The English Teachers

RFDG: Why did you get into teaching?

OS: I know a lot of people come to teaching like it’s not part of their plan, but for me I really wanted it. Even before university. I remember in my first class we had to say what we wanted to do after university and everyone said they wanted to study English. I was the only one who said I wanted to teach English. My business partner, Tanya, was in my group and from time to time we remember that moment.

She says she looked at me and thought, “Is she from the 18

century? Why does she want this? Who wants this!?”

I don’t know why I had this idea in my head. It’s probably because I had a certain person who I wanted not quite to copy… but my Maths teacher at school, when I saw him teach, you just couldn’t help but admire him. I still don’t know if he was aware of how he did it. It seemed so natural. Basically, because I had this inspiration in mind, it really helped me to choose my career.

RFDG: What did he do?

OS: Whenever I have a classroom management session and speak about teachers’ voices and instructions, I always remember what he did. Imagine 30 teenagers who are quite noisy. He would ask us a question and the answer was not always obvious. Sometimes it was provocative. He asked what we thought and gave us a few minutes to discuss in small groups.

It was interesting because no-one did it at that time and it was just the usual state school. I don’t know if schools abroad do this but we did it. It was unusual and interesting. He let us organise ourselves and it was pretty noisy. He never shouted, but to attract our attention he imitated a radio and turned the volume down. At first only one person would notice, but then they would push the others and in 20 seconds there was complete silence and we were looking at him. So, whenever you want to attract attention you never talk loudly, you talk more quietly. He had a lot of techniques like that and it got a lot of respect from us.

He also had a fantastic sense of humour. Maybe the best thing was that he engaged us. It wasn’t a lecture, it was very interactive. You don’t see it often at state schools. And this is how you start thinking. People were always surprised that I used to study in Maths class. They were like, “Wow. Why did you go into linguistics?”

Well, Maths gives you lots of logic and it’s not only about studying numbers and formulas. It’s how you start thinking and studying how to study. And this teacher developed and paid lots of attention to developing our mental skills. Not only Maths.

RFDG: Why was that such a rare thing given how successful it was?

OS: Because you really don’t see it. I teach teenagers now and they hate their school. When they start telling me stories I just can’t believe that teachers shout at them. But they do. They shout at them. They insult them. They use very bad words to humiliate students. From what my students tell me, they have moments which they like, but generally it’s kind of a sad experience for them – 90% of their memories are like that whereas mine are quite good. I always remember my school warmly. I don’t remember any situations when a teacher would humiliate me.

RFDG: Why is that the prevailing experience? Is that a feature of the Russian system or the world in general?

OS: I don’t know. It’s hard to say. I think this is something typical for Russia or maybe the former Soviet Union. When I spoke to someone who had the chance to study abroad or foreigners who come here, they say it’s completely different. Maybe not the attitude of teachers but the form of education: small groups and pairs were unusual for them. I could possibly compare it because I changed schools.

This Maths teacher was one of the first teachers who introduced a points system as opposed to marks out of five. For every answer we got correct we could get points which were used not only in tests but also in projects, etc. They were summed up, calculated and used for your final score. So, the more engaged you were with the process, the more points you were given. He encouraged this competitive system where the brightest could compete and compare and try to be better than each other. They might have had enough but we were competing in smaller groups of the best students. It motivated us a lot.

I’m still surprised he could do this. It was the 90s and it was not the easiest period in Russia, but he was not afraid to do it. Some people were fired for using the communicative approach and his way was definitely not approved, but somehow he managed to get permission. He was the first and then other teachers in other departments followed because it worked. A similar system was also used at university, but that was about 10 years later. It might have been possible because our school was experimental and we were guinea pigs (sniggers).

RFDG: Well, if it worked you were lucky guinea pigs.

OS: Yeah. So, probably the experiment was effective. I know a lot of people who finished school and they are more than OK right now. One of my classmates is the author of a book about digital currency and he is a leader in the field. It’s just one example. Most of them have good careers. It was amazing.

RFDG: Do you think such an approach would work so well if everyone used it and it became normal, or does it work because it’s so different that it engages people?

She pauses for a long time, thinking carefully about her answer.

OS: Hmm… I think it must work with teenagers because they are notorious for being difficult to motivate. Probably they need a bit more and this system might be – if implemented correctly and gently – I believe it should be effective. But there are subtle things to consider. Not to be over the top and encourage competitiveness too much. You know, there is this trend of gamification* which builds on the same things to some extent.

*Note: gamification in education involves taking elements of games and applying them to educational tasks to promote engagement.

RFDG: And do you agree with the idea of gamification?

OS: It’s interesting. Again, you can never say this is black and white. Some people will like it, but there were always be some students who just can’t work with it.

RFDG: And for you?

OS: I’ve never worked with gamification on a regular basis. It worked for my adult students for a short period, but they weren’t competing with each other. We had a game where they had a tropical island and their plane crashed and they had to compete against the environment. It was engaging and interesting, but probably because it brought some variety to their classes. I used that for consultation and revision and it was much more interesting to revise. Even for controlled* practice it was useful.

