Teacher power!?

Hi milky,

You asked:

Does being a teacher of English give you power over your foreign pupils?

Why would being a teacher of English give you power over foreign pupils/students?

Englishuser

Why bother with "English" and "foreign"?

Being a teacher gives you power over your students. It's almost part of the definition of the terms "teacher" and "student". When is the last time one of your students told you you were not working hard enough, that your performance was poor, and that you had to try a lot harder if you wanted to succeed as a teacher? Or, for that matter,

<When is the last time one of your students told you you were not working hard enough, that your performance was poor, and that you had to try a lot harder if you wanted to succeed as a teacher?>

Erm, every time the quarterly report comes out. Our students/clients give feedback on all aspects of the service we provide, as do many ESL/EFL students all over the world.

You are told you aren't working hard enough, your performance is poor, etc., every time the quarterly report comes out??!!!
Have you considered another line of work?

Power to do what?

MrP

Power to do what?

That's easy. Power to influence behavior.
(But like other forms of power, e.g., nuclear power -- are you really going to make me repeat the cliche? -- power can be used for good or for ill.)

Some people can teach themselves. Others don't have the discipline so they willingly hire someone to manage their time for them in a series of explorations

<You are told you aren't working hard enough, your performance is poor, etc., every time the quarterly report comes out??!!!
Have you considered another line of work? >

S

Jim, do you think that the "over your foreign pupils" is important part of the question above? You seem to have ignored that part.

Some ESLers have asked why certain nationalities of students are reluctant to speak English. One answer put forward has focused on the idea that if you talk in another person's language, you are surrendering a bit of power.

On another note, Dr Bhaskaran Nayar has noticed that where English classes are given in the teacher's home country to refugees and other immigrants "the politics of e

do you think that the "over your foreign pupils" is important part of the question

No, I didn't at the time. That's why I ignored it. Now, reading some of the material you quote, I believe I see more clearly what you might be getting at, and I think it's awful. Whether our students are native or foreign should make no difference. Everyone should be treated equall