The First Class

So I ran across Learn.com the other day and was fairly impressed with the set-up.  I decided to give one of the courses a try and in true jump in fashion I signed up for the Web Administrator profile.  After putting in my credit card info I was able to begin my first class, Time Management ; Scheduling and Planning Work.  This seemed like a logical place to start.  Before I could get into the class though I had to install an add-on, so I did.  I started the class.  Firefox crashed.  I restarted.  Firefox crashed.  I restarted.  Firefox crashed.

I switched to Internet Explorer, logged back into Learn.com, and went through a few minor installation steps…. again and was up and running.  Well, I’ll have to give Bill & Team a point for their minor win in the meaningless battle at the Borntrager house.  I’m not switching yet though.

Class Review

Taking this was actually kind of fun and a good introduction to Learn.com.  It was mostly concepts that I have covered in the past but a very good review of some solid planning tools.  The organization was very straightforward with the narration being done by a professional with a clear voice.  I felt a little bit of variety on the presentation would have improved it instead of speaking and a few words focusing on the key ideas, however it worked.  It was divided into three sections : introduction/objectives, three tools of planning, and a review of the key points at the end.  They mixed in a few activities during the presentation which kept it engaging.  The design was fairly minimalistic with pictures that matched up with the topic of conversation but nothing to really write home about.  All in all, I would give this first class a score of 7/10.  I will be taking the test later and giving some feedback on that.

Post SAT Intensives

Three weeks of around 12 teaching hours a day has left me feeling pretty wiped out.  Now I’m down to around 9 hours a day and the biggest relief is not having to prepare for the morning SAT block.  This whole sense of relief though has segued into a feeling of early panic at my move to the states at the end of the summer.  I would say back to the states but four of the people, children and wife, who are moving with me, have never been to the shores of the good ‘ol US of A.  Timing has never been my forte and considering the economy looks a little bleak back there I am wondering if this is another case of bad timing.  The Big Sky State, fresh steaks from the ranch and free reign to ride the four wheeler are calling my name a little too loud right now though to turn back.  We will be going and I will be looking for a job, actually a career.

Fortunately I will have some time to collect my thoughts and not be pressured to find something immediately.  I’m planning on hitting the books right away and pick up my masters in instructional design while searching for a position that fits me.  One concern I have though is if anything that I’ve done in Asia for the past eight years will do anything positively for my career.  The horror stories I’ve heard from ex-pats that have made the journey home only to be back after a year keep floating through my head.  Time will only tell, but now the only thing I can do is collect the pieces of all the work I’ve done and portray it in the most realistic and positive light that is possible.

Third Week Reflections

Well the third week is now upon us and overall I’m pleased with the results.  The one area that dissappointed me was the number of students that signed up for the course and the actual number of students that actually attended the class.  However, it has been well worth it for me because I was able to teach this in a manner that allowed students to self explore the topic more independently.  The one aspect that made this course difficult was the integration of Moodle into the live classroom.  It seemed that this was a fairly daunting task for students and I’m attempting to figure out why.  Part of the problem, I’m sure, is that this was a ‘free’ which I think also denotes a more relaxed atmosphere that doesn’t require homework.

Advanced Communication - Week One

We just finished the first week of our Advanced Communication class and I have noticed one thing right away.  Students do not take a class very serious unless they are paying for it.  This doesn’t mean that I don’t have good students in the class, in fact I have some awesome students.  However this does mean that out of 32 students that signed up for the class, only a small portion actually showed up for the class.  This makes me wonder how to reach these students in a more succesful manner to get a larger percentage or live students in the class.  In addition, I’m trying to integrate a Moodle environment with the live Edufire class but also am running into difficulty for students to use this service.  Basically, I feel there needs to be consequences for everything in order to encourage students to participate.  I decided to offer one free hour of tutoring to the student that performs the best during the course.

From Suburbia to the Land of the Not Quite Right

From Suburbia to the Land of the Not Quite Right

Per the suggestion of Valeria (on Edufire), I decided to plan out a workshop that would run through the nitty gritty of teaching overseas. Because of my experience this will be focused on South Korea in particular. I would also be able to do something on the Philippines (if anyone wants a guide on that one… whew, that would be interesting… search my name on YouTube to get an idea) as I worked there for three years, but due to the easier country to adapt to and make a living I will go for South Korea. Personally I have taught, recruited teachers and managed programs during my stay in South Korea but now am primarily teaching. It wasn’t too hard to put together a lesson flow for a course such as this as it is very similar to other tasks I’ve been doing here in the past. Anyways, I came to the conclusion that this would be five contact hours and a substantial amount of field work in order to cover the ‘good’ stuff that would be needed.

