Observing

We showed up not knowing quite what to expect. I have been to classes before. I would actually consider myself a world-class student (by the definition of: One who excels at attending class in the role of student). I have been to all your normal classes that everyone has to take. I have been to foreign language classes and tried to cram an entirely new vocabulary and grammar set into my already relatively full brain. I have even been to classes about teaching classes. Would observing a class really be that different?

We went in and did the whole hey we’re here, but just pretend we aren’t thing (even though this room is smaller than most one-person bedrooms, and the table almost fills the whole room, and there are only 8  people, and two of them clearly don’t belong. But yeah…pretend we aren’t here). So class started. The students were 5 Costa Rican teenagers, 3 girls and 2 boys. The teacher was a tall, gangly white guy with one of those personalities you just can’t help but like. The topic: “to make” versus “to do”, which is just “hacer” in Spanish. IT WAS SO INTERESTING! Granted they had already learned all the rules but it was fun to hear them trying to apply it, and fun realizing there really is just no really good set rule for why we use “make” sometimes and “do” others. Spanish-speakers seem to get by just fine with just the one word.

Clearly though, despite the fact that I don’t know a rule for it, I do know how to use these two words and didn’t need a class on them. I was there to learn everything else. How did the teacher present the information? How did the students receive it and respond. How did the teacher respond back to the students? How did he correct them? How did they correct themselves, or how did they just not ever really get it. Woah. I mean  I just get to go sit in this class and watch this guy teach, and, possibly even more interestingly, I get to watch these kids learn. It’s so neat.

I think the best moment of all would have to be when this little (I have no idea how old she was, but I’m guessing around 15 to 17) Costa Rican girl who speaks pretty intermediate English, just spouts off to her teacher, “hey, are you pickin’ up what I’m puttin’ down?” Oh my god! The other observing student and I just about lost it. I know it doesn’t sound that impressive…but you just have to think about how hard it is and how much work it is to learn proper, logical things in a new language. Then think about how much more work it is to store away and recall for practical use a completely idiomatic phrase like that one. It’s just amazing to watch language take action in that way.

By the end of the class I couldn’t say that I had learned a ton of new things about teaching. I don’t know anything new about “to do” and “to make.” I still wouldn’t be comfortable helping new speakers navigate this huge maze of new language. I can say though that I got to see the inspiring side of the classroom. I got to see for the first time the thing I have always heard the good teachers in my life refer to. I got to see other people getting excited about learning and it was just reaffirming. I only hope that in the future I can have that moment again when I am the one leading the class.