Congratulations Seema!

I also heard from Kate… unfortunately, she did not get the C she was looking for, the examiner gave her a mere B… but, since her boss really wants her in that position and does know that Kate can communicate efficiently in French, the oral language requirement of her job position has been changed into a level B… Finally one person with judgment and common sense!… It would be great improvement if there were more… yet demain n’est pas la veille!… Therefore Kate joins Alicia and Christie on my list of this assessment process flaws! I would not be surprised to hear that the three of them had the same assessor…

This week will be another marathon of testing: Sun is taking her reading comprehension and written expression tests (she needs a C in both) this morning and Krystal will take hers tomorrow. Kelly, in Victoria, will be tested orally over the phone on Wednesday… she must obtain a level C… hopefully she will get it!… Based upon my trainees (located outside Ottawa)experience, examiners in Montreal are a bit more flexible (read less picky)… we shall see! And… I almost forgot!… Edna will go back to be tested for her written expression on Wednesday as well… hopefully she will not be given the test in English this time!

For those of you who do not know what the COFI (Centres d’orientation et de formation des immigrants) are, here is a brief explanation… When the province of Quebec made French its official language and introduced Bill 101 (Bill stipulating that immigrants’ kids have to attend French school unless one of the two parents had some kind of education in English in Quebec at some point – which is highly unlikely), new adult immigrants who do not speak a word of French are sent in those centers so that they can learn the basics of the language… there, they can acquire some survival spoken French and get acquainted with the culture québécoise… Those  aiming at learning how to write are invited to under’go day or evening programs that are tailored to their specific needs in any school boards across the province.

New immigrants who do not have jobs attend those centers full time… those who do have jobs or go to university attend part time… These centers are not giving highly qualified training in French… actually it is not their reason for being either. They are not teaching immigrants to take SLE tests: they are teaching them how to survive in a French environment by providing them with useful vocabulary so that they can communicate in daily situations.

Times really changed… I do remember my retired Italian neighbours in Montreal: they had arrived in Canada right after the World War II… the lady was fluent in both French and English, their adult kids only spoke English and the man could not speak any other languages than Italian (I always wondered how he had managed all those years… actually he was relying on his wife for everyday interaction with the outside world)… She had been a nanny in a family in Wesmount for years and it was where she had learned French and English (the father was an Anglophone, the mother was a Francophone and the children were bilingual and attending French schools)… Okay… back to my story now…

Last week, I assessed a new student located in Montreal who needs to obtain levels CCC in order to qualify for the job position he applied for within the PSC… Corey, a middle age man, arrived in Canada two years ago with only his mother tongue and English as a second language in his pocket: he did not know one single word of French at the time. Since he had a night shift job in an IT call center, he spent only half of his days (and still does) in  a COFI combined with 16 weekly hours in his school board evening program (for the written part of his learning)… In late Spring I had Yong who had also spent some time in a COFI in order to learn French and, even if he did not get his B in oral interaction, he could communicate fairly well… actually I was quite impressed with his skills since the COFI do not teach French formally!… Of course his French was not polished enough for the PSC examiner and did not meet the absurd standards of the PPC tests… although he managed to get his B in reading and writing!

I really did not know what to expect prior to meeting with Corey… if Yong had missed the level B, how could he get a C?… I know so many people who are bilingual in my book and who cannot get it!… On the other hand, I know some who cannot even have a casual conversation about weather or order a pizza in French and who actually have a level C… Go figure!… I stopped wondering about such a dichotomy because I would only waste my time!… There are no answers to this strange phenomenon… only because there are no real objectives, except that candidates have to perform the way the PPC wants them to… and even so, sometimes, one examiner will prefer another dance!… It is why it is imperative to know more than one, just in case!…

On Wednesday, I spent one hour online with Corey and I simulated an interview in French (with the four components of the actual oral interaction test)… Of course he was all over the place, providing me with more information than I was actually seeking… In the middle of this babel, though, I was quite pleased with his easiness to speak… and his comprehension was excellent… therefore I decided that he could get his C!… Yet I will have to put him in the box and restrain his wish to talk too much!… I will have to constrict him so that he will stay within the speech limits permitted!… It will not be an easy task to confine him in the work area only and I will have to provide him with the jargon they are expecting him to use during the examination… but it is manageable!… He has an excellent foundation in French and all that is needed to do is to have him speak more formally (yet I will make sure that he will keep his natural way of expression)… using words such as processus, gestionnaire, gestion de projet, affectation, note de breffage (do not worry if you do not know this word, it does not exist outside the PSC), intérimaire, protocole d’entente, etc.

