Success!

At Connexus, the way our program is set up is that we teach classes on a monthly basis, and so it's common for me to have new students every month. As a result, sometimes I have students who come for a month or two, and then leave after that, and sometimes I have students who come to Connexus for longer than that.

Interestingly enough though, not many students stay at Connexus for more than 4 months on average. This was a bit concerning at first because I wasn't sure if it was because I wasn't a good teacher, or because my students had other obligations. But many students in particular come to Connexus for a short period, and the reasons are usually because they are planning to go abroad, or because they are university students and they want to practice English during their summer and winter vacations.

Anyway, I've made a number of mistakes as a teacher, and at times I haven't been able to teach every student that walked into the door. So in some ways it's a bit discouraging to have students come for such a short period, and then decide to stop taking classes. It's also discouraging when students leave and don't tell me exactly why they are leaving.

However, I felt like last month was my most successful month, which ironically was also one of the most stressful months working at Connexus because of the whole moving transition, and also having a really full schedule.

This past summer I was blessed to have some very bright and cheerful students. In my writing class in particular, I had students in that class who not only possessed the motivation to write and study outside of class, but also had the courage to ask me questions in class (many students are fairly shy, so sometimes it's like pulling teeth to get them to actually speak in English and ask questions). It also helped that they were very good at speaking English. Not only was I able to dramatically improve their writing, but I also was able to help them answer some very challenging questions.

In this class last month, a student named Ray asked me what the difference between saying "think about" and "think of" was (which is actually quite challenging to explain). So I thought about his question, and got back to him with the answer the next day. Upon hearing my response to this question, he simply said to me "this is why I come to your class". I was so touched to hear that from a student.

In another class last month, I received a hand-written letter from another student named Ayoung saying that she had a lot of fun in my class, and although she has to go back to university, she plans on coming back to take a class again. It was great to hear that as well.

However, I think one of the best compliments I've heard from a student (which was also coincidentally last month as well) came from my morning class, which for the past year has felt like a class that I could never seem to get to improve a lot. This student, named Su Yeon, came to class on the last day of the month and told me that she was no longer coming to class. At first I was a little disappointed because she had been in my class for 3 months and I thought she was going to continue taking class. However, she brought me a gift, and told me that the reason why she was leaving was because she had improved her English enough to find a better job for herself, and so she was going to look for a new job.

I realized that for Su Yeon, I was able to do something that I have been trying to do for all of my students, which is to help them improve their English to achieve their personal goals. When students come for only a few months, it's really hard to see them improve their English speaking ability. However, to hear so many compliments really made me feel really good.

I don't find my job to be that easy, and I find it hard to feel really successful in what I do. But after hearing that I was able to help students improve their English ability was something that really boosted my mood when having to deal with a stressful period.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that it's great to feel truly successful in what I do!