wut I B dreadin'

Tomorrow, I'm giving a 45-minute presentation on my round-robin teaching method. I have no idea how it'll go over with a critical crowd of fellow language teachers, but my biggest worry is that I'm going to end up offending some of them: I'm going to be hammering home the point that, if you're up in front of the class speaking at length, then you're lecturing, and that's never a good thing. Classes should ideally be task-oriented, student-centered, and cooperative where possible.

To be fair, I have no idea how many teachers might feel put on the spot by what I'll be saying. Perhaps none will. Perhaps no one lectures, in which case there ought to be no problem. But if some of my colleagues are the types who declaim at length from their lofty perch (our classrooms actually have raised, stage-like platforms that subtly increase the teacher's air of authority), they won't like what I have to say, and they'll feel defensive. I, of course, have no control over how secure or insecure my colleagues might be, but I still worry that I'll be ruffling the wrong feathers tomorrow. I hope I won't be. I'm going to try to avoid sermonizing, which means I won't be saying things like If you're up in front of the class speaking at length, then you're lecturing, and that's never a good thing.

Diplomacy. Diplomacy.


_