When the students feel that they are valued and treated fairly, the classroom becomes a safe space to flourish. With the right amount of water and sunlight, all flowers bloom; the key to a colourful garden lies behind the knowledge of this balance. I have taught in Turkey from kindergarten to university level for 16 years, yet my students came from different backgrounds and cultures. To my surprise, my ESL classroom strategies that I relied on as effective and efficient were not working at all in a Vietnamese context. The culture was different, the student behaviour was soooo distinct that I felt like I needed new strategies immediately. Trial and error, observing Vietnamese teachers' behaviour and teaching style helped me to find my way so far. I am about to move to Canada this summer and I think it is going to be another surprise for me. I want to get prepared before I move to a Canadian school setting.
By this blog, I would like to share my international experience with you and hope to learn more about the Canadian way of ELL classroom strategies from colleagues all around the world. Learning is a lifelong experience and everyday is a new beginning. Therefore, my teacher learning goals are freshening up every day with new techniques while searching for the most suitable ELL classroom practices both for the cultural context I am in now and the classes I will have in the future.