Question about teaching languages

[eltoro89]

One of the programs I am applying to next year says that if accepted, I would be eligible for a TAship to teach Spanish due to my educational background. When I asked what the duties involved were, I was told that there was a small training session and that TAs would begin the semester by teaching their own courses in introductory Spanish. This program is at the top of my list for consideration, but I'm terrified at the prospect of being thrown to the undergrads with no experience. I tutored for the department at my undergrad, but that's nothing compared to actually having a CLASS full of people depending on me to help them understand a foreign language.

Does anyone have experience as a modern languages TA? I keep envisioning these scenarios in which I'm trying to explain grammar to a bunch of deer-eyed undergrads who have no idea what I'm saying, and the prospect is scary.

I definitely would love to attend this program and I'd need the money that the TAship brings, but part of me wants to just avoid it like the plague. It's not that I'm against TAing. Quite the contrary, I think it's important. But being in charge of teaching introductory Spanish seems reallly daunting. Although I speak the language, I know NOTHING about foreign language pedagogy.

I haven't even mentioned the worst part: This school's policy states that even introductory courses are immersion and conducted in Spanish. We had the same policy at my undergrad. I felt it was really well executed at my undergrad because my professors were so good at demonstrating the concepts even if we couldn't understand exactly what they were saying. I just don't know how they're going to teach me how to teach Spanish in Spanish to people who... don't speak Spanish. The whole thing has me freaking out!

Edited June 20, 2012 by eltoro89

[lotuspetal7]

I have just started this summer quarter as a TA teaching an intensive course in introductory Japanese. Somehow I had the idea that I would be doing mostly a bunch of grading and office hours, but the week before classes began they up and told me "so, you'll be teaching solo 10 hours a week," and I felt a little freaked out. I also had no orientation or training whatsoever because it's summer, they just threw me right at it. But my first week has gone okay as the lesson plans were all filed away just waiting to be printed out. The students have a 2-hour lecture with the prof where he explains the grammatical structure in English, and then a 2-hour session with me mostly for doing a bunch of exercises practicing what they've learned. I'm supposed to basically speak only Japanese to them, though in reality it's okay for me to give the more complex classroom instructions in English, preferably saying it in Japanese first for more immersion effect and for the students who already have some background and will understand.

They probably won't ask you to do anything impossible. Ask whether the lesson plans are already prepared, and ask if you can get in touch with a current TA to ask questions. Maybe ask the current TA whether you can occasionally use English or at least write it on the board if the students really don't understand what it is they're supposed to do. But in general I think it's unnecessary to freak out about teaching Spanish in Spanish. You can just teach them classroom commands on the first day--write them on the board and practice giving them and making students respond until they have them down. My students absorbed the basic classroom commands (listen, look, say, read, write) within a few minutes on the first day and with no English explanation, only gestures. You can tell them, for example, to turn to page whatever of the textbook by saying it in Spanish, holding up the textbook, and writing the page number on the board--trust me, they will get the idea. It's no big deal. It should be even easier for students of Spanish than of Japanese because it's a language related to English and they will recognize some of the word roots--even if they don't already know a few words of Spanish, which many of them will. Students who understand will whisper help to their puzzled neighbors, etc...these things work themselves out.

The immersion part is the least of your worries. I'd be more concerned if there were no lesson plans available for you to use, but if you ask you may find there are or at least that more experienced TAs can help you make your first few weeks of lesson plans.

[imonedaful]

Are you a native speaker or is Spanish a second language? If you are a native speaker just think of speaking to an introductory Spanish class like you would be talking to a child (not with your tone of voice but with the simplicity of the vocabulary.) Generally repeating simple words over and over again in a way that obivously divulges what the word means helps people understand. Also, over annunciate. If you use a word that nobody understands just write the translation on the board. They will pick it up eventually. There should be fairly direct lessons in whatever is in your textbook that you are using as far as teaching grammar. Start of the class by giving them a few basics frames for how to answer questions such as "que significa..." so you can interact with them in Spanish even though they know very little. Be demonstrative and expressive. I know that is a lot of random information but I studied Spanish for awhile and minored in it as an undergrad and I know what I have seen work.