Extended School Day

There is push in the UK for all schools to offer an extended school day by 2012. This follows evidence from the United States where extending the school day to 10 hours has provided dramatic results. Some underprivileged schools there have managed to increase the percentage of their students going on to college from 10% to 80%. It is hoped that an extended school day will have similarly dramatic results in the UK.

The current school day was created to meet the needs of a different century. We now know that afterschool activity is just as important to student development as what happens during school time. It is often argued that teachers just don’t have enough time to provide the attention that is needed and many students are not getting this input from home. The purpose of the extended school day is to make up for this deficiency. Every country depends on students for its future prosperity so it makes sense to do everything possible to give them the best chance at academic success.

The news of the extended school day has not received universal approval. There has been some concern that this move will increase the pressure felt by students. Some parents complain that their children are already coming home overtired after the eight hour day; what will they be like after a ten hour day? They go on to argue that even if these extra hours are spent doing fun activities it will still not be the same as being at home – school just isn’t as relaxing an environment as your own home. There is also the argument that this approach is patronizing to parents because it is based on the idea that they can’t properly raise their kids.

The extended school day will not mean that students are going to be spending a lot of extra time in the classroom. There are proposals to provide useful clubs and educational resources where students can learn first aid, improve their math skills, or get help with their homework. Some schools may offer a breakfast club where students are sure of a healthy meal. The aim is for schools to work closely with parents and the local community so as to provide the most beneficial activities. This should mean that what is provided will differ from place to place.

The extended school day is part of a wider initiative to extend the services offered by schools. This can involve everything from childcare services to family education. Parents who struggle to find childcare will likely be pleased with the proposals. There is also the possibility that some schools might offer classes where parents and children can learn together. Some schools are already offering some extended services.

Teachers are already overworked in many schools, but the good news is that they won’t be expected to provide all these extra activities. Instead appropriate outside agencies will be invited to provide what is needed. This will also mean that what is available will vary greatly around the country.

The push for the extended school day now seems to be gaining momentum and that all schools will be offering this by 2012. It will likely take a lot longer than this to assess the benefits of this change in school day.

English Listening Comprehension Activity

An ESL teacher always needs to get his students speaking and listening to English. As we all know, our students many times don’t hear English outside of class. Many immigrants work and live with people who don’t speak English. Classroom activities that challenge a student’s listening and speaking skills are essential. You need to find activities that are fun and not intimidating so even the shy and reserved students will get on board. Try the following activity to get your students interacting and practicing English with one another.

At the end of a unit or chapter think of the major vocabulary words and grammar concepts that you want your class to practice. On a piece of paper draw nine line horizontally so you have ten equal sections to use. Write out ten sentences, one for each section, that include target vocabulary and grammar. Every sentence should cover a different set of words and grammatical concept. Cut out each sentence so you have ten slips of paper. Each slip of paper will have a unique sentence on it. Have your students sit in rows of five to six people back. You can decide how many rows there are going to be and how many students in each row by looking at your class numbers. This activity will work with large and small classes.

Now, explain to the class that the first person in every row will be getting a slip of paper that contains a sentence in English on it. This person’s job is to read the sentence and turn the paper face down. He now turns around and whispers the sentence to the student behind him. This student listens and immediately turns to the next student and does the same thing. Once the last student has heard the sentence, he is to say it out loud to the rest of the row and to you. As the teacher, you will tell him if he is correct or not. Many times the sentence that the last student recites is very different from the original. That is OK. Write the original sentence on the board so students can see what it was supposed to be. Go over the words that were mispronounced or omitted. Remind student that in the lesson you went over the grammar that the specific sentence includes.

If you have a larger class you will have to move around the room to attend to each group. When one row is done with a particular sentence, give it to another row. Let your students have fun and get carried away. Most people can’t help but laugh at themselves during this activity. Even though everyone is having fun, and most likely getting a little loud, there is important English practice occurring. Each student will concentrate extra hard on pronouncing their sentence correctly and listening to their classmate’s English. Many students will only produce English if they are forced to, and this is a fun way to require participation. I’ve always had fun with this and I bet you and your class will too.

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