Classroom Dynamics

I've just finished a communicative activity with the four P2 classes. And I can hardly believe the difference between them.

The first class was a model of propriety and enthusiasm. They spoke in English, were polite and (fairly)subdued, and seemed to grasp the true purpose of the activity. Even the less able students participated well, and were not afraid to ask if they could not pronounce or spell something. I was mildly encouraged by their reaction, and rolled it out in the second class.

Please note that I presented the activity in exactly the same way, and the children are of a similar mixed ability to the first class. And yet the difference could not have been more astonishing (or harrowing). Even the highest ability kids blatantly copied the work from each other. Very few children actually made the effort to practice the target language. Perhaps three. Or maybe two, out of a class of thirty-one. The third P2 class was the same, but perhaps worse, as the children spent a great deal of time yelling and picking apart my laminated cards. The fourth class were a lot better, but just after I told their teacher that they were doing really well, they suddenly all starting screaming as they rushed back to their seats. So that ruined that.

Why the difference? Is it the teacher? Of course there are 'better' teachers. The teacher of the first class is a person of extraordinary stature (made even more surprising by the fact that she is no more than five feet tall). I have never heard her shout, and she is the type of teacher who can think of all the pitfalls and complications, and has solutions for them all. The second class teacher is pretty appalling - she spends much of the time yawning, and has a hostile air about her. The third teacher is well-meaning, I guess, but she has been given the class from hell. And the fourth teacher is pretty good. Could it possibly be that the teacher's attitude somehow rubs off on the kids?

What I really think is that it all boils down to classroom dynamics - the 'chemistry' between the kids, if you will. Some classes are like oil and water. They just don't mix. They curdle. And some classes, when mixed together, become bigger than the sum of their parts. I'm just not sure if it is the teacher who produces the final ingredient - the binding agent. In fact each class has several teachers - a class teacher and then two or three more subject teachers, so it may not be that.

But then - their exam results - the class that performed the worst in exams were in fact the class that always perform the best in whole class activities. How can we explain that?

I guess that's a whole other thread.