After our session, I thought that it would be a great idea to have civil servants under’going French training in one of the numerous COFI throughout Quebec (there must even be one located in Gatineau!)… I am surprised that the famous PSC technocrates have not thought of such an option yet: they do not know much about pedagogy, but they are supposed to know how to count… that would save the government lots of money indeed, because I am sure it would be much cheaper to send employees in a COFI than in any language schools around town (institutions that do not give top notch services anyways!)… The bright side of such training would be that, afterwards, those civil servants would be able to communicate in French… and, at the end, it would only take a few hours to prepare them for their dance in front of an examiner… If I ever doubted the kind of training the COFI are providing, now I am convinced that they do a great and useful job!

“La danse est une cage où l’on apprend l’oiseau”

Claude Nougaro

Actually, I am the one who browsed properties located close to his office… of course, the first time he had visited houses for sale, he had been taken in some unsafe neighbourhoods… people from outside of town are easy preys for real estate agents who know they will have a hard time selling those properties to Ottawa residents! The second time, after research on the net, I went with them to visit houses in a safe neighbourhood located at only 10 minutes from Mark’s office. I remember, back in 2000, my real estate agent had done the very same thing: he had selected properties where selling was tough… yet he had not counted on the fact I had been studying in Ottawa some 30 years earlier!… No matter how many years go by, these neighbourhoods never lose their bad reputation…

Anyways… Mark will live in a quiet neighbourhood and he will not have to cross town to get to work. Besides touring houses for sale, we had dinner at Social on Sussex (in the Byward Market) where we were able to eat outdoors in their cosy garden… I would have liked to have him see more of Ottawa but I was busy with work and he had lots to do in terms of paperwork too! It is a raincheck because, soon, he will be here permanently and I will be able to show him interesting spots: «Ce n’est que partie remise!»…

I was so happy when I got that phone call from Pam Monday morning when she told me she had obtained her level C in oral interaction… There was no doubt in my mind that she would get it yet I am not sure she was convinced… In the last two months, I had been working on de-programming her, teaching her grammar basics and bringing back her natural way of speaking in French. All along, I had been able to see that she was skeptical… What I was actually asking from her was to undo and unlearn whatever she had been taught in the nine months she had spent in a boot camp… And, trust me, it was not easy for her… I also did understand why she was reluctant… she had taken the oral interaction test twice and she had failed to get her C… her confidence was quite shaken by the time I started training with her. Was I gambling?… Not really… I know my method, strategy and tips are almost infallible… yet I had to give her back the necessary confidence to tackle that test!.. I was aware that, if I failed to do so, chances were that she would not get her required level… In other words, my reputation was on the line (well… not really, but I saw it this way)!… I did not have nine months to teach her full-time the grammar basics she needed to know so that she could organize her speech the way Francophones do… I only had eight weeks, part-time… «C’était pour ainsi dire une course contre la montre!»… I am always focused but, this time, I was even more focused than ever!

Our first weeks together were very challenging… I was asking her to forget about what she had memorized and I wanted her to speak naturally, without using those useless «mots-liens» that nobody uses in real life contexts… In other words, I was demolishing the cult of brainwashing already well engrained in her mind… My unorthodox method was not agreeing with what she had been told!… Many times, she encountered frustration and temptation to burst into tears!… Slowly, but surely, she learned how to trust me and my judgment… it certainly did not happen overnight!… And I never gave up: it would have been the easy way out and I could not let her down and do to her what others had done by telling her that she had fossilized habits that could never be fixed…

In my book she never failed to get her level C: those who were supposed to teach her and bring her up to that level did fail to do their job!… First, alledged teachers in language schools have no expertise in the field: they speak French and they have a university degree (it does not matter if this degree is in theology or physics!) – real experts are not found there because the pay cheque is ridiculous!… second, they do not care whether their trainees achieve their levels or not… and finally they do not see the importance of connecting with their students. As for support, they do not provide any mainly because they are not interested in their students’ ups and downs… It is never about “trust us, we know what we are doing”, it is only about “do what we tell you to do and shut up!”…

How many people did those teachers traumatize?… What is the extent of the damages they cause by not paying attention to their trainees’ needs and concerns?… How many civil servants never managed to meet the language requirements of their positions, thinking that they were at fault and they would never be able to achieve their goals?… Too many indeed! Pam was the lucky one!… She was pretty devastated when I had met her two months ago… yet today she feels empowered and she knows that she can communicate in French in a very efficient way!… Me telling her so was not enough, she had to believe it herself and now, she does!… She will take the written expression test again in 10 days because she knows she will be able to get her C… I will see her a few hours to prepare her and I know she will make it!

