which interestingly is the place where William Shakespeare was born. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

4. Student's life, schools, education.

"I have really enjoyed my time at S.G.O., because during my time here I learnt a lot about Shakespeare. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

5. Friendship, personal qualities.

"To be, or not to be - that is a question about personal qualities asked by Hamlet, who was a character in the play of the same name, written by William Shakespeare. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

6. Hobbies and leisure time.

- same answer as Life & Plans for the Future

7. Sports and games.

"Shakespeare was a footballer who played for Stratford-Upon-Avon F.C. He was in a solid defence which also included Romeo, Hamlet, Othello, with Macbeth in goal. Their greatest victory was against the Merry Wives of Windsor, with Julius Caesar getting the crucial goal..."

8. Health and diseases, healthy way of life.

"Shakespeare had a lot to say about this topic. A lot of his characters, for example, Hamlet, suffered from some kind of mental illness. In those days there was no medication and so he died. Romeo & Juliet died of love-sickness combined with accidental suicide..."

9. Travelling makes the world smaller.

"Even though he never travelled a lot, William Shakespeare had much to say about this topic. He wrote about many far away places, such as Rome & France. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

10. Shopping, money, economy.

"The Merchant of Venice wanted a pound of flesh as payment. It was a different type of economy, but it just shows what a great writer & economist William Shakespeare was! Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

11. Cooking and eating habits.

"'A horse, a horse! My Kingdom for a horse!' These are words uttered by Richard III, who was so hungry that he could have eaten a horse. Indeed, had he been alive today, he would have had no problem having a snack in IKEA. Richard III was a character of Shakespeare's. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

12. Fashion, dressing, youth culture.
"I am old-fashioned, and don't like wearing modern styles. I would love to bring back the fashion from the middle-ages, perhaps to dress as Shakespeare did. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

13. Weather and environmental problems.
"We can have different types of weather. Another word for a storm is a 'tempest'. My favourite time of the year is midsummer. Interestingly, Shakespeare also wrote a play called 'The Tempest', and one called 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who also wrote many other famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

14. Means of communication, mass media.
"There are many different ways to communicate. These days, a lot of people use modern technology, but this was not the case in Shakespeare's time. He could only communicate through his plays and sonnets, and perhaps using pigeons too. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

15. Cultural life here and in English speaking countries.
"I love going to the theatre & watching a good play, especially plays by Shakespeare. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

16. My experience with English and American literature.
:-) no comment!! This is the moment you've been waiting for! You can use all of your pre-prepared information in a parrot-like fashion, hardly pausing for breath. Of course, your teacher will try & guide you to other writers...and it might be tricky with American ones...but hey, you can always keep Hemmingway's 'The Old Man & the Sea' in reserve... ;-)

17. Holidays, festivals, customs and traditions.
"Around the middle of March is St.Patrick's Day. The middle of March is also known as 'the ides of March', which interestingly is a phrase that was used by Shakespeare in his play, 'Julius Caesar'. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

18. The United Kingdom.
"There are many famous places in England, and one of them is Stratford-Upon-Avon, which was also the home of William Shakespeare. He didn't like to travel much, and so he didn't know a lot about other places, though he wrote about them, which is a bit like me. He was a famous British writer who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

19. London and other places in the UK.
Same as above, but you can also speak about The Globe Theatre.

20. Canada, Australia, The British Commonwealth.
A tricky one to do...but using your preparation for GB & NI, you can try & stay focused on The British Commonwealth, exclusively through Britain...but if you must, you could also try: "Britain sent a lot of criminals to Australia, which was then only inhabited by aboriginals. They were uncultured, so they introduced some culture in the way of Shakespeare. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

21. The United States of America.
"The Pilgrim Fathers went to America a long time ago. The winters there were very long and dark, and they had nothing to do at night but to read the works of Shakespeare. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

22. Washington D. C., New York and other places in the U. S. A.
As above - but with New York, you could also focus on Broadway, and the possibility of seeing Shakespearian plays there!

23. The Czech Republic.
"In the Czech Republic we have long winters. "Now is the winter of our discontent" is a quotation from the writer, Shakespeare. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

24. Prague and other interesting places in our country.
"In Prague there is the National Theatre. On a visit there, you could possibly see one of Shakespeare's plays. Shakespeare was a famous British writer who also lived in Stratford-Upon-Avon & who wrote many famous works, such as 'Hamlet', "Romeo & Juliet' etc..."

25. Olomouc, my town, my birthplace.
As above - but use 'Moravian Theatre' instead of 'National Theatre'.

And there you have it!! Perhaps it can be done?! :-

Maturita 2013 - The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly...

It might be worth playing the music whilst you read this...just to put you in the mood ;-)

The good:
The standard of English at S.G.O. has always been very high, but I have to say that Kuba Kopriva took the theme of 'Family & home' to new levels! He was the last student in the first week, and was well worth the wait. His grasp of English is excellent, and to think that he is still only 19...wow! Just how far will he go? I have worked with a lot of excellent students in my 7 years, but Kuba's performance was one of the very best...if not THE best! Indeed, he is the winner of the 'Chuck Norris English Award for 2013'! 

