For
many adults, the idea of working with teenagers can be quite daunting. Some
adults wonder if they will be able to relate to youth. Others are afraid they
will be asked questions they don’t know the answers to. Still others imagine
their students are versions of the monsters that they were when they were
teens.
What if we open our hearts and minds, work hard to break the barriers and open the road to effective learning?
This
post aims to demonstrate that working with teenagers does not have to be a
difficult experience. It also aims to help us teachers to develop a positive
relationship with teenagers.
As
teachers we play an important role in a teen’s life. Studies have shown that we
teachers can significantly improve students’ levels of academic success. We help students to set goals, become more
motivated and realize the importance of education.
According
to studies, good teachers enable students to:
•
Develop positive relationships with adults
•
Increase their level of school engagement
•
Become more comfortable around others
•
Enhance their self-esteem
•
Develop a positive view of the future
But
we have some questions in mind:
- How could we motivate
and encourage teens to learn?
- How could we teachers
help them build their self-esteem by being a good mentor and learning
coach?
- How to deal with the challenges that we may encounter when working with teens?
- Are teenagers really different nowadays from what they were 20 years ago? If so, HOW different and WHY are they different? Are they really that different?
It seems to me I was a teenager not a long time ago, although I am reaching my 50th birthday soon. I remember having similar doubts, concerns and wishes as those teens I teach and live with daily.
In the 90's, I used to be an avid watcher of the TV series "THE WONDER YEARS", and I see that, although there are generations separating those teenagers from the actual ones, they are pretty much the same inside: "Nothing is mine, except my heart, my fears and my growing knowledge ", says Kevin Arnold at the end of this episode.
Apart from the
similarities, nowadays teenagers are:
• More
technologically-oriented.
• Quicker thinkers.
• More informed about
general subjects.
• Less capable of spending
much time concentrated on a single thing
• More willing to consume.
• More restless, more
energetic.
• Often perceived as
´disrespectful´ by elders or/and authorities.
• More individualistic.
• More capable of
multi-tasking.
• Less sensitive to people’s
needs.
• Bored quickly.
• Eager for challenges.
Why?
Because...
• The internet is easily
accessible and teens are frequent users of all sorts of social networks as well
as a huge amount of apps and online games.
• Smarthphones and mobile
devices such as tablets are at hand and have a great deal of resources.
• “Age of consumerism”-further enhanced by technology.
• ´Information age´ has led
teenagers to sometimes neglect other dimensions of their lives.
• Parents are usually absent from home due to professional reasons or divorce.
• Authority figures often
send ´mixed signals´ when conveying their values and their morals.
What are the implications of these
“How” and “Why” for the teaching?
• Usually, it is not easy to
teach teenagers.
• Adolescents usually don’t
want to be in class.
• They are not often
concerned about others.
• They love disagreeing with
the teacher.
• They are strongly
opinionated (they know better).
• They are lively,
enthusiastic, energetic, fun.
• When they like the subject
they can be really cooperative and creative.
• By confronting the teacher
they might change some behaviour patterns which were hampering the learning in
class and the development of students and teachers as human beings.
• The problem of mixed
ability has become more pronounced.
How
could we help learners?
1 Active listen to them:
Being
a teacher of a group where the SS are
either teenagers or very young adults who
have just entered the university, I have experienced that the less I speak the
better. Surprisingly, I have not only reached good results but have been asked
to express my
opinion about things I would never imagine
they would care whether
I speak or not. Following this idea, I concluded that active listening is crucial to good communication with teenagers (and others!).
To
be an active listener:
- You must be
open-minded and focussed on the person with whom you are speaking.
- You must keep in mind
that you should talk very little: Reserve judgement and refrain from
giving advice.
- The focus of the discussion
should be on encouraging the student to talk. (Brackenbury, 1995, p. 45)
- As an active
listener, you must want to help and listen. Rather than judging, you need
to trust the other person’s ability to cope with problems.
- Most importantly, you
have to accept that the other person is unique (Harp, 2000, p. 9).
- Your job is not to
offer suggestions but to encourage the speaker to find their own
solutions.
Wise Commandments for Good Listening (Adapted
from Harp, 2000, p. 9)
- Stop talking! You
cannot listen if you are talking.
- Respond to feelings.
First, identify the emotion that the other person is
- When you are working
with teens, do not ask too many questions. Once you can do this, you are
well on your way to having a good relationship with teenagers.
Active
listening includes:
·
Facing
the person who is speaking
·
Making
frequent eye contact (but not staring)
·
Using
an open posture: leaning forward slightly (but don’t invade the other person’s
“comfort zone”)
·
Being
relaxed
·
Encouraging
the other person through verbal cues (“tell me more”, “give me an example”) and
non-verbal cues (nodding your head) (Brackenbury, 1995, p. 37-38)
So:
Pay attention to non-verbal cues. A lot of what
we understand in a conversation comes from non-verbal cues. Through experience, we learn to interpret non-verbal cues and use them to determine how another person is feeling. Paying attention to what students are subtext (“reading between the lines”) and the non-verbal cues can help you figure out areas they need to work on. It helps to develop a trusting relationship. Additionally, it makes students feel important and thus encourages them to continue attending classes and feel motivated to do so.