All it takes is to believe in someone… Pam believed in me and I believed in her and, together, we succeeded!… It was tough at times, but we also had some great moments!… I am really proud of her!!!

Speaking of pride… I heard from Melody before dinner: she got her B in both reading comprehension and written expression… another success story… Now we are facing an even greater challenge: the oral interaction exam… but I am confident that she will make it!

Congratulations Melody!

“Les défis vous font découvrir sur vous-même des choses que vous ne soupçonniez pas.  C’est ce qui vous grandit et vous pousse au-delà des limites”

David Lyle Boren

That being said, what teachers tell their students (adults as well as children) have greater impact that one may think… I remember, 10 years ago, when Andy had told me he wanted to quit French after only a couple of weeks of part-time training. Of course I had asked him “But why?”… “I’m a slow learner” had been his answer… “And who labeled you as a slow learner besides yourself?”… “Well… all my French teachers, when I was a kid, told me I was too dumb to learn a second language!”… Useless to say that I was shocked!… Other times, other mentality would you think… Well… such statements, unfortunately, are still around… A few months ago, a couple of days before her oral interaction test, Pam was told she had fossilized habits that could never be fixed!… I beg your pardon?… Who would state something like this? Only someone trying to cover up for their own incompetence… It is so easy to let students take the blame for their failure! Yet… was everything done to help them achieve? I seriously doubt it!…

In 1999, I had taught French to a young woman who had been denied French training for several years based upon the fact she had failed the kurd test!… At the time she was fluent in English and German, but she was told she could never learn a second language (she already had a second language!). Such decisions are beyond my understanding!… If I had to take that stupid audio test, I would fail big time because I am anything but auditive!… I thought this test had been discarded a long time ago when I found out that two of my students had taken it in 2007… they had been given a nice personalized brochure with their learning styles explained in it: it looked like those certificates veterinarians give to their clients so that they will not forget about their pets’ next vaccination!… I wonder how much this testing and analysis cost to Canadian tax payers! I prefer not knowing actually… especially since this whole process is not an accurate diagnosis of people’s learning abilities! But I am sure it is a perfect way of screening people before they under’go second language training…

In the course of my practice I met several people who, like Andy and Pam, did not have sweet memories of their French courses in school. When came the time to go on training so that they could meet the language requirements of their positions, it was more than stressful!… Over the years, they had learned how to compensate for their learning differences and they were achievers… the mere idea of going in a setting that would bring them back where they were once, feeling truly miserable, was enough to prevent them from learning…

I can accept (with reluctance though) the fact that, with groups, teachers cannot really adapt their teaching methods to answer these students’ specific learning needs… yet, it is easy to have small groups of people who learn more or less the same way. It will not happen soon in language schools though!… They prefer to ignore those differences and blame the students instead!… Why would they not since those people’s employer could not care less about their fate anyways?… They are not interested in divulging this kind of problems because they would have to change quite a few things regarding their stiff teaching methods! What I do not buy is that no effort is made to help these students out in one-on-one training!… Though I am not sure their so-called teachers can actually see the problem!

A couple of weeks ago I had a short conversation with someone who trains  and prepare civil servants for their SLE tests… we were discussing language schools’ methods when she said “How many times shall we repeat the same grammar notions over and over without success?… It’s the student’s problem!”… Well… we shall repeat as many times as needed!… And we shall adapt our teaching methods to this student’s learning styles and special needs… Maybe some of them will never manage to pass the PSC SLE tests (only because of the nature of these exams) yet they will be able to communicate in French! And, in my book, the ultimate goal is not passing tests: it is to communicate…

Andy who was alledgedly too dumb to learn French is now bilingual and, while he was my student, he wrote the most creative and beautiful stories I was ever given to read… As for Pam, I did fix most of her fossilized habits in two months… So tell me… who is to blame?… 

“L’incompétence règne dans toutes les relations et, avec le temps, elle produit très naturellement l’indifférence”

