Free Talk Time: Why Kids Deserve to be Heard
As an online ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher, I make it a point to dedicate at least five minutes of class (of thirty) to letting the students have a Free Talk Time. Free Talk Time, as the name implies, is time where the student is given the chance to speak about anything they fancy. I give them no topic; they must choose it for themselves. And as far as I’ve observed, this is the most fruitful part of my class, and the one my students look forward to the most. It is also the most important part.
Allow me to clarify that my classes are one on one, which is what allows me to converse with my students to begin with. That said, my point is not to make the case for all classes to have Free Talk Time; rather, I want to establish the importance of an education that builds people.
I could go on and on about dictionary definitions and whatnot, but I do believe this is an instance in which my point is made clearer with some anecdotal evidence. As I stated before, I am an ESL Teacher; I teach English to Chinese kids aged 5–16. Yes, I do enjoy my job quite a bit, thank you for asking.
The Free Talk Time allows these students to practice that English in a casual conversation with me. Of course there’s always that need to correct pronunciation and grammar, but that’s what I’m there for. But to me, there’s a far greater purpose to Talk Time than just applying the knowledge: giving the kids the chance to express themselves.
One of my best students is a five year old boy named ‘Ted’ (name changed for anonymity) Ted is Chinese, but his English is at a level far beyond his peers. He can read a 30 page book in one sitting (so long as it has plenty of pictures) and he loves to talk. And I do mean LOVES it! He can talk for hours on end about his favorite books, his favorite cartoons, and even his favorite cars. Because he enjoys talking, I often gear his classes towards asking his opinion on whatever stories we read. He also enjoys talking about his day, and often our classes together evolve into his recollection of whatever happened that day. This allows his English speaking skills to grow stronger, while at the same time giving him an outlet for self-expression.
Another student of mine whom I am fond of (not to suggest I am not fond of ALL my students!) is ‘Greg.’ Greg is thirteen years old, and the materials he is given is geared more towards reading exercises than grammar. As my luck would have it, I once asked what he wanted to be when he grew up, and he said “a writer.” So for that, I gear our classes towards asking him how he’d write a particular story instead.
Yet another student of mine, ‘Joey,’ loves to talk about History. His eyes just light up whenever we talk about the History of China or America! Sadly, the material he’s assigned by the company I work for (which shall remain unnamed as I’d rather not lose my job) does not integrate History into the lesson. What to do in this situation? Simply put, we finish the material he’s given, then we dedicate a good five to ten minutes of class towards Free Talk, so that he may use the English he’s learning to express himself. If he does not know a word, or if he knows it in Chinese but not English, that is where I help him. Our Free Talk sessions, this way, double as vocabulary lessons as well!
I use these Free Talk sessions to ascertain the growth of my student’s English. What did I find? That with every class, they grow more confident in their speaking skills. They talk more and more, and often start using a more varied vocabulary. The pride I feel, the satisfaction I get from seeing them grow, cannot be put into words.
Kids are people; a shocking revelation, I know. We often forget that children are still people, and like anyone else, children want to be heard. Nobody likes being ignored, to be made to feel like they don’t matter, that they are nothing. And yet often I see this happening to children daily.
I see schools closing down and children’s programing blocks being axed in favor of court shows. I see children robbed of their playtime by the piles of homework this uncaring Educational system has foisted on them. A cause of never ending grief for me is seeing my student, ‘Lee,’ struggle to keep his eyes open during our class. Why? Because our class is at eight thirty in the evening (his time) and he’s often saddled with piles of homework. He often tells me it takes him AT LEAST an hour to finish it all, but that’s on a good day. Lee is eleven, and his schooling doesn’t end until nine in the evening. No child deserves a burden like this. Hell, NOBODY deserves such a burden!
It is for this reason that I insist on giving my students their Free Talk time, to give them this chance to express themselves. And you know what I found? I found out that many of these kids are NOT averse to homework IF they feel it helps them, or if it’s something they can enjoy doing. They like learning new things, and often pay close attention if you say something interesting to them. Most importantly, they like having people who care about them.
That’s the key word: caring. Children need someone to care about them, who make it a priority to listen to their grievances and opinions. A child’s opinion is as valid as an adults; after all, an adult is just a very old child.
