On one end of the spectrum there may be one or two students in a class who to the teacher's delight have an energy and charisma that sweeps the class along in its wake. These students add to the positive chemistry of the learning environment and encourage the shyer student to risk taking a more active role. When these students are absent, a tangible change takes place in the class almost as if someone had punctured a balloon. But when they are present they invite light hearted joking, competition for answering questions, and provide added help for a struggling classmate. The other side of the coin, of course, is that this chatty student may monopolize all the Q and A time, or rush in with answers before his fellows have a chance to formulate the right word order for the answer they may readily know. A remedy that can be useful is the "five elephant" rule. I use this for many situations from discipline to ensuring I allow enough wait time for students to think of an answer. It's quite simple. If you silently think, "one elephant, two elephants, three elephants, four elephants, five elephants," you have effectively waited for five seconds. By teaching an overly exuberant student to count five or seven or ten elephants, you give other students a more level playing field. They also feel less in competition with the stronger student. This should be explained to the elephant student so they also feel appreciated and needed. It is wise to remember that the school experiences we offer this population might be their first beyond a few years of elementary school. The opportunities for them to be recognized and receive kudos may only exist within the four walls of our ESL classrooms.
The opposite side of the spectrum is the painfully shy student who looks as though he or she is getting ready to bolt at any given second. They may shrink into the woodwork if they think they might be called upon. The teacher can be very comforting and nurturing, but if the student walks in the door with a lot of excess baggage, our greatest allies are going to be kindness and time. I like to build an atmosphere of trust and some minor risk taking for the first few weeks of classes. I often tell my students that the best audience they will ever have in their lives is surrounding them at that very moment. When I ask questions, I use a failsafe method of stress relief I learned from a presenter some years ago. In the TV show, "Who wants to be a Millionaire," contestants are asked questions and given options if they don't know the answers. They may phone a friend, survey the audience, or have two of the possible answers removed. The first two work very well in a classroom. If a student can't answer, he can ask a classmate. If that isn't satisfactory, we can poll the rest of the class. It becomes a more of a game and the spotlight isn't focused brightly on an uncomfortable deer in the headlights student.
The most worrisome group I find in my classes are those I call the "invisible students." I can easily learn the names of the class clowns and the shrinking violets by the end of the first week. They stand out and have obvious needs. But what about the students who turn in the work, cooperate nicely in groups, then fade into the background out of sight and out of mind? It is very easy to allow them to continue on, passing quizzes, contributing to class, and not giving the teacher grief. But I wonder if they are receiving equal access to English learning. We tend to call on the people we are familiar with and the names we know. The invisible students are usually the last ones I commit to memory. A small solution has been to keep an index card printed with each students name. As I circulate around the room, I can call students equally as I go through the pack. I have learned from experience to shuffle the cards often as student anticipate the location of their name and pay attention accordinly. Another way of providing equal access to everyone is to hand out our trusty index cards (do invest in shares of this company) with the names of fruit or animals on matching pairs. As students enter, I hand out the cards and they must find their matching partner. Too often when students choose their own partners, they keep picking the same ones. By mixing the pot we equalize learning opportunities and afford a richer conversational experience for every student.
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