My Experience Teaching (Part 1)

You are listening to the tenth episode of English with Dane. Hit it. And they asked me for tips, right? For advice. And I only had around five minutes to talk to them. So it was very difficult for me to give them advice in five minutes without overwhelming them, right? Without saying so much that they don't listen to anything. So I thought I would talk about it here, and then they could listen to the episode.

So this is for any new teachers, and maybe it will help some more experienced teachers too. I'm constantly learning from other teachers, some with more experience and some with less experience. And I think that this is a job that everyone does very differently, and it's important to adapt your techniques because you need to be ready to teach different types of students. So these are things that I've learned and things that I've realized over the years.

Things that I've done wrong, things that I've done right, and things that have made my job more difficult. By the way, this is something that I've talked about before when I had a different show, but I haven't spoken about it here on English with Dane. So if you're a teacher, hopefully this helps. And if you're not a teacher, I still think that you can get something from this, that you can take something from this, maybe in terms of just dealing with kids in general.

Oh, and I say kids, but really I'm talking about children from ages like seven to seventeen. So kids, teenagers, or young adults, whatever you want to call them. I have different advice for different ages, but I think in general it translates, right? In general, you can apply these things to most ages, and even adults sometimes. But for now, let's focus on kids. So the first thing I've noticed with new teachers is that they're often scared, right? Sometimes terrified of teaching kids.

And I understand that a lot of those nerves are because they don't have much experience, and speaking in front of a room full of people, regardless of the situation, so no matter the situation, can be very intimidating. Even if it's only kids, and sometimes especially if it's only kids. That's what happened to me the first time that I had to do it. I'm usually someone who is pretty good with kids, right? And it was a terrifying thought.

So I can't imagine for those people who aren't very good with kids and find themselves in this situation. So my first class ever was with eight-year-olds, and I had to teach them for two hours. And I was so nervous before class that I couldn't eat. I was going through every possible scenario in my head, worrying about all of them. I was worried that they weren't going to like me. I was worried that there would be a fight or something and that I wouldn't know how to react.

I was worried that I wouldn't be able to explain things correctly. I was worried that they would be bored, but also that they would be too energetic and I wouldn't be able to control them and things like that. But I think that the thing I was worried about the most was them liking me. Them thinking, oh hey, Dane is cool. We like Dane. Yes. And this was my first big mistake, right? My first error. As stupid as it sounds, I was so worried that I didn't realize that my job was to teach them.

I went into my first class thinking that my job was for them to like me. And that was the advice that I gave my friend the other day. I only had a few minutes to give her advice, so I decided to keep it simple. I told her, if you go into that class worried that they'll like you, and with that being your top priority, then it's going to be more difficult for you in the long run. In other words, you might have a good class today, but your next classes will be more difficult.

It's an easy concept to understand, but a difficult concept to implement, right? A difficult thing to actually do. Not to care if your students like you. Most of us, when we meet new people, we care if they like us. Nobody likes to feel disliked, especially hated. Everyone enjoys being liked. I'm sure there are some exceptions, but in general, most of us like to be liked. So when I told her this, she seemed a little bit confused.

But I quickly told her that it's better if your students respect you first and like you later. Because if you try to make those things happen the other way around, you will fight an uphill battle, right? You will be in a more difficult position. She told me not to worry, that she didn't care if they liked her.

And then I insisted, because it's one thing to say that you don't care, but when you walk into that class and you see these little people sitting down looking very innocent and nervous, it's very difficult to not care if they like you. It's very difficult to be strict. So my first few months teaching children was a very eye-opening experience. Eye-opening means like revealing. So it was a very revealing experience that showed me a lot of things that I didn't know.

Not only about teaching, but also about myself. And that's something that I tell people from time to time. That you don't really know yourself until you've taught, right? Until you have tried to teach people. I believe that if you can't teach something to a nine-year-old, maybe you don't know it as well as you think. Let me repeat that. If you can't teach something to a nine-year-old or a kid who is nine years old, you don't know it as well as you think. Obviously, there are exceptions.

So it becomes an interesting game in a way, trying to teach something that you think is obvious to someone who doesn't even know anything about it. I realized that it's not only about using easy words. You have to start with an easy idea and build the concept around it. So you quickly realize that there are some concepts that you think are clear in your head, but when you try to put them into words, you can't.

So sometimes you have to prepare explanations ahead of time, write them down, etc. Another thing I learned has to do with the first thing I mentioned about wanting the kids to like you. So before I mentioned that you have to not care if they like you or not, and part of that is being strict. As a teacher, being strict is one of the most important things.

It's going to make your classes better, it's going to make your students learn more, it's going to make your job easier, and it's going to make your students like you. I think that it is extremely important to create a good environment in class. An environment in which learning happens easily. If you focus on creating a proper environment, it's better for everyone involved. And being strict is a huge part of creating that environment.

Now I have to stop here for a second and make something very clear. Being strict is not the same thing as being mean. You can be nice and also strict. And I think that is something that some teachers have a difficult time with. It was a problem that I had when I started, so I assume that I wasn't alone in that. If you make rules for the class, then your students know where the boundaries are.

