Nothing is ever good enough...

[Kerrian]

...for the subordinate of the guy who hired me. She suggested me: I run English workshops for university students.

And EVERY time someone doesn't turn up two weeks in a row, she says that I've done something wrong, clearly, and that I'm doing a bad job and I need to change my teaching methods.

 

Keep in mind: This is a casual English conversation workshop, for learners who are at an advanced level, and want to discuss topics and gain vocab.

First of all, me and my coworker ran a casual conversation without much structure, we kept it very casual, and although not all the people came back every week, they all came back.

But apparently, that didn't have enough structure.

So I changed the way we were doing things, and wrote up a load of lesson plans.

We've been running those, she sent along a whole group of new people all of different levels, and the class went pretty well.

Though about three people out of 20 didn't come back, because apparently, learning vocabulary and grammar was "dull"...which was what I was told they wanted to learn.

 

So this week again, she came up to me and told me that. She said, straight out to me, "Some of last weeks people thought your class was boring, so they didn't come back."

And then left.

 

It's really frustrating me, because at the moment - I haven't been paid for this job. I've been doing it for months, and I still haven't been paid.

She sends along loads of students to me who just have no motivation. Some of them don't want to be there, clearly, some of them don't even say a word - even when asked to introduce themselves.

She's the one who ordered me to write lesson plans, and now she wants me to drop the lesson plans because actually learning the language isn't exciting enough?!

 

The people who come back over and over again - are the ones who participate. They're the ones who actually put something into the lesson and discuss things. They're the ones who have conversation, and don't just sit in the corner looking like they'd rather be anywhere else from the moment they walk in.

I don't WANT students like that...

Some of them can't even form sentences in English, and seem to have no urge to do so, even when the rest of the class helps...so why even come along?

 

It's a voluntary class. People can come and go as they please, I don't know why the girl who is constantly on my case doesn't understand that, and I currently feel incredibly demotivated. I feel like quitting, because nothing I do is good enough, and after I think a class has gone well and I feel good about it, she tells me something like that and I just feel awful for the next week, and then incredibly pressured to do something amazing for my next class, which won't be good enough for her either.

Why SHOULD everyone from last week turn up this week, when its clearly posted as a casual class?

You turn up when you want to, that's kind of the point of it not being a class!

 

Argh. I just don't know what to do.

[DN]

What were you supposed to have been paid and why haven't you received any money?

[Kerrian]

I haven't received anything yet because I'm an English worker in France, and there is a lot of admin to do before I can get paid. I've sent off my forms, and I now have to wait a few weeks for them to be approved.

I'm employed by a university directly - so it's just a matter of the French administrative system being slow more than anything.

Not being paid isn't really the problem: the job was originally voluntary.

[WockaWocka]

Glad the payment stuff is squared away; I was worried about that too. Her standards seem completely unreasonable and whether or not people return doesn't seem like a good metric for a casual voluntary class. Teaching is not the same thing as being entertaining. Now if it was a paid structured course I could understand why they'd be concerned about dropouts, but these people haven't committed to the program in any formal way, right?

 

I'd suggest you request a meeting with her AND her supervisor and ask for clear guidelines on the goals and structure of the course and on how they're evaluating you--is return attendance the best metric, or whether people have learned something at the end, etc? The key opinion that matters is that of the guy who hired you, the guy you'd potentially want a reco from, right? So square things away with him and try to focus on what he wants; if she requests a change then run it by him first. Express your concern that students won't come back if you change the curriculum and structure every week to suit her whims. (But phrase it respectfully!

[Kerrian]

^ Thank you.

The guy who hired me is a lot more relaxed about things, and seems to be content that there is a class at all. He's happy as long as we turn up, and we have people attending. Basically, what he wants - is for us to teach English.

I've asked for clear guidelines more than once, and all I get back is: "Run it how you want, as long as it works."

Which clearly isn't true, but I can't get anything clear from them.

 

It's just very frustrating as an unofficial teacher when you get put down every week.

And I'm not doing a bad job, because I've had positive emails from my students, and the ones who turn up every week are always enthusiastic.

[WockaWocka]

I've asked for clear guidelines more than once, and all I get back is: "Run it how you want, as long as it works."

Which clearly isn't true, but I can't get anything clear from them.

 

This is why having a meeting where they sit together with you and she throws out her ideas and he reacts would be a good move on your part, I think. Otherwise she may just talk bad about you to him.

 

But if you're sure he's okay with whatever you're doing and you think the current structure is effective then listen to her ideas, thank her for sharing, politely tell her you'll take them under advisement, and keep using your best judgment. As long as she thinks you're taking her seriously she may back down.

