Help! What To Do When Students Don't Listen
What do you do when a class doesn’t listen? This is probably one of the most common struggles of being an ESL teacher. This semester, I had an experience with this situation yet again, and I wanted to share what I learned from it.
It was the first week of class, Tuesday, 8:30 a.m. And it was just---rough. The classroom itself was new to me, and at first, I thought the room must be the problem. It was extra-wide, and all the students were seated at large circular tables that were spread out around the room, making it harder for students to focus on the board and harder for me to monitor each group.
But quickly, I realized it wasn’t just the room. Students weren’t listening. Commands were being ignored, and students were fanning through their books, even though I had told them the page number three times. Students weren’t willing to answer questions, and even though I knew they understood what they were expected to do for an activity, they were doing a half-hearted attempt at whatever they felt like doing, instead of following my instructions.
I finished that class thinking, “Okay. This is my problem class.” I determined to put my foot down and demand obedience and excellence from them next week. All week long, I mentally prepared myself for the battle that would take place next Tuesday morning, 8:30 a.m.
Until Monday night.
Suddenly, I decided to try something else. Something that was a little more me. Instead of going in there, guns blazing, energy high, I was going to be calm. I would talk to them, get to know them a little bit better before class. During the lesson, I would move a more slowly through the exercises, and give them more time to complete tasks. Maybe what they needed was not another teacher barking orders and forcing them to study English. Maybe they needed a teacher to take their hand and say, “It’s okay. No pressure. Let’s do it together.”
It worked.
They were a model class. Now, don’t get me wrong. Sometimes you need to put your foot down. But maybe that shouldn’t be our knee-jerk reactions as teachers. When I was studying and preparing to be a teacher, having a firm hand was drilled into me. “Students need to respect you.” “They need to know you’re the boss.” “Work hard, keep up, demand obedience.” But sometimes, students just don’t need to be yelled at. Sometimes they need someone to listen, to see them before jumping to conclusions or solutions.
If you’re trying to figure out what to do with your trouble class, maybe before putting your foot down consider:
Are they being rebellious or are they just bored?
Is your material too difficult or too easy?
Do they not care or are they just confused?
Teaching is not an exact science. Everyone is unique, and when you walk into your classroom each day, you’re walking into a room of unique individuals who all might need something different. Before you run to a default solution, maybe take some time to consider other factors that could be involved.