Thomas Bernhard

I have been seriously reflecting on this lately… my thoughts were triggered by comments posted on the forums of an online education site (which, by the way, I will not name here because it is only one among many)… This site, as well as all the other similar ones, provides teachers with a platform so that they can start their own online teaching/tutoring business… Of course, many people are lured by the idea of having their own business… therefore there is a growing number of tutors/teachers signing up… although many are inactive or left the site a long time ago… yet figures show that there are many teachers working… It is the same with students: most of them do not take either private sessions or classes… but it looks good from a statistic point of view!… A quick tour of the classes offered on the site is enough to realize that there are not thousands of individuals registered in any of them… and the ones that are popular are the ones that are free…

For months, teachers have been ranting about students’ no-shows trying to find a solution (and some threads are now heating up)… most of the time, people sign up for classes with no real intent to ever attend… why do they do that?… well… your guess is as good as mine… Then, lately, it came out that many teachers do not dare to show up for the classes they opened… I guess they left the site (for any reasons) and, since they did not have the ability to cancel their classes and probably did not know that someone from the staff could have done it for them, they just left things the way they were!… I agree that it is not what is expected from professionals… anyone with a minimum of professionalism would ask for their accounts, profiles and classes be deleted…

Actually it is precisely where the problem is!… Since there is no screening done, anyone can sign up as a teacher/tutor… it is not rare to see someone with two profiles: one as a student and another one as a teacher… credentials are not important, therefore one can see several teenagers (some as young as 13) teaching!… I agree that some kids are smart cookies, yet they cannot teach!… To some extent, it is kind of insulting for experienced professional teachers!… Do you know many teenagers who are mature and responsible enough to hold a steady and demanding job such as teaching?… They will often neglect doing their school homework to go out with their friends and party!…

In a way, I do feel sad for the few true professional teachers who devote time and effort into trying to make their living on such sites… yet I cannot understand why they stick around while they could be using their time and energy in building their own online business… People who teach on those online education sites are not operating their own business: their status is similar to employees’ status, yet without a  regular salary and social benefits!…

Own a business means controlling everything from A to Z: targeting a specific clientele, establishing prices and methods of payment, choosing the proper tools, setting the rules, deciding on the ideal environment, etc… The minute there is a middle man, it is no longer someone’s business… it is the middle man’s business! He has total control on everything: rules (if there are any), methods of payment, type of clientele, platform, etc… and he takes a substantial percentage on the money his teachers earn!… If teachers want changes, they are invited to post their ideas on the Idea Board… the ones that agree with the middle man’s agenda might be adopted, but the ones rocking the boat are discarded!… Such an environment only creates frustration and dissatisfaction among teachers…

Yet I see people who are still trying to change things… investing time and energy into something that is doomed to fail! Unfortunately, teachers are not known for their business skills… it is why most of them work in the regular schooling system (grade schools, high schools, colleges and universtities). Only the ones who have an excellent sense of entrepreneuship can succeed in business!…

People who are not afraid of taking risks, however, can become very successful!… And I do believe that some can learn a few skills that would help them start their own business… All it takes is the will to succeed, some positive aggressiveness, some money, a good plan, a specific niche, some market research, a professional logo, attractive business cards and brochures, a domain name, a website, a blog (providing useful and accurate info), a good network (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other similar social networks are not the best – at least, not for training businesses), experience, credentials, excellent references and a platform (one branded with their business names that can be rented yearly – no strings attach) that suits their specific needs.

Of course, all of the above demand time and effort… it is not something that will happen overnight… On the other hand, if well done, success is almost guaranteed! Considering the hours and energy consumed in ranting on the forums of sites that will alledgedly allow teachers to become successful entrepreneurs (the question is: when? if ever…), I truly believe that people who are seriously contemplating the idea of having their own online teaching business would be better off on their own… unless they do think they still have some precious time left to waste on false promises…

Bottom line, it is a matter of personal choice… when teachers choose to work with a middle man, they have to accept the fact that it will never be their call to change whatever they do not like… they either stop complaining and try to make the best out of  a situation that is far from being ideal or they decide to take risks and jump in unknown waters where possibilities are endless…

“Je suis agnostique. Ce qui ne veut pas dire que je ne crois pas, mais que je ne sais pas si je crois”

