by amerikajin274 » Fri Feb 25, 2005 2:06 am
You can debate what color is better 'black or white', and cover the same English speaking skills without getting into Un-PC topics or getting people to voice opinions that other people in the class may disagree with.
It's a good old fashioned judgment call, Phonics. In this case, I thought it might be nice after a year of teaching these guys (it's a business class) to be aware that some of the things that might per chance slip out of their mouths could end up pissing someone off if they're shooting the shit over a business dinner one night. Now, of all people, the Japanese are probably going to be extra careful about anything they say, but even so, stereotypes so deeply implanted in their minds, somehow have a way of escaping into space and into our ears from time to time - we've all heard them, I'm sure.
I certainly don't make it a habit to use every English lesson as a controversy corner exercise; in fact, that's probably the only time I've really gotten controversial at all. If I'm confronted about it, I'll defend it. I don't care if it made them uncomfortable. Better they feel uncomfortable now than to make someone else more important than me very uncomfortable at some point in the future; it'll come full circle back to them if they do anyway.
I've got a guy who talks about his sexual exploits at the local brothel everyweek, and it offends all the ladies.
I certainly don't want to be putting myself in the position of telling you how to run your class, as you're more familiar with the chemistry of your student body than I am; but I tend to think that with something like boasting about one's own sexual escapades, once is enough. Just tell him kindly the ladies want to hear something different for a change.
It's a 2 hour lesson where the 1st hour is free discussion. I can't stop him and he doesn't realize its not prper to talk about stuff like that.
Just my own two yen but I think you should shut this guy down. Maybe others have a different take. Guess it depends on the situation, too.
Should I be teaching him manners or English?
In a sense, manners/culture/English...it's all the same. You're teaching someone more than just grammar and sentence structure; you're teaching him about communicating across cultures.
I'd love to breka the borders and teach 'General Studies, Social Sciences and other interesting topics in English... Religion & politics even... Just for the sake of the Japanese having a chance to have an opinion, but is that the job of an English teacher?
Stereotypes, I think, are an example in which the two are merged. There's protocol in any language.
Now, there are some people who think their job is to teach political science and discuss politics; I don't. It's not an ESL teacher's job to give history or social studies lessons, unless the students ask for it. But I do think you want to show the student that there might be situations in which their opinion and general feedback are expected - a lot of Japanese aren't aware of this. They think that nodding their heads in agreement and smiling is okay, assuming that the speaker would rather not be offended by a truth they don't want to hear; as we know, that's not necessarily the case.
In the same vein, there are some situations in which Japanese people may find themselves in situations when they are talking with other people about other people. I got the idea to teach the class when one of my students and I were riding back together on the train and he started talking about the fact that there were "many black criminals in USA". Now, suppose I'd had a black girlfriend or wife - which he wouldnt' know about - and I'd been hearing that. It was hard enough for me to listen to as it was. Yet, I also understand that he probably didn't mean to be insulting or sound racist; he was just making a comment about something he had observed either through experience, comments from people he met there, or in the media.
But I've had the odd student over the years demand while I'm trying to get an opinion out of them on something to 'PLease just teach me English...', not realizing that she was learning real life English and communicating in a real life situation. She wanted to have a black & white textbook lesson every week.
If it's just a one on one lesson, do what the student wants you to do. If it's a group of people and they're going to be involved with people outside Japan, teach them "real world" stuff, and don't apologize for doing it. If they can't take it, tough sh!t.
I'm rambling, but I feel very sorry after sitting thorugh a class at the High School I teach at because the students are brain dead by the age of 12 and I can only try and resucitate them to think out of the box, and sometimes I see their little eyes poking out of the box only to quickly fall back in.......
I wouldn't want to teach in HS here.
Don't misunderestimate me.
. Refer to the 