Getting the Paperwork – Hour One

Passport, driver’s license, bank account info, criminal clearance, resume, diploma, transcripts are a few things that you will want to get ready before you even begin to apply for positions because once you start the ball rolling it will go pretty quick. We will find out how and why we need these things plus other necessary items.

Picking the Location – Hour Two

Before you even begin to talk to a recruiter or start applying on your own it is best to know where you want to live and what kind of roof you will have over your head. From right on the border overlooking the DMZ to the beaches of Busan you will find quite a few choices. Whether it is right next door to a orange soju tent , teaching alongside a tranquil mountain or in the middle of the flashing lights of Gangnam really ends up in your lap to make the decision. Well, at least it should be because if you are a tranquil mountain type of person and wake up next to that Soju tent, your experience in Korea could be rough.

Finding the Job – Hour Three and Four

Once you find your top three locations it is time to get the job. In this hour we will look at how to obtain a job through either a recruiter or independently. Personally, I have done both and there are plusses and minuses for each. Honestly though some of the best positions are found through your own legwork. We will learn how to do it the hard way and learn what is out there. More importantly we will learn to discern the good from the bad because believe me… there is a lot of both. The homework assignment from this day will be to interview for a minimum of four jobs. Before you interview though, we will have set a guideline that you follow in order to not accept the wrong job.

Packing the Bags – Hour Five
By this time, if you were serious about this, you will have a ticket in hand and wondering where in the world you will be going. If not, you have a pretty good idea on how to do it. This class will be all about the last minute details to wrap up at home and what you should put in that luggage before you land in the ‘land of the not quite right’ (which was quoted to me on the plane by some guy I sat next to when I was flying over here 7 years ago).

This course will be offered through Edufire…

Advanced ibt TOEFL Speaking Prep

This four week/12 contact hour course is designed for students that have taken the TOEFL and scored between 18-25 on the speaking portion of the exam but are having trouble moving up the scale. The objective is to collectively raise the student’s test average.

The methods that used will consist of the normal vocabulary, listening and technique exploration in addition to high pressure role-plays during class. Each week is briefly summarized below and an orientation class will be held for prospective students to ask questions.

It is required that all students have a working headset, stable computer and also a Skype account for testing and backup audio purposes.

Orientation (FREE)
This orientation will include a brief presentation of the class details and will be followed by a Q@A time period for students to ask questions.

TOEFL Speaking Test (Required)
Students will meet in the classroom, be instructed how to take the online test and finally take the test. Within 24 hours each student will receive a detailed evaluation. Must score an 18 or above in order to enroll in the Advanced ibt TOEFL Speaking Prep course.

Week One : Independence and Expectation

Day One : Knowing the Rubrics We will take and analyze how the test is scored and do some sample scoring as a class in order to understand the process graders go through and what they are looking for.

Day Two : Independent Question One

Today will be spent looking at techniques and common pitfalls to this question type. This is commonly called the preference question and spontaneity skills are highly effective.

Day Three : Independent Two, The Choices

This question commonly gives the test taker two choices and lets them explain which one they prefer and why.

Week Two : Integration, Hurdle One

Day One : Independent Test / Review

Today will be spent doing a very quick 2 question test and then we will analyze the test results and discuss areas of improvement.

Day Two : Integrated, Question 3

This question commonly involves reading a passage, listening to a conversation between two people about the passage and then answering a question. We will attack this directly and make an effective plan.

Day Three : Integrated, Question 4

This question is very similar to number 3 except the topic is generally more academic by nature, therefore the rules change somewhat. We will find out what these changes are and discover ways to conquer this question.

Week Three : Integration, Hurdle Two

Day One : Test Day

Today we will do a quick run test on questions 3 and 4 which will be followed by a discussion of the questions and problems that students had.

Day Two : Integrated Number Five

This question is most similar to question number 3 but it doesn’t have the reading portion. It involves a conversation between two people which typically concerns some sort of problem that exists. After that a question is asked concerning the conversation.

Day Three : Integrated Number Six

This question also involves a listening portion followed by a question. However the listening is generally more academic in nature, traditionally following the lecture format. We will analyze ways to answer this question effectively.

Week Four : Bringing it all Together

Day One : Test Day

Each student will be tested on question 5 and 6 with feedback and discussion immediately after the short quiz.

Day Two : Reflect and Make a Plan

Today will be spent making a personal improvement plan based upon the teachers feedback from the past 4 weeks. There will also be time for Q@A at the end of the class.

Day Three : Final Test
Today will be spent taking a final examination that will be graded and sent to each student within 72 hours. The results will be highly detailed and for those students that had 100% attendance they will also include a dictated evaluation of their test.

This class will be taught through Edufire, hope to see you there.

Maximum student number is 8 students.

