The attitude of the learners<

The attitude of the learners

I just finished my internship as a Spanish as a Foreign Language (ELE) teacher, and these are my reflections. First of all, each learner’s circumstances are different, as is their attitude. In the same class, I had students of diverse backgrounds and ages. One of them was a teenager, and probably for that reason, they didn’t show much interest. They only participated when I asked them to read one by one. In one activity, I paired them with another student who participated a lot, but this turned out to be detrimental to the latter. So, in the next activity, I put them in a group of three. At least this way, two of them could help each other.

On the other hand, all the students I met, except for one, had some knowledge of English. Their level was A1, so I sometimes allowed them to use an English word. However, this particular student didn’t know any language other than their own, which was also an Asian language, and relied on their phone for translation help. As a teacher, I tried to get them involved as well—I asked them to read like the rest—but just like in the previous case, they did not actively participate or take the initiative to ask questions.

These are the two most difficult situations I have encountered. I asked both of them if they had any doubts or questions, but they always automatically responded that no, everything was fine. Regarding the student who showed no interest, I felt it was appropriate not to give them more attention than necessary so as not to waste the rest of the class’s time. As for the second student, I brought them additional material related to their profession in case it could be useful outside of class.

In conclusion, I have learned that as teachers, we will face different types of attitudes. Some students will be very talkative and active, which is appreciated, while others will be more reluctant. Because of this, I have taken note of the need to improve my interaction with this type of learner. At the very least, I would like to find a way to help those whose language barrier is greater.