Ask open questions. These are questions that
encourage others to talk about themselves. Unlike “yes-no” questions (“Do you
like school?”), open questions (“What do
you like most about school?”) allow a longer responses. Using open questions
helps you to focus the discussion or discover more information.
Be
patient!
The fact that you are willing to demonstrate your affection and patience in
many ways does not mean you should become a doormat. If and when necessary, a
teacher should be firm. Whenever in doubt (for instance, on day one of the
semester) I usually advise teachers to start with a “strong hand” and relax the
grip later. This is particularly important, for instance, when it comes to
classroom management issues
No
threats, please!
Don’t threaten to take action against a student unless you deem it absolutely
necessary and really intend to do so.
Clarify. Ask questions such as “So, you worked on past tenses in class last
week. What did you work on this
week?”.
This helps you – and other speakers to determine the main points of what is
being said. It also demonstrates that
you are paying attention.
Summarize. Review what was said,
including both events and feelings. This ensures that all participants have
understood the main points of the discussion.
Go easy on criticism! Avoid responses like “If I
were you …” “I think you should…” These statements put people down and
do not allow effective problem solving.
Use the five-step approach. Asking these five
questions will help students resolve problems:
- What is the problem?
- What have you tried?
- What else could you
try?
- What is your plan?
- (After students have
tried to solve the problem) How did it go?
“I Messages” (modified from
Brackenbury, 1995, p. 26-27) “I messages” are a way of speaking which
acknowledge people’s feelings. They assertively describe what is going on
inside the speaker by using positive statements instead of put-downs or blame.
Modelling these messages and teaching students to use them will help students
communicate effectively and resolve conflicts more easily. “I messages” consist
of three parts.
•
A statement of feelings that usually begins with “I feel …”
•
A statement of fact beginning with “when you …”
•
The observed result of the behaviour using “because …”Instead of: “You make me
mad when you yell at me.” Use: “I feel angry when you talk to me with that tone
of voice.” _ an “I message”, giving the same information, but in a much less
confrontational tone)
To sum up:
•
Focus on students’ interests and concerns, not your own. Talk about activities
teens
can do, like doing and feel they are
progressing by producing language.
•
Don’t get too personal: Pay attention to the cultural differences and to your
SS /group profile.
•
Don’t assume understanding. Ask students to summarize what you have said.
This
will confirm that they have understood.
•
Encourage and praise students.
•
Be patient when waiting for a response. Allow students ample time to respond.
•
Be aware of differences in non-verbal communication (gestures, degree of eye contact,
personal space, etc.).
We'll be back to the same subject soon.
Enjoy your teaching!
9 comments:
Roseli Sera..Itis very wonderful posting dear. Honestly, teaching teenagers is very hard for me. It's the age of 'curiosity' of trying new things. I've been teaching teens for about 7 years and still having hard things with my teaching way. I'll try to implement your tips above into my real life^^ Hope I can be a better teens' teacher..
Wish you luck,Roseli..Thank you
cheers
Ika
Roseli Serra....I have to admit that I've become addicted to your posts. They are so well written and meaningful. I've already shared them with other teachers.
Hi Roseli,
Just to let you know that we’ve shortlisted this blog post for this month’s TeachingEnglish blog award and I’ve written a post about it on today’s TeachingEnglish facebook page http://www.facebook.com/TeachingEnglish.BritishCouncil, if you’d like to check there for likes and comments.
Best,
Ann
Dear Roseli Sera...I enjoyed your post, but how should we deal with teenagers' disrespect for the teacher.
best regards,
azadeh
Hi Ann, I`ve just known I was shortlisted ! I had no idea. I am away in Montreal and haven't been blogging for some time, Thank you so so much! I do appreciate being shortlisted! It's pure motivation to keep blogging :)
Thank you so much Chieka, Roberta and Ann. Thank you Azadeh. IN my opinion disrespectful teenagers should be treated with serious conversations and some punishment. When I say punishment, I mean discipline. I am not suggesting any sort of violence but assertiveness. Threats do not work unless you are prepared to carry it out. I think te best approach is to try , as much as possible, make teens reflect upon te purpose of their disrespectful behaviour. Try to approach them as if they were real mature people and have them closer to you as much as possible. If conversations and reflections don`t work, ask for help. If it still doesn't work, explode yourself and act accordingly! Well.... it has worked for me so far... Hope I've helped you!
With technology present, teenagers will be able to become key players in the advancement of the society where they belong
Hi, Business broadband in Australia ,
Yes, I do agree! There's no way back, is there?
Thank you for reading and for your comment.
All the best
Roseli
Hi, Business broadband in Australia ,
Yes, I do agree! There's no way back, is there?
Thank you for reading and for your comment.
All the best
Roseli
Post a Comment