Advanced Communication

Advanced Communication (English)

Are you able to speak English well but sometimes lack the confidence in an interview? Do you at times stumble over words in front of someone you are trying to impress? This class is for anyone that is fluent or near fluent in English but would like to polish their communication skills. It will also be created around a simulation with immediate goals. Each student will become a new employee at an office selling time shares (vacation homes, yachts, etc.). This has more of a sales training focus, so the methods learned will have real world benefit for those that are in this field or hope to be soon.

This course will last five weeks and the maximum number of students will be 6 per class and minimum number of students is 4. Each week will consist of two 60 minute classes where the first one will be a traditional class of lecture, activities and feedback and the second class will be a workshop where the students will creating a project with my guidance that will showcase their skills and prepare them for their final test.

Methods that will be used to teach the course will include but are not limited to the following: audio, video, role-playing, reports, presentations, student presentation, and workshops.

Orientation (Free)

This is a short presentation about the class with time to ask questions to ensure that it is a good choice for each student. It is also the time for me to ask the students a few questions to make sure they will be able to work together well.

Week One : Listening

This week will be spent studying the process of listening, common barriers to listening and ways to improve our listening skills. In addition, the mock campaign will be introduced at this time and students will be partner up and begin their project.

Week Two : Speaking

This week will be focused on each student analyzing great speakers across the world and why they are great. Students will be challenged to take these ideas and incorporate them into their own speaking. In addition, we will analyze the foundation of speaking and I will give feedback on areas that students should focus on. Our campaign will hit a higher gear as each team will be giving a short presentation during the second class.

Week Three : Spontaneity

Do you have the ability to ‘shoot off the hip’ (as some of us Americans say) and not shoot yourself in the foot (as some of us Americans do)? This ability can all be wrapped up in one word, spontaneity. Often times if we have time to prepare what we are going to say, it isn’t a problem. However, when someone asks us an unexpected question, we get flustered and may say something regrettable. This week, we will work on ways to improve our spontaneity and answer those unexpected questions that seem to magically spew forth from customer’s mouths.

Week Four : Rapport

Some people, well some people are just naturally liked by almost everyone immediately. Is this because they are nicer than everyone else? Probably not, more than likely they know how to build rapport. While this may be one of those God given gifts to certain people, the rest of us commoners can also improve our building rapport ability. This week, we will work on building rapport while dealing with difficult customers.

Week Five : Confidence

After going through the last four weeks, everyone’s confidence ability should be much, much higher. Just in case it isn’t we will make sure it is this week. This is also the week where we will be putting together the final project and also doing the final examination. The final exam may take more time than the final 60 minutes allow but this will not cost extra.

Final Project

The capstone project will be each student calling a designated ‘customer’ and attempting to sell their time share. Students will be graded in the five key focus areas plus grammar, pronunciation and general sales ability. Detailed results will be sent to each student after the class with recommendations for each student to improve their ability in the future.

Class requirements are for each student to have a microphone, a quiet room, at least 1-2 hours to do homework for each contact hour of class, a Skype account (for some activities and for backup) and the desire to improve their communication ability.

This class will be taught through Edufire.  Please make an account with them in order to join the class.  Thanks!!

Interview Prep

Take this one month workshop to hone the skills necessary to ace that interview.  While learning the essential skills through actual practice every student will improve their English ability on the way to their next or first job.  In addition to the spoken part every student will be required to put together a portfolio package that they can send to potential employers.

This course takes 4 weeks to complete and requires at least six students in order to begin a course. The course requirements are at least a high intermediate English level, webcam, headset with microphone and a reliable high speed internet connection.  It meets 3 times a week for a one hour duration each meeting.

Please contact me if you are interested.

Debate for Non-native English speakers

This course takes the student through 4 weeks of debate focusing in particular on the skills of speaking and listening.  During this course the students will be working towards the ultimate goal of debating other teams around the world in an online debate held through an online controlled atmosphere.

This course takes 4 weeks to complete and requires at least six students in order to begin a course. The course requirements are at least a high intermediate English level, webcam, headset with microphone and a reliable high speed internet connection.  It meets 3 times a week for a one hour duration each meeting.

Please contact me if you are interested.

TOEFL S@W Prep

This is a four week course that focuses on the speaking and writing parts of the TOEFL. Throughout the class students will be continually experiencing actual questions and evaluation of the answers in order to improve their ability. This class has more of a coaching and mentoring that ensures a definite level raise in the student’s speaking and writing scores on the IBT TOEFL.

This course takes 4 weeks to complete and requires at least five students in order to begin a course. A placement test must be taken to be admitted into one of the courses three levels; intermediate, high intermediate and advanced.  The course requirements are at least an intermediate English level, webcam, headset with microphone and a reliable high speed internet connection.  It meets 3 times a week for a one hour duration each meeting. 

Please contact me if you are interested.