If you want to be the teacher with no rules, then good luck, because then your students will push the boundaries and your class will be chaos. Chaos can be good sometimes, but if you can control it, right? Controlled chaos. Maybe an oxymoron, but you know what I mean. So boundaries. Having boundaries means that you have to enforce them. If one of your students breaks a rule or pushes a boundary too much, you have to tell them. You have to say, no, you can't do that.

And this can be a very awkward moment, right? An uncomfortable moment. But these moments are actually really important because how you react in these moments will set the tone, right? Will contribute to building that environment. How you react in these moments will make the kids understand who you are and how you operate. So it's easy to let things slide, right? To let something slide means to let it happen without any consequences.

Like if a student insults another student and you don't say anything, you are letting it slide. So it's easy to let things slide, but you have to be super careful with this. Because as they say, it's a slippery slope, which means once you let something slide, once you let something happen without saying anything, without consequences, next time it will be more difficult to control the situation. So back to the environment thing.

From my experience, creating an environment should be your top priority for the first few classes. That's how you should spend your energy. Then, down the road or later, you don't have to worry about it as much. If you get a new student, it will be easy for that student to get used to the class because they will see how other students react and they will adapt. So this might be a strange example because I'm going to compare children to dogs, okay? But it's more of a behavioral observation.

So an observation that has to do with behavior. So I'm comparing behavior, not saying that children are dogs, okay? Have you ever seen that show called The Dog Whisperer, El Encantador de Perros here in Spain, with this guy called Cesarmillan? So sometimes when he thinks a dog needs to be rehabilitated, he takes it and introduces the dog into his pack, right? Into his group of dogs. He has this big place with like 40 dogs or something.

And they're all good dogs that know how to behave, that know the rules, that know how to interact with each other in a positive way. The new dog usually comes into the pack with this different energy, right? Maybe some negative energy. And after some time, the dog is just another happy dog in the pack. Now, obviously, children are more complicated, but this is a principle that I think about when it comes to my students. It's not uncommon to have a new student in the middle of the term.

Sometimes you have worked on the dynamic of your class, right? You have worked on the environment, and a new student comes in and he or she disrupts that environment. This is a common situation, but it's also an interesting situation. But the thing that you have to remember is that you are the adult in the room. You are the teacher, and it's your decision if that student breaks the dynamic, if that student disrupts the environment that you have created.

If you created a really strong environment, that student will adapt. But if the environment that you created is weak, so not strong, then the whole class is in danger. Not physical danger, obviously, but what I mean is that your class may stop being under your control. I've seen this happen with other teachers, and it's happened to me as well. I think with time and experience, you understand how to treat different types of children or teenagers or whatever.

And you understand what tactics to use with each one. I'll give you an example. Let's say that a new student comes into my class one day. He or she walks in and it's immediately uncomfortable, right? Let's say it's a boy for the sake of the example. So he walks in and it's immediately an uncomfortable situation. I see that my students are already making up their mind, so deciding if they like this person or not. I can feel my students feeling that, you know.

When I have a new student, the first thing I do is I look at the reactions of my old students. I don't stare at the new student like the other kids do. I'm looking at the reactions of the group because they are the ones that are used to the environment. And it's this environment that I'm worried about, that I'm interested in protecting. It sounds like a nature documentary, I know, but sometimes it feels like one. So the new student walks in and sits down.

I always get up and bring a chair to the table if there isn't a chair around. I introduce myself and then I have the other students introduce themselves as well. Then I ask the new student what they like: sports, music, TV, movies, fashion, I don't know, whatever. Because chances are that other students also like one of those things and they immediately have something in common. If they say I like tennis, then I'll say, Oh, this person likes tennis too. Cool, you know?

It sounds silly, but this kind of thing is important to start to introduce a new student to the group or to the pack if we're continuing with the dog's metaphor. Then I continue the class as I normally would. But as I'm doing this, I'm keeping an eye on the new student. So I'm observing the new student to see how he reacts to everything and everyone. I can usually tell within the first five minutes or so, depending on the student.

Now, if the student starts speaking out of turn or starts disrupting the class, I maybe let the first one slide because you know, maybe it's nerves. Some kids react to being nervous by being disruptive, right? Like they're testing the waters. The next time, however, I might have to stop the class real quick and say, hey, we don't do that here, all right? So stop. And I'll say it with a very serious face and with a lot of eye contact.

I know it's uncomfortable for everyone, but it sends the right message, right? Not only to the new student saying that he needs to adapt to how we do things here, but to your old students too, because it reaffirms what they are used to. Right? A lot of the time, old students are intimidated by new students. And I notice this because some of my more vocal students will suddenly be less vocal. They become more shy. Suddenly the funny students aren't making jokes.

So by acting with confidence and being strict and serious and showing where the boundaries are, you regain control. And even if you hadn't lost control, you reaffirm control. Again, it sounds like a nature documentary, but I think that there are a lot of similarities. Okay, that's the show for today. I'll share a few more ideas with you on the next show, episode 11, which will come out on Friday. So don't forget to tune in.

In the meantime, subscribe to the show if you haven't, and remember the best way to support the show is to give it a five-star rating on iTunes and leave a review. All right, talk to you soon. Bye-bye.