On 23rd February twenty two student tutors along with three teachers of The Department of English - Smt Maria Theresa Chakkunny, Ms Surya Thamban and Ms Chithira went to the Bhagavathy Vilasam High School, Nayarambalam. The group reached the school by 1:30 p.m and was requested to teach three batches of 10th std students.
The students were provided with papers, pens, sketch pens, scissors, chart papers, folders etc. Classes were conducted simultaneously in the three sections. In each class a teacher along with seven student tutors taught the students. The time allotted was divided into small modules of twenty minutes each. The four language skills – Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing were touched upon.
The first student tutor dealt with Listening skills. She read out a story and then questions based on it were asked to the students. Initially the students were reluctant to express themselves in English. However with a little encouragement they began to talk with enthusiasm.
The second tutor dealt with Speaking Skills. A picture was exhibited and students were asked to express their views regarding the picture. Their Speaking skill was tested.
The third tutor dealt with Reading Skills. Students were provided with informative and interesting books. They were divided into small groups and asked to read small passages aloud. The tutor corrected their pronunciation and taught them the importance of Stress, Pause and Intonation.
The fourth tutor dealt with Writing skills. The students were given some words as a clue and had to create a story. It was noticed that the students were very imaginative and could come up with surprisingly good scenarios. The only problem noticed was lack of continuity in thought.
In the fifth module students were requested to use the four language skills they had just learnt in an innovative activity. They were requested to create a magazine. The activity proved an eye –opener for the tutors as the students wrote poems ,stories, articles, created theme based collages and paintings; all with great originality and surprising maturity of thought.
The sixth tutor handled an interactive session. The students were asked to sing along with the tutor. The songs selected were both informative and entertaining. 'The Food song' and 'The Calendar song' are examples.
Sweets were distributed towards the end. The students found the teaching methods interesting and they requested a repeat visit. It was a unique experience for the student tutors as they got a chance to teach and interact with such enthusiastic, intelligent but disadvantaged students.
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