I am back to my ESL classes. Over the summer the program took a hit and had to close several locations. One of the closed locations was MY location! I was greatly saddened at the thought of all my students being without classes, I hope they have found a place to attend classes and are able to continue their progress. As a result of the closing I am teaching in a different location this year. I am now the "new girl".
As the "new girl" I am at the bottom of the teacher ladder. I am in an established class as a helping teacher. There are two other teachers in our level who have been there for a while and have a working relationship....i.e. power stuggle. I have decided to just take my subservient role for a while and help the students who just aren't getting "it". The lead teacher is an older gentleman from England. He speaks the Queen's English. We don't really speak the Queen's English down here in Texas. He is constantly teaching words as they are pronounced in England. Think of the word "last"....pronounced in England and in the southern United States. Yup, our students now have a Spanish/British accent. This list goes on and on with the words he insists on teaching with the British pronounciation. I guess if they learn to speak any English it will be a win! I better brush up on my British accent.
This week I will be participating in what I think will be my own episode of "The Apprentice". Stay tuned to see if I survive Denver, lots of beer, handcrafted BeerSox and sales.
1 comment:
Good luck with your new British colleague. I know how different Southern vs British is - I moved to Scotland from Georgia 26 years ago. There are still things that just do not translate!
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