Throughout the last week of tutoring I noticed that the students seemed uninterested and annoyed with their work. Upon going over an assignment with a student, CD, I realized exactly how the she, in particular, was feeling: burnt out. The assignment was difficult, even for myself as a college Sophomore, let alone a high school student that is still learning English as her fourth or fifth language nonetheless.
Over the last few days I have been contemplating different things that can be done from a teaching stand point in an attempt to avoid the feeling of being "burnt out" among students. The first solution that comes to mind would be to offer an alternate assignment or a different version of the same assignment that is slightly less difficult for ELL students. I strongly believe that all students should be held to certain expectations, but those expectations should not be generalized to the entire class. Students should be required to stretch their abilities in order to progress in their education; but, at the same time, they should not be stretched far beyond their breaking point as I have noticed happening to many students of all learning abilities.
Well stated! High school can be exhausting, and it is even more so for people in the situations of the people we tutor. Some people fall into this trap of more work= more intelligence, but it's not that simple! High school can be 4 long, monotonous, grinding years. Teachers (aka we) should change this!
ReplyDeleteI find that my ELL student, D, also experiences this feeling of being burnt out. I try to give her breaks and incentives to finish a difficult task. I agree with your ideas associated with an alternative assignment as well.
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