Keeping Calm and Carrying on in Prague

This is a copy of the Facebook post I wrote soon after returning, safe & sound, from Prague on 11.11.13

So. Leaving Prague this morning did not go quite according to plan. It was an excellent opportunity to practice the classic British Motto: Keep Calm and Carry On.
My car could not be opened. The key buttons functioned for the boot and locking mechanism. Just not the opening mechanism. After half an hour and help from hotel staff, we found the key hole into which the real key (from inside the techie electronic key) could be inserted. Door open! Alarm set off... Fixed that. Exited parking garage. Checked with navi for location of Gaby's hotel. No satellite reception. Decided to drive straight up road and finally found Gaby (who has her own hotel disaster story to tell...) Satellite found by Navi, directions to Germany plugged in. 5 mins down the road, flagged down by fellow motorist - flat, almost-to-the-rim tyre!!! Luckily McDonald's and petrol station just round next corner. Calmly called ADAC; while giving details of life history since birth, random man watching us suggested it was a simple case of temperature change causing natural deflation of tyre. Cancelled call to ADAC guy and let random (very nice & friendly) man inflate both front tyres. He declined our offer of a thank you coffee and went on his way. 

Meanwhile, the indomitable trio (Gaby, Patty & me) went for coffee at McD's keeping car in our sight at all times having been too nervous about locking it in case problem no.1 recurred. Exiting the establishment, we decided tyres had remained inflated and that it would be safe to carry on our way. Destination reached a mere 2 hours later than original schedule.
Thank goodness we had each other and were able to see the funny side. But if I ever catch the B*****d who let the air out of our tyres and messed with the alarm system on the car, I shan't behave quite so British-like.

Spontaneous Conference Inspired Lesson

Today I was all at sea! No time to prepare for my round of Tuesday lessons. Having grabbed a stack of possible ideas on the way out the door this morning, I felt neither focused nor motivated.

On arrival, I had a flash of inspiration. Get my two learners (the first group is often a small one!) to guess where I'd been and what I'd done this past weekend. (If you saw the FB post I wrote Monday evening, you'll have an inkling of what transpired...)

As I was suggesting this idea, my brain was racing one step ahead calculating how much I could get out of it and what learning could be achieved. Here is the lesson which evolved and which I consequently used for the ensuing 2 more lessons.

Aim of Lesson:
1.) to review question forms in simple past and present perfect
2.) to practise talking about where people come from - what their nationality is.

Process:
1.) Twenty Questions - learners have up to 20 questions to figure out where the teacher was and what she did at the weekend.
2.) Having guessed - In Prague at a business English teachers' conference - learners guess which nationalities were represented at the conference. Nationalities not represented were written down in a separate column.
3.) Go back and look at questions posed in first part - at least one person in every group asked "Where have you been at the weekend?" And other present perfect structured questions. We looked at why this tense does not work when asking about what someone did last weekend.

Outcome:
1.) Learners found out more about the exciting world of BE teachers!
2.) Reviewing the difference between simple past and present perfect was a very useful (and seemingly necessary) exercise. Equally, checking the difference between closed and open questions and how small talk can be helped or hindered.
3.) It was fun thinking of so many different nationalities - keeping a close eye on how to say them in English.
4.) A group talk sharing "Have you ever....?" experiences.

With each group, I was able to refine the "lesson plan" and adapt to the higher levels. Where the first group benefited from a fresh, spontaneous idea, the last group benefited from a more structured and thought-through lesson. I was happy to share my story and to know my learners had a solid reminder of some important grammar in a context that was a change from their everyday experience.

PS: If you didn't catch the FB post I wrote, I've copied it into the next blog post, with a photo of my fellow travellers ;-)

Why create a CPD programme for teachers?

I'll tell you why....

Learning should be something joyful, mind-stretching and rewarding. How many learners can honestly say that has consistently been their experience of learning / being taught?

I believe most teachers start out with the best intentions of facilitating learning among their students. How, then, does the gap between teachers’ intentions and learners’ experience arise?

I’m sure there are myriad reasons due to circumstances and all sorts of differing factors. The one aspect which fascinates me personally is “The Teacher” herself. Without an excellent teacher, there can seldom be joyful, mind-stretching and rewarding learning. What form that teacher takes can also be many different things – a school teacher, a relative, sibling, friend, internet tool, book, guru. Whatever, whoever.

