Am I suffering from Identity Confusion?
>> Sunday, October 11, 2009
Everything's feeling strange this week, mainly because I've just arrived at a new environment, and I know that's supposed to be normal. But more seriously, I think I'm also suffering from IDENTITY CONFUSION.
In the university's Freshers' Week, English Language assessments were given to the large population of new international students. Interestingly, for some time in the past, I had been the one conducting the assessments, but I was a test-taker this time. Rather than thinking about how to answer the questions, I was more interested in knowing how it was conducted in such a large scale for both undergraduate and postgraduate students. The writing assessment was held in 4 different sessions, so did they come up with four different sets of questions or more? Were they not worried if the questions would leak out? Also, how did they cope with the marking?
Next, we were also made to do some grammar and vocabulary tests using the computers in the PC lab. The tutors didn't have to do the markings for this, but there were so many of them there to invigilate. And this time they needed to split up into15-20 sessions for all the international students! I remember how I used to dislike conducting assessments like these, especially when we were understaffed and had to mark piles of the students' writing scripts.
Another funny feeling I had was about the talk on Plagiarism - I was the one telling and teaching students about it in the past, but now I was put in the position of being told.
This is perhaps the time for me to take the opportunity to experience things from the different point of view of a student. I could probably appreciate this experience more now as a 'matured' student myself.
4 comments:
hi chwa! well it will take a while changing hats :) and it will be a nice change to see things from the oppposite side of the classroom, at least for the next 10-12 months :)
look forward to hearing/reading all about your experiences in Essex!
all the best
louise
What a surprise, Louise! Thanks for visiting and commenting.
<span style="color: #808080;">Hello, Chwa, nice to write you again,</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">I would tell this... veteran student that he or she has a pile of learning strategies, both because this person has been a teacher and a student.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">This person is somewhat, or a lot, an expert at studying: would to God my students would have so advanced and experienced strategies!</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">This is a unique situation.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">Well, not that unique, because me myself and possibly many other teachers are students, learners themselves.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">Definitely: every teacher is a learner himself or helself.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">So, relax and study hard: that hits pay dirt.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">Ciao.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">Fernando Díez Gallego</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">Granada</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">(Spain)</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">Hello, Chwa, and everybody else,</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">One of the reasons I visit your blog, Chwa, is to refresh and learn further about teaching a language.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">Something else. I liked the moving quotation you set on your blog lately. Thank you.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">I totally agree with that quotation: if my student, my students, do not learn or acquire L2, let's stop to ponder and reconsider the way we are teaching.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">More and more I have clear that if a class-group gets good grades, a lot of the weight is due to the teacher. If the students generally get fail grades..., you, teacher, think of the way you are teaching.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">I've lately thought that, as well, many of the discipline problems in the classroom (or the opposite case), are problems of the teacher him/herself. I also see this fact from some comment I have heard by a colleague of ours.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">Best wishes for everyone: you are doing well to your students.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">From Granada, Spain.</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">Fernando</span>
<span style="color: #808080;">http://fernandoexperiences.blogspot.com</span>
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