I make it a point not to blog about my experiences and stories from work (mainly because I am legally prevented from doing so), but I can discuss this story in vague enough terms to get my point across.
Recently a student of mine was directed to travel to New York and make a presentation in English. The tricky part was that this student had never been to mainland USA, had never made a presentation in English, and the client was a particularly challenging one. Luckily, this guy has some pull within the company and has two subordinates assigned to the trip to help him out.
So we worked for a couple of classes before the trip preparing his presentation, practicing Q&A sessions and getting him ready for the small talk before and after the meeting. The customer had previously been concerned with the quality of the presentations by the company, so there was a lot of pressure on my student to do a good job. In addition, he was personally requested to make the presentation by the president of the company, so there was some internal pressure as well.
But my student practiced hard in class, worked on his presentation during the 13 hour flight, and ended up making a very successful presentation in front of 50 native speakers of English. When he came back to my class after the trip there was not only relief in his eyes but also something else – renewed motivation to study English, I think. He said he would redouble his efforts in class and on the homework assignments, and he is requesting to join additional lessons if they become available. In short, he has gotten a taste of success, and he wants more of it.
Looking at the pictures he took of the statue of liberty and the celebration dinner afterwards (at Benjamin’s steakhouse) you could see that everything went really well on the trip.
For me it was some tangible feedback that all these hours I’m putting in teaching English at this company are bearing fruit, and that the students see that this is a skill that can really help them in dramatic ways. It is times like these when it feels great to be a teacher.
