Jessica Watson's blog on Ajarn.com
Dealing with the troublemakers
Discipline: tips on control in the classroom
Troublemakers. We have all seen them do their thing, causing mayhem and disorder in the classroom; perhaps you were even one yourself at some point during your time as a student. Troublemakers are the bane of every teacher's existence and they make our job go from difficult to pounding headache and hair-tearing proportions.
I don't want to learn!
The biggest teaching hurdle: motivation
Motivation in the classroom, both from the teachers and the students, is essential for learning but it is a tricky balance to strike since the two are so interconnected; if the teacher loses motivation, so do the students and if the students lose motivation, so does the teacher.
This is an English-speaking only zone
Reflections from teaching in an English-only international school
Six weeks ago I started a new teaching job in Myanmar at an international school. The job and the school have surpassed my expectations and one of the most impressive things is that I can use complete sentences in the classroom and give directions in English and the students not only understand, but they respond with great English.
From Thailand to Cambodia
It was time to say goodbye Thailand and hello Cambodia
The last two months of my life have been a whirlwind of changes, emotions and excitement. The end of the term also signaled the end of my contract with the language company I was employed with and the start of new adventures.
One year later
Thoughts from a first time teacher on living and working in Thailand
The end of the term has made me very contemplative. A year ago I was in a very different situation than I am now; I was jobless and overwhelmed with debt and I was very confused about how to lift myself up from that desperate situation and pursue my dream of living abroad.
No work, all play!
vacation time as an English teacher
There are many perks to teaching English abroad and my absolute favorite is the amount of paid vacation alloted to foreign teachers.
The dreaded letter grade
The anguish of having to evaluate progress with a single letter
I teach Pre-School, Kindergarten and Prathom 1, 2 and 3 and while I find it easier to dole out letter grades to my Prathom students, giving A,B,C's to my Pre-School and K's is much more difficult.
Food, glorious food
One of Thailand's many conveniences
There are a lot of perks to living and teaching English in Thailand and as someone who likes to eat good food, one of the perks I enjoy the most is delicious home-cooked food being available at your fingertips.