The bad:
This is where I stop mentioning the students by name...for obvious reasons ;-) However, we had one failure in English this year, which is always a disappointment. The student chose 'Great Britain & Northern Ireland'. I knew it might be tricky when I began by asking if they'd ever been to the UK - they said 'no', and to my question of 'And where would you like to go in the UK?' they answered 'New York.' 
They began by talking about Stratford Upon Avon - and did a 'parrot speech' of William Shakespeare'...something Mrs T would have been proud of...only thing was, the theme wasn't 'English & American Literature'. We brought them back on track. The capital of England is...? They didn't know! :-O On being shown some pictures of famous English people, the student told us that the Queen is Queen Victoria II !! They didn't recognise the Beatles. 
One teacher asked about ways of getting to England from Europe. 'Air' was the simple answer. Then we got 'Ship.' They were asked if there was another way... Confusion played across their face, as if it was a trick question...the teacher moved a pen on the map between France & England... 'Is there something under the sea?' You could see the look of horror...('under the sea? There is something under the sea?!') Tunnel was not in their vocabulary... :-( 
We were also told that in Loch Ness there is 'a big animal'...
In a last desperate attempt to save the student (for no teacher wants a student to fail, really!), we tried to prompt for more information about places...we came back to Stratford...and William Shakespeare...and not even he could save them. That was bad. That was a fail. 

The Ugly:
This one didn't concern English...it was Civics. According to Mr Jelinek (who has been at SGO for around 25 years) it has never happened before (to his or anyone else's knowledge). But this student was caught red-handed with a cheat-slip while preparing for their Civics exam - which was sitting on the desk, in broad daylight - with no apparent attempt to hide it! A sad day. An ugly side to education. Ultimately, cheating proves nothing - only that you know nothing except how to cheat...
I sincerely hope that it will be the last time...

MATURITA MISTAKES 2013...

OK, here it is....(roll of the drums!!) - some of the funniest, unusual, and interesting mistakes of the Maturita Exams in English of 2013...

On the subject of 'New York & Washington', we were informed that 'the Statue of Library is on the island of Library'...

On the subject of 'The Czech Republic', we were told that “The Czech Republic consists of Bohemia, Moravia and Slovakia…” (surely a old style nationalist at heart?)

The same student then developed the theme...“The Czech Republic is surrounded by 4 countries, in the West is Germany, in the north is Poland, in the east (correct this time!) is Slovakia, and in the south is Australia…” (yeah, right...a loooong way south!)

The day before Yoda English Day, we heard this classic Yoda-style sentence... “Not enough strong…”

Back to New York...“In New York was a touristic attack…” Probably more dangerous that terrorists?! 

And further geography mayhem! “San Francisco is in the centre of the USA…”

It's always good when students give clever & intentionally funny answers! For example: “Why don’t you like shopping alone?” “Well, when I shop alone, I have to pay.”

Even Festivals get mixed up: “Americans celebrate Thanksgiving Day with a pumpkin…”

And staying with the Star Wars theme: “My dog talks like Chewbacca…”

Some students even create new words!! “My village is surrounded by foresties…”

In answer to Mrs Cesalova's leading question of 'What do you do when you get the weather forecast wrong and it rains?' (she wanted to hear, 'I take an umbrella') the student replied, “I let the rain fall on my head…” re weather forecast!

We also learnt that “In spring, the snow smells...? Smelts?”

One student had a real problem distinguishing the difference between 'beer' and 'bear' (the word he really wanted!) and so we learnt that in Australia there are “Koala Beers...” (made from freshly squeezed koalas?)  and that “In Canada there are winter bears...” (a simple enough mistake if you can't remember Polar Bear...but hey, are there really Polar Bears in Canada? :-O )

Some students couldn't remember the right word when they needed it...“In Prague there is a big time (astronomical clock)...”

And the same student had another geography blip: In answer to the question, “What parks are there in Prague?”, she replied “Hmmm...Hyde Park's in London, isn't it?”

Yes...choosing the correct word can be a problem: “In the US, football is played with a damaged (oval?) ball...”

Some students are clever enough to be very diplomatic...in a discussion about education & whether students should pay tuition fees for University, the student suggested that it might be a problem as only rich people could afford it. I said: “So, rich people are stupid?”, to which they quickly replied: “No, poor people are clever!”

A new challenger to Yoda English appeared this year...a golden oldie from the past! Cookie Monster English - “Me sometimes eat...me have sister...”

After a while, I came to the conclusion that some students were 'Grammar-Free Zones'! 

And to end with, one of the most amusing came in an exam with Mrs Cesalova, who (as ever) was fishing for a particular word connected with the topic of  Communications & Mass Media...I think she wanted something like 'broadsheets'...the student couldn't pick up on her train of thought, but said “It's made of paper - a Sheet of paper...and I said 'sheet'!” :-)