*Note: controlled practice: activities in a class where students focus on producing language accurately.

RFDG: Why not do it all the time?

OS: I think with young teenagers and some pre-teens it might work. These guys are sometimes difficult. Some of them are so shy and it’s difficult for them to speak to each other and if they have a role in the process it helps them to relate. They are not themselves anymore; they have to solve a problem and that might be helpful.

I like to see the results in the long run because what might happen is they’ll get interested in the beginning of the year but if you use the same thing it might not be effective closer to the end of the year because they are so used to it. So, maybe you have to have some shorter games and some kind of plot for only a few months and then change it. I believe that implies lots of teaching work and planning. Not just in terms of the course but also in terms of the game. You need lots of imagination to do this?

RFDG: Are most teachers capable of that?

OS: Well, they say teaching is a creative job, which is also arguable, but if we believe it then teachers should be able to do this.

RFDG: That’s what they say, but what do you say?

OS: I think this is possible when a teacher is not alone. If somebody told me, “OK, Olga you are a teacher and you have everything you do and all the paper work (if it’s a state school) and you have to create a plan for every two or three months of a game and implement it in the class.” I would be like “Whaaaat!? How can I do this?”

Maybe I like the idea, but sometimes you just get stuck with ideas and can’t come up with anything. I know for me it works if I can work with someone and at least two others. When you speak about it you start brainstorming and even have some ridiculous ideas and choose the best. It helps discipline things. It’s hard to find time and you always plan something nicer to do like surfing the net or watching a series. But when you work with people you have an arrangement and you start speaking and have an hour for this. And then it’s much better. I say this from experience.

Recently I developed a course for travellers and I understood that if I did it alone it would take ages. Not because it’s lots of preparation and work, which it is, but just to discipline myself. And one of my colleagues did it rather quickly and I think that I’m satisfied with it since the best ideas come from some discussion. So, if we speak about gamification, if there is a team who develop this and plan it in advance while the students are away, then it can be successful.

RFDG: Why do you work in Moscow? Why not exclusively Tver?

OS: I juggle completely different things. I juggle teaching in Tver and teacher training in Moscow. I do have some teacher training in Tver, but it’s at a completely different level. And I can’t run CELTA in Tver. There’s no authorised centre and I think it’s virtually impossible to get it at our school.

RFDG: So, it’s about the opportunities Moscow offers?

OS: Yeah, and it’s a change of environment which is important. It’s a great opportunity to grow professionally. One of my reasons for becoming a CELTA trainer was working freelance and in the future when I have more CELTA trainer experience I’m open to ideas like going to China for four weeks, working there, coming back and still having my job and position here in Tver. It’s a travel opportunity, too.

RFDG: Some people might say you have the same opportunities in any large city and yet you go to Moscow. Is there any particular reason?

OS: Since I did my training there I have to do my first three training sessions there. It’s part of my programme. And I don’t feel confident as a tutor to start looking for a position in other cities. Maybe next year or in two years. Why not? It’s not only about working in IH Moscow, although I do love it there and I can compare it with two other centres. This centre is at a very high level and if I work there I’ll never blush. I’m sure these people are doing the right thing. I can’t say about the school in general, but as for teacher training, they provide high quality. I did my DELTA 2 in Istanbul.

She scrunches up her face a little.

RFDG: That’s not a happy expression

OS: Well… it was… let’s say…an interesting experience. I could compare how things should be done and should not be done.

She laughs at the memory of it all.

When I came back to Moscow, I could only say, “Thank you very much” to them. There were good trainers in Istanbul but the whole organisation was terrible. And when you are doing an intensive DELTA it’s quite stressful. I think I was not quite ready and should have read more before, but I didn’t and instead of focusing on more academic things and planning and teaching, I had to solve a lot of organisational problems, like where to find books, internet, etc.

They didn’t even have a library or provide materials. There was no course. It was like, “OK, you guys decide what you’d like to do with your students.” For example, we had to teach two levels and I had beginner and pre-intermediate. Can you imagine a beginner class of about 35 students, Turkish beginners? And they didn’t have to pay. It meant that it was like people coming and going all the time. For your assessed class you could have a completely new student for the first time and they could be a complete beginner, a false beginner, elementary or pre-intermediate. And they were self-placed. That was the policy of the school. The students came and said, “I think I’m pre-intermediate.” Or, “Last time I went to beginner and thought it was a bit too easy so now I think I’m pre-intermediate.” Or, “You know, there is an elementary group but this day is not convenient for me.”

RFDG: Not boring then?

OS: It was not boring, but I was used to a certain system and at that time I was a Director of Studies where everything is well-organised and we can identify not only that they are pre-intermediate but what point of it they are at. And we try to arrange it accordingly. We even try to look at personality and see which groups they would feel comfortable in. And then you come to a group of 35 people of different levels who are supposed to be beginner and you are supposed to be trained.