Sponsor Four English Teachers from Mexico

Last year we shared Emir’s personal journey that he undertook to become an English teacher and a participant in one of IAPE’s programs. He is almost two years into his three-year IAPE Service Commitment that began the summer of 2016.  In addition to participating in IAPE’s English Trainers Corps, Emir has also served as an Advanced Trainer and facilitator of IAPE sessions in Mexico and in the US, and has been a mentor to IAPE participants throughout Mexico.  This is his story in his own words:

The Rassias® Method not only inspires teachers.  It also inspires students to continue studying. They visualize themselves in the future becoming professionals (doctors, teachers, engineers, nurses, etc.) who will help to change this world into a better one. I have no doubt that most of my students will continue their studies. Some of them have told me that they will become English teachers and that really makes me happy.

The first three months being a IAPEañero, I was able to start practicing drills and other Rassias® techniques with my students. I made some mistakes on the road: I had to check notes repeatedly and I used the techniques over and over again. My students were surprised, and, no doubt, thinking,  ´Our teacher is crazy,’ and laughing at me every time I jumped over a chair, or rolled over the desk, or mimicked something.  Our classes may sound out of control but they are not. There is a method to our madness.  My students noticed rapidly the change in their language learning, in their participation in class, in generating confidence among classmates, and in collaborating to reach goals.   It was a great start!

Last year, October 2017, I attended the MEXTESOL International Convention and I was absent from work for three days. Coming back to my workplace, my students greeted me with complaints:  ‘Why didn’t you come, teacher?’ ‘We were waiting for you!’  ‘Don´t leave us again!’

I knew this really meant, ‘I missed you!’  ‘You have become part of my daily life!’  ‘You and your class are important to me!’ And it meant that I am succeeding in making a difference by applying the Rassias® philosophy I learned in IAPE, inspiring students “heart to heart.”

We are achieving this goal with the help of others, as one united team. I have had the opportunity to serve as a model for others and to provide them with guidance.   I have had the opportunity to have teachers from different states help and support me to present IAPE Introductory Workshops in the Rassias® Method.  I have been blessed to be a mentor to others since the summer of 2016. And teachers have supported me and given me feedback to become a better teacher and leader.  I am reaching my life purpose of helping people to make a better world.  There is still a long path ahead, but step by step and working together, we are transforming lives.

Teacher Kassandra from Campeche, Mexico, is one of the 192 teachers trained in 2017. These 192 teachers will impact 69,636 students in Mexico. 

This is Kassandra’s experience:

I am so grateful because I had the opportunity to know about the Rassias Method® by participating in IAPE and it has been an amazing experience that has made a big change in my life as an English teacher and also in my students´ lives.

I would like to mention that after almost a year working with this method I had the opportunity to get more knowledge that made me reflect on my way of thinking, about how to teach. Also, it helped me to open my mind and develop new ideas to modify, adapt and improve the strategies, techniques, and activities in order to help my students to be successful in their learning process.

Furthermore, I was able to realize that this method has helped me to promote active participation in my classes; especially because one of the main issues in most of the Mexican public schools is the lack of participation during the class. It gave me the support I needed by making my students fit in and motivate them. Additionally, the Rassias Method assists my students to learn by integrating their previous knowledge with the school curriculum. It creates new experiences for my students to have.

This method reminded me that it is important to take into account the fact that I have in my classroom a diversity of students with different individual characteristics, learning styles, needs, and backgrounds and it is more important than ever to find ways of providing equitable educational opportunities for all learners. So, as teacher, I had to integrate all of these aspects to design better lesson plans with the appropriate activities that made easier the teaching-learning process.

Moreover I have applied most of the techniques I learned such as “drills,” “first two letters,” “micrologue,” “pyramid,” and soon, I comprehended that a favorable learning environment allows me to build the students’ confidence and at the same time provide them with the opportunities to participate in classes.

Also, it is important to mention that when I implemented the Rassias Method in my classroom I faced some challenges such as the huge number of students in the group and the low English level of the students so I had to adapt the activities according to their level. Finally, I want to mention that the Rassias Method had a positive impact and very good results in my students and they really enjoy learning through this method. I will continue working with it, so that I can provide the students an education of quality because I know I am teaching today’s students for tomorrow’s world.

Links:

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