Today went a lot different than I expected. I envisioned that we would spend the entire 2-hour class period talking about the grammar on the test. Perhaps I thought this would actually work because students seemed very energetic about talking last week. But what I failed to realize was that the test was last week and the students would return to their tendency not to talk.
Eventually, I decided to spend the rest of the class talking about why students didn't talk. Eventually, I got people to write down that they thought it was difficult to talk about grammar issues. Perhaps the most satisfactory answer was that students were unfamiliar with the content of the class which made them less ready to respond. What I don't understand is why students were willing and able to do these things last week but this week they said nothing.
I'm not sure if this was a cultural difference, language barrier or a combination of the issues. To be honest, the most enjoyable part for me was when I expressed my frustrations in Korean and students seemed amused as I told the narrative of what happens as students wear down as the semester carries on.
I am at odds as to what I should do. I'm beginning to think that the grammatical approach that I've used this semester may not be the best way to teach English, but then again, if students have difficulties using English grammar correctly, how would it be possible to carry on a conversation?
In retrospect, I wonder if giving a test of any kind is a good way of measuring a students ability to communicate in English. I will be reflecting over the coming weeks on whether another form would be better, such as having students write out the format of a conversation on a test or on a paper of any kind. But it seems that some kind of an activity where people are required to talk is necessary.
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