TEFL Carlisle South Carolina

In doing this course I have revisited academic work for the first time in about 30 years. Something I left due to circumstance, intending to return to, and never did. In part this was because I did not feel able; an emotional reaction rather than a real one. Rediscovering the pleasure of sitting down thinking and writing about a topic somehow opened up a part of me which I had given little space to (this was noticeable to my closest friends). Not having really considered, before starting, the amount of work and the amount of typing involved, I had to find a solution. Talk to text programming which I bought at a point when I thought I would have to give up has not only enabled me to continue, but has had, and will continue to have effects in other areas as well as teaching,(I spent a number of years as a practitioner and teacher of remedial bodywork and have a book to write! With that programming I will be able to do that, once I have finished this course, of course!) Unexpected positive comments at some points reminded me of some of my “forgotten” strengths (a love of writing and expounding of ideas for one). And the recognition of a personal issue (I can't…….), as a key to work up to my edge, rather than give in! Encountering this glitch has many times led me to sidestep and take an easier, but not necessarily satisfying route. Also recognising a part of myself which is very fast, and efficient, but which when applied to a task which needs more care and consideration (eg. lesson planning), needs to be modified. The recognition and exposure of the above has also extended my reading interest into other areas. It has helped create a spur to engage more fully with life. At 58 there is still much to do! In order to do the assignments, particularly when I had to type them, meant having to create a time and habit approach to my life, something which has never really been necessary.. Although there are nowadays: when I sleep, plan ahead with time and space for meditation/relaxation, study, tasks (personal), my lawn mowing business, and of my full-time job. I do more now than I was doing six months ago, and at times I feel like I need a secretary, a housekeeper, and a few more hours each day. Putting the above personal gains into action (haphazardly, which is the nature of life) will be interesting. It seems every time that I see “lesson plan” that the “I can't” part in me is triggered. It starts a process of making it more complicated than it is, or needs to be. Remembering to apply the KISS principle, and to go carefully back over what I have done will be a continuing need. I will want to continue to find paths to feed and express the intellectual part of me. Continual application of programming my days is something I will continue. To this end I have at present a daily communication with a friend of mine, in which we e-mail our list of things to be completed each day and confirm the completion (or not) of the previous days tasks. Engaging in the some of this will require constant application, some evaluation and the recognition that a day off is valid. The materials presented in the course will I expect act as a reference/starting point for teaching, particularly as I expect to find myself teaching business english that the information on that and teaching one-to-one will provide a constant reference point. Using the lesson plan formats will give me a good checking point for how I am constructing lessons.