FSU TEFL 120 Certificate 2024 Summer 2

Date/Time : Wednesday July 17th Location : Bellamy 338 Topic/Skill : Speaking (Tips for Success in University and Evaluation) Feedback provided to the tutee : Wei asked for advice about how to do well in undergraduate and graduate courses in the US. I emphasized the importance of reading the syllabus and making yourself aware of all the relevant course policies, such as the grading scale, policies for late submissions and extensions, and exam dates. When describing the necessity of proper evaluation of reading and listening skills later on, I used the phrase fatal mistake . Wei asked about the meaning, so I explained that it is an example of hyperbole or exaggeration to emphasize that a fatal mistake is a very big or serious mistake. Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned : International students chafe under the same demanding professions and course requirements as domestic students. Everyone can relate to having a harsh or strict professor, and this could be a good shar...

Date/Time : Wednesday July 17th Location : Bellamy 338 Topic/Skill : Speaking (Critical Incidents) Feedback provided to the tutee : I told Ana we would be discussing critical incidents for the first part of the session, and her first impression was that we would be talking about times when you broke a bone. I gave her the example Professor Kim covered in class, and she had a better grasp of the term. She had a hard time thinking of an example, so I let her know she could use an example from one of her friends. Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned : With advanced level students, it might be more enjoyable or mentally stimulating to arrive at the correct definition of a term through context rather than being told outright or reading it in a book. Additionally, cognates can sometimes be the spark behind a critical incident.

Date/Time : Wednesday July 17th Location : Bellamy 338 Topic/Skill : Speaking (Critical Incidents and Regional Norms) Feedback provided to the tutee : We discussed the definition of the term “critical incident” and I helped Wei with the spelling of both critical and incident . We also discussed the sample scenario (about the teacher refusing the expensive gift) from the “More Than a Native Speaker” book and worked out which of her explanations was most likely or most realistic.   Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned : There may be potential for misunderstandings and mistakes to occur even within the same county, provided there are significant differences between regions. For example, Wei explained that when traveling within China, she would sometimes struggle to understand the proper way to use unfamiliar tableware.

  TS Blogs July 16th, Tuesday Online Session #6 with Do Jun Topic/Skill: Reading a post from The Harvard Gazette, summarizing and answering comprehension questions, and discussing. Feedback provided to the tutee: I explained hard terms, vocabulary, and idiomatic phrases to Do Jun to improve his understanding of the article. I corrected repeated errors in Do Jun's pronunciation and used minimal pairs to help him. I assessed Do Jun's summary of the article and proposed questions, corrected them for grammar, and then discussed them with him. Lessons: Covered and broke down several idiomatic phrases for meaning that the article used like, "without fear that any inequity crept into their decisions." and "AI could completely change the game". I had Do Jun work on his reading comprehension by assessing his understanding using comprehension questions, discussion points, and summarizing. https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2020/10/ethical-concerns-mount-as-ai-take...

Date/Time : Monday July 15th Location : Bellamy 338 Topic/Skill : Speaking (Job Interviews) Feedback provided to the tutee : I gave Wei some examples of different elements of classroom management she could use during her upcoming job interview tomorrow. I asked her some practice interview questions and corrected mistakes when she made them. For example, she said something along the lines of I am curiosity rather than I am curious . Finally, I gave her some general advice about interviewing based on my own experience and tips I collected from my acquaintances. Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned : English as a foreign language students have an entire additional hurdle to overcome when interviewing for jobs in the United States or American companies. Many people, myself included, find job interviews stressful and anxiety-inducing when they’re conducted in our native language. Anyone who can bring themself just to sit through an interview in a foreign language is very b...

TS Blogs July 15th, Monday Session #3 with Arsene at the Hecht House Topic/Skill: Continuation of the previous lesson: Reading an opinionated article with multiple viewpoints and devising a personal belief based on supporting evidence from the article. More specifically, he worked on writing a rebuttal. Feedback provided to the tutee: I corrected Arsene when he didn't include the article's reason for why Churches should pay taxes and showed him how to rephrase to have a stronger rebuttal that does include their reasoning. Lessons: Rebuttals (how to form, how to use in an argument), proper conjunction selection (by vs with), relative pronouns (singular vs plural with the agreement with the subject), and prefixes and suffixes.

Date/Time : Wednesday July 10th Location : Bellamy 338 Topic/Skill : Speaking (Gun Ownership and Violence in America) Feedback provided to the tutee : Ana asked me a series of survey questions about my opinions on gun violence and gun ownership in the United States. In total, she spoke to eight Florida State students myself included. I was the last person, so she was already quite familiar with relevant vocabulary. After she finished asking her questions, I asked her a bit more about her own opinions and experiences here. Lesson(s) about tutoring and/or the tutee you learned : International students living in the United States have likely been told to behave in such a way as to avoid potential conflict whenever possible. Given the lack of strict or comprehensive gun laws here, they are aware of the potential threat of gun violence more so than most white Americans. Talking with people from different cultures with different norms and legal standards makes you more aware of the absurdity...