The force which drives me to explore this gap and to work on ways of ensuring consistent, quality learning, is the fact that without it, future generations stand little chance of dealing with the global issues our world currently faces.

A cliché it may be but “Knowledge is Power” and is primarily acquired through learning. Teachers have a huge responsibility to facilitate good and thorough learning. They also face considerable barriers to doing that, both intrinsically and extrinsically. Believing that learning and development is key, my goal is to collaborate with teaching colleagues in:

· deepening our own learning,

· increasing our knowledge & skills acquisition, and

· growing our self-awareness, through experience and reflection.

No one person has all the answers; no single human can possible be the font of all knowledge. This is something many people have noticed, the more they learn, the more they realise there is still to learn. Through my own learning, I feel I have something I can share to start others off on their own journeys. At the very least, I can be a catalyst to constructive networking. Through the power of many teachers learning and sharing together, who knows how much knowledge and joyful learning may arise?



Watch this space for details of a programme designed specifically for teachers keen to learn more about themselves and discover ways of facilitating quality learning among their learners.

Goals vs Intentions - Chimps Knickers in a Twist.

A curious thing occurred yesterday. I had a strong emotional reaction to a video clip during a teacher development workshop in Ulm. The clip was just over 3 minutes long, well presented by a respected and admired (by many) philanthropist. He delivered his message in an entertaining, well structured, classic TED format. He had scientifically based evidence for the validity of his message. Yet I felt highly disturbed; my cage was distinctly rattled.

Derek Sivers, the accidental entrepreneur and patron of independent musicians, is compulsive viewing. What did he say which so upset my belief system?

Don't announce your plans. If you have a goal, don't talk about it. 

One of the most influential things I learned from my coaching training was Nancy Kline's Thinking Environment approach, and the importance of thinking through your ideas aloud. I have seen first hand - indeed, experienced myself - the value of saying aloud what's going on in my mind. The process of explaining to another person what my intentions, dreams and wishes are, helps clarify that tricky question, "What do I want?" The starting point for setting a goal and formulating an action plan.

My concern about the message Sivers delivers in his TED talk was that it would deter people from setting a goal at all! What I discerned from the 3 minutes is that if I share my goal, I'll end up abandoning it, so what's the point in setting a goal in the first place. As a coach who focuses on helping people with their goal-setting, this was anathema to me. What do you think?

What I now think is that my Chimp was enraged by what it felt went against the Chimp's view of the world. Even at the time, I was aware of a quiet voice in my brain pointing out the validity of Siver's point. I have experienced instances of social reality where the feeling of satisfaction from merely mentioning my "goal" was enough and I didn't work on my "goal" anymore.

However, in full Chimp mode, I allowed my indignation to run away with me and prevent me from acknowledging the truth of the matter.

Now applying my Human brain thinking, I can separate emotion from reality. For me, the issue lies in the difference between what a "goal" is and what my "intention" to do something is. By opening his talk with the word "goal" when in effect he was talking about people's dreams, wishes, intentions, caused - for me - a huge degree of incongruity.  Hence my Chimp was aroused.

Fortunately, in his blog on the same topic, he uses the - for me - correct terminology! He ends with this statement:

It may seem unnatural to keep your intentions and plans private, but try it. If you do tell a friend, make sure not to say it as a satisfaction (“I've joined a gym and bought running shoes. I'm going to do it!”), but as dissatisfaction (“I want to lose 20 pounds, so kick my ass if I don't, OK?”) 

Now that I - and my Chimp - can live with!.

Self-Coaching Inside & Outside the Classroom

With this post, I want to extend many thanks to those who attended my workshop on Tuesday at the IATEFL Conference in Liverpool. After weeks of nervous anticipation, I was happy to have a group of open-minded, warm people in the audience. 

If you weren't able to attend, I'll talk a little of what it was about. 

My intention was to share some of what I am currently learning from the world of coaching. As a teacher, it has been extremely insightful and helpful to discover ways of relating better to my students, in particular through the eyes of a Thinking Environment. Equally important are the ideas, tools and skills for self-coaching. Learning to pay careful attention to what I do and say; being mindful of my environment and reflective of my practice. 

