By
Indra Gunawan
Looking
and staring, then looking and staring at the mirror, again and again just to make
certain whether the look is beautifully covered or not or else maybe gently
dusting it with fluffy brush or puff on the complexion for hours in order that
the appearance looks sunnier, more glowing, and more beautiful to the last
brush then saying “well, I am looking great now” is what commonly women do with
their “secret weapon”-powder compact.
For
women powder is one thing. On the other hand for teachers, powder is another.
Applying powder for the sake of teaching-learning process in the classroom
might be varied according to the need and purpose. Either for punishment or for
something else whatever we might call it does really influence the use of method.
Getting powder realized in the class really plays as an important role to bring
about the outcome, be it positive or negative.
Long
ago I once used powder to alert students who preferred to chat with their
friends using their mother tongue instead of English. The rule was quite simple
if they spoke non-English they would get the powder as punishment. At first
everything seemed to go well. The students who communicated in their mother
tongue were decreasing significantly. On the other side the students felt distressed
and discouraged to speak. As time went by they continued to have no words at
all in the class since they thought if they got powder on their face, feeling
humiliated was waiting due to the taunting of their friends. And the same time
the teacher kept reminding them to put on their face for having spoken
non-English. In addition when they, not only students who got the powder but
also the others, regard the teacher as “The Angel”, the one who never made any
mistake-who never said a single word but English words, it did set them in
horror to say non-English words. “The Angel” was ready to give them scary
punishment at any time. As a result the class slowly but surely turned to be a threatening
class.
So
then, what’s next? What to do? First, try to use the key word “reminder” rather
than “punishment”. I tell my students “we want to try to speak English most of
the time, and then if you forget it I’ll remind you with this powder”. In the
beginning, remind them when they speak non-English, they have to put on the
powder by themselves. Therefore you won’t get the blue of your face to remind
them all the time. Secondly set the model. Teachers should not be embarrassed to
look ugly before their students. I apply powder on my face like an army to let the
students see there is nothing to be ashamed to wear powder. So the students
will do the same as the teacher does. The next is providing them with “enough equipment”,
the so-called classroom language in order that the students can apply them to
interact either with their classmates or their teacher. The following step is by
giving them strategy to speak English in spite of having inadequate vocabulary.
Consequently the student might try the best to use their English no matter how
hard that is. Finally, always tap their shoulders and back them up with their
effort. The students surely need the teacher’s hand to stand on their feet.
So
far having used this, I don’t have to remind them or need to raise my voice
just to get my objective done; they automatically grab the powder by themselves
as they accidentally or not speak on their mother tongue. Their classmates become
“the police officers” who always keep their eyes on them. I have used this
technique this term for almost all levels, Intermediate, ET and EC Students and
so far it worked well as expected except for one student whom I considered the
need of special treatment.
To
bring down the curtain I hope, certainly for everyone who is concerned, that
the students might constantly use their English not only when they are in the
classroom but also some time in the future when they are no longer in the
classroom. We yearn they will say “I am not afraid of powder. I need powder to
help me, so I can speak English better.”
EC student
ET students
Intermediate students
Tags:
Sharing programs
