Building the English Language Society I Never Had
Ever since I was appointed the Head of the English Language Panel in my school, I've been put in charge of the English Language Society which was previously pretty much dormant & abandoned.
I spent many nights having wet dreams fantasising about what I could do with all these young innocent unexposed minds.
There were a lot of possibilities!
My mouth watered at the thought of all that I could do with my new found power.
One thing was for sure....
I'm going to build the kick-ass English Language Society that I never had & currently only have in my wildest dreams.
These are my foundational principles to building the English Language Society I never had:
Only the Best Students
I cannot emphasise this more.
Only the best things can come from the best students.
The best here means students who are most able to follow instructions. Language proficiency is secondary.
There are no heroes or divas here. Only people who are willing to learn & labour.
They are the foundation of my society.
My English Language Society is strictly invitation only.
English Language teachers chose the best students from their classes.
They were then given a specially designed invitation letter.
Everyone accepted the invitation. =)
Nurture Student Leadership
Like any organisation that will live beyond the founder, the members have to lead themselves.
This is not easy for a school like mine where the students are accustomed to being spoon-fed & waiting on their teachers' hands & feet.
Thus, I'm taking things step by step.
First, I have identified & are building up leaders from those who are most eager & malleable.
When they carry out their activities, I have to give specific instructions & monitor them closely.
If they stumble, I have to make them aware of their mistakes, explain the consequences & suggest corrections.
I will also have to give a post-mortem after every activity so that they can build on their strengths & improve on their weaknesses.
Eventually, they will gain the experience that will allow things to run without me.
Then, I can show them how to teach others like I have taught them.
I also involve the students in as much of the decision making process as possible (if not all of it).
Teachers usually only have to monitor or give consultations.
Exceed Expectations
The students were not born yesterday. They've probably seen most of what I have to offer.
The challenge for me is how to exceed the expectations of the school.
How can I reinvent something they have experienced before to make it better?
They need to open up their minds, broaden their horizons & be inspired.
So I have to constantly think & live outside the box.
For example, school activities lack the 'cool' factor.
My mission is to make the society 'cool', exclusive & desirable.
After all, which student does not want to be associated with 'cool'?
It begins with an image. The logo of the society will have to be 'cool'.
I got the students to discuss the year's insignia, colour & motto.
From that, I designed a 'cool' logo with the help of another teacher.
This logo will be incorporated in notices, banners, the t-shirt & lanyard tags of the society.
don't you think this logo has the 'cool' factor?
Extend Beyond the Society
It is important that my society lives for those outside the society.
The purpose of my English Language Society is to promote the English Language & facilitate activities involving as much of the school as possible.
Many activities were planned for this year & some have already been carried out.
Next week, I will share the plans for Teacher's Day.
We've also got the exciting English Language Week coming up in July. Lots to share about this one!
You will be enriched! Stay tuned!
I spent many nights having wet dreams fantasising about what I could do with all these young innocent unexposed minds.
There were a lot of possibilities!
My mouth watered at the thought of all that I could do with my new found power.
One thing was for sure....
I'm going to build the kick-ass English Language Society that I never had & currently only have in my wildest dreams.
These are my foundational principles to building the English Language Society I never had:
Only the Best Students
I cannot emphasise this more.
Only the best things can come from the best students.
The best here means students who are most able to follow instructions. Language proficiency is secondary.
There are no heroes or divas here. Only people who are willing to learn & labour.
They are the foundation of my society.
My English Language Society is strictly invitation only.
English Language teachers chose the best students from their classes.
They were then given a specially designed invitation letter.
Everyone accepted the invitation. =)
Nurture Student Leadership
Like any organisation that will live beyond the founder, the members have to lead themselves.
This is not easy for a school like mine where the students are accustomed to being spoon-fed & waiting on their teachers' hands & feet.
Thus, I'm taking things step by step.
First, I have identified & are building up leaders from those who are most eager & malleable.
When they carry out their activities, I have to give specific instructions & monitor them closely.
If they stumble, I have to make them aware of their mistakes, explain the consequences & suggest corrections.
I will also have to give a post-mortem after every activity so that they can build on their strengths & improve on their weaknesses.
Eventually, they will gain the experience that will allow things to run without me.
Then, I can show them how to teach others like I have taught them.
I also involve the students in as much of the decision making process as possible (if not all of it).
Teachers usually only have to monitor or give consultations.
Exceed Expectations
The students were not born yesterday. They've probably seen most of what I have to offer.
The challenge for me is how to exceed the expectations of the school.
How can I reinvent something they have experienced before to make it better?
They need to open up their minds, broaden their horizons & be inspired.
So I have to constantly think & live outside the box.
For example, school activities lack the 'cool' factor.
My mission is to make the society 'cool', exclusive & desirable.
After all, which student does not want to be associated with 'cool'?
It begins with an image. The logo of the society will have to be 'cool'.
I got the students to discuss the year's insignia, colour & motto.
From that, I designed a 'cool' logo with the help of another teacher.
This logo will be incorporated in notices, banners, the t-shirt & lanyard tags of the society.
Extend Beyond the Society
It is important that my society lives for those outside the society.
The purpose of my English Language Society is to promote the English Language & facilitate activities involving as much of the school as possible.
Many activities were planned for this year & some have already been carried out.
Next week, I will share the plans for Teacher's Day.
We've also got the exciting English Language Week coming up in July. Lots to share about this one!
You will be enriched! Stay tuned!