François Mitterand

That being said, I finally heard from Christie who got her results earlier this week. She got a B… I am sure she was very close to the C otherwise her results would have come in the day after her oral test. It took six days!… I guess someone listened to her tape more than once… before making their final decision. It is great that she got the required level for her job position, yet I know that she is a C… I often wonder if assessors are influenced by the actual level people are seeking. I have seen numerous candidates being assessed for a B level and then be taken in the fourth part of the test… on the other hand, none ever received a C… My question is: why?… If they were strong enough to be taken in the last part of the interview (which is for the C level), why do they always end up with a B?… In a way I think it is truly unfair to them… Some people will get a B while they are border line with the A and others will get a B rating as well while they are very close to the C (if not really a C!)… We can argue with the nonsense of both the written expression and the reading comprehension tests… yet they come with a score and people know if they are a weak B or a strong B… With the oral evaluation, no one has the means to know whether their performance was weak or strong. Perhaps it is time to introduce the B-, B and B+ notion!… Something that is in force in the school system! Oh well… anything that would make sense does not seem to be appreciated by the Public Service Commission of Canada. NEVERTHELESS…

Congratulations Christie!

Today I saw Marina for the last time before her oral interview in English next Monday. She was confident and calm… I am sure that, this time, she will go there and get her C…  I will certainly be thinking of her and sending her positive vibes…

Good Luck Marina!

Now that I gave you an update on the latest developments, I would like to address a topic that kind of heated up a forum this week. I think that the individual who, a few days ago, started this thread only wished to provoke an interesting discussion among teachers and education professionals. I actually read all of the comments, but I did not want to get involved by giving my opinion… at some point I felt that the author of the thread and another person were in an open war. I have no problems with people voicing their opinions yet I do believe that people must remain civilized by not attacking each other. Personally I do have strong opinions and I am not afraid of publishing them… but I am always careful not to attack people personally… of course I do question (and yes sometimes attack) systems that seem obsolete or crooked…  and I firmly believe that people like me are somewhat needed to uncover what is wrong with those systems. I am fully aware that I cannot change them… yet I like to picture myself as an eye opener. I consider that people need to know about systems flaws… if ever we want to see change happen, we first have to be informed.

De retour à mes moutons… je digresse ce soir!… Without getting too deep in the topic that was discussed, I will only say that it was about some language teaching method used in some organization in some foreign country. Apparently it would be a method that denies a couple of myths regarding the way adults learn a language… Adults cannot learn a language the way children do was among those myths (and the one that provoked quite a war). I am not an expert therefore I do not know whether adults can or cannot learn a language like children do… however I can state that adults do not learn the way children do… I do not think it is a matter of being able or unable, it is only a matter of how they learn. I do not care about researches and theories, I have seen enough adults (young and older) in my practice to see the differences. If adults and kids learned the same way, there would not be a distinction between pedagogy and andragogy…

This revolutionary method apparently works very well… once again I am not here to confirm or infirm that… I am no expert! BUT… I am incredibly skeptical… adults would learn a foreign language only by listening: for 800 hours, they would be compelled to silence… it would be similar to what infants go through before they can speak. Well… kids start speaking when they know how to make sounds other than cries and laughters… and even when they are only a few months old, they really want to form sounds (except that they cannot)… the minute they can articulate and produce sounds that are words, no one can stop them right? I can only imagine a group of adults not allowed to speak for almost seven months (assuming they are on full-time training)!… I am not here to argue about the results: apparently people learn how to speak the language this way!… It is probably some kind of brainwash… yet it is absolutely not the way children learn how to speak! Kids babble and talk all the time… surrounded by adults who correct them on a regular basis…

In a way I think it is kind of funny… although my students are reluctant to speak when they are beginners (it is more a matter of pride than anything else), if one day I would tell them that it is okay to not speak for the next 800 hours, I believe it would actually give them the little push they need to jump in the water and start talking… What adult would accept to keep silent for months?… maybe in some other cultures… but certainly not here! And… yes I do disagree with such method! Indeed I do disagree with much less drastic methods such as the ones used in the boot camps around here… Learning a language is about being allowed to express oneself, to make mistakes, to screw up tenses and having fun!

Règlements auxquels devront se soumettre ceux qui entreront céans:

6.

 Ils discuteront sans colère ni passion

10.

Toute dispute devra rester à l’abri  des indiscrets, et ce qui entrera dans une oreille devra sortir par l’autre avant de quitter les lieux