As well as Nancy Kline's Thinking Environment (thanks to those of you who pointed out the incorrect spelling of Kline on my slides! Apologies to Ms Kline for my oversight), I also introduced Dr Steve Peter's Chimp Paradox Model. What I learnt from this was a total eye-opener for me. To understand how different parts of the human brain operate helped me understand my own behaviour better as well as that of my students.

Human Brain - the unscientific version

Understanding how my Chimp operates, I understand why I feel dis-satisfied with my performance. As is often the way, I had a picture and soundtrack in mind for the workshop. Reality didn't quite match expectations. My Chimp's need for perfection wasn't met. Subsequently, it is niggling at me for letting it down.

Fortunately, my Human Brain is good at managing the Chimp. I am using the truth and facts of the matter: overall the workshop went well. The audience participated, listened and proactively showed interest in the handouts. I maintained an upbeat, consistent flow and finished on time! In the grand scheme of things, my session was one of over 500 and wasn't a case of life-and-death. I met my goal of presenting at an international conference on a topic close to my heart. And I want to do it again in the future.

For now, I shall reflect on the conference as a whole. My small contribution is just one of many experiences over the week. The people I met, talked, laughed, discussed with fed my imagination and re-ignited my desire to keep doing what I'm doing.

So, once I've arrived back home, caught up on lost sleep and touched base with my family, I'll come back and share more.

Bye for now.

The Choices We Make

Out on a winter walk.

Out for a walk in the snow. Pondering how many people I know who are soooooo busy at the moment. Thinking about how often I hear the cry "I've no time!" "I can't spend much time on this / with you, I have to get X-Y-Z done by yesterday." "There are just not enough hours in the day!"

Here are some observations in random, how-they-occur-to-me order:

• Busy people volunteer to work on a variety of projects
• Busy people tend to find a way to get things done
• Busy people tend to look pretty frazzled and tense a lot of the time
• Busy people suffer from an inability to focus on one thing at a time
• Busy people (in the ELT business) remain low paid

What do we busy people gain from taking on extra (often unpaid) work? As I include myself in this group of individuals who repeatedly agree to take on yet another role / action / task / job, I feel well-placed to offer an insight.

Answer: A sense of purpose. A sense of community and belonging. A degree of recognition from various quarters, most importantly a level of standing among our peers. A sense of satisfaction when something comes together and turns out well. (A sense of disappointment when not, but that's soon forgotten because there's the next project to get involved in...)

Particularly for those of us who work on a freelance basis, there can be a lack of community and camaraderie. We miss out on the chat at the water cooler, in the coffee breaks, after work drinks. It can be a lonely place, self-employment.

At the end of the day, we all have basic human needs ("Givens") which need to be met in order for us to be rounded, happy people. I've sketched a summary of the 9 "Human Givens" as developed by Griffin and Tyrell.

For me, the human givens I fulfill by keeping busy and agreeing to do more than I realistically have time for are:

• community
• attention
• connection
• achievement
• fun
• meaning 
• status

As long as I keep a positive attitude and truly have these "givens" met, I find I can cope with all the extra work, projects and tasks. Provided I remember that the world doesn't stop turning if I am unable to meet one deadline or simply can't join a meeting, I can maintain a healthy state of mind.

If, however, I find myself loosing perspective, getting overly stressed out when things aren't coming together, or suffering sleep deprivation, I know it's time to stop and take stock. I need to ask myself: Which of my human givens are being neglected or short-changed? 

• What about the connection I need with my family and friends?
• How far does the meaning my work hold for me meet my all-round life values and overall sense of meaning?
• How much fun am I really having when I'm so dog tired all the time?
• Am I getting enough quiet, "Me-Time" and privacy?
• How much control do I really have over my environment, projects and work?

If I find myself complaining about how I have no time, can't go out this evening with friends, have to get a report done by yesterday, who is responsible? I made the choice to take on the tasks I have; I freely agreed to participate on another project. How fair is it really to complain? It's up to me to recognise what I gain from all my activities - and what I loose.

Balance. It's all about balance, really. Isn't it. 

Winter Walk