Teaching Young Learners

My Classroom Is
Teens 13-17

The aim of this task is to promote self-reflection. Look at the following activities and decide
which statement you most agree with in relation to your class. You may then decide to reflect
on the findings individually or to discuss them with a colleague or group of colleagues. Do you
like what you find? Or is there anything you would like to change? If so, what would you
change and how?

My classroom is often / usually / never a...

haven jungle zoo

coffee shop theatre

disaster area child-minding service

joy therapy couch party

boxing ring circus seat of learning

maze prison

? ? ?

playground retreat nightmare

(based on an idea by Shona Thomson The Society for the Prevention of

Stagnation in MET Vol 3 No 2 199

British Council 2013 1

 Teaching Young Learners

Which of the following techniques do / would you use in the classroom?

Decide if each technique represents a carrot (incentive) or stick (punishment).
Is each technique acceptable or not?

Technique Carrot Stick Acceptable

or not?

Give a student an onerous task to do

Ask a student to stand in the corner
Ask a student to stand up
Send a student out of the room
Praise a students work
Use peer pressure to control one student
Give a student extra homework
Praise a students behaviour
Keep a student behind after class
Threaten to phone a students parent
Give lines
Send a student to the Manager / Senior Teacher
Keep the class in detention
Smack a student
Squeeze a students shoulder
Shout at students
Speak very quietly to a noisy class
Split the class into groups and have a competition with prizes for
the winners
Ridicule a child in front of the class
Phone parents to gain their support
Have a time out chair for cooling-off
Using stirrer and settler activities to vary the pace

British Council 2013 2

 Teaching Young Learners

Notes

British Council 2013 3