#teachingisfun

Lately, the topic of low standards has been super hot on social media. I have experience both in teaching and in further training foreign language teachers. That’s why I’ve decided to gather my thoughts and knowledge on this topic. I talk about teachers who set low standards, low standards in learning grammar, cultural and geographical aspects, and world knowledge as a whole.

Do teachers set low standards?

Being a certified teacher trainer, I have noticed that some teachers set low standards for their students. In addition, they have low expectations for their learners.

We know that teachers’ expectations affect students’ outcomes.

Only teachers set standards, not students. I believe it is absolutely wrong when students set the standards of the learning process. Moreover, teachers affect student achievement because high expectations usually improve performance, whereas low expectations seem to undermine achievement.

For example, teachers do not expect that their students will actually do their tasks at home. If students just do their tasks, they automatically get extra points for it. Is it the way it should be? It is like coming to work and getting paid just because you came to work. Nonsense? I think so.

Low expectations limit our abilities to develop and grow because having low expectations of accomplishing something is not a wonderful way to make any changes. In addition, because of it, we might feel helpless and desperate.

One of my favorite research studies shows the method of not only measuring teacher expectations but also covering the debate of whether the challenge level and teachers’ statements impact learners’ performance. This is called “The Pygmalion Effect.”

No doubt, it’s useful to set high expectations. Then we can push ourselves to perform better. Moreover, when other people have low expectations of us, we tend to perform worse.

Other research studies show that people also usually perform better when others have high expectations of them. We tend to believe that others see us as capable and we actually can accomplish more than we think about oversleeves. Then we can push ourselves to perform better. Moreover, when other people have low expectations of us, we tend to perform worse.

(Soon, I will publish a blog post – “Do teachers set low standards?”)

Grammar and low standards

Have you ever heard from a student who makes mistakes, and you correct them, “But people will understand me, right?” I have heard it. Often. For example, “Yesterday, I go shopping.” Most likely people will understand that a person is talking about a past event. But, as a teacher, I know that sometimes learners have difficulties memorizing adverbs and adverbs of frequency. Some confuse “yesterday” with “usually”, for instance. 

As a teacher, I know which vocabulary and grammar structures my learners have mastered and I understand what they mean.

Most likely, people will also understand what a person is talking about. But not always. In some cases, the person you are talking to might be irritated by such a conversation. From my experience, I know that learners sometimes have difficulty remembering the meaning of time adverbs such as “always”, “sometimes”, “yesterday”, etc. For example, some people confuse the meaning of the words “yesterday” and “usually.” This knowledge is one of the standards that we should not neglect because it can disrupt communication.

The question: “But people will understand me, right?” makes me sad.

Then I wonder why they pay money to take lessons from me. You could download a free app and learn a foreign language to that so to say level. Besides, others will understand a speaker with your hands and feet.

World Knowledge

World knowledge refers to having an understanding and awareness of many different subjects and disciplines or knowledge domains. People often call it background or prior knowledge. For example, when students come across “Picasso” in a lesson, I assume they know who he is and what he is famous for. The authors of the textbooks also count on this when they create exercises and texts taking world knowledge into account. However, if some students do not remember this info from the school curriculum, there is nothing wrong with revising. 

I always encourage my students to look some information up during lessons or even as a part of their homework.  Also, I am always happy to spend a few minutes in lessons talking about something that is considered world knowledge. 

On the contrary, it breaks my heart when we read about famous inventors or landmarks during a lesson, and students do not care about them and claim that they will never need this knowledge in real life. 

First of all, they may need this information when they take an exam. Second of all, world knowledge shows intelligence. Right?

This knowledge is primarily helpful when taking an international exam: it helps to recognize the meaning of unknown words from the context and to understand connections in the text. Without this knowledge, it is usually difficult to understand the meaning of idiomatic expressions. For example, is it good or bad to catch a few z’s?

More reasons to learn about world knowledge

Besides, world knowledge shows intelligence, right? Plus, we need world knowledge to become better readers and listeners and improve critical thinking.

In addition, world knowledge plays a significant part in understanding the world and our put in it. By procuring and applying information, we are ready to create a sense of the complexities of the world around us, clarify why things happen the way they do, and distinguish designs and connections.

What I see is that sometimes people are O.K. with their current world knowledge. Thus, they may find new information useless. 

The brightest example is geography. When we read a text about LA (the topic of traveling), they often don’t care where Los Angeles is. If it is in England or the USA. I find it frustrating as it is also general knowledge. 

Sometimes when I ask them about their reasons why they are reluctant to learn new information, they say that they will never use it.

International exams and world knowledge

If you think that world knowledge is not a crucial part of teaching, think of international exams. The reading, listening, and writing tasks and speaking topics take into account not only world knowledge but also general knowledge about the countries in which the language learned is the official language. They all have not only world knowledge components but also general knowledge of countries where the learned language is official. For example, if you teach Spanish, then your students should know about cultural customs, famous painters, singers, geographic peculiarities, etc. not only of Spain but also of 21 countries. I do remember when I was learning Spanish and I loved such parts of lessons that included general knowledge. We had lists with some must-know points and it was fascinating. Everyone in my group learned them with pleasure.

Learning idioms

It is important to learn idioms as they will help you to demonstrate cultural knowledge. Also, when you use idioms in your speech you show your appreciation of the culture in which the language was developed. They reflect history, values, and your deep interest in a language that is being learned. 

Moreover, knowing the origins of idioms will help to learn idioms by heart, too.

For example,

Pass with flying colors

Meaning: to succeed at something difficult with ease.

Origin: in the 1600s, warships would fly their colored flags (usually signifying their country) after a victory. If you saw a ship pass with colored flags flying, you could assume they just won a battle at sea.

Steal someone’s thunder

Meaning: to upstage someone and take the attention or praise from them.

Origin: John Dennis was a playwriter in the early 1700s. He invented a new method for replicating the sound of thunder for his new production. Something about metal balls being rolled around in a wooden mustard bowl. Anyway, after his play failed and was canceled Dennis was outraged when he found out his “patented” thunder sound was being used in a production of Macbeth. Dennis was quoted saying “Damn them! They will not let my play run, but they steal my thunder.”

Sleep tight

Meaning: used to tell someone to sleep well

Origin: one possible origin of this phrase dates back to when mattresses were supported by ropes. Sleeping tight meant sleeping with the ropes pulled tight, which would provide a well-sprung bed.

There are some other benefits of learning idioms. For instance, they improve communication skills and fluency.

Improve communication skills

When learners use idioms in conversations, using the language they are learning, they have more chances to express themselves better. If learners translate idioms from their mother tongue, people will not always understand them.

A bright example from the German language: “Hinz & Kunz”

Can you guess?

Meaning: everyone (usually meant in a derogatory way). The origin: In the Middle Ages, many boys were named Heinrich (Hinz) or Konrad (Kunz) after kings. So in the 13th century, it felt like every boy was called Hinz or Kunz.

Another benefit of learning proverbs and idioms is that learners can add interest and humor. Such conversations are usually more memorable and fascinating.

A terrible formula for success

According to my experience, people who have high expectations and low standards expect that they will succeed in learning a foreign language and pass exams with flying colors. But this formula does not lead to success. My eighteen years of teaching experience have confirmed this.

It is so much better when students have high standards. Such learners are more motivated and more hungry for knowledge.

How I deal with learners with low standards

I am lucky to have had not many learners who have low standards in learning foreign languages. However, when I have such learners, I do my best to explain all the pros and cons of having low standards (the ones that are in this blog post). In addition, I encourage my students to learn new information about other cultures and suggest different ways of learning. For example, if my learner prefers watching videos instead of reading texts, then I choose interesting videos from YouTube. Usually, it works.

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Share your experience of teaching learners with low standards in the comments below.

Used sources:

Freeman, C. (2008). Teacher efficacy and its impact on student achievement. https://epublications.regis.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1015&context=theses

Jackson, R. (n.d.). Do high standards equal high expectations?. Do high standards equal high expectations? | Announce | University of Nebraska-Lincoln. https://newsroom.unl.edu/announce/csmce/9393/54548

Medcalf, A. (2020, January 15). You’ve got to have high standards and low expectations. Abby Medcalf. https://abbymedcalf.com/youve-got-to-have-high-standards-and-low-expectations-2/

Rosenthal, R. (2007, September 2). The pygmalion effect and its mediating mechanisms. Improving Academic Achievement. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/B9780120644551500051

shen, Y. (2008, November). An exploration of schema theory in intensive reading. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1082790.pdf

Sigsworth, L. (2022, March 16). The importance of world knowledge to the ELT classroom #1 – why do students need it?: Cambridge English. World of Better Learning | Cambridge University Press. https://www.cambridge.org/elt/blog/2015/08/17/importance-general-world-knowledge-elt-classroom-1-students-need-world-knowledge/

agalvis, A. de la entrada                            Por. (n.d.-b). Curiosidad. “Tirar la toalla” no debe su origen al boxeo… Comit Olmpico Colombiano.

Pan comido – Wikcionario, El Diccionario libre. Wikcionario. (n.d.). https://es.wiktionary.org/wiki/pan_comido

todos, F. para. (n.d.). Recursos para Jóvenes y Profesores. ¿Sabías de dónde viene la expresión “Tirar la casa por la ventana”?