New teacher using the Callan method

[Sonnald]

Hi everyone!

I recently got a job as a part time teacher using the Callan method. It's my first teaching job after completing my TEFL course and I was excited about the opportunity. The thing is, I'm not really enjoying it at all. The perfect word to describe it would be 'bearable'. The children that I've been teaching are between 3 and 7 and I feel for them because it must be painful to sit through a lesson of continuous parrot-like learning. It doesn't allow for any creativity and is rigid and scripted (for those of you that are familiar with it). They get irritable early on and then it becomes a lesson of constant behaviour management. I'm thinking that it wasn't the best role to plump for as a first time position. Has anyone had the same experience? It's put me off teaching altogether really, but I don't know whether to hang on a little bit longer and then pull out or just to up an run now? What can I expect from other, less rigid TEFL positions? Any thought would be much appreciated...thanks :)

[Susan]

I don't know the Callan method but there are many schools out there that will allow you to plan your own lessons and even encourage creativity. If you think teaching is for you, look into other schools. You don't have to move now but just knowing you have an escape will help you bear it.

Susan

[John V55]

Hi Sonnald (or was that a typo :) )
Try Activity-Based Learning. Yes, constant rote and memorisation is going to be painful to a child’s brain and exasperating for you too. You need to include activities and games, fun, fun fun! I’ve never heard of ‘Callan’ either, but if it’s suggesting pure rote for children, dump it. Teaching is about finding the best method; no one method has all the answers and that’s the part that has to come from you in your lesson planning.