[DN]

What authority does she have over you? Do you report to her or the guy who hired you?

[Kerrian]

I report to the guy who hired me, but she is the one who originally suggested me for the position, so I assume she feels some sort responsibility for how well I do.

She's also someone who helps out in a more authoritative position at the Language Centre, so she's in a superior position to me, but only just.

[DN]

If she does not have direct supervisory authority - tell her that you will attend to the directions of your boss.

[catfeeder]

Is there a way you can capture feedback from your students that will include input from the better students? You can negotiate plans for using this feedback along with ranges of acceptability. Then whutsername will need to speak to the percentages instead of using stray outliers as a means to bludgeon you.

 

Head high.

[Guest]

You might want to just suck it up and keep doing whatever she tells you to do. Then, if a review comes down from the higher ups, you have someone to blame. You were just following orders after all, right? I know that excuse didn't exactly work in say, the Nuremberg Trials, but if you want to keep the job you'll have to keep being diplomatic even when you don't want to. Diplomacy is saying, "Nice doggy," while searching for a rock.

[Kerrian]

As an update on this situation - have just had a new round of this ridiculous game she appears to be playing with me.

Today, half my class didn't turn up.

Why? Because she didn't bother going to meet them where she does every week.

She then had the nerve to pull me aside at the end of my class and ask me why my students didn't turn up, and (to my coworker, while I was still in the room) accused me of "improvising" my lessons, and not planning anything properly, when my coworker and she knows full well that I write up detailed lesson plans every week. I email them to her, for goodness sake!

She has said that she is going to move us to a smaller room because we don't get enough people, and told me that I would be better off running my lessons straight out of a book.

 

I've spoken to my students, they love the new lesson structure - my Thursday group keeps getting bigger every week, and the students are motivated to speak. I can hardly get them to shut up after 5 minutes!

I think what she doesn't take into account is that the class in question is voluntary class for university students, on a Monday evening - in an out-of-the-way building not even on the main campus. All my students have to travel 30 minutes bus ride out of town where most of them live, just to get to my class, and then they're only here for an hour. I know I wouldn't turn up religiously...

 

But seriously, I've had enough of this, I still haven't been paid - due to problems with the university office, and considering I'm leaving France in a month's time, it looks like I'm not going to be.

This is ludicrously stressful for what is a voluntary, two-day/week job that I haven't even signed a contract for. She's directly contradicting what my boss has told me, and she comes back with a new complaint every single week.

I've sent an email directly to my boss, and I'm going to see what his reply is, but this is honestly too much. I don't know what her problem is, or why she is so intent on sabotaging what I do - but it's not worth it.

[DN]

Did you lay out to your boss what she is saying, what is the truth and that you are considering leaving because you are being harassed for no good reason and hyou haven't even been paid?

[Kerrian]

Yes, and I've just had the response.

My boss is amazed that she's been interfering so much, has told me that she's been acting on her own and that he completely condones how I'm running my classes at the moment, and has been impressed at how pleased my students are.

 

I'll wait to see if this backs her down at all, but it's certainly reassuring!

[WockaWocka]

^ great news! I say from now on whenever she tries to pull you aside for another chat, just state very assertively that you're coordinating your plans with the director. You can even say "thanks for your feedback" if you think it will get her to go away or if it will irritate her greatly. and if she's so concerned about logistics then ask her to look into your payment. (Who knows, maybe she's part of what's preventing you from getting paid??)

 

Given the conditions you describe (Monday night, voluntary class, out of the way, etc) I'm impressed you get as many students to show up as you do. I'm a TA for a university class in the US and we're lucky if 2/3s of the students show up -- and they're getting credit for it!!

[Kerrian]

^ Thanks!

I think I will do just that. I don't want to get confrontational with her, but if it comes to it - I now have, direct from my boss, the words: "continue with exactly what you're doing now!"

So, it puts my mind at rest that I'm not doing something horribly wrong.

 

As for attendance - it depends. It fluctuates a lot, (from between 30 students to 6!) because we're a voluntary class, but we've got decent attendance overall. But you know how university students are (I'm guilty of precisely the same thing!). They turn up when they feel like it, and to be honest, that's what this class is for in the first place! Granted, that means that if there's snow on the ground, or some big event going on in town, or something - our numbers plummet; but that's pretty understandable and normal.

It's not marked, it's not on a syllabus - it's to get them comfortable speaking...

 

Anyway, I feel a lot better about all this now, and I've forwarded my boss' message to my helper as well - because the assistant has started on her as well. So, hopefully we can move on from here and we'll both feel more confident in what we're doing.