This week, I am particularly going to talk about motivation I see in the ESL classrooms. I was able to sit in on parent teacher conferences last week and really see how the teacher explains the grades and behavior of the students to the parents. It was really very insightful, and I'm glad my teacher allowed for me to come.
A problem I noticed multiple times with the ESL students that my teacher had to address to multiple parents was the issue of completing homework. The kids are very bright, but for some reason do not have the desire to turn in their completed work. It is interesting because they have three quarters to the entire homework done, but don't bother to turn it in, or forget it in their locker.
I have been paying particular attention to my students recently in regards to homework completion and motivation. I was talking to some other teachers during parent-teacher conferences and some told me that right now, school isn't a priority for the Mexican kids. The reason why they're not completing their homework is because they are more involved in being social (which brings up the issues of pregnancy, alcohol, etc.). They just don't see school as something that will be useful to them in the future. My teacher often catches kids passing notes in class when they're supposed to be reading. The notes almost always revolve around who is dating who, or kissing someone, or being angry with so and so because she likes so and so.
Now, there are some kids in my classroom who are so bright and very well motivated. Right now, I'm more interested in figuring out why my kids are learning English. Is it because they have to? Is it because they want a job? I can make small inferences from the papers they write (eg. one kid wrote a paper about how studying is good because it helps you get a job so you can buy a house), but need to observe more